When comparing the Wall Street Journal poll this past week to the actual results; WSJ measures Evangelical Christians. The small number of respondents are to be expected.

Real Clear Politics Average came fairly close to winner in the outcome in South Carolina for the Republicans.

Trump - 31.8 and SC 32.5
Rubio - 18.8 and SC 22.48
Cruz - 18.5 and SC 22.33

It is still a somewhat rough poll for second and below.

There are significant trade deficits for the USA due to NAFTA.

...The $2.5 billion (click here) U.S. goods trade surplus with Mexico and $29.6 billion deficit with Canada in 1993 turned into a combined NAFTA goods trade deficit of $177.2 billion by 2013. That’s a 556 percent, or $150.2 billion increase in the combined NAFTA deficit. Not only did goods imports soar under NAFTA, but annual growth in U.S. manufacturing exports to NAFTA partners fell 62 percent below the pre-NAFTA rate....

Re-export (click here)

Re-export controls (click here)

United States Census Bureau - Foreign Trade (click here) - the monies in the chart is not in dollars, it is in millions of dollars. So take the numbers and multiple by $1 million.

Example:

2015 Total

$58,363.70 X $1,000,000 = $58,363,700,000

Over $58 billion dollar deficit with Mexico. I guess there are a couple of ways of looking at it. Either way, however, has been bad news for the USA. These are Wall Street goods. I wonder if the US Census tracks any cottage industries trading across borders, too.

Michael Moore's work tends to breed rebels out of the most unexpected Americans.

February 19, 2016

By Dan Macrae 

Michael Moore‘s upcoming documentary Where to Invade Next (click here) has been branded an R-rated offering by the MPAA. The filmmaker’s offered up his own guide for teens to sneak into the movie (which probably got an unlikely workout from Deadpool‘s debut), but one theater chain is cutting out the middleman in getting teens past the ominious Restricted rating.

The theaters in the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema chain will be adopting a modified policy for would-be viewers aged 17 or younger that won’t be attending with a parent, guardian or drifter they paid to pose as their uncle. The company says the film is too “important” to adhere by the MPAA’s ruling and will relax their policies to allow teens aged 15 and up to see the movie without supervision. Drafthouse founder/CEO Tim League announced this plan in an open letter addressed to “The Parents of America.”...  

Where to Invade Next is a very important film. It ranks Americans among the most neglected people by their government in the First World today. Americans are going through upheavals of their social and cultural contract. The film finally calls an end to the rhetorical political America and asks; what are we thinking, what are we doing and where are we going? But, most importantly is there actually a destination at the end of our political and social priorities?

The film places Americans in esteem and breaks the taboo of what most Americans believe, "America is the greatest country on Earth." Not. But, it does say, "We can be the greatest country on Earth, again."

Congratulations Donald Trump.

This is a decisive victory for Donald Trump. He has been spending a great deal of time with the voters in these states. For a self-funded candidate he has quite a dynamic ground game. He worked for this.

I think the rest of the Republican field have problems the cannot overcome.

Congratulations to Hillary Clinton.

Bernie Sanders had a very decent showing. There is a difference of 4 percentage points. Everyone said Bernie's campaign would end in New Hampshire. Really?

The Speeches

Hillary Clinton is absolutely correct in stating she will release her speeches when everyone else does. I also believe she runs a chance of liability to her clients if she released them rather than as a political ad attack against a misstatement.

I don't believe the speeches were requested to trip up her presidential run, but, they are serving to be yet another MYSTERY attack. I only hope when the speeches finally make their way to the internet they aren't written on napkins or toilet paper.

Oh dear, oh dear, when will Hillary Clinton stop wearing armor because there are many in the world that at the very least dislike her. She has been a force for good. The fact she relies on big money donors to run her campaign and her personal funds raised because of her talent and long lived dedication; is not a fault, it is a necessity. 

Bernie Sanders is a phenomena no one thought was possible. He has the right to demand exposure of controversial elements of Hillary Clinton's candidacy. In a way it is an expression of being loyal to the Democratic Party which is a new standing for him.

Loyalty, did I say loyalty, but, he's attacking Hillary!

Indeed he is attacking Hillary and the final product is an exposed candidate that can no longer be attacked in the general election should she be the nomination.

I look forward to the remaining primaries to choose a candidate that can bring about justice in the USA. Whether it is Bernie or Hillary, I sincerely believe the problems of the Dreamers and Undocumented, younger Americans and the worry over the national debt will find a strong platform beginning on January 20, 2017.

I think there is a lot for Hillary Clinton to weigh when exposing her speeches and most of that is not politics. The rights of those receiving the speeches  can use them for fundraising or reassurances to investors. I do not believe she alone can decide to release transcripts or otherwise.

No one is sayin George W. Bush is a co-conspirator with al Qaeda. What people are saying with a great deal of validity is that George W. Bush DID NOTHING with the intelligence the country had to avoid attacks on the USA and it's citizens.

That is not co-conspiracy, it is incompetence and/or a willingness to allow a reason to war. Iraq was simply a blatant lie. "W" was corrupt and probably still is. He stated many things during his campaign in 1999-2000, but, most of what he stated were lies, except, those he carried out for his base.

Even today Bush has issues. He only talks in a variety of vernacular about war and killing an enemy yet to be identified as a direct threat to the USA.

I wish the media would stop the propaganda, I think the country knows the facts.

The CIA warning stated there would be attacks by al Qaeda within six months of it's presentation to the President. Five months later it happened. The FBI already had Moussaoui in it's sights and long before September 11, 2001. There were FACTS about the emerging attacks and Bush did nothing.

The FACT is he did nothing and the CIA PDB existed and the FBI Moussaoui was already known; states all that is obvious. He did nothing for his own reasons.

All the money spent on supposedly needed intelligence infrastructure was a way of hiding the truth. The new infrastructure has not picked up very dangerous scenarios carried out in places such as Paris, San Bernardino and New York City with a van bomb that never had a chance of explosion. It completely missed the shoe bomber and the underwear bomber and we are suppose to believe those monies were not a ruse to draw attention away from the truth.

I wasn't born yesterday and am not willing to believe the USA is safer on September 12, 2001. The intelligence agencies did their job and did it well and it worked better before the attacks of September 11, 2001 than it does today.

Who ever thought Parmesan cheese would ever be an enemy?

I hadn't seen the television segment that pointed to the fact parmesan cheese on our dinner table is not really parmesan cheese. I heard it while waiting for my tires to be changed at a local garage. People were talking about it and were concerned there was not a strategy to avoid the plague.  

I looked around a bit and it is sincere is a problem. Consumers have no LABEL stating exactly what was in their cheese. I also found a producer of powdered cellulose 

"Ridgeland" powdered cellulose (click here) carries a few mixes of such cellulose.

Powdered Cellulose (click here)

If one examines closely the ingredients in the powdered cellulose there is a variety that actually uses potato starch. Potato starch is the same type of product as ordinary starch that are used in gravies as a thickening agent. Potato starch is sold in health food coops. I have a bag in my kitchen.

But, in reading the information about powdered cellulose, which comes from trees, I was very surprised to realize there is an antibiotic incorporated in the mix. Antibiotics, the type doctors administer by prescription, are not available in organic food stores. At least not the markets I have shopped in.

Natamycin (click here) is the culprit. It is a mold inhibitor. I never bargained for that as a consumer.

I am looking long and hard now at what type of product I purchase because my understanding is the parmesan cheese mixed with powdered cellulose also comes in solid pieces found at the cheese counter.

I am anticipating the purchase of a more expensive product that is 100% parmesan I grate myself. If the grated cheese is to clumpy then I'll add small amounts of potato starch powder to achieve the same result as the store bought laced with anti-mold antibiotic.

Custom Formulations (click here)

• Anti-Mycotic Blends
• Natamycin, Potassium Sorbate, & Oxygen Scavenger
• Low Dust
• Put your anti-caking agent in the cheese & not in the air
• Starch Blends
• Potato, Corn, Tapioca & Rice
• Mineral Blends
• Calcium Sulfate & Calcium Carbonate

The Confederate Flag is a social disease.

February 18, 2016

For months, eight-year-old Chrissy Turner (click here) went to bed each night hoping the strange lump in her chest would just go away.

The little girl was terrified to tell her parents, but finally, white-faced with fear, she managed to gather enough courage to confide in her mother....

There is a new journal on the block, "Nature Plants"

Abstract

Organic agriculture (click here) has a history of being contentious and is considered by some as an inefficient approach to food production. Yet organic foods and beverages are a rapidly growing market segment in the global food industry. Here, we examine the performance of organic farming in light of four key sustainability metrics: productivity, environmental impact, economic viability and social wellbeing. Organic farming systems produce lower yields compared with conventional agriculture. However, they are more profitable and environmentally friendly, and deliver equally or more nutritious foods that contain less (or no) pesticide residues, compared with conventional farming. Moreover, initial evidence indicates that organic agricultural systems deliver greater ecosystem services and social benefits. Although organic agriculture has an untapped role to play when it comes to the establishment of sustainable farming systems, no single approach will safely feed the planet. Rather, a blend of organic and other innovative farming systems is needed. Significant barriers exist to adopting these systems, however, and a diversity of policy instruments will be required to facilitate their development and implementation....

I am sure the new young electorate backing Bernie Sanders feels there is cheating occurring. They didn't sign on for this.

Senator Sanders has been a very successful candidate in most of his elections. He knows how things work from local to federal, however, he needs to speak to the DNC and ask the national organization to make it clear there are open opportunities to win Superdelegates. 

The DNC has a responsibility to the Sanders' constituents, otherwise, the will be angry after the convention that is only about five months away and they will be estranged rather than engaged. They need the opportunity to recruit the Superdelegate. 

It is wrong by every definition to laugh at innocence. 

February 19, 2016
By the Editorial Board

...Superdelegates are party bigwigs (click here)  — 712 Democratic leaders, legislators, governors and the like. They can vote for any candidate at the nominating convention, regardless of whether that candidate won the popular vote. These unpledged delegates make up 30 percent of the 2,382 delegates whose votes are needed to win the nomination, and could thus make all the difference.The status of Hillary and Bill Clinton as senior figures in the Democratic Party has allowed Mrs. Clinton to secure public endorsements from many more superdelegates than Mr. Sanders. Late last year, The Associated Press surveyed 80 percent of the Democratic superdelegates and found that 359 had endorsed Mrs. Clinton, versus eight for Mr. Sanders. The rest remained uncommitted....

These young voters were abandoned as they worked diligently to achieve the education they were so invested to achieve. Are they going to be abandoned again? They need a place in this democracy. Their issues aren't simply politics.

The race for the Democratic Party nomination (click  here) should be decided by who gets the most votes, and not who has the most support from party insiders.

A FOX News analyst states Bernie Sanders has a constituency because he is giving away free stuff. What FOX News doesn't say is that Republicans give away THE SAME free stuff as corporate welfare. 

Medicaid and food stamps supplement the working poor while private companies make millions hand over fist. Isn't that interesting? When walking through the world with blinders, all kinds misdirection of the facts occurs.

Heat transfer. The heat in January was coming up from the southern hemisphere over Indonesia.

It is my opinion Earth is already against it's innate physics. Eventually, the innate physics of Earth will begin to be overcome by the heat. The ice fields are facing historic melt. It takes only a fraction of one degree to turn ice to water. 

February 16, 2016
By Brian Kahn

This January (click here) was the warmest January on record by a large margin while also claiming the title of most anomalously warm month in 135 years of record keeping. The month was 1.13°C — or just a smidge more than 2°F — above normal. That tops December’s record of being 1.11°C — or just a smidge below 2°F — above average.

It marks the fourth month in a row where the globe has been more than 1°C (1.8°F) above normal. Incidentally, those are the only four months where the globe has topped that mark since record keeping began....

Who needs ExtenZa and Viagra? There will be a shortage for donations higher than heart transplants.

February 19, 2016

Johns Hopkins University (click here) has selected a wounded soldier as a patient for the country's first penis transplant, Reuters reported today. The university announced its intention, in December, to perform the first surgery of this kind in the United States, and surgeons there have been practicing the 12-hour procedure on cadavers to prepare for their patients.

The surgery could take place within the next few weeks, pending the selection of a donor of the right age and skin colour and permission of their next of kin. The potential stigma surrounding penis donation is one of the biggest problem for Johns Hopkins to overcome. In fact, the medical team has expressed concern that the very existence of penis transplants in the United States may discourage some individuals from donating any of their organs. For now, penile donation is strictly opt-in.

The first successful penis transplant was performed last year in South Africa, and has resulted in a child for the recipient....

Extenza (click here)

The airline industry is not coping with increasing turbulence. They probablynhaven't done a dime of research.

Don't look to the USA for leadership. The Congress' majority continues to deny climate change as a national priority. They'll take it seriously after a few jets have fallen of the sky.

February 19, 2016
By Lori Aratani

The weather forecast (click here) was less than ideal for the Delta Airlines flight that left on Monday afternoon bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport from Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, but no one aboard could have imagined just how bad things would get.

According to multiple news reports and tweets from the passengers themselves - the 4-hour flight turned into a 30-hour nightmare with two flight diversions caused by bad weather. At one point, the turbulence was so bad, one passenger told NBCthat she thought the plane was going to break in half.

"I've never seen an air sick bag used before and many were," said Lauren Karasek, another passenger aboard the flight.

Delta apologised for the problems....

...So diverted they were -- to Manchester, which would have been all well and good-- except that the airport isn't equipped to handle international travel so there were no customs officials to process the 160 or so passengers. (Delta officials told PIX 11 that agents were brought in from Portland, Maine 95 miles away).

Then there were other problems. Because of heavy snow and cold, the plane had to be de-iced. And, because the flight had taken so long, there was a risk that the crew would "time-out" meaning they'd reached the maximum amount of time they could fly.

Her transcripts are already obtained by the media. They are waiting to release them to Republican's benefit.

Hillary Clinton public speeches (click here) 

New York — When Hillary Clinton (click here) spoke to Goldman Sachs executives and technology titans at a summit in Arizona in October of 2013, she spoke glowingly of the work the bank was doing raising capital and helping create jobs, according to people who saw her remarks.

Clinton, who received $225,000 for her appearance, praised the diversity of Goldman’s workforce and the prominent roles played by women at the blue-chip investment bank and the tech firms present at the event. She spent no time criticizing Goldman or Wall Street more broadly for its role in the 2008 financial crisis....

The Clinton Campaign should rely on non-disclosure regarding Hillary's clients' speeches and future attacks. I don't think she has to address the subject again She stated she would her's if the other candidates would release theirs. I think that is appropriate.

Twin storms were becoming the norm, now there are multiple cyclones at one time.

Fiji is bracing itself (click here) for a severe tropical cyclone set to pass directly over it tomorrow.
Cyclone Winston reached a category 5 status - the most ferocious of all storms - as it passed the Vava'u group of islands in Tonga tonight.

Its intensity is forecast to remain as it travels towards Fiji, with destructive winds of between 205km/h to 285km/h forecast to arrive tomorrow night.

A warning hast been issued by the Fiji Meteorological Service, estimating the cyclone system would be about 140km east-northeast of the nation's capital, Suva, by 6pm tomorrow, local time.

"Destructive winds may begin several hours before the cyclone centre passes over head or nearby," the advisory said.

Small islands to the east of the capital, including Vanuabalavu, Yacata, Mago, Cicia, Tuvuca, Nayau, Koro, Gau and Vanuavaut, are expected to see "very destructive hurricane force winds" with average speeds of 205km/h, heavy rain and thunderstorms....


This appears to be "Winston." New Zealand is south of it. It is the one causing the most worry at this point.

19 February 2016
0130 utc
South Pacific GOES West satellite with New Zealand (click here for 12 hour loop - thank you)

There is plenty of water vapor to fuel the cyclone. It has reached a cat four and is currently a category 3. Some of these islands are already facing sea level rise.

It is not fun being an island.

My mother was a virgin when she wed at 19 years old.

My mother is a very attractive woman and her statistics would make Marilyn Monroe cringe in envy. She was always that well endowed. She was a cheerleader in high school and she was captain in her senior year. Many of her peers would gossip about her and when confronted with lies about her she never responded to the details, she simply said, "If you have the name, you might as well have the game." Everyone was left with a good laugh by those that knew she genuflected at mass all to often. Cool confidence, honey, that is all it takes.

Hillary always looks like a deer in the headlights when she is attacked personally, such as boos. Stop it.

10. "I have been very candid about my past." (click here) Bush said this during a press conference a few days before Election Day 2000. He was then in the middle of media firestorm that followed the revelation that he had once been arrested for drunken driving. Of course, this statement was untrue. He uttered it while he was trying to explain why he had not been "candid" about his arrest record. And during the campaign, he had not been "candid" about other significant matters, including what seemed to be a missing year in his National Guard service (which did not jibe with what he wrote about his service in his autobiography) and his apparent (though unacknowledged) shift from supporting abortion rights in the late-1970s to opposing them in the 1990s. He also was not "candid" about the tax plans he had pushed while governor of Texas. He always referred to them as "tax cuts" and did not mention that his major tax proposal included both tax cuts for property owners and an increase in the sales tax and the creation of a new business tax....

When Donald Trump is booed during a Republican debate he is not defensive, he simply points to the fact those that booed him or may be booing him while he responded "These are the supports of ...."

Hillary appears defensive when she is booed or attacked or accused. Defensive stature appears to be guilty. 

Don't do it. Stop being defensive. She has had plenty of attacks all her life. If people want to attack and disrespect the woman she is, then it doesn't deserve an answer. She should respond as she will, but, appearing defensive is out of the question.

I cant' completely identify, but, I've been in situations even in a court of law when I was accused of plenty in a custody battle that occurred nearly once a year. It doesn't feel good and it is upsetting, but, after a while I got used to it and simply talked past the attacks. The court never doubted my words. There is a technique to adapt and I suggest she find her comfort zone with attacks and personal insults.