Two months ago Dayton experienced a tornado outbreak.

May 28, 2019
By Vanessa Romo and Bill Chappell

Several tornadoes (click here) touched down in highly populated areas of Dayton and other Ohio communities late Monday night, causing catastrophic damage. The storms devastated dozens of buildings and trees. One death has been reported, officials said Tuesday morning.

The National Weather Service says that "at least an EF3 tornado with winds up to 140 mph" struck the city of Beavercreek in Greene County, Ohio. It says similar winds hit Trotwood in Montgomery County — and that it's too early to know whether the same tornado passed through those counties. On the tornado strength scale, an EF3 is designated as "severe."...

The USA also exports it's LEGAL firearms to increase violence in Mexico.

Map to the above in the article below are foreign companies manufacturing guns in the USA.

...Glock is based in Austria, (click here) Taurus in Brazil and Beretta in Italy. When it comes to feeding the voracious American appetite for firearms, overseas gun makers have not only borrowed U.S. icons—they’ve taken substantial market share once held almost exclusively by American manufacturers like Colt and American Outdoor Brands Corp., formerly Smith & Wesson.

About three out of 10 firearms available for sale in the U.S. come from abroad, according to a Bloomberg News analysis. Imports totaled 5.1 million weapons, or 31 percent of all guns made for the American market in 2016, the last year for which complete government statistics are available. In some cases, foreign gun makers are completely reliant on the American market. HS Produkt, based in Croatia, exported 95 percent of the firearms it manufactured last year to the U.S....

Don't talk about jobs and American companies. There are no tariffs on gun imports.

June 7, 2019

By Megan Cerullo

Arturo Sarukhan, (click here) the former Mexican ambassador to the U.S., has a proposal for President Donald Trump in exchange for halting the flow of migrants crossing the border: Stop American-made guns from pouring into Mexico.

"The U.S. should immediately stop the flow of guns and bulk cash across its southern border," he tweeted this week as the two countries strained to reach a deal ahead of American tariffs going into force Monday on all Mexican imports.

The issue of gun trafficking has long been a point of contention for Mexico. A 2018 analysis from the Center for American Progress found that from 2011 to 2016, 70% of the 106,000 guns used in violent crimes in Mexico and recovered by law enforcement had come from the U.S. And that represents just a fraction of the total number of weapons crossing the southern border. A separate study found that between 2010 and 2012, nearly 213,000 firearms of all legal arms sales in the U.S. were smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border. That represents 2.2%  of arms sales in the U.S. at the time, valued at around $200 million....

The problem is the guns!

This is the weapon, .223-caliber rifle killed, wounded and maimed in Dayton, Ohio. This is the weapon the police had to stop.

August 3, 2019
By Mary Papenfass

Hundreds of mothers (click here) surged to the White House with other protesters Saturday evening to demand stricter gun control laws in the wake of the horrific mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, that killed at least 20 people. 

The powerful, spontaneous “Moms Demand Action” demonstration was one of a series of heartfelt expressions of support and sympathy throughout the nation for the victims of the shootings at a Walmart, in which at least 26 people were injured.

Mothers hoisted signs reading “Coward Congress” and chanted: “Whose house? Our house!”

A representative of the group told The Washington Post that members were meeting nearby for a conference. When the women learned of the massacre, “the tenor and tone of the whole room changed” and participants decided to march, said one of the group’s leaders, Amber Gustafson....

The response time of the Dayton police was LESS THAN A MINUTE and the shooter was still able to kill, wound and maim in the double digits. The police can't do this any better. It makes sense that on a Saturday night the police would be in the area of a popular area of time. The people are there it enjoy themselves and the police want that, too. 

Wasn't it Dayton that just went through horrible flooding as well. There is far too much tragedy in this country on a regular basis. 

Oregon District 5th Street is a very popular area.

It is a gun problem!

As gunfire (click here) ripped through America in an unprecedented 24 hours, a bleak milestone in a nation pocked by gun violence was marked: There have been 251 mass shootings in 2019.

The killer knew he was going to kill many people. Did he know his sister was there? Killers have killed family before, the killer in Sandy Hook killed his mother before going to the school.

I reject the idea there are mental health problems, there are plenty of people with the same mental health problems that don't kill.

THESE ARE KILLERS AND THE WHITE SUPREMACISTS ARE NOT HAVING MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS. IVANKA TRUMP IS LAYING COVER FOR HER FATHER'S VOTERS.

THIS IS A GUN PROBLEM! END OF DISCUSSION!

THEY ARE DOMESTIC TERRORISTS AND THEY MAKE PLANS TO KILL. THERE IS NO MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEM.

The responses are excellent, the police are arriving within 5 to 6 minutes. That is consistent across all these mass shootings. They are doing the absolute best they can and they are laying down their own lives when they do respond. It is time to recognize the real problem and that is the guns.

El Paso, Texas (AP) — The shooting (click here) that killed 20 people at a crowded El Paso shopping area will be handled as a domestic terrorism case, federal authorities said Sunday as they weighed hate-crime charges against the gunman that could carry the death penalty....

...The attack on Saturday morning was followed less than a day later by another shooting that claimed nine lives in a nightlife district of Dayton, Ohio. That shooter was killed by police....

The danger to police officers in the USA is ridiculous. There was a time in the USA when the police complained they didn't have 9 mm handguns like the criminals. Today they are wearing body armor and respond to killers with military capacity weapons. The guns are out of control.

Yesterday in El Paso the police that responded involved everyone with the capacity to help. It is out of control.

...Ned Peppers, (click here) which has been near the center of the mass shooting in Dayton early this morning, was a bar previously known as T.B. Hopkins, but was bought in 1994 by James "Jim" Schaefer, who died in late April 2019. Schaefer renamed the bar to Ned Peppers, and connected it to neighboring bar The Hole in the Wall, which he also owned.

By Amelia Robinson 

Good thing that didn’t happen.(click here) Today’s Oregon District is among the Gem City’s shiniest jewels.

Thanks to the American Planning Association, the nation is finding out what we already knew: Fifth Street is pretty boss.

The organization named Fifth between South Patterson Boulevard and Wayne Avenue to its Great Streets on its annual Great Places in America list.

Third Street in McMinnville, Ore.;  Laura Street in Jacksonville, Fla.; Lexington Avenue in Asheville, N.C.; and Olvera Street in Los Angeles also were honored on the prestigious list.

Oregon District’s Fifth Street one of ‘Top 5’ in U.S.

APA has recognized 245 neighborhoods, streets and public spaces around the country since launching the program in 2007. They include  Hyde Park in Cincinnati, German Village in Columbus, and Shaker Boulevard and the West Side Market in Cleveland....

Three mass shootings in a week, two in less than 24 hours.

It is time to hear from the FBI.

Just that simple. 

Moscow Mitch McConnell won't do a thing.

The FBI and State and Local Police need to organize.

Congress should already be in emergency session, are they?

The internet sits should already be shut down and it should have been shut down by the servers. They know who they are.

The stores need to postpone the "School Sales."

This is an organized effort. No different than Dillon Roof they know the weakness in detecting the attacks. Again, the posting on internet sites is occurring shortly before the attack. These are not random decisions. There is reason to act against the hate crimes before they occur.

There won't be a national emergency called because it should have occurred already.

State and local governments can cooperate with authorities. Let them take it to the Supreme Court.

SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING.

This is an immediate and long term effort.

The Gilroy Garlic Festival Shooting was July 28, 2019. It was a hate crime as well.

The Second Amendment does not protect the right to slaughter Americans.

The dead may be poor people. Who helps them bury their loved ones?

How many people traumatized? How much PTSD was rendered today?

A man comforts a woman who was in the freezer section of a Walmart during a shooting incident, in El Paso, Texas, Aug. 03, 2019. 

As many as 18 people (click here) (As many as...There is no definitive number?) were killed and dozens more were injured, and a white male in his 20s is in custody after a mass shooting at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart on Saturday morning, officials said.

How many of the wounded are maimed and permanently disabled?

The wounded ranged in age from a 2-year-old child to an 82-year-old victim. That is the demographics of those that shop at Walmart; young families and the elderly. 

The suspect, identified by authorities as Patrick Crusius, 21. He is a domestic terrorist. This is a hate crime.

He was "taken into custody without incident" and without any law enforcement officers firing their weapons, according to El Paso Police Department Sgt. Robert Gomez. The alleged shooter's motives remains unknown, Gomez said, adding that "we have ruled out multiple shooters."

Watergen GENius technology (click here for new article about the generocity shown toward Flint, Michigan. - thank you)

July 29, 2019
By Benyamin Cohen

As with most things in life, it all started with a Google search. (click here)

Armstrong Williams, a Michigan-based businessman and owner of a local NBC affiliate, was on a trip in Washington, D.C. He had just attended an event at the Israeli embassy and was sifting through the gift bag. Inside, he saw a blue bottle with a Watergen logo on it.

Being from Flint, a city that's been dealing with a contaminated water crisis since 2014, the 57-year-old Williams was intrigued. He started googling "Watergen" as he was leaving the event. What he discovered was that the Israeli-founded company had invented a device that makes clean drinking water out of thin air. This is how the technology works:

Thankfully, Williams looked up from his phone to briefly contemplate what he had just learned. In that moment, on display outside the embassy was an actual Watergen machine.

"I knew exactly what it looked like, because I started doing research on it on my phone," Williams recalled to From The Grapevine. "I walked up and there was this guy with a beard and he invited me to taste the water. What he didn't realize was I'd just been looking for something to support Flint that would be a game changer. It was a spiritual moment."

Williams' discussion with Yehuda Kaploun, the president of Watergen USA, on that fateful day in May is already bearing fruit. Williams, who is also a nationally syndicated TV and radio host, donated $75,000 to have a Watergen machine shipped to Flint for the local community to use. "You've taken people who've had hopelessness that the solution would be resolved and given them hope with a very practical solution," Kaploun said....

Did I hear that right? Trump is calling out the violence in USA cities as opposed to Afghanistan? Really? You mean like when High School young people are slaughtered with military-style weapons, that violence?

You mean the kind of violence caused because assault weapons are unregulated in the USA? That violence? The violence that results from people with ideologies that aren't based in reality? That violence. The kind of violence that is based in White Nationalist/Supremacist ideology? That violence?

I don't think THAT VIOLENCE is owned by the Democrats!

The Republicans aren't sending their best.

Ratcliff's constituents need to decide if they were lied to when they elected their representative.

Eric Garner should not have even been approached.

There are all kinds of economies in any city. Selling individual cigarettes because people can't afford to buy a pack themselves should NEVER have been illegal. This is ridiculous. Mr. Garner was a good father and husband. His children were achieving in their schooling to improve their futures. Those values were instilled by their parents. In looking to Mr. Garner's children his values are easily known.

Mr. Garner was not selling drugs or any other highly dangerous substance. Smoking cigarettes is still legal in the USA. "Buddy do you have a light? Do you have an extra cigarette?" That is begging. Mr. Garner provided a little more dignity to the idea of needing a smoke. Mr. Garner did nothing illegal and was a friend to others that came to him for his service. 

Enough of this mess. Decriminalize selling single cigarettes in the name of
Mr. Eric Garner. I can't believe police actually waste their time on this. In the case of Mr. Garner, it wasn't even one cop, it was a half dozen of them. None of them pulled the police away from a chokehold, either. That is called complicity. 

Decriminalize the ability to sell single cigarettes in an informal setting.

I can't believe this has been an issue for FIVE YEARS!

March 5, 2019
By Michael Schlosser 

As a result of the death of Eric Garner in 2014 (click here) during an encounter with police officers, and the scrutiny that ensued, there has been significant controversy over police officers using chokeholds when attempting to detain suspects. After unlawfully selling cigarettes, Garner, an African-American man, died in Staten Island during an attempted arrest by New York City police officers on July 17, 2014. Video footage of the arrest showed the arm of Officer Daniel Pantaleo on Garner's neck prior to the latter's death, which occurred during the scuffle. On December 3 of that same year, a grand jury elected not to indict Pantaleo, and after investigation, the FBI agreed with this decision.

The decision not to indict Pantaleo raised great public outrage and prompted demonstrations across the United States, especially in the African-American community. This put a lot of pressure on legislators to "do something" to remedy what many believed was the murder of an African-American man by a police officer. State and federal legislators began to introduce and enact state and federal laws specific to the use of chokeholds by police officers. Previously, something as specific as a chokehold or neck restraint would be regulated through departmental policy and procedures, and the proper use of these techniques would be supported through rigorous training. However, agencies and officers are now afraid to put an arm around the neck of an active resister or aggressive assailant, and using such a technique is reserved for deadly force situations alone. As a result, it is important to define the term "chokehold" more precisely, in order to comprehend that it is a broad term that refers to a variety of actions. Only then can we define the use, benefits, and dangers of the chokehold.

There is much confusion surrounding what exactly a chokehold entails, in part because of its expansive meaning, and as such I can understand the lack of comprehension to a certain extent.

There are so many terms used to convey the act of grabbing someone around the neck, and multiple methods involved in the performance of this maneuver. Terms from both martial arts and police practice include: rear naked choke, wind choke, air choke, tracheal choke, true choke, push choke, choke hold, vascular neck restraint, lateral vascular neck restraint, blood choke, bilateral carotid compression, strangle hold, and sleeper hold....

It is a waste of money, no different than the F-35.

It will be a gift to Russia and China.

August 1, 2018
By Michael Warren and Alex Rogers

The Pentagon (click here) said on Thursday that a highly sought-after cloud computing contract will not be awarded until Secretary of Defense Mark Esper has completed his examination of it.

The $10 billion, 10-year contract, known as the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI), has come under recent scrutiny from President Donald Trump, who has expressed concerns over the fairness of what has been a contentious bidding process among a handful of large tech companies.

Amazon has been widely seen as the front-runner to win the contract. Microsoft is the other finalist. The contract could be awarded as early as August 23....

I TOLD YOU SO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
'
iT IS BETTER TO RECYCLE THE JUNK THAN PUT OUR SOLDIERS IN IT!

AND YES, IT IS ALL A WASTE OF MONEY BY THE TRILLIONS AND TRILLIONS AND TRILLIONS!

11 October 2018

Most weapons systems, including the F-35 jet, were found to be vulnerable to cyber-attack

Some of the most cutting-edge weapons (click here) in the US's military arsenal can be "easily hacked" using "basic tools", a government report has concluded.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found "mission-critical" cyber-vulnerabilities in nearly all weapons systems tested between 2012 and 2017.

That includes the newest F-35 jet as well as missile systems.

In the report, Pentagon officials said they "believed their systems were secure", NPR reported.

The committee's members expressed concerns about how protected weapon systems were against cyber-attacks.

The report's main findings were:

- the Pentagon did not change the default passwords on multiple weapons systems - and one changed password was guessed in nine seconds

- a team appointed by the GAO was able to easily gain control of one weapons system and watch in real time as the operators responded to the hackers

- it took another two-person team only one hour to gain initial access to a weapons system and one day to gain full control

- many of the test teams were able to copy, change or delete system data with one team downloading 100 gigabytes of information

The GAO added that the Pentagon "does not know the full scale of its weapons system vulnerabilities".

The Pentagon has not issued a detailed response to the 50-page report but the document quoted officials as saying that some of the security test results "were unrealistic"....

"More important than life itself ?"

That is Trump. Tonight he is blaming four minority women for inner-city blight and decay. He didn't use those words. A reality moment is they are not that old. But, the bottom line now is that billions and billions and billions of dollars have been wasted because of the USA people of color.

The racism is not stopping and now it is being attached to a dollar amount at a time when slavery descendant reparations are being discussed.

Racism is on the ballot and Trump demands it.

The corruption of power entitlement is spreading.

August 1, 2019

Lauren McGaughy and James Barragan

Austin - One of the lawmakers (click here) who listened to a conversation that a conservative activist secretly recorded with top GOP leadership said the Texas House speaker suggested he would take floor access away from a credentialed media outlet.

Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, said he listened to the audio of the meeting between Speaker Dennis Bonnen, Texas House Republican Caucus Chairman Dustin Burrows and Michael Quinn Sullivan of Empower Texans, a political group that targets GOP lawmakers it deems not conservative enough. 

Bonnen said he could strip House media credentials from Scott Braddock, editor of the insider political website and newsletter the Quorum Report, and give media access to Empower Texans' writers at its website the Texas Scorecard, Stickland said.

Sullivan had previously alleged the credentials were offered if Empower Texans agreed to target only Republicans the speaker wanted ousted.

At least two other GOP lawmakers, Reps. Steve Toth of The Woodlands and Travis Clardy of Nacogdoches, also said that they've heard the audio and that it backs up Sullivan's account. Toth has received donations from Empower Texans, but Clardy, who ran against Bonnen for speaker, has not been a favorite of the group....

"Medicare for All"

It is bold and timely. The number of people in need of reduced costs medications is clearly illustrated with Bernie's trip to Canada. The national health care of Canada does not exploit people for profit. The profit of the current health care system is the problem. CEOs have reduced the American health care as far as they can and now they are simply exploiting the cost of everything in order to increase profits and make shareholders happy. Those CEO and Executive Bonuses are driving the cost of health care. That is not what is supposed to drive the cost of health care. 

Everything in the USA health care ECONOMY is costly. Wall Street believes playing roulette with prescriptions using "Good Rx" is the solution. It is to some extent, but, there is no continuity of care from a trusted pharmacist in that scheme. I know the "Good Rx" option is valued by many Americans, but, it sacrifices the quality of care in searching for medications with coupons in a local pharmacy that makes it affordable. 

No current plan by any candidate is going to maintain it's current definition after it makes it to the legislature. There is no option in thinking the status quo is good enough for now. It is not. And NOW should be as expensive as it gets and it needs to get better from here. Health care has a high priority in this upcoming election. It was a high priority in 2018. The legislation has been written and passed in the US House of Representatives. It is "Moscow" Mitch McConnell that is the problem in providing a Senate vote on those bills waiting for Senate passage. 

Remember that in 2020. There is a roadblock in the US Senate and if that doesn't change in 2020 there is no moving forward.

When this legislative session ends with the inauguration of the next set of US House Representatives and Senators the current legislation not signed into law will expire and the process starts over.

I wouldn't be afraid of any proposal any of the Democratic candidates are putting forward. They all hold the American people in high esteem and value the Middle Class and the quality of life that has to be returned to them. When the legislative sessions of January 2021 begin there will be plenty of ideas to come forward to make health care better, including those Senators that will not be newly elected. I am looking forward to a better President that actually cares about the people and not the power of the Executive Branch.

The country is in better hands with the Democratic candidates by pure understanding of the misguided obstruction of the majority USA Republican Senate.

Let's get over the apprehension and get some good laws passed in 2021.

Bernie? Did your trip to Canada bring about sincere change in the laws of the USA?

July 31, 2019
By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar

Washington - The Trump administration (click here) said Wednesday it will create a way for Americans to legally and safely import lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada for the first time, reversing years of refusals by health authorities amid a public outcry over high prices for life-sustaining medications.

The move is a step toward fulfilling a 2016 campaign promise by President Donald Trump. It weakens an import ban that has stood as a symbol of the political clout of the pharmaceutical industry.

But it's unclear how soon consumers will see benefits, as the plan has to go through time-consuming regulatory approval and later could face court challenges from drugmakers. And there's no telling how Canada will react to becoming the drugstore for its much bigger neighbor, with potential consequences for policymakers and consumers there....

The "Three Strikes and Your In" Era has not been met with equity yet.

Senator Cory Booker, as usual, did an exceptional job in describing the inequity in the past laws of the USA in sentencing people of color. He stated there was a strong disparity in the way Caucasians were sentenced and that of people of color. From his statement last night I take it that it is not only a social issue but at the time of the sentence, it was an economic issue.

He needs to write a grant and attach it to a Senate bill, any Senate bill would be honored to carry it. The grant needs to ask PhD level scientists, both social and mathematical, to find a way to move forward with changing the outcomes of the adversely affected prisoners. In other words, it might be a math equation and it might not, but, my guess is it will be.

MIT would have such people when it comes to deriving a far easier and faster method of identifying adversely affected populations of prisoners. I am assuming it is not just those in prison under the "Three Strikes and In" laws, but, also others that would fall under that paradigm.

Economics can be quantified. Ages, sentence length and year of incarceration for the first offense (the first offense is when the clock started to run on their life sentence) can be averaged. If MIT can quantify the difference between the Caucasian population of prisoners and that of those of color there can be a quick way to actually quantify the injustice and how best to bring about a far fairer sentence and quite possibly prisoner release. 

I do believe once such determinations can be made the prisoners first be moved off the life sentence and given a chance to decompress and prepare for release. That period of preparedness would fall to the warden who knows the inmate and his/her prison record.

I wish Senator Booker the best. As I said when he first announced his candidacy, he is a really incredible person, a unique personality with unique insight and he never disappoints.

Democrats have a very difficult decision. The candidates are wonderful people with love for the country and clear visions for their presidency should they be elected.

Of all the very diverse candidates there are two not having government experience, Andrew Yang and Marianne Williamson. They are both very talented people bringing unique ideas to the platform. They should continue to stay involved. Andrew Yang is correct in stating automation is destroying jobs and if the machines have all the jobs where are people going to earn a living?

I have not changed my mind in the realty that Governor Jay Inslee is ready to lead on the first day. He already has laws that have worked in the State of Washington when it comes to everything from health to climate. Answering the questions put to him was effortless.

I thank him for coming forward to engage the climate, it is vital and it is a crisis. Earth is more a winner tonight because of his focus. I hope he is finally appreciated for the leader he is after tonight.

Goodnight.

Earl Butz, Secretary of Agriculture under Nixon and Ford, "Plant from fence post to fence post,"

U. S. Wheat Associates (click here)

That policy was begun about 1975. That has been the policy of the USA since and it has cost many family farms to end their farming and sell their land.

Now, with acre after acre planted (with the exception of very wetland) fence post to fence post farmers are supposed to decide how to survive the loss of their markets.

It looks like farmers will be selling their land again.

July 31, 2019

By Adriana Belmonte

A farmer surveys a wheat field near Beulah, N.D.

The White House (click here) recently announced that it would be providing an additional $16 billion in aid to American farmers affected by the trade war between the U.S. and China.

But the problem for American farmers has becomes bigger than something a bailout can fix.

“This trade thing is what’s brought on by the president and it’s really frustrating because he took away all of our markets,” Bob Nuylen, a farmer from North Dakota who grows spring wheat and sunflowers, told Yahoo Finance. “We live in an area where we’re kind of in the middle of nowhere. It costs us a lot of money — over $1 a bushel to get our grain to markets.”...   

Populism is not a good methodology for the financial markets

July 31, 2019
By Fred Imbret

Stocks dropped on Wednesday (click here) Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell dampened hopes for further rate cuts later this year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 333.75 points lower, or 1.2%, at 26,864.27 after falling as much as 478 points at one point. The S&P 500 slid 1.1% to close at 2,980.38. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1.2% to 8,175.42. The Dow logged its biggest one-day decline since May 31 along with the S&P 500. The Nasdaq had it biggest one-day drop since late June.

“The stock market seemed disappointed with Powell’s performance, perhaps because while Powell did not suggest this was a ‘one-and-done’ cut, there was no overt messaging that a September cut is guaranteed,” said Don Ellenberger, senior portfolio manager at Federated Investors.

The Fed cut rates by 25 basis points, matching market expectations. The central bank cited “global developments ” along with “muted inflation” as reasons for easing monetary conditions....

The TPP only serves bankers and dock workers. Offshorers might be especially happy as well.

I thought the USA has had quite enough of the working poor.

The US trade deficit widened to USD 55.5 billion in May 2019 from a revised USD 51.2 billion in the previous month and compared to market expectations of USD 54.0 billion. That was the largest trade gap since December. Exports from the US rose USD 4.2 billion from the previous month to USD 210.6 billion in May.

The TPP makes that worse. The USA is already losing it's manufacturing base with the huge shifts occurring with GM. GM has a trickle down effect that hasn't set in yet.

Add to that a huge influx of foreign products coming through the docks and the American middle class disappears. Maybe that is really what Wall Street wants, they seem to love the impoverished labor of China.