The train was sabotaged?

December 18, 2017

The line was carrying passengers for the first time today

At least 'six people' have been killed (click here) after a high-speed train derailed off a bridge and onto a packed highway in Washington.

Authorities confirmed there have been a 'number of fatalities' after the train crashed in Dupont as it travelled between Seattle and Portland in rush hour, at around 7.45am local time (3.45pm UK time).

US media reports suggest that the majority of travellers - more than 70 of 77 passengers and five crew on board - have been transferred to hospital with "major injuries".

Emergency services battled to rescue several trapped on carriages.

Dramatic pictures from the scene show part of the train hanging from a bridge onto Interstate 5 where it struck vehicles - but no motorists were killed in the crash, it's reported.

Train 501 which crashed is now known to have been travelling the route for the first time when it crashed about 40 miles south of Seattle.

It's since emerged there were warnings that there would a fatal accident involving high-speed trains by the local mayor just a fortnight ago.

It's still unclear what caused the derailment - but there is speculation that the train 'hit something at 81mph'.

For live updates see below:

   At least 70 people were sent to St Joseph Hospital, according to CHI Franciscan Health. 20 were sent to the Madigan Army Medical Center emergency center... [Real-time updates: 
http://kiro.tv/TrainDerailsI5  ]....out of 78 passengers and five crew who were on board the train when it derailed off a bridge....

...“The City of Seattle has offered our assistance and aid to Pierce and Thurston counties, and is ready to work with Amtrak, local, state, and federal officials as they manage the response and deal with the aftermath of this tragic incident.”...

Only in the game of "Monopoly."

Pardons.

Valuable in Washington, DC and Moscow.

Anyone who thought Trump was actually interested in democracy and justice drank the Cool-Aide, along with a few virgins.

What does a Russian Plutocrat look like?

We need a "Perp Walk" in Moscow.

Panama Papers (click here)

He is the Karl Rove and Steve Bannon of Russia. Or, did Rove and "W" do a Putin?

He looked at the path to peace Russia was on, but, he didn't have the clout to be elected President so he reached out to the discarded aspects of Russian society, the Communists, and became their man of the hour. Just that simple.

If the truth be known, Rove and "W"s inside track of harnessing the people with the most hatred is an old Putin strategy that has kept him in politics and President, but, caused the Russian people a great deal of hardship. He may not have "The Apprentice" as a booster rocket, but, corruption in Moscow is thick as pea soup and Putin sits at the top.

While on the subject of Putin, it really is a shame the politics in Russia is so nationalistic. Putin is in hero worship and when he dies he can lay in permanent biofreeze along side Lenin. But, as to the well being of Russia, Putin is failing immensely.

First he estranges The West, his best trading partner, by breaking every treaty under the sun and invading Ukraine. At the time Ukraine threw out Yanukovych, Russia was in a perfect position to engage the democracy the Ukraine people wanted and build a trade organization that would include the post Soviet states while allowing them to build trade relations with The West.

It would have worked. Putin would have been hailed a peacemaker beyond peacemaker and looking at a Nobel Prize. Not only that, but, it would have placed Russia in the position to be an ally with the post-Soviet states to stabilize the Asian continent in relation to the European continent. It is called "The Balance of Power."

It would end the tensions between the Post-Soviet states and Russia preventing outbreaks of violence such as occurred between Poland, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Putin chose islationism rather than alliance, alienating every Post - Soviet State and causing a border war with Ukraine. A BORDER WAR. Like, what? What leader would choose to have a border war with any other country? I guess only Vladimir Putin.

As a result of the broken treaties there are sanctions set up to encoursage Russia to rethink it's strategy. There is no future for Russia in the strategy of isolationism. NONE. A country can only sustain it's isolationism with a border war for so long.

The Russia people are in peril and I tell you what is brilliant, cutting off the internet into Russia. Also brilliant, nationism to bring about a false sense of well being. Russia currently sits in STATIC EQUALIBRIUM within it's own borders because The West doesn't want to kill Russians or spark a potential war with China. Just think about that. If the USA and it's allies positioned themselves for war rather than profits; what would that look like?

Now, Putin comes out of Russian isolationism after his Trump victory in the USA to THANK Trump for sending him information which prevented a domestic Russian terror bombing. Really, Vladimir? Where is the evidence since it should be public information rather than propaganda. So, where are the communications stating Trump prevented the deaths of Russians. I am really curious.

And that brings me to my next point and validates my point of view about Russia and it's "Hero President."

Vladimir Putin actually had to rely on the USA for information in preventing a terrorist attack? Really? What kind of an admission is that? Putin, the King of Swing in Russia, has to rely on the USA to prevent deaths of Russians. No wonder he was so invested in having Trump win the election.

Putin was right; if Hillary Clinton won the presidential election as she could and should have, where would Russia be? It's only strategy would be to enter into a nuclear war, because, it can't protect itself otherwise!

I can't believe Vladimir Putin won't see the reality of Russia in relation to it's future and simply retire from politics with his pretty mistress-wife.

The only defense the Russian government has to protect Russian people is propaganda and it's global distribution.

The communists are the wrong path for Russia.

That is good advise and it is free. No one had to pay Paul Manafort a dime.

Now.

Who really loves Russia and it's people?

This blank area on the UNISYS hemispheric satellite is at least a week old.

December 18, 2017
1130:42z
UNISYS Water Vapor Satellite of the west and north hemisphere of Earth (click here)

Russia has no right to block the scientific information collected about the troposphere for decades. Unless, it is just stupid Trump thinking he has a right to do exactly what he wants to do from the Oval Office.

It isn't as though it is the only satellite out there.

I thought Republicans liked private enterprise. What this appears to be to me is the Trump administration lined with private industry CEOs are using the government to defeat competition of their companies.

The USA government is not supposed to put it's thumb on the scale to defeat one company over the other. The Republicans have put their thumb on the scale for decades when it comes to the petroleum industry, but, some is amiss and there are only one group of morons that quality in being this stupid. Correction, two groups, Trump and his best buddy Putin.

Having a few students of my own, I realize this is a special time of year.

I think it is time to look toward the holidays.

Students will begin their winter break this week. Perhaps everyone should be enjoying a break to prepare for a happy couple of weeks. 

I will write some opinions tomorrow. 

This was a year of revisiting Kyoto. I will review what is left of Appendix A. I am fairly certain it is time to move on to Appendix B. That being the case; after the New Year seems right. Why cloud the holidays with new material. Togetherness and reaffirming our love of family and values is a good union of friends and neighbors.

So, until later.

The CDC has turned to pablum and stupidity.

"vulnerable" - synonyms, pick one - helpless, defenseless, powerless, impotent, weak and susceptible

"entitlement" - synonyms - Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid

"diversity" - racist

"transgender" - bigotry

"fetus" - synonym - embryo, unborn baby or child - hatred of science

"evidence-based" - bigoted against practices of law

"science-based" - "C.D.C. bases its recommendations on science in consideration with community standards and wishes.’

...With community standards and wishes is a Russian principle. 

Here's the Russian translation: 

научный - C.D.C. основывает свои рекомендации на науке с учетом стандартов и пожеланий сообщества ».

Matt Lloyd - “H.H.S. will continue to use the best scientific evidence available to improve the health of all Americans. H.H.S. also strongly encourages the use of outcome and evidence data in program evaluations and budget decisions.”

I demand the firing of Matt Lloyd on Monday because he said, "Best Scientific Evidence. Outcome. Evidence data. None of those are allowed. Budget decisions. Hm. What does that sound like in Russia?

бюджетные решения

Horrors, there are leaks from the Trump White House. This is news?

Leaks (if you can call them that) coming from the Trump White House is common knowledge. It happens all the time and continuously since Trump took office.

December 15, 2017
By Natasha Bertrand

The Department of Justice (click here) acknowledged in a statement on Thursday night that copies of private text messages exchanged between two former special-counsel investigators were disclosed to certain members of the media before they were given to Congress, even though those disclosures "were not authorized."

Sarah Isgur Flores, a DOJ spokeswoman, told Politico that the text messages exchanged between Peter Strzok and Lisa Page were given to key members of the House Judiciary Committee the night before Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's public testimony on Wednesday.

The DOJ's Public Affairs division shared the same messages with a group of reporters after they were shared with the lawmakers, Flores said. But some members of the media "had already received copies."

"As we understand now, some members of the media had already received copies of the texts before that — but those disclosures were not authorized by the department," she said....

May 31, 2017
By Brent Budowsky

While President Trump (click here) seems to suggest that a conspiracy of deep-state opponents exists throughout the national security establishment, an astounding tweet revealed who he really believes is the source of leaks that continue to plague him.

On May 28, Trump tweeted, "It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media."...

...It is no secret that from the moment Trump was first elected, there has been a virtual civil war among his inside advisors. It is commonly assumed that the internal White House battle involves the "Kushner wing" versus the "Bannon wing." However, there are also leaks from individuals wise to the ways of Washington, who know that if they leak derogatory information about Trump, they will be portrayed by reporters as "moderating influences”....

First delay, can be reasonable considering a new administration.

Second delay is negligence and there needs to be lawsuits filed against the Trump EPA. There is no excuse for this.

December 15, 2017

By Suzy Khimm

Washington — The Trump administration (click here) is moving forward to update regulations to reduce lead in drinking water, but says the effort will take months longer than planned.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced on Thursday that it would delay its publication of proposed changes to federal regulation of lead and copper in drinking water until August 2018, having previously set out to have them released by January 2018. It similarly pushed back the timeline for finalizing the changes to February 2020, seven months after its previous deadline....

Hi,

Sorry I am a little late (8:40 pm). I was talking to some Russian truck drivers. It would seem President Putin needs to conduct some infrastructure projects. That is why Russia is an economically emerging country. Or, was an economically emerging country. It is why invading Ukraine is viewed as a gross misjudgement due to ineffective politics.

President Putin is convinced men such as Donald Trump can correct the course of Russia. It is why a Russian President would be so desperate in attempting to sabotage an American election for President.

There is always this lack of motive when the Mueller investigation is discussed. The reason Russia would want to sabotage an election rather than a confrontation. Well, here it is.

In my estimation, one of the reasons President Putin withdrew from Syria is because it cannot fight two wars at once.

Russia needs to return to a better state of mind that will provide growth and economic strength so there can be infrastructure projects and the lives of Russians aren't in peril, in order to cross a very cold river.

These guys were so awesome, I just had to connect.

The Emergency Manager ideology isn't democracy. It victimizes the people and treats them like chattel of the state.

December 15, 2017
By Leonard N. Fleming

In 2015,(click here) Rosenthal allegedly helped manipulate lead testing results and falsely reported they were below the federal action level of 15 parts per billion....

I don't get it. Rosenthal is a career employee to the Michigan DEQ. By every standard that is enviable. He had his future set. Why? I don't believe he was evil or racist or any other descriptor that puts him in a category of being diabolical. Why would such a man launch into fraud that he knew would harm people.

None of this makes sense.

...The state acknowledged high lead levels in the city’s children in late September 2015 and switched back in mid-October 2015 to the Detroit area water system, now called the Great Lakes Water Authority.

Lead testing this year has found that Flint’s results have consistently been below the federal action level of 15 parts per billion. But the state has maintained advisories against drinking Flint’s water until all of the city’s lead lines have been replaced.

Three others entered pleas in connection with the scandal:

Former Flint utilities administrator Michael Glasgow pl:eaded guilty in May to a reduced charge of willful neglect of duty, a one-year misdemeanor. Sentencing for Glasgow was set aside as long as he cooperates with the ongoing investigation by Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette.

Corinne Miller, who retired as director of the state’s bureau of epidemiology earlier this year, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of neglect of duty in office in exchange for providing information to investigators.

Miller originally was charged with failing to respond properly to an early report that city children were affected by lead contamination in Flint and instructing state health employees to delete emails pertaining to the report. She was sentenced to one year of probation in March.

In late November, former Flint utilities director Daugherty Johnson pleaded no contest to failing to give water documents to a Genesee County Health Department employee investigating a possible connection between Flint water and Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks that eventually killed 12 and sickened 79 others in the Flint area in 2014-15. The deal resulted in two felonies being conditionally dropped in exchange for his cooperation....

This makes sense. Not that it is right, but, a member of Snyder's cabinet acting on his behalf, cutting corners and sacrificing standards for an ideology that the people of Michigan voted down, namely "Emergency Manager," is believable. The indictment of career employees just doesn't fit the picture. Snyder's power brokering to put forward an ideology more important than people's lives is something I would expect out of this investigation.

December 15, 2017
By Ron Fonger

Flint, MI -- A member of Gov. Rick Snyder's cabinet (click here) won't return to court on criminal charges related to the Flint water crisis until 2018 after a potential five-week delay.

Genesee District Court Judge David Goggins announced a short-term schedule for Nick Lyon, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, during the tenth day of Lyon's preliminary examination Friday, Dec. 15.

Lyon is facing charges of involuntary manslaughter and misconduct in office.

Prosecutors claim his actions or failure to act caused a Legionnaires' victim's death in December 2015 and say he knew about suspicions that Legionnaires' outbreaks here were related to Flint water but failed to warn the public...

Whistlebowers matter.

December 8, 2017

Syracuse, NY – A jury and judge (click here) ordered Albany-based asbestos abatement and demolition company Champagne Demolition, LLC and its owner, Joseph A. Champagne, to pay $173,793.84 to a former employee who was fired in June 2010 after reporting improper asbestos removal practices at a school worksite in Gloversville, New York.

The judgment supports a U.S. Department of Labor lawsuit that found Champagne Demolition, LLC violated the employee’s whistleblower rights. The company must pay $103,000 in back wages, $20,000 in compensatory, and $50,000 in punitive damages.

On June 10, 2010, the employee informed company management of the improper practices. The employee was fired the next day and subjected to verbal threats and legal action. A complaint was filed with the Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which opened a whistleblower investigation and found merit to the allegations.

“We are pleased with the jury verdict and the judge’s ruling to hold this employer accountable for violating the employee’s rights,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Robert Kulick, in New York. “Every worker has the right to report potential safety and health hazards without fear of harassment, termination, or retaliation.”...

                 

C42H50N6O4S2•C4H4O4

The mental health community has been looking for a medication more modern, providing quality of life to patients. Seroquel has been that medication.

The surge in sales of Seroquel by Astra-Zeneca was somewhat anticipated. It is surprising the company would ignore such drug interactions that would ultimately give the drug a bad name.

Seroquel is used widely across most age groups, so the damage to the addicts of heroine seeking help through methadone substitution reaches from young to old. Astra-Zeneca was completely reckless in concealing such information. The majority of patients benefiting from Seroquel are not drug addicts. None of it makes sense.

This is what happens when hapless CEOs run a drug company. They are interested in market forces and bonuses; not the PURPOSE of the company in the first place.

Bonuses should be outlawed.


C₂₁H₂₇NO

December 15, 2017
By Sam Roe

Few prescription drugs (click here) were as popular as the antipsychotic Seroquel. Psychiatrists trusted it, nursing homes used it and addiction specialists prescribed it. Annual sales exceeded $3 billion.

But in the winter of 2009, one of the top pharmaceutical sales representatives selling it, Allison Zayas, began to have her doubts.

According to Zayas, one of her best clients, a doctor at a New York City outpatient clinic, told her that a patient had died while taking the drug and that the combination of Seroquel and methadone might have played a role.

Allison Zayas carried a conscience with her sales pitch. Besides, Seroquel practically sold itself. The CEO should be indicted on criminal charges. The MDs treating these patients wanted QUALITY OF LIFE, not end of life.

Allison Zayas was a top seller of the antipsychotic Seroquel for the drugmaker AstraZeneca. She filed a whistleblower lawsuit in 2010 against the company because, she said, they didn’t take appropriate action when she reported there was evidence of a fatal drug interaction.

Soon after, Zayas recalled, two other doctors told her as many as 10 patients at New York methadone clinics had died taking Seroquel and methadone together. Zayas said she reported the deaths to her company, drugmaker AstraZeneca, but that it continued to aggressively market the blockbuster drug, even to methadone clinics.

"Their goal was to get in there and sell Seroquel," she told the Tribune in an interview. "It was not, 'Let's draw back. Let's take a look at the information.' It was, 'Get in there and sell.' Everything is sell, sell, sell."

Alarmed at the inaction, Zayas quit AstraZeneca and filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the firm, alleging it concealed the true cardiac risks of Seroquel when taken with certain other medications....

Our leadership, (click here) which includes our Board of Directors and Senior Executive Team, is accountable to our shareholders for the responsible conduct of the business and our long-term success. It also represents the interests of all our stakeholders in ensuring that we deliver for patients by putting science at the heart of everything we do....

March 21, 2013
By Matthew Goodman

It would have to be his predecessor responsible for mismanaging Seroquel.

Member of the Board and CEO since October 2012.

Astra Zeneca (click here) is mission impossible. It’s a giant, old-fashioned pharmaceuticals company whose best drugs are rapidly coming off patent, and whose scientists are struggling to produce new ones. Who would take a hospital pass and become its chief executive?

Step forward Pascal Soriot, a Frenchman who trained as a vet and now calls Australia home. “A number of people looked at me and thought, ‘Are you crazy?’” he admits.

Soriot, 53, was parachuted in last October to succeed David Brennan and has spent his first few months trying to come up with a cure for Astra’s ills....

It is a direct attack on small businesses. It is one of the biggest complaints Wall Street has made about the USA economy. They can't control small businesses.

It is the old worn out Republican Paradigm of "Trickle Down." Once the large companies have control there will blossoms of jobs and new opportunities throughout the land.

Lawsuits filed now will only gain information by the time the court hearings begin.

December 15, 2017
Ally Marotti, Samantha Bomkamp and Corilyn Shropshir

Federal regulators’ (click here) decision to end net neutrality and roll back regulations that some say kept data flowing freely on the internet has left some Chicago business owners concerned for their companies’ futures.

While it’s still unclear exactly what the repeal of the Obama-era rules will mean, proponents of net neutrality fear internet service providers will set up toll lanes on the internet, charging some sites to deliver content faster. That could inhibit growth at tech companies, some in the industry say.

“The bigger companies, my competitors for instance, will have a pile of cash to say, ‘Yeah, no problem, we’ll pay,’” said Stu Grubbs, co-founder of Chicago-based Lightstream. The 14-employee startup builds production software for live streaming. “By the time I do have the money to get past that block, they’ll have ... beaten me out.

“It stifles innovation. It stifles growth to be able to move to new markets,” he said....

It looks like greed won the argument in an administration that admires it.

November 29, 2017

By Todd Shields

....Someone (click here) was trying to game the U.S. Federal Communications Commission’s electronic public comment system on net-neutrality rules.

But who? Was it supporters or foes of the open internet rules -- or was it the Russians?

A study has found more than 7.75 million comments were submitted from email domains attributed to FakeMailGenerator.com, and they had nearly identical wording. The FCC says some of the nearly 23 million comments on Chairman Ajit Pai’s proposal to gut Obama-era rules were filed under the same name more than 90 times each.

And then there were the 444,938 from Russian email addresses, which also raised eyebrows, even though it’s unclear if they were from actual Russian citizens or computer bots originating in the U.S. or elsewhere.

The oddities in the FCC’s inbox have attracted scrutiny from New York’s attorney general and from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, which has opened a probe.

“In an era where foreign governments have indisputably tried to use the internet and social media to influence our elections, federal and state governments should be working together to ensure that malevolent actors cannot subvert our administrative agencies’ decision-making processes,” New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said in an open letter to the FCC....

The average life span of a dog is 10 - 13 years; Golden Retrievers 10 - 12 years. I look forward to good outcomes from this research.

December 14, 2017
By Karin Bulliard

Most dogs get poked and prodded (click here) at the veterinarian's office. Piper, a 4-year-old golden retriever in Chicago, gets far more scrutiny than that.

Her annual checkup this month took three hours. Her flaxen hair was trimmed and bagged, her toenails clipped and kept, her bodily fluids collected. Everything was destined for a biorepository in the Washington suburbs that holds similar samples from more than 3,000 other purebred golden retrievers from across the country. The dogs, though they do not know it, are participating in an ambitious, $32 million research project that researchers hope will yield insights into the causes of cancers and other diseases common to goldens, other breeds and maybe even humans....

...At its core, the study is about cancer - what Page calls "the No. 1 concern among dog owners." The disease is the leading cause of death in dogs over age 2 and something diagnosed in half of dogs older than 10. The prevalence is believed to be slightly higher in golden retrievers, which most often succumb to mast cell tumors, bone cancer, lymphomaor hemangiosarcoma (originating in the lining of blood vessels).

But that is not the only reason the bouncy, amiable breed is the study's focus. Goldens are the third-most popular dogs in the United States, which made it easier for researchers to find 3,000 subjects; they also tend to have besotted owners who pay close attention to their health - an important criteria for a project that demands years of owner commitment....

This is a non issue. The politics of the truth is the problem and not the truth itself. Special Council Robert Mueller already did the right thing, he had Strzok released from the case. There isn't anything unethical or underhanded about any of it.

The Republicans are going to use any aspect of this investigation if they think it will help their politics. That is true of any aspect of reality with Republicans. They only focus on what they can sell in their political messages.

Former Director Mueller is not weakened by this episode, he is strengthened by it. He has removed any question to the idea something was biased or gone awry. I have no doubt he takes into account any and all problems that might be causing distraction from the purpose and integrity of the investigation.

There is nothing wrong here. Strozok is ONE of the people carrying out this investigation. Mueller's team has more integrity than most of the members of Congress. I am not worried. This is nothing and Former Director Mueller knows it is nothing.

Senator Feinstein is simply letting Former Director Mueller know he has good standing and needs to fulfill his obligation to the country.

Sure, the Republican complaints are propaganda. But, what in the Republican political verbiage isn't? I am sure Robert Mueller appreciated Senator Feinstein's insight.

December 14, 2017
By Dan Friedman

...The text exchanges (click here) between the two included blunt opinions about the ongoing presidential campaign. Strzok questioned Trump’s intelligence and ability, calling him “awful,” an “idiot” and “an enormous douche.”

FBI regulations allow agents to express their personal opinions both privately and publicly on politics, but DOJ’s release of the material gave Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee a weapon to wield during an oversight hearing Wednesday with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

Numerous Republicans cited the text exchanges as evidence that Mueller’s team harbors political bias against Trump. “The public trust in this whole thing is gone,” Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) declared as he questioned Rosenstein. “It seems to me there are two things you can do: You can disband the Mueller special prosecutor, and you can do what we’ve all called for and appoint a second special counsel to look into this.”

But Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, sees troubling partisanship at play. The texts “are being used for propaganda purposes,” she told Mother Jones. “I think there’s an ongoing effort to malign both Bob Mueller and the work that that Special Counsel Office is doing. They are grabbing at every single thing to try to demean him.”...

There is no reason for alarm over Fusion GPS. They are grasping at straws. There is no need for a second special council. This is all politics. The Justice Official was demoted for concealing information. There isn't anything else to know. Perhaps the Justice Department has listening devices attached to everyone's bed pillows.

December 12, 2017
By David Jackson and Kevin Johnson

...The demand from attorney Jay Sekulow (click here) came in wake of a Fox News report that the wife of a demoted Justice Department official once worked for Fusion GPS, the political research firm that generated an unverified dossier alleging extensive ties between Trump and the Russian government. 

Both Sekulow and White House attorney Ty Cobb, who also supports the appointment of a second special counsel, said they do not want undercut the ongoing inquiry into Russia's interference in the 2016 election run by special counsel Robert Mueller.

Trump's team continues to cooperate with that probe, Sekulow said, but is concerned about reports that Justice Department official Bruce Ohr was demoted for concealing ties to Fusion GPS, where his wife once worked. 

"The focus is on the Fusion GPS issues with DOJ," Sekulow said. "It has nothing to do with Bob Mueller."...

Two wrongs don't make a right, but, this is the Trump Administration complaining about family involvement? I don't think so.

Defections from North Korea have been noted by those that observe the border. Something is going on.

If the people leaving North Korea are some of the most experienced in their military, it is a concern.

December 14, 2017

By Sofia Lotto Persio

North Korean director of the military's General Political Bureau, the top military post in North Korea, Hwang Pyong So, right, waves during the closing ceremony of the 2014 Asian Games in South Korea on October 4, 2014. Hwang has not been seen in public in more than two months.

The continued absence of one of North Korea’s top officials, (click here) General Hwang Pyong So, from leader Kim Jong Un's side continues to fuel speculation that he has fallen from favor and may have been executed. 

Director of the hugely influential General Political Bureau of the North Korean military—the body that is tasked with ensuring ideological commitment within the ranks of the army—Hwang has reportedly been expelled from the Workers’ Party, where he previously served in a senior position in the politburo.

An unidentified South Korean source told South Korea publication Korea JoongAng Daily that Hwang was purged from the party for taking bribes. The source did not specify when the expulsion took place....

Dennis Rodman seems to have forgotten, Un's brother was murdered. I suppose there is speculation about his uncle at this point, but, his brother is dead. No one took good care of Un's brother. That counts. No one in North Korea prevented his death, either.
    

There is no time convenient for a death. But, this is a really difficult time of year for such hardship.

The firefighters have to be funded separately from forest fire prevention. Both are vital to end these dangers. For years now, the forest fire prevention program has suffered because of the need for fire fighters. The two efforts need to be funded separately to help prevent deaths of the men and women fighting wild fires.

My deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the firefighter lost today. 

It is the wind. It is unpredictable and strong. 

December 14, 2017
By Joseph Serna and Brittny Mejia

Fire officials confirmed Thursday (click here) that a firefighter died while battling the Thomas fire, which ranks as the fourth-largest in the state's modern history.

"I am very saddened to report that a firefighter fatality has occurred on the Thomas Incident," Chief Ken Pimlott, the director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said in a statement. "Please join me in keeping our fallen firefighter and his loved ones in your prayers and all the responders on the front lines in your thoughts as they continue to work under extremely challenging conditions."

Pimlott said the victim was a Cal Fire engineer from the San Diego unit. Details about the firefighter's death were not immediately available.

"IMT 4, CAL FIRE Local 2881 and Southern Region leadership are working to support the Unit and his family, who have been notified," Pimlott said.

There will be a news conference at 6 p.m....

There is no trusting Republicans at this point. There have been nothing but lies.

The American people have not had a chance to voice their opinion of the tax bill in formal hearings across the USA. Everything Trump has done is based in Plutocartic lies for profit. The exploitation of the USA to create wealth for his family cannot be overlooked. While it may or may not be legal, the ethics on nearly every measure stinks.

December 18 & 25, 2017 issue
By Amy Davidson Sorkin

...Last Monday, (click here) the day that Trump endorsed Moore, Axios reported that one of the President’s lawyers, echoing Richard Nixon, had suggested that what might count as obstruction of justice for others would not in Trump’s case—because if the President does it, it isn’t really a crime. But each day dawns with a possibility that Trump will disgrace the Presidency more than he already has, whether he is insulting Native Americans or mangling relationships with our most trusted allies.

It would be inaccurate, though, to say that the President has acted alone, or without the coöperation of his party. There have been a few eloquent protests from members of Congress who are retiring or seem to think that they have nothing left to lose politically....

Endorsements have to be taken seriously. If Trump endorsed Moore, it sticks. That is the only way women will ever get rid of the predator among them.

Below was the focus of Trump and McConnell when advocating for Moore, as if his sexual predation was not visible through their priorities.

...Trump had framed his own support for Moore in terms that McConnell would appreciate, tweeting, “We need his vote on stopping crime, illegal immigration, Border Wall, Military, Pro Life, V.A., Judges 2nd Amendment and more.” But what does it mean to “need” Roy Moore’s vote?...

"...the more." added at the end of that statement is interesting. Does anyone see the worlds, "...to end sexual assault in the military and against women and girls?"

No. There is no priority by the Republicans to end sexual assault. It won't happen with their leadership. The Republicans have never elevated women and girls in their priorities and never will. They elevate anti-abortion laws to promote them as the moral party. Does anyone actually believe their leadership in the White House is a moral man?

The Republicans have no way forward regarding sexual assault. They opposed it when it was put forward by the previous administration. They will never pass comprehensive laws that protect women and men and children. The deniability has always played out to turn the tables on the victim and until women clear the ranks of the predators, it will never be a priority.

The Republican Party sees an election as a 'night in the sack,' it makes everything equal again. Not anymore.

Women are making a stand throughout this country to end 'the predator.' We need to do that at all levels by elevating victims and standing by them. No backsliding is allowed and the USA will be safe for all former victims that have spoken out. There will be no power backlash against those that stand to draw the line on sexual assault and predation. It is not and will never be acceptable at any level of society.