The USA has a real problem with Trump. He is lawless and now he is violating international standards, policies and practices.

Holiday travel is finally coming to a close. Just survived a six hour trip.

So, let me look at what is occurring. Trump's attack is unjustified. It was only a few days ago that the protesters at the USA Embassy left.

Trump is threatening Iran with more strikes if Iran retaliates for the death of it's top brass. That is not realistic. To begin civilian deaths are out of the question.

Trump has no real strategy, he is a reactionary president and he puts the USA in danger because of his lack of knowledge and insight.

January 3, 2020
By Kenneth Rapoza

...Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (click here) told Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday that the U.S. had embarked on an “illegal power” move and called for dialogue with Iran....

There really isn't anything much for a foreign minister to say after the fact. It seems as though the US Congress wasn't the only authority left in the dark.

...Lavrov seemed most upset that Russia was not notified of the actions before hand. He said that the actions of a UN member state to eliminate officials of another UN member state on the territory of a third sovereign state “flagrantly violate the principles of international law and deserve condemnation.”...

The RULES FOR THE IMPEACHMENT TRIAL in the US Senate needs to be set down and must include WITNESSES the US Courts state must comply with Congressional subpoenas.

Senate Minority Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi are absolutely correct in their approach to demanding rules for the hearing to be sure it is fair and not pre-determined by a corrupt Republican Senate Majority.

...Washington sees an attack on its Embassy as an attack on its private property, though that attack was provoked by a previous U.S. military action.

The Russian Minister said this step by the United States is “fraught with grave consequences for regional peace and stability.”...

Setting aside Russia does not see it's own actions in Ukraine as consequential for regional peace and stability; Foreign Minister Lavrov has never been more correct. I appreciate him speaking the truth.

In case the Foreign Minister hasn't decided on the reason for the abrupt attack and deaths of Iranian military leaders, allow me to provide an impetus for such outrageous actions.

Both the people of the USA that see Trump for what he is and those trying to understand such brash decisions don't bother to contextualize the man making the decisions, or better said PLANS. Trump is a zealot. There is no reasoning with him. Besides that, I believe some of the impetus is due to the quaking leadership in Israel. I strongly believe "the Kushner Peace Plan" was nothing but a way to set a tone for expectations in the region that is far more than can be delivered. With people making decisions to impart a certain level of investment, anything short of that is barbaric and standing in the way of progress.

FINGER POINTING 

I reflect on Trump's history and outrageous overtures to Israel. He is blind to any other country besides Israel. Israel spells votes and if Trump can turn heads in the USA he has a larger political base. One of his most outrageous moves was to open a USA embassy in Jerusalem. I don't care if he tried to justify it by cost-effectiveness, he literally assigned any mission to Palestine to the basement. The Palestinians did not get the same esteem as Israel did when Trump and Kushner made their decisions. 

TENSIONS IN THE REGION DIDN'T JUST RISE, BUT, BEGAN TO BOIL OVER.

Every brash decision made by Trump and carried out as PROOF of his devotion to Israel over and above that of the Palestinians was increasing tensions that would spark anger and hate. The protests no matter where they were to take place should have been expected and rightfully so, but, INSTEAD was viewed as an attack on the USA. Sorry. But, when a country has a mission on foreign soil and carries out insult after insult in the region, there is going to be a backlash and danger. Trump didn't care and now he is parlaying all that momentum into a war chant. A war chant that the extremists in Israeli leadership welcome with the idea Trump can actually pull off a change in the Middle East paradigm to benefit expansionism.

Donald J. Trump has carried out and continues to carry out a "Star Chamber" and a "Cabal of USA Authority." He tells no one and he is at the top of one of the most powerful militaries in the world. He is not interested in peace. He eliminated any good relations with Iran by dissolving the USA interest in the P5+1 agreement.


The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) (click here) between Iran and P5+1 (the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council—China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States—plus Germany) and the European Union signed in Vienna on 14 July 2015....

To measure the degree of which Donald J. Trump has disrupted global order, realize where the world is today compared to four short years ago. That is not an accident, that is a plan. Trump didn't care about how he achieved his satiation of hatred which resounds in his constituency about Muslims. All he knew is that he needed votes and he would get them at any cost, even global instability. He wants this war. He wants it more than anyone can imagine and it is why he killed Iran's top generals. It was a guarantee to war. Isn't it?

The death of those men was a waste. It accomplished nothing in terms to regional stability. It is my guess that once Iran exacts it's own plans, the USA Embassy in Iraq will be the first target. A billion dollar fortress will fall. It will give more reason for Trump to escalate his plans.

Donald J. Trump has to be stopped. He is lawless and is extremely dangerous. There is no reason for any country, including North Korea, to ever trust The West's diplomacy again, at least as far as that of the USA. Right now even Americans are asking how can such a man be outside the ability of our own laws to end such danger to Americans as well as the global community.

Let me just say this. Balance all that has gone on internationally with the reality that he is handing military pardons to officers that don't deserve them. It is a plan and is has to end now!

Iran has declared war on the USA

That should be of no surprise when two top generals have been killed. Russia and China are allies and this will be a proxy war or it will be a war of the at least three nuclear countries. Killing generals meant nothing and played right into Putin’s plans. Russia and China will send their own generals to fill in the gap of authority that now exists. 

Trump is a stupid president and plays politics with American lives.

I believe this was all premeditated by Trump. There are four B-52 bombers on the tarmac in Qatar right now to prove it. Trump provoked the war and now Russia and China have a real reason to confront the USA. 

Putin.

The reassessment of the prosecution for the Flint Water Crisis can't go on forever. This is day 4 of 2020.

December 18, 2019
By Ron Fonger

Flint - Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (click here) says she’s expecting “some announcements at the beginning of the year” about a criminal investigation into the Flint water crisis.

Speaking after helping to serve a Christmas lunch at the Hasselbring Community Center in Flint on Tuesday, Dec. 17, Whitmer said she trusts Attorney General Dana Nessel “to do the right thing.”

“I think she has shown she’s taken it very seriously. These timelines we are bumping up against means that she’ll probably be making some announcements at the beginning of the year,” the governor said....

I hope Governor Whitmer speaks to the state soon. This has gone on far too long. Everyone wants those most responsible charged. There are many people that suffered and died in this episode of so-called "Fiscal Responsibility." That isn't supposed to happen. The people with the least amount of power suffered horribly due to some wacko idea that government debt of a city can be acted on at any cost, including human life.

Americans need to realize they are not held to the highest esteem by their government. This is governance gone wrong. I realize there are other cities now testing water and finding fault with its management, but, Flint is slightly different. That is not to so those who allowed city water to become dangerous should be given a slap on the wrist, but, Flint was undermined of its already excellent water source. Flint did not have a water contamination problem before Snyder sent in his hatchet men to bring about Fiscal Responsibility. 

The Flint Episode is about water. Sure. But, it is about more than mismanagement, this is maniacal stuff. There was nothing wrong with the water Flint, Michigan was using except the expense. The health of the people of Flint was fine. They had no real issues except the cost of the water. That cost was also a city budget issue for the water the city used, but, at no point in time was the health and well being of the people, INCLUDING UNBORN BABIES, were to be compromised to make up for a budget shortfall.

Governor Whitmer was expected to oversee an administration that would tell it like it is and was and carry out prosecutions for the decision makers, not just the people carrying out orders handed down from the Governor's office. All the people along the way should have put a stop to it. Absolutely. But, there is only one person that demanded FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY AT ANY COST and that was Rick Snyder. He demanded the managers to make changes to bring about fiscal compliance and he didn't care how. As a matter of fact in some instances of such management Snyders cronies directly benefited from actions rendered to bring about changes in a cities budgets, including the sale of assets.

There needs to be accountability all the way to the top. It needs to happen soon.

Trump has really done it this time. China, Russia and Iran just completed war games in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean, North Korea has an itchy trigger finger and Trump violated the no assassination policy. The UN Security will be ground zero tomorrow morning. Trump has no policy of peace.

The USA policy that removed targeted assassinations as an option on foreign soil began when Nixon’s CIA was plotting against Castro and other Latin American leaders.

How exposed is the USA in Cuba and Venezuela?

China was having talks with Japan and South Korea under the guise of trade talks. Perhaps it was, but, it is difficult to believe North Korea and Hong Kong didn’t enter the discussions as well.

At the forefront of all this is the lack of a national security staff.

On top the of all this, domestically, the Republicans have submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court to reverse Roe v Wade.

The stage is being set for elections of 2020 and Trump is wagering high on all fronts and the Middle East is all part of the gamble.

Turkey’s government has voted to open a war front in Libya. It is doing so without consideration of NATO, best I can tell.

Australia is locked in a different battle against the climate crisis, extensive wildfires

I hesitate to discuss Israel and the increased threat Trump has leveraged against it. Talking tough is one thing, but, the Shia crescent has been turned loose. It has become impossible to estimate the danger.

If any Shi’ite authority has their pulse on the crescent it would be Nasrallah. The immediate concerns domestically has to be higher concerns for terrorism. We are back to a 911 status.

McConnell can be removed from office as well.

Moscow Mitch McConnell is in violation of the USA Constitution with his obstructionist agend.

Moscow Mitch prohibits the free progression of "government of, by and for" the people. He prevents bills passed in the US House from receiving a  vote. He does nothing but, confirms judges . That is not governance, that is partisan party politics.

Besides the corruption he oversees to benefit himself and his family, he regularly assaults the USA Constitution by prohibiting votes to pass bills currently passed by the US House. That political agenda violates the governance as prescribed by our USA Constitution.

Kentucky needs a real Senator and not a corrupt one and the US Senate needs a real Majority Leader.

I think we are off to a good start ?????

The Iraqi demonstrators have ended their opposition to the American presence in Iraq. At least for now.

January 1, 2020
By Mustafa Salim and Liz Shy

Baghdad - The siege by supporters (click here) of an Iranian-backed militia at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad ended Wednesday after the militia ordered them to withdraw, bringing relief to the diplomats trapped inside and averting a potential showdown between the United States and Iran.

Supporters of the Kataib Hezbollah militia who had spent the night camped outside the embassy dismantled their tents and marched out of the area, saying they would instead continue to press for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq in the nation’s parliament.

“Yay! We burned them!” they chanted as they headed away from the embassy, a reference to the fires set by the demonstrators that burned two embassy reception areas Tuesday.

The retreat signaled an end to a crisis in which thousands of angry militia supporters attempted to storm the embassy Tuesday, protesting the deaths of 25 militia members in U.S. airstrikes Sunday. Those strikes were conducted in retaliation for the death of a U.S. contractor in a rocket attack the U.S. military blamed on Kataib Hezbollah....

There are hints of real peace talks in Afghanistan.

January 1, 2020
By Pamela Constable

Kabul - For three miraculous days in June 2018, (click here) the Afghan war came to a halt. Under a brief cease-fire agreement, Taliban fighters appeared in towns and cities, mingling with civilians and uniformed troops, praying in community mosques and getting a taste of peace.

The fighting quickly resumed, and in the 18 months since, thousands more Afghan civilians and security forces have been killed, as well as over 40 American troops. Peace talks between Taliban and U.S. officials dragged on for a year and were abruptly canceled in September by President Trump.

But suddenly, in the past week, rumors of a possible new truce have flooded the news, striking a rare spark of hope among the war-weary citizenry. International media outlets have reported that a cease-fire is imminent, citing unnamed sources after Taliban leaders held several meetings in Pakistan....

Senator Susan Collins has stated she wants to hear from witnesses at the Impeachment hearing. (click here)

There is a variety of law reforms coming into view in 2020, from legalizing marijuana as a recreational substance much the same as alcohol to protections for government contract workers to eliminating cash bail for certain crimes and enforcing "Red Flag" laws. (click here)

The state’s new bail (click here) reform law should significantly reduce pretrial incarceration levels, but some questions remain.

There is some talk about the death of "Medicare for All" in 2020. (click here) The insurance companies are scared. They are now paying attention to Seniors as they never have before. That might turn out to be good thing, but, the fact is it is strongly a BELATED thing. These programs should have existed a long time ago and sincere caring for Americans should have been Wall Street Business' Number One Priority. 

I think it may be too late for Wall Street to completely end Medicare for All. The destructive power of Wall Street is playing out in large measure when it comes to the health and well being of Americans. Fifty-something White American Men are dying at larger numbers than their peers in other First World countries, vaping has killed many Americans some in their teen years, but, the mean age is 51, then there is the Millenials that have made their own economy and it works for them, HOWEVER, it comes with a high price of prolonged stress, depression and anxiety. These are all failures of Wall Street companies that see only profits and consider lawsuits and human losses as part of their operating expenses.

The facts are plain when it comes to Wall Street, the USA desperately needs CEOs focused on strong ethics and moral company policies that value human life and the environment in which it lives above their profits.

December 31, 2019
By Justin Calma

Science teachers and students (click here) will push the crystal button to make the ball drop

Times Square revelers will ring in the New Year to a theme of existential crisis tonight. Science teachers and students taking on the climate crisis will push the crystal button to trigger the ball drop in Times Square. Organizers of the annual New Year’s Eve celebration in New York City choose a theme each year based on the biggest issues in the news, and this year that theme is climate change.

[You’d] have to have a soul of Styrofoam not to be moved by the passion of young people demanding that we do better, and ‘listen to the science’ to start solving the problem,” Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance, said in a press release. He added that “you’d have to have your head buried” in sand not to be alarmed by 2019’s environmental catastrophes....

Ten years to end this insanity.

Let's start the New Year with transparency for the good of our democracy.

This past week US Senator John Kennedy was a whistleblower. He openly stated he personally know of other Republican Senators that will not vote at the impeachment hearing regardless of any oath. I think it is time for him to reveal who those Senators are so their constituency can identify traitors to the USA Constitution. It is the right thing to do. 

Senator Lisa Murkowski is a very important Senator.

November 17, 2010
By Yereth Rosen

Anchorage - Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski (click here) Wednesday became the first U.S. senator in more than 50 years to win an election with a write-in campaign as she established an unassailable lead over conservative Tea Party movement favorite Joe Miller.

The result of the last undecided Senate race of the November 2 congressional elections does not alter the makeup of the chamber, where Republicans picked up six seats but the Democrats retained their majority.

Murkowski had a lead of about 10,000 votes with only 752 ballots left to be counted, a state election official said on Wednesday. According to the latest figures from the state’s division of elections, Murkowski has 100,868 votes to Miller’s 90,468....

I thank her for her statements about the impeachment of the president. She stated basically, "...McConnell's statement...only confuses the process further..."

To begin with, this statement appears to be said on December 25th. That surprises me. She must have felt some pressure to make her statements if it occurred on this particular holiday. I would not expect that at all.

December 25, 2019
By Katie Mettler and Diana Paul

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) — a key potential Republican swing vote (click here) — told an Anchorage TV station that she was “disturbed” by the Senate majority leader’s statement last week that the verdict in President Trump’s upcoming impeachment trial was already determined....

...The majority leader also promised “total coordination” with the White House and Trump’s defense team.

Murkowski told NBC affiliate KTUU that she believes there should be distance between the Senate, which will serve as the jury for Trump’s impeachment trial, and the White House. McConnell’s comments, she said, have “further confused the process.”

“To me, it means we have to take that step back from being hand in glove with the defense,” Murkowski said...

I consider Senator Murkowski a very special circumstance in her 2010 election. The Republicans took many seats across the spectrum of government that year. To the surprise of the people, many Republicans were primaried that year and replaced with extremists. This occurred in 2010 because the right-wing media lied and deceived Americans about the Affordable Care Act. Nearly a decade later Americans are fully aware of the important impact of any aspect of the ACA. At the time in 2010, the Republicans successfully frightened Americans about losing their doctors and quality care. Somehow the fear in Alaska ran so deep it unseated Senator Murkowski in a primary.

She decided she could serve Alaska better than any other candidate for Senator.
She didn't receive big money from the Republican Party or other prominent Republican donors, but, she proved to be a better candidate for the people of Alaska. Perhaps, it is because she didn't receive big money, but, instead appealed to the "good common sense" of Alaskans that she was re-elected to her Senate seat.

Kindly realize there is no way she should have won that seat if one believes money buys power within the USA government. I find that more interesting today than ever before.

Senator Murkowski answers, without reservation to powerful special interests, to the Alaskan people. When she realized the level of corruption within the words of McConnell, the Republican leader in the US Senate, she felt strongly enough about it to speak about it. She did so on Christmas when people feel deeply about their faith, truth and morality.

She is not making a statement about her vote in any impeachment hearing. She is stating clearly the predetermined outcome of the impeachment hearing is very corrupt (my words, not hers). One of the articles is abuse of power which lends itself to corruption. The other article is the obstruction of Congress. How is the USA Constitution supposed to be protected from corruption if the Congress is not allowed to operate freely in obtaining all necessary information?

The US Senate has to realize the degree of which the US Constitution is compromised under this president. There is no information provided to the US House in order to prevent corruption by the president or any of his staff. The president is prohibiting DISCOVERY. In the Special Counsel's report, it was information obtained that carried forth successful prosecution of many close to Donald J. Trump in his campaign, inaugural funding and as president. The information the US House was pursuing was vital to determine the brevity of circumstances impacting the US Constitution. Now, Americans just don't know if their US Constitution is safe.

I and others have stated over and over the impeachment of Donald J. Trump is not political, it is about the US Constitution. I thank Senator Murkowski for placing the US Constitution first. I am confident the people of Alaska are proud of her clear priorities and honesty. I am grateful at this point in time and history, she fought for her place in the US Senate in 2010. Her voice is just that important.

Merry Christmas

and

Happy Holidays

December 21, 2019
By Thomas Maresca

Nurses Margaritha Pissarek (L) and Marianne Stoeger (R) treat a patient with Hansen's disease on Sorok Island. 

The sound of music (click here) rings out from a modest home on this tiny island, not much bigger than New York's Central Park, off the southwestern coast of South Korea.

The setting is an idyllic one, with pine trees, beaches and clear water glinting under a crisp blue late-autumn sky. But for 73-year-old Chung Bong-up, coming to Sorok Island in 1975 was a fate that seemed worse than death.

The island, called Sorokdo in Korean, was at that time a colony for sufferers of Hansen's disease (leprosy), a dehumanizing prison where patients were exiled by a society that still deeply stigmatized the illness.

"I felt like I lost everything in my life," Chung said of being sent here. "It felt like the sky was falling down."...

...Stories abound on Sorokdo of the kindness of the blue-eyed nurses who kept their clinic door open at all times and held birthday parties for their patients, all while working tirelessly to remove the shame and fear surrounding Hansen's disease.

Stoeger, now 85, and Pissarek, 84, returned to Austria in 2005. They have received several awards from the South Korean government and were made honorary South Korean citizens in 2016.

Now a movement aims to give them the highest accolade of all: a Nobel Peace Prize....

First Day of Winter

I am traveling on the 22 December under cloudy skies, but, the road conditions are supposed to be okay. Then visiting with family. Hope everyone will be having a great holiday and very safe travel. Arrive alive.

What? Mar-a-lago isn't going to be purchased by the library fund?

Merry Christmas everyone.

December 20, 2019

A plan being pushed by a Briny Breezes resident would sell the 43-acre town for $1 billion to Donald Trump as a potential site for a presidential library.

Briny Breezes - A Palm Beach County trailer park (click here) could be the site of a future Donald J. Trump presidential library.

That’s the vision of James Arena, a real estate broker and resident of Briny Breezes, the 43-acre coastal town just south of Boynton Beach that’s made up entirely of a mobile home park.

Arena, an avid Trump supporter, says he thinks he can convince the president to buy the land and turn it into a personal monument. Arena said he has the ball rolling by reaching out to his friend, rapper and Palm Beach County resident Vanilla Ice, who is close to the Trump family.

“Vanilla Ice ran it by Donald Jr.,” Arena said of the president’s eldest son. “He called me back and said, ‘Man, I think they’re really into it.’”...

8:30 entry - thank you.

Trump finds anger a method to energize voters.

Ivanka finds anger as a method to benefit the president. It doesn't bring the country together, it separates Americans into camps. I agree wholeheartedly with John Harwood.

Trump's pursuit of the "Deep State" serves the growth of a violent revolution.

January 7, 2013
By Scott Shane and Mark Mazetti 

President Obama, who Monday named John O. Brennan, right, as his choice for C.I.A. director, also chose Chuck Hagel, left, to be his next defense secretary.

Washington - President Obama’s nomination (click here) on Monday of John O. Brennan as director of the Central Intelligence Agency puts one of his closest and most powerful aides in charge of an agency that has been transformed by more than a decade of secret wars.

Working closely with the president, Mr. Brennan oversaw the escalation of drone strikes in Pakistan in 2010 and was the principal architect of the administration’s secret counterterrorism operations in Yemen. He became a prominent public spokesman for the administration, appearing on television after foiled terrorist plots and giving speeches about the legality and morality of targeted killing.

The question that now faces Mr. Brennan, if he is confirmed by the Senate, is whether the C.I.A. should remain at the center of secret American paramilitary operations — most notably drone strikes — or rebuild its traditional espionage capabilities, which intelligence veterans say have atrophied during years of terrorist manhunts....

...Another Senate Republican, John Cornyn of Texas, said Mr. Brennan’s possible role in disclosing information to the news media should also get scrutiny. “John Brennan has not been absolved of responsibility for the slew of high-level security leaks that have characterized this White House,” Mr. Cornyn said in a statement....

Former Director Brennan was vetted extensively before he was Director of the CIA. There is no doubt his methods were different than Pompeo, but, that doesn't make him a problem or his time at the CIA.

Trump's ranting and raving about the deep state serve as loyalty of his base to build a revolution to overthrow the government. Trump with Barr's assistance makes real the idea the USA is on a wrongful path from it's constitution. Everyone that opposes Trump is the Deep State including judges. He does this for votes. He could not care less about the people that actually act against the government, but, the storyline is useful to Donald J. Trump. This is not politics, it is an ages-old movement based in White Supremacy/Nationalism.

December 20, 2019
By David Gutman, Jim Brunner and and Joseph O. Sullivan

State Rep. Matt Shea (click here) planned and participated in domestic terrorism against the United States before and during the armed takeover at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, an investigation commissioned by the Washington state House found.

The 108-page report found that beginning in November 2015, Shea, working with militia leader Ammon Bundy, helped “in the planning and preparation” of the Malheur takeover, a six-week conflict in which dozens of armed protesters occupied the refuge in rural Eastern Oregon. The standoff ended after one protester was shot and killed and dozens were arrested.

“Representative Shea, as a leader in the Patriot Movement, planned, engaged in and promoted a total of three armed conflicts of political violence against the United States Government in three states outside the state of Washington over a three-year period,” according to the report released Thursday. “In one conflict Representative Shea led covert strategic pre-planning in advance of the conflict.”...

The US Senate, under Moscow Mitch McConnell, needs to get the rules of the impeachment hearing right without dog whistles.

They called it chaos. I call it undermining the USA Constitution.

December 24, 2018
By Julie Pace and Zeke Miller

Washington  - Last year, (click here) during one particularly frenetic stretch in Donald Trump’s presidency, a top Republican senator said there were three men guarding the country from chaos: Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, White House chief of staff John Kelly and then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Within weeks, not one will be left in the administration.

Mattis’ abrupt resignation Thursday marks the end of the “contain and control” phase of Trump’s administration — one where generals, business leaders and establishment Republicans struggled to guide the president and curb his most disruptive impulses. They were branded in Washington as the “troika of sanity,” the “axis of adults” and the “committee to save America.”...
Credit...

Evidently there are plea deals between the State and the EPA people responsible for Flint.

It appears from this reporting the plea deal includes the continued cooperation in reporting facts and possibly as witnesses.

December 18, 2019
By  Zahra Ahmad

January 26, 2016 (click here) - Elizabeth Tramble worries about how the lead in Flint's drinking water will affect her children.

Flint - Criminal charges (click here) against two of the three remaining Flint water crisis cases were dismissed Wednesday, Dec. 18.

Judge David Goggins dismissed charges against Steven Busch and Michael Prysby, two former state environmental officials, after reviewing their cases. The two former officials worked for Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and had oversight responsibility for Flint’s water system after it began using the Flint River as its water source in 2014 and 2015.

Both men took plea deals with former special prosecutor Todd Flood a year ago, pleading no contest to misdemeanors that were to be reviewed and potentially dismissed a year later.

Molly Kettler, special assistant to the attorney general, said the men will have no lasting legal consequences because of the plea deals made by the former prosecution team. Kettler was assigned by Michigan Solicitor General Fadwa Hammoud to replace the former prosecution team led by Flood and to hold government officials accountable for Flint’s water crisis.

“I must say, in all candor to the court and to everyone here, in well over 25 years of practicing law I’ve never seen anything like this,” Kettler said. “These pleas were taken when the prior prosecuting authority brought the defendants here to court the day after Christmas without making any announcements so the victims could be here or so that the public was aware of it.”

After Flood was fired as special prosecutor by Hammoud, pending criminal cases against eight defendants were dismissed and the unresolved plea agreements with Busch, Prysby and another DEQ official -- Liane Shekter-Smith -- were left in limbo....

It doesn't sound as though the state is dismissing RESPONSIBILITY for the water poisoning, so much as reassessing the entire dynamics. It seems as though more prosecutions will be forthcoming.

Criminal charges (click here) were filed against two Michigan Department of Environmental Quality regulators, Mike Prysby and Stephen Busch, and a former Flint water treatment plant supervisor, Mike Glasgow—the result of an investigation that began in January (3). Prysby and Busch face several charges, including: tampering and conspiracy, misconduct, and violating state water treatment and monitoring laws. Prysby was an engineer with the MDEQ who reportedly approved the water switch despite the treatment plant’s deficiencies. Glasgow, accused of altering lead water-monitoring results, was charged with tampering with evidence and “willful neglect of duty as a public servant”(4), however he has now reached a plea agreement. Glasgow agreed to plead no contest to the charge of willful neglect of duty (the tampering charge will be dropped) in exchange for his cooperation with the prosecutor’s ongoing investigation (6).

Prysby, Busch and Glasgow were all privy to emails that discussed water quality and the challenges they faced with the switch....

...Are they the sole culprits in this tragic series of events?While the process to remove lead pipes continues to move at a snail’s pace, the lead will remain a constant threat. In fact, one of Flint’s highest readings yet (22,905 ppb!) was recorded in a house as recently as April 2016(7). The federal Lead and Copper rule sets the legal threshold at 15 ppb. The EPA acknowledges that the pipe replacement is a “long-term goal,” thus the rallying cry to #FlushforFlint was born—calling on residents to flush their pipes for 5 minutes every morning for 14 days (8). This story is far from over. There will unfortunately be an enduring need for health and educational interventions for anyone with lead exposure....

December 19, 2019
By Steve Carmody

Two third graders (click here) at Neithercut Elementary in Flint play checkers on a tablet. Neveah Wilson (left) and Elizabeth Dexter are both bright, outgoing leaders in their classroom. But teaching often gets interrupted to deal with behavior issues, especially toward the end of the day. The school district has seen a steady increase in special needs since the water crisis, and is now nearing 28% special education, according to the superintendent.

State prosecutors (click here) are still not saying when to expect new criminal charges in the Flint water crisis probe.

Thursday evening, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel joined Flint Mayor Sheldon Neeley in cutting a ribbon officially opening the department’s new office in Flint. The office will handle multiple jobs. But its highest profile mission is related to the investigation into Flint’s water crisis.

The switch of Flint’s drinking water source exposed city residents to high levels of lead and other contaminants. The county also experienced a spike in cases of Legionnaires Disease. At least 12 people died.

Under the previous state Attorney General, more than a dozen government officials were criminally charged. About half reached plea deals with prosecutors in exchange for their cooperation, but no one spent a day in jail.

Six months ago, Solicitor General Fadwa Hammoud dropped criminal charges against a half dozen government officials. The decision meant restarting the investigation from scratch. She blames the previous investigative team for the need to start over from square one...

...Next April will mark the sixth anniversary of Flint’s drinking water switch.

From the article of Neithercut Elementary:

...Rising rate of special needs post-water crisis

Five years ago, during the water crisis, the kids currently in Flint’s kindergarten and elementary classrooms were babies and toddlers, the population most vulnerable to lead exposure. Some may have spent their infancy drinking formula mixed with lead-tainted tap water, month after month.

Even low levels of childhood lead exposure have been linked to decreases in IQ. Elevated lead levels in the blood may raise the risk for ADHD and developmental delays. Numerous studies say it can also increase aggression and reduce impulse control, and according to the CDC, some researchers have found a “direct association between BLLs [blood lead levels] and poorer performance on tasks requiring focused attention, cognitive flexibility, and inhibition of automatic response.”

Flint’s superintendent, Derrick Lopez, says that’s what’s happening in these schools....

Putin states the USA Impeachment of Trump is phoney. Taken right out of the Republican playbook.

I am fairly certain the idea the USA House of Representative drummed up evidence for impeachment is not endorsed by allies. The Republicans need to realize who their international friends are; they should not be bragging about a political dogma Russia believes to be the best way out of the truth.

There is only one way to settle a peace in Ukraine and that is for Russia to LEAVE!

The /cartoonist's homepage, https://www.courier-journal.com

MARC MURPHY, (LOUISVILLE, KY.) COURIER JOURNAL

19 December 2019

Russian President Vladimir Putin (click here) has defended the pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine, calling for direct talks between them and the Kyiv government to help restore peace.

He said Ukraine had accepted the rebel leaders' signatures on the 2015 Minsk ceasefire deal, so recognising them.

The separatists launched a Russian-backed insurgency in April 2014, seizing most of the Donbas region.

Ukraine denounced the rebels' claim to independence as an illegal revolt.

Ukraine and Russia agree to implement ceasefire

Will a deal with Russia bring peace to Ukraine?

Vladimir Putin: 20 years in 20 photos

Mr Putin was speaking at his annual wide-ranging, marathon press conference, broadcast live on all major TV channels.

Could Putin stay on beyond 2024?

There is much speculation about who might succeed Mr Putin to the presidency in 2024. He is currently in his fourth presidential term, though he had a break in between, serving as prime minister....

It reminds me of the Romney 47 percent statement.

29 December 2019

Pete Buttigieg (click here) faced pushback on the debate stage Thursday night for a recent lavish fundraiser in California's Napa Valley. The private event in what's known as a "wine cave" included a chandelier studded with 1,500 Swarovski crystals and $900 bottles of wine — items Senator Elizabeth Warren was quick to point out as being out of reach for voters of more humble means.

Wine caves are meant to age and store wines and are used worldwide in the industry. What's less common is the Hall Rutherford caves functioning as a venue for high-paying donors to support Buttigieg's presidential aspirations....

Senator Warren is correct, who is doing this? There is only one reason to dive into lavish affairs where enormous amounts of money is coming out of a few people in a room and that is because there aren't enough small money donors.

It takes a lot of backbone to say no to money and it's power, but, she is saying no and there is a lot to be said for Senator Warren to call this out for what it is for a candidate for president, inappropriate.