August 3, 2017
By James Doubek
An earthquake (click here) of preliminary magnitude 4.2 hit central Oklahoma on Wednesday night, the U.S. Geological Survey said, the sixth earthquake to affect the area in just over 24 hours.
Four hours later, a less intense earthquake of a preliminary magnitude 3.5 struck the area in the early hours of Thursday.
The quake late Wednesday was the largest magnitude earthquake to strike the area, near the city of Edmond, since Tuesday night. The USGS said the earthquake was "widely felt" in Edmond and northern Oklahoma City, which is located about 15 miles away. It happened a few minutes before 10 p.m. local time at a preliminary depth of 2.3 kilometers (1.43 miles).
The Edmond police department said on Twitter that no significant damage had been reported.
Residents said the "earthquake cracked floors and walls, and knocked household items off shelves and counters," reporter Joe Wertz of StateImpact Oklahoma reports for NPR.
Thursday, August 03, 2017
Remember the 84 million acres of ocean President Bill Clinton preserved to protect corals?
This is 2009. There are scientists in American universities fighting to bring back endangered species of corals in this waters.
December 5, 2000
By Robert A. Rosenblatt and Richard Simon
...The new reserve (click here) is "a special place where the sea is a living rainbow," Clinton said at the National Geographic Museum in Washington, where giant pictures of coral were projected on a screen behind him. The order establishes "the strongest level of protection for oceans ever enacted," and sets "a new global standard for reef and marine wildlife protection," he told members of the audience, many of whom were wearing leis made from purple and yellow Hawaiian blossoms....
When politicians say they put people first, make sure it includes the air you breath!
August 24, 2014
NOAA announced today (click here) it will afford Endangered Species Act protections to 20 coral species. All 20 species will be listed as threatened, none as endangered. Fifteen of the newly listed species occur in the Indo-Pacific and five in the Caribbean....
...Today’s announcement is a significant change from the proposed rule in November 2012. Since that time, many new scientific papers on climate change and coral habitat, distribution and abundance were published so that NOAA was able to consider and incorporate new information into the final decision. NOAA also considered extensive public comments as part of the final rule making....
July 23, 2017
- By Beth Buczynski
- Coral reefs (click here) serve as a "canary in the coal mine" for the health of our planet. As land dwellers, we can’t see or feel the effects of climate change and other detrimental forces at work in the ocean, but coral reefs can.
And, unfortunately, the ongoing changes occurring in the world’s most important reef ecosystems suggest that something is terribly wrong.
Most recently under threat are the reefs protected by the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument...
Profiteers have no conscience, only money and misinformation to manipulate the public opinion.
It is like the petroleum industry works in cabal with loggers to find the most dense "core forest" and destroy it.
August 2, 2017
By Duncan Adams
In a July 21 filing, the department alerted the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission of “many deficiencies in the MVP approach to evaluate forest fragmentation” that would be caused by the pipeline and the 125-foot wide temporary right-of-way the project would clear of trees and vegetation during construction, as well as the permanently treeless right-of-way of 50 feet in most places.
The agencies said fragmentation of an irreplaceable forest core diminishes its significant, wide-ranging ecological benefits. According to the filing, a “forest core” is an ecological unit that represents an intact block of forest of at least 100 acres....
This same level of immorality existed at "Standing Rock." The land involved at "Standing Rock" BELONGS to Native Americans. It was a burial ground. The tribes did not expect to have their land INVADED by petroleum profiteers.
In the case of Standing Rock private interests invaded Native American land. They do not have rights there. The state and local governments don't have rights there, yet the land was OCCUPIED by private petroleum concerns.
Why?
Because the petroleum industry was unsuccessful in bringing the pipeline to Fargo, North Dakota. The White People of Fargo said, "NO WAY." When it was evident the white folks would win the argument, the petroleum industry simply invaded Standing Rock with a private militia and local swat police. One Native American from Standing Rock that was an Iraq War veteran stated, "We didn't even have that type of armaments when I was a soldier in Iraq."
The 550-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline (click here) proposed by Dominion Resources in May 2014 is a very real threat to the natural, recreational, and water resources on Shenandoah Mountain. It cuts through the southeastern portion of the Shenandoah Mountain Proposal in the Braley Pond - Hankey Mountain area. If the pipeline is approved, it could make a portion of the Shenandoah Mountain Proposal ineligible for designation as a National Scenic Area. It would also cut through the Ruffed Grouse Habitat Management area on Hankey Mountain that FOSM has pledged to support. Dominion initiated the pre-filing process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Oct. 31, 2014. Friends of Shenandoah Mountain submitted the letter below to FERC on Nov. 13....
Say, "No" to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. There is no reason for more pipelines in the USA. Fix the ones that already exist!
This same level of immorality existed at "Standing Rock." The land involved at "Standing Rock" BELONGS to Native Americans. It was a burial ground. The tribes did not expect to have their land INVADED by petroleum profiteers.
In the case of Standing Rock private interests invaded Native American land. They do not have rights there. The state and local governments don't have rights there, yet the land was OCCUPIED by private petroleum concerns.
Why?
Because the petroleum industry was unsuccessful in bringing the pipeline to Fargo, North Dakota. The White People of Fargo said, "NO WAY." When it was evident the white folks would win the argument, the petroleum industry simply invaded Standing Rock with a private militia and local swat police. One Native American from Standing Rock that was an Iraq War veteran stated, "We didn't even have that type of armaments when I was a soldier in Iraq."
The 550-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline (click here) proposed by Dominion Resources in May 2014 is a very real threat to the natural, recreational, and water resources on Shenandoah Mountain. It cuts through the southeastern portion of the Shenandoah Mountain Proposal in the Braley Pond - Hankey Mountain area. If the pipeline is approved, it could make a portion of the Shenandoah Mountain Proposal ineligible for designation as a National Scenic Area. It would also cut through the Ruffed Grouse Habitat Management area on Hankey Mountain that FOSM has pledged to support. Dominion initiated the pre-filing process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Oct. 31, 2014. Friends of Shenandoah Mountain submitted the letter below to FERC on Nov. 13....
Say, "No" to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. There is no reason for more pipelines in the USA. Fix the ones that already exist!
February 23, 2017
By Steph Yin
...In a paper published in PLoS One on Wednesday, (click here) Dr. Mountrakis and Sheng Yang, a graduate student, tried slicing deforestation a different way. Using satellite maps, they calculated the average distance to the nearest forest from any point in the continental United States in 1992 versus 2001. Between these years, they found, distance to the nearest forest increased by one-third of a mile.
This new metric, which the researchers named “forest attrition distance,” reflects a particular type of forest loss: the removal of isolated forest patches. When these patches are lost (a process the authors refer to as attrition), adjacent forests become farther apart, potentially affecting biodiversity, soil erosion, local climate and other conditions.
The authors calculated the change in total forest cover from 1992 to 2001, and found a loss of 3 percent or 35,000 square miles, approximately the size of Maine. Over the same time period, Dr. Mountrakis said, forest attrition distance increased by 14 percent, a contrast he called striking....
It isn't as though American scientists that work within the USA government have been sitting on their hands regarding the concern of the loss of photosynthesis within the borders of the USA.
A 25-Year History of Forest Disturbance and Cause in the United States (click here)
Mountain pine beetle damage.
Currently in its third phase, the North American Forest Dynamics (NAFD) project is completing nationwide processing of historic Landsat data to provide a comprehensive annual, wall-to-wall analysis of U.S. disturbance history over the last 25 years. Because understanding the cause of disturbance is important to many forest-related applications, Forest Service scientists and collaborators have developed methods to map forest disturbance agents through time. Starting with 10 pilot scenes across the U.S. representing diverse disturbance regimes, scientists developed annual maps at 30 meters (98.42 feet) resolution of fire, harvest, conversion, stress and other agents. It was no surprise that high magnitude disturbances such as clear cuts, land use change, and severe fire could be mapped quite accurately, but the group also experienced success in mapping more subtle and slow disturbances such as insect and disease outbreaks in the Interior West. Research partners plan to distribute annual nationwide maps depicting when and where a forest disturbance occurred over the last 25 years in the near future. Forest Service scientists also are processing national causal agent maps and intermediate spatial data layers. These causal disturbance maps will enable extensive analyses of temporal and spatial patterns in disturbance agents across the U.S.
Picture to right is clear cutting in Oregon, USA.
It is not necessary, even in western Oregon to clear cut for sunlight. Does anyone actually believe a Douglasfir Tree (America's popular Christmas Tree) needs bare land to grow? If that was the case, there wouldn't be Douglasfir in the first place.
Full sun (click here) and partial shade are best for this tree, meaning it prefers a minimum of four hours of direct, unfiltered sunlight each day.
Clear cutting is not required for any species of tree. Honestly, if greed is the issue than foresters should state it as same.
Rules for clearcuts. (click here) Oregon law requires that trees be left as buffers along streams to protect water and fish habitat. And in the clearcut area, a few trees are retained for wildlife habitat. Seedlings must be planted within two years after harvest. Oregon rules limit clearcuts to 120 acres, and adjacent areas in the same ownership cannot be clearcut until the new trees on the original harvest site are at least 4 feet tall.
It isn't as though American scientists that work within the USA government have been sitting on their hands regarding the concern of the loss of photosynthesis within the borders of the USA.
Mountain pine beetle damage.
Currently in its third phase, the North American Forest Dynamics (NAFD) project is completing nationwide processing of historic Landsat data to provide a comprehensive annual, wall-to-wall analysis of U.S. disturbance history over the last 25 years. Because understanding the cause of disturbance is important to many forest-related applications, Forest Service scientists and collaborators have developed methods to map forest disturbance agents through time. Starting with 10 pilot scenes across the U.S. representing diverse disturbance regimes, scientists developed annual maps at 30 meters (98.42 feet) resolution of fire, harvest, conversion, stress and other agents. It was no surprise that high magnitude disturbances such as clear cuts, land use change, and severe fire could be mapped quite accurately, but the group also experienced success in mapping more subtle and slow disturbances such as insect and disease outbreaks in the Interior West. Research partners plan to distribute annual nationwide maps depicting when and where a forest disturbance occurred over the last 25 years in the near future. Forest Service scientists also are processing national causal agent maps and intermediate spatial data layers. These causal disturbance maps will enable extensive analyses of temporal and spatial patterns in disturbance agents across the U.S.
Picture to right is clear cutting in Oregon, USA.
It is not necessary, even in western Oregon to clear cut for sunlight. Does anyone actually believe a Douglasfir Tree (America's popular Christmas Tree) needs bare land to grow? If that was the case, there wouldn't be Douglasfir in the first place.
Full sun (click here) and partial shade are best for this tree, meaning it prefers a minimum of four hours of direct, unfiltered sunlight each day.
Clear cutting is not required for any species of tree. Honestly, if greed is the issue than foresters should state it as same.
Rules for clearcuts. (click here) Oregon law requires that trees be left as buffers along streams to protect water and fish habitat. And in the clearcut area, a few trees are retained for wildlife habitat. Seedlings must be planted within two years after harvest. Oregon rules limit clearcuts to 120 acres, and adjacent areas in the same ownership cannot be clearcut until the new trees on the original harvest site are at least 4 feet tall.
The ACA also provided for the common good.
One of the aspects of the ACA that is grossly neglected is it's investment into the future of health care in the USA.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provided grants and other funding to encourage the numbers of General Practitioners and Nurse Practitioners in the USA. Currently, there is a shortage of Family Physicians. I could never understand the eagerness of the Republicans to destroy a healthcare law that provided for the growth of much needed doctors.
Additionally, the ACA also provided funding to bring into employment new certified home care aides as well as those that staff the hospital as nursing assistants. The ACA takes a look at the total of health care and brings it up to speed for a growing population of Americans. It also seeks to empower the rural hospitals and health care clinics.
In destroying the best health care law in the USA for the fact insurance premiums are going up because of greed and not need is to once again put Americans at risk.
I have a question for the Democrats. How many jobs were created because of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act? And what is the increased revenue into the US treasury because of the ACA?
Those increased revenues in the way of income tax paid by new employees is what the Republicans want to cut and give to the wealthy in tax breaks. They give tax breaks rather than paying off the national debt.
Does the new employees are also paying state income tax and in some cases local income tax. The dynamics of the ACA go beyond saving lives and for finding health insurance. The ACA's new employees are helping to pay the National debt.
When realizing there is additional state revenue due to the ACA'd new employees, there is no reason for governors to seek reducing the benefits of the Medicaid expansion. They cannot justify it.
Those increased revenues in the way of income tax paid by new employees is what the Republicans want to cut and give to the wealthy in tax breaks. They give tax breaks rather than paying off the national debt.
Does the new employees are also paying state income tax and in some cases local income tax. The dynamics of the ACA go beyond saving lives and for finding health insurance. The ACA's new employees are helping to pay the National debt.
When realizing there is additional state revenue due to the ACA'd new employees, there is no reason for governors to seek reducing the benefits of the Medicaid expansion. They cannot justify it.
Wednesday, August 02, 2017
There have been tipping points along the way to the climate crisis.
The question is, will they continued to be ignored? There is really no reason to go to Mars since Earth will become uninhabitable. There is and will be plenty of challenges right here.
August 2, 2017
By Peter Hannam
August 2, 2017
By Peter Hannam
Australia and the rest of the world (click here) must keep global temperature increases to 1.2 degrees - more than promised at the Paris climate talks - if the Great Barrier Reef's biodiversity is not going to deteriorate further, a panel led by former chief scientist Ian Chubb says.
The report by a panel of 15 scientists also called for the urgent revision of the reef's Plan to 2050 to account for "inexorable global warming"....
This isn't about tourism, it is about oxygen.
When I think of humans being capable of saving themselves what comes to mind is Easter Island and the Mayans. They didn't face declining breathable oxygen levels due to burning of fossil fuels and loss of carbon sinks, they simply ran out of forest and food.
"Emperical View" by Max Rosen (click here)
Emperical is an excellent word. When it comes to discussing science and Earth, emperical is a precise word.
Until later. I am off to try to save a river from corruption today. I won't earn one thin dime doing it.
This isn't about tourism, it is about oxygen.
When I think of humans being capable of saving themselves what comes to mind is Easter Island and the Mayans. They didn't face declining breathable oxygen levels due to burning of fossil fuels and loss of carbon sinks, they simply ran out of forest and food.
"Emperical View" by Max Rosen (click here)
Emperical is an excellent word. When it comes to discussing science and Earth, emperical is a precise word.
Until later. I am off to try to save a river from corruption today. I won't earn one thin dime doing it.
Tuesday, August 01, 2017
The bleaching at the Great Barrier Reef was a global event. Every reef in the world as effected by warm waters.
There WERE carbon sinks. They used photosynthesis. They released oxygen to the troposphere. An entire global ecosystem died. The bleaching didn't recover and the corals died. Globally.
Oxygen levels (click here) are decreasing globally due to fossil-fuel burning. The changes are too small to have an impact on human health, but are of interest to the study of climate change and carbon dioxide. These plots show the atmospheric O2 concentration relative to the level around 1985. The observed downward trend amounts to 19 'per meg' per year. This corresponds to losing 19 O2 molecules out of every 1 million O2 molecules in the atmosphere each year.
Get the picture yet?
Oxygen levels (click here) are decreasing globally due to fossil-fuel burning. The changes are too small to have an impact on human health, but are of interest to the study of climate change and carbon dioxide. These plots show the atmospheric O2 concentration relative to the level around 1985. The observed downward trend amounts to 19 'per meg' per year. This corresponds to losing 19 O2 molecules out of every 1 million O2 molecules in the atmosphere each year.
Get the picture yet?
I especially like the warning at the top of the article. We know when suicide appears in media it can cause mimics.
Warning: This article is about suicide and may be distressing for some readers.
2 Aug 2017
By Sarah Harris
Pretending to be someone (click here) you're not or facing exile from society can drive those with fluid sexuality and gender to breaking point.
Jay, a genderqueer Wellingtonian, described it as playing a character you don't want to be. The situation drove the 25-year-old to contemplate taking their life two years ago.
Jay doesn't identify with being male or female and uses they/them/their pronouns.
They are speaking out for the Herald's Break the Silence series in the hope of lowering the high suicide rate among the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and gender & sexual minorities (LGBT+) community.
According to Youth 2012, a major national survey of the health and well-being of secondary school students carried out by the University of Auckland in 2012, almost half of queer youth had seriously thought about taking their own life in the previous year.
One in five had attempted suicide, compared with one in 20 of their non-queer peers.
Queer youth were three times more likely to be bullied every week than their heterosexual peers and almost half had been hit or hurt at school in the previous year....
I never did get to Kyoto Protocol on Monday. Someone reminded me there was a party to attend.
It was a nice party. A good party. All the elements of a party. Like BELONGING! I had a good time.
That is what is wrong with the Democratic Party, few and few people believe like they belong there.
It was 2004 and the country was becoming disillusioned by the illegal invasion into Iraq. Remember that? Guess what Michael Moore was doing?
...The Fahrenheit 9/11 (click here) scenes showing unabashed patriot Lila Lipscomb's reaction to her son's death in Iraq are difficult to watch....
He was documenting a mother's pain. Did the Democrats latch onto it and realize the country was hurting in a way it never did before? At least since Vietnam. No, they ostracized Fahrenheit 911 while "USA Today" today said, "Gee, I think there is something to this guy." (my words, not theirs). USA Today was bigger than words, they gave him credentials to attend both conventions and a column in their daily.
So, where are we today? The crime network out of the White House is breaking up. Scarlutchi, or however you spell it, is out because he is a tough guy with a dirty mouth, "...what the F...?"
Trump is denying he ever coached his son and someone is saying he did. Well, if there is validity to it, then this is a good sign. The colluding family is beginning to realize Daddy holds the reigns of power, BUT, he does not enforce the law. When a crime family breaks up it always starts by dividing into camps. Somehow the accusation and denial is too good to be true.
Priebus is unemployed. Interesting. He has probably returned to Wisconsin, the only state he was sincerely able to control.
Another general in the White House. Really? I hope he realizes this is the White House and not the Pentagon.
John Kelly, did I get that right? Kelly. Irish, isn't he? He has a good middle name, Francis, like the Pope. He has had an incredible career, Marine, Quantico, Southern Command, University of Massachusetts, Boston, Georgetown and Homeland Security. Wow.
John Francis Kelly is going to make a heck of a good President.
July 31, 2017
By Ryan Lizza
...The sacking of Scaramucci signals that Kelly, (click here) a retired marine general, may actually be empowered to be a true chief of staff. There was no bigger test for Kelly than the fate of Scaramucci, who, in his Wednesday phone call, demanded that I reveal my sources for a trivial tweet about who the President had dinner with that night, threatened to fire his entire staff if I didn’t, alleged that he had called the F.B.I. to investigate his White House rivals, attacked Reince Priebus as a “paranoid schizophrenic,” and described Steve Bannon as engaging in auto-fellatio....
Trump says he won't give up "Twitter" because it is the only way to get the truth out. With General John Francis Kelly as Chief of Staff at the White House all that has changed. Donald should have confidence in General Kelly to deliver the messages necessary to his new press secretary.
...Kelly explained that he had spent a great deal of time talking through the issue with Trump, and he believed he had convinced the President that he didn’t actually need to build a physical wall along the entire nineteen-hundred-mile-long border between the United States and Mexico. Instead, the use of sophisticated monitoring technology, air surveillance, and fencing could secure the border with what Trump could start calling a “barrier.”...
There is still the issue of "The Transparent Wall" so the drug cartels can't build up a militia on the other side without the USA knowing it. So realizing Shamu would have to sacrifice his tank for the good of the country the idea of transparency for this White House may be out of the question.
See, Trump knows something about transparency that Obama never figured out; it feeds inflammatory rhetoric at FOX.
Trump always knows 'an alternative narrative' (click here) other than law enforcement is best.
The only problem with this alternative narrative is that there is a man dead the authorities state is nothing more than a home invasion.
I strongly suggest the truth be told about Seth Rich, an American, very soon. The news agencies should be interested to make this an issue that requires that intense focus. This is a dead man, not a political volley.
It was a nice party. A good party. All the elements of a party. Like BELONGING! I had a good time.
That is what is wrong with the Democratic Party, few and few people believe like they belong there.
It was 2004 and the country was becoming disillusioned by the illegal invasion into Iraq. Remember that? Guess what Michael Moore was doing?
...The Fahrenheit 9/11 (click here) scenes showing unabashed patriot Lila Lipscomb's reaction to her son's death in Iraq are difficult to watch....
He was documenting a mother's pain. Did the Democrats latch onto it and realize the country was hurting in a way it never did before? At least since Vietnam. No, they ostracized Fahrenheit 911 while "USA Today" today said, "Gee, I think there is something to this guy." (my words, not theirs). USA Today was bigger than words, they gave him credentials to attend both conventions and a column in their daily.
So, where are we today? The crime network out of the White House is breaking up. Scarlutchi, or however you spell it, is out because he is a tough guy with a dirty mouth, "...what the F...?"
Trump is denying he ever coached his son and someone is saying he did. Well, if there is validity to it, then this is a good sign. The colluding family is beginning to realize Daddy holds the reigns of power, BUT, he does not enforce the law. When a crime family breaks up it always starts by dividing into camps. Somehow the accusation and denial is too good to be true.
Priebus is unemployed. Interesting. He has probably returned to Wisconsin, the only state he was sincerely able to control.
Another general in the White House. Really? I hope he realizes this is the White House and not the Pentagon.
John Kelly, did I get that right? Kelly. Irish, isn't he? He has a good middle name, Francis, like the Pope. He has had an incredible career, Marine, Quantico, Southern Command, University of Massachusetts, Boston, Georgetown and Homeland Security. Wow.
John Francis Kelly is going to make a heck of a good President.
July 31, 2017
By Ryan Lizza
...The sacking of Scaramucci signals that Kelly, (click here) a retired marine general, may actually be empowered to be a true chief of staff. There was no bigger test for Kelly than the fate of Scaramucci, who, in his Wednesday phone call, demanded that I reveal my sources for a trivial tweet about who the President had dinner with that night, threatened to fire his entire staff if I didn’t, alleged that he had called the F.B.I. to investigate his White House rivals, attacked Reince Priebus as a “paranoid schizophrenic,” and described Steve Bannon as engaging in auto-fellatio....
Trump says he won't give up "Twitter" because it is the only way to get the truth out. With General John Francis Kelly as Chief of Staff at the White House all that has changed. Donald should have confidence in General Kelly to deliver the messages necessary to his new press secretary.
...Kelly explained that he had spent a great deal of time talking through the issue with Trump, and he believed he had convinced the President that he didn’t actually need to build a physical wall along the entire nineteen-hundred-mile-long border between the United States and Mexico. Instead, the use of sophisticated monitoring technology, air surveillance, and fencing could secure the border with what Trump could start calling a “barrier.”...
There is still the issue of "The Transparent Wall" so the drug cartels can't build up a militia on the other side without the USA knowing it. So realizing Shamu would have to sacrifice his tank for the good of the country the idea of transparency for this White House may be out of the question.
See, Trump knows something about transparency that Obama never figured out; it feeds inflammatory rhetoric at FOX.
Trump always knows 'an alternative narrative' (click here) other than law enforcement is best.
The only problem with this alternative narrative is that there is a man dead the authorities state is nothing more than a home invasion.I strongly suggest the truth be told about Seth Rich, an American, very soon. The news agencies should be interested to make this an issue that requires that intense focus. This is a dead man, not a political volley.
Monday, July 31, 2017
Someone is holding Chicago hostage rather than believing in the best interests of the city.
A modest return on such a loan is the only interest any bondholder should expect. This type of debt is only asking for the beginnings of bankruptcy.
The city's unions should be aware that by the time Detroit's debt was reconciled it was the unions and their pensions that were taking the biggest hit and not the bond holders. The Wall Street darlings are a problem when it comes to financing city debt.
We know the Republican Party is robbing the public school systems of valuable funding, but, taking on the idea that "Charter Schools" are suppose to be experimental and not permanent is the best way of addressing THE WAYWARD MOVEMENT OF PUBLIC FUNDING TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR. All the students of the Chicago Public Schools should be benefiting from what was learned in Charter Schools. Charter Schools were never suppose to be a parasite to the great good of all students.
July 31, 2017
By Juan Perez Jr. and Peter Matuszak
Chicago Public Schools' latest long-term borrowing deal (click here) will buy the district a bit of financial breathing room through 2019 but comes at an immense cost to future generations.
The city's unions should be aware that by the time Detroit's debt was reconciled it was the unions and their pensions that were taking the biggest hit and not the bond holders. The Wall Street darlings are a problem when it comes to financing city debt.
We know the Republican Party is robbing the public school systems of valuable funding, but, taking on the idea that "Charter Schools" are suppose to be experimental and not permanent is the best way of addressing THE WAYWARD MOVEMENT OF PUBLIC FUNDING TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR. All the students of the Chicago Public Schools should be benefiting from what was learned in Charter Schools. Charter Schools were never suppose to be a parasite to the great good of all students.
July 31, 2017
By Juan Perez Jr. and Peter Matuszak
Chicago Public Schools' latest long-term borrowing deal (click here) will buy the district a bit of financial breathing room through 2019 but comes at an immense cost to future generations.
By the time the $500 million loan is paid off, children now entering kindergarten will be in their mid-30s and the school district will have spent $850 million in interest costs alone — making the total expense of the bond issue a whopping $1.35 billion.
And only a small fraction of the money from the long-term bonds issued in July will be used for school construction or classroom improvements, which budget experts say should be the primary use for long-term debt. CPS is using the biggest chunk of the loan to reimburse itself for failed bond market deals the district previously covered with cash. Another large portion will be used to shave a few hundred million dollars off old debts — even as it extends those debts as much as 25 years.
In addition, the deal commits an enormous sum of state aid to bondholders through 2046, even as state funding remains at the center of an ongoing battle in Springfield. If state aid is ever not enough to cover bond payments, CPS has pledged to turn to property taxes to pay for the loan....
Funding the Chicago Public Schools should be a priority to the Secretary of Education in Washington, DC. Chicago Public Schools need a bailout. Chicago is among the highest, if not the highest, city with murder rates greater than 1 (one).
See, this is what kinda of bothers me about Foster Care. The children, majority are minority, are removed from their homes lose any sense of belonging. As these children grow older, gangs give them an identity, purpose and belonging. Anyone who is still wondering why there is such violence in Chicago needs to realize the enormous failure of Foster Care and the destruction of families in that city.
Every effort should be made to support the FAMILY over and above some "institutionalized failure chain" that begins with being born into crime.
The problems of the young families of Chicago are enormous, but, destroying families by taking children away from their parents is not the answer. The children need TEMPORARY housing as was the definition of Foster Parents back in the day. The parents/parent needs to receive help in determining a productive future for them/him/her and their children. Where those NEEDS are met by the reality of poverty, the Foster Parent Adoption Subsidies should follow the child NO MATTER WHERE THEY ARE HOUSED, INCLUDING THEIR NATURAL FAMILY!
THERE AIN'T NO RICH KIDS ON THE ADOPTION SUBSIDY LIST.
Chicago schools need to be the hub of successful families and that won't happen until the school system is bailed out and provided with high quality education, classrooms and teachers.
END OF DISCUSSION, is the Secretary of Education listening. She has a real challenge before her and she needs to GET STARTED providing the Chicago Public School System with INTACT public education that exudes excellence with well supported families recovering from decades of racism and fractured families.
Funding the Chicago Public Schools should be a priority to the Secretary of Education in Washington, DC. Chicago Public Schools need a bailout. Chicago is among the highest, if not the highest, city with murder rates greater than 1 (one).
See, this is what kinda of bothers me about Foster Care. The children, majority are minority, are removed from their homes lose any sense of belonging. As these children grow older, gangs give them an identity, purpose and belonging. Anyone who is still wondering why there is such violence in Chicago needs to realize the enormous failure of Foster Care and the destruction of families in that city.
Every effort should be made to support the FAMILY over and above some "institutionalized failure chain" that begins with being born into crime.
The problems of the young families of Chicago are enormous, but, destroying families by taking children away from their parents is not the answer. The children need TEMPORARY housing as was the definition of Foster Parents back in the day. The parents/parent needs to receive help in determining a productive future for them/him/her and their children. Where those NEEDS are met by the reality of poverty, the Foster Parent Adoption Subsidies should follow the child NO MATTER WHERE THEY ARE HOUSED, INCLUDING THEIR NATURAL FAMILY!
THERE AIN'T NO RICH KIDS ON THE ADOPTION SUBSIDY LIST.
Chicago schools need to be the hub of successful families and that won't happen until the school system is bailed out and provided with high quality education, classrooms and teachers.
END OF DISCUSSION, is the Secretary of Education listening. She has a real challenge before her and she needs to GET STARTED providing the Chicago Public School System with INTACT public education that exudes excellence with well supported families recovering from decades of racism and fractured families.
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Saturday, July 29, 2017
When does the impeachment of Trump start?
Last I checked subverting the federal government by threatening lawmakers with their health by taking their healthcare when at least one US Senator is facing a serious health threat is a felony. Trump is not only out of line, because, the American people supply that healthcare, he is openly in violation of US Law.
He has no respect for life and needs to be removed from office.
Does Pence go along with Trump on the threats from the Executive Branch?
Members of Congress pay about 28 percent of their premiums through the District of Columbia small business health options program (DC Health Link). Perhaps Mr. Trump is unaware that Congressional members earn $174,000 annually. They are not self-insured. I don't know anyone in that tax bracket that would be self-insured with a single surgery costing tens of thousands of dollars US.
Trump is a grotesque man.
He has no respect for life and needs to be removed from office.
Does Pence go along with Trump on the threats from the Executive Branch?
Members of Congress pay about 28 percent of their premiums through the District of Columbia small business health options program (DC Health Link). Perhaps Mr. Trump is unaware that Congressional members earn $174,000 annually. They are not self-insured. I don't know anyone in that tax bracket that would be self-insured with a single surgery costing tens of thousands of dollars US.
Trump is a grotesque man.
Friday, July 28, 2017
Mayor Weaver and the Flint City Council must place a moratorium on punitive actions against houses experiencing bad water.
It has come to my attention there are egregious issues facing Flint residents with continued water problems. Some residents don't use the city water at all and are facing difficultly because of it.
There are city ordinances that consider a house without running water condemned. Additionally, for some parents that use only bottled water, that is considered reason enough for the Genesee County Social Services to remove their children to Foster Care. Those two problems should not exist for the city of Flint.
Flint currently has the most expensive water in the country. It is situated next to the Great Lakes and one would expect the cheapest, but, that is not the case. As a result of the contaminated water, the residents of Flint face high water bills as well as buying bottled water.
Some people want to literally shut off the water to the home and use only bottled water. This serves two purposes; household members only look for bottled water to drink and bath and avoids any contact of contaminated water. The other issue is financial, by turning off the water, the residents can catch up on their existing bill without increasing it over the summer time.
I don't see bottled water for toilets, but, it may be healthier to do so considering the odor of the Flint water and what is making it smell. Lungs may need protection as well as skin and ultimately brains and nervous tissue.
Mayor Weaver and the Flint City Council need to pass a local law prohibiting condemnation of homes and/or the removal of children when it is directly related to the water crisis. i would also like to see a common place where residents can register their understanding of their reality in a continuous physical file and optional data base. It would bring about an understanding of how each family is effected, even if not within the 'bad water' zone.
There are Flint residents outside the supposed 'bad water' zone that are experiencing health issues. They would like to register their health issues as they believe it is connected to tainted water even if it is a leak.
July 5, 2017
By Bernie Monegain
The Department of Health and Human Services (click here) has earmarked $15 million in funding for Michigan’s Genesee County Healthy Start Program to provide health and social services for women, infants, and their families who have had or are at risk for, lead exposure in Flint, Michigan, and the surrounding area.
“The Trump Administration is taking important steps to support the residents of Flint, Michigan, as the need for vital resources remains critical to the health of their community,” Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, MD. “We understand the urgency of the situation, and this funding will help connect affected and at-risk Flint residents to comprehensive health and social services proven to mitigate the effects of lead exposure.”...
There are city ordinances that consider a house without running water condemned. Additionally, for some parents that use only bottled water, that is considered reason enough for the Genesee County Social Services to remove their children to Foster Care. Those two problems should not exist for the city of Flint.
Flint currently has the most expensive water in the country. It is situated next to the Great Lakes and one would expect the cheapest, but, that is not the case. As a result of the contaminated water, the residents of Flint face high water bills as well as buying bottled water.
Some people want to literally shut off the water to the home and use only bottled water. This serves two purposes; household members only look for bottled water to drink and bath and avoids any contact of contaminated water. The other issue is financial, by turning off the water, the residents can catch up on their existing bill without increasing it over the summer time.
I don't see bottled water for toilets, but, it may be healthier to do so considering the odor of the Flint water and what is making it smell. Lungs may need protection as well as skin and ultimately brains and nervous tissue.
Mayor Weaver and the Flint City Council need to pass a local law prohibiting condemnation of homes and/or the removal of children when it is directly related to the water crisis. i would also like to see a common place where residents can register their understanding of their reality in a continuous physical file and optional data base. It would bring about an understanding of how each family is effected, even if not within the 'bad water' zone.
There are Flint residents outside the supposed 'bad water' zone that are experiencing health issues. They would like to register their health issues as they believe it is connected to tainted water even if it is a leak.
July 5, 2017
By Bernie Monegain
The Department of Health and Human Services (click here) has earmarked $15 million in funding for Michigan’s Genesee County Healthy Start Program to provide health and social services for women, infants, and their families who have had or are at risk for, lead exposure in Flint, Michigan, and the surrounding area.
“The Trump Administration is taking important steps to support the residents of Flint, Michigan, as the need for vital resources remains critical to the health of their community,” Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, MD. “We understand the urgency of the situation, and this funding will help connect affected and at-risk Flint residents to comprehensive health and social services proven to mitigate the effects of lead exposure.”...
It always seems to me North Korea is blissfully unaware of the dangers of a missle strike on North Korea.
As of 2008, North Korea had a population of over 24 million people with a life expectancy of 68 years old. A quarter of it's population is young age birth to 14 years old.
The United Nations needs to provide advisers to North Korea explaining the danger of raising tensions with their neighbors and other countries. North Korea and South Korea are in a danger zone one has to worry about. There will be dangers on the Peninsula should there ever be a nuclear strike. It is not just the matter of damage by the bomb, but, the sustained problems such a weapon has on people and their environment.
It would be far better for North Korea to establish diplomatic relationships with their neighbors and work on human rights as well as trade. The quality of life of the South Korean people would increase dramatically if North Korea would find a diplomatic process that worked so it can remove the current priority of nuclear proliferation.
It would be interesting to have a visiting North Korean basketball team. North Korea has both a woman's and men's professional team.
July 28, 2017
It would be interesting to have a visiting North Korean basketball team. North Korea has both a woman's and men's professional team.
July 28, 2017
North Korea (click here) has launched "one unidentified missile" from its northern Jagang province, the South Korean Defense Ministry announced in a statement. The Pentagon confirmed to NPR that it has also identified a missile launch from the North.
Citing the Japanese chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, The Associated Press reports the missile "flew for about 45 minutes and appeared to have landed in the waters of Japan's exclusive economic zone."
There have been no immediate reports of damage, and it was not immediately clear what type of missile the North was testing.
The missile launch follows a string of tests by the North Korean regime this year, the most recent of which came earlier this month. That test marked a milestone for Pyongyang: a successful intercontinental missile launch....
Thursday, July 27, 2017
Finally, Europe steps forward to end the slaughter of citizens for wealth.
28 July 2017
by Harry Yorke
There are "reasonable grounds" (click here) to suspect that the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and its Tenant Management Organisation committed corporate manslaughter, Scotland Yard announced yesterday.
In a letter circulated to survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Force confirmed that officers had notified the council that they may be charged for their role in the blaze which left at least 80 people dead.
As part of the investigation, which has drafted in experts from the 9/11 terror attack and more than 200 Metropolitan Police officers, senior executives from both organisations will be formally interviewed....
by Harry Yorke
There are "reasonable grounds" (click here) to suspect that the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and its Tenant Management Organisation committed corporate manslaughter, Scotland Yard announced yesterday.
In a letter circulated to survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Force confirmed that officers had notified the council that they may be charged for their role in the blaze which left at least 80 people dead.
As part of the investigation, which has drafted in experts from the 9/11 terror attack and more than 200 Metropolitan Police officers, senior executives from both organisations will be formally interviewed....
This is the Las Vegas crowd. Tough guys. Just as a side note there is that section of Republican constituency that believes swearing is just talking.
July 27, 2017
By Ryan Lizza
On Wednesday night, I received a phone call from Anthony Scaramucci, the new White House communications director. He wasn’t happy. Earlier in the night, I’d tweeted, citing a “senior White House official,” that Scaramucci was having dinner at the White House with President Trump, the First Lady, Sean Hannity, and the former Fox News executive Bill Shine. It was an interesting group, and raised some questions. Was Trump getting strategic advice from Hannity? Was he considering hiring Shine? But Scaramucci had his own question—for me....
...Scaramucci was particularly incensed (click here) by a Politico report about his financial-disclosure form, which he viewed as an illegal act of retaliation by Priebus. The reporter said Thursday morning that the document was publicly available and she had obtained it from the Export-Import Bank. Scaramucci didn’t know this at the time, and he insisted to me that Priebus had leaked the document, and that the act was “a felony.”
By Ryan Lizza
On Wednesday night, I received a phone call from Anthony Scaramucci, the new White House communications director. He wasn’t happy. Earlier in the night, I’d tweeted, citing a “senior White House official,” that Scaramucci was having dinner at the White House with President Trump, the First Lady, Sean Hannity, and the former Fox News executive Bill Shine. It was an interesting group, and raised some questions. Was Trump getting strategic advice from Hannity? Was he considering hiring Shine? But Scaramucci had his own question—for me....
...Scaramucci was particularly incensed (click here) by a Politico report about his financial-disclosure form, which he viewed as an illegal act of retaliation by Priebus. The reporter said Thursday morning that the document was publicly available and she had obtained it from the Export-Import Bank. Scaramucci didn’t know this at the time, and he insisted to me that Priebus had leaked the document, and that the act was “a felony.”
“I’ve called the F.B.I. and the Department of Justice,” he told me.
“Are you serious?” I asked.
“The swamp will not defeat him,” he said, breaking into the third person. “They’re trying to resist me, but it’s not going to work. I’ve done nothing wrong on my financial disclosures, so they’re going to have to go fuck themselves.”
Scaramucci also told me that, unlike other senior officials, he had no interest in media attention. “I’m not Steve Bannon, I’m not trying to suck my own cock,” he said, speaking of Trump’s chief strategist. “I’m not trying to build my own brand off the fucking strength of the President. I’m here to serve the country.” (Bannon declined to comment.)
He reiterated that Priebus would resign soon, and he noted that he told Trump that he expected Priebus to launch a campaign against him. “He didn’t get the hint that I was reporting directly to the President,” he said. “And I said to the President here are the four or five things that he will do to me.” His list of allegations included leaking the Hannity dinner and the details from his financial-disclosure form....
No one will tell Donald Trump to "Shut up!"
28 July 2017
Twitter has made it clear that it won't ban Donald Trump (click here) from its service, whether the president follows its rules against harassment or not.
That's no surprise: The president's tweets draw attention to the struggling service, even if tweets mocking reporters and rivals undercut Twitter's stated commitment to make the service a welcoming place.
The company has been cracking down on accounts that violate its terms, and Trump's critics say he has broken Twitter's rules multiple times.
Calls to ban Trump from Twitter, largely by liberal activists, writers and Twitter users, sounded even before he became president. They were renewed recently when the president posted a mock video of him "body slamming" a man whose face was covered by CNN logo. Groups such as the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press condemned the video as a threat against journalists (a White House aide said at the time that the tweet should not be seen as a threat)....
Twitter has made it clear that it won't ban Donald Trump (click here) from its service, whether the president follows its rules against harassment or not.
That's no surprise: The president's tweets draw attention to the struggling service, even if tweets mocking reporters and rivals undercut Twitter's stated commitment to make the service a welcoming place.
The company has been cracking down on accounts that violate its terms, and Trump's critics say he has broken Twitter's rules multiple times.
Calls to ban Trump from Twitter, largely by liberal activists, writers and Twitter users, sounded even before he became president. They were renewed recently when the president posted a mock video of him "body slamming" a man whose face was covered by CNN logo. Groups such as the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press condemned the video as a threat against journalists (a White House aide said at the time that the tweet should not be seen as a threat)....
Let's get to the bottom line; why don't we know how many transgender Americans have died for their country?
June 26, 2017
By David Remnick
...Let’s begin with the retrograde cruelty. (click here) There are thousands of transgender people already serving among the 1.3 million active-duty members of the military. These are people who have volunteered their service and have potentially put their lives on the line, and yet their President, who managed to come up with a flimsy doctor’s note back in the day, denies them their dignity, their equality. He will not “accept or allow” them in the military. Imagine the scale of this insult....
We don't know because people didn't worry about it until Same Sex Marriage became a political issue. Why did it become a GOVERNMENT political issue? Because of Texas and it extremist right wing evangelicals that covet government as if the Bible gives them the authority to do so. The problem is the break down of the wall between church and state. This is a prime example of how personal choices become directives in government that started with the Hyde Amendment.
July 26, 2017
By Noga Tarnopolsky
Gay Pride Parade in Tel Aviv.
...Retired Gen Elazar Stern (click here) was stupefied when a reporter from Israel Army Radio called Wednesday to ask for his reaction to President Trump’s series of tweets about banning the service of transgender military personnel.
“What?” Stern asked. “Why?”
“It makes us strong that we don't waste time on questions like this," said Stern, the former commander of the Israel Defense Forces Manpower Command. "It’s something to be proud of."
Speaking with The Times, Stern, now a member of Israel’s parliament for the centrist Yesh Atid party, said that throughout his 34-year career in the army, “in every post, at every level, always, I knew there were homosexual individuals serving with me. No transgendered people that I knew of, but maybe. We would never ask, honestly, and we’re not supposed to know. The army’s task is to support its soldiers no matter what their needs, not meddle about in their lives.”...
Ever since the damn evangelicals have taken over Texas politics and the Hyde Amendment became law, they think they can run the country as a theocracy. "marie claire" has some numbers.
July 28, 2015
By Kenny Thapoung
...The life of a transgender person (click here) —in the U.S. and around the world—can be vastly challenging and rife with discrimination. But it can also be joyful, triumphant, and transformative—not just for the individual, but for those who love and accept them....
Basically, 15,000 transgender members in the USA military which is something like 0.1 percent. The cost $15,000 for the sex reassignment surgery. So the cost for the surgery IF EVERY TRANSGENDER MILITARY MEMBER WANTS IT is $225,000,000. You got that? Let me spell it for you; two hundred-twenty-five million dollars US. Donald Trump can pay for it himself without a pain to his pocket book.
Now if Donald Trump finds the military dysfunctional over 0.1 percent of its' members he seriously is looking for a reason to TAKE MATTERS IN HIS OWN HANDS and release a few nukes. That is the ONLY reason this is an issue!
The United States of America is behind the curve in instituting CHILD RIGHTS to a safe and sane childhood when faced with being transgender. When the USA institutes practices allowing transgender children to be a real partner in their country there WON'T BE ANY PROBLEM IN THE USA MILITARY with transgender people.
Right now 'the religious bedroom' is the focus of wackos like Trump when it comes to politics and so here we are AGAIN.
Barbara Starr has been at the epicenter of military issues for as long as I can remember and if she says the Joint Chiefs had no clue, then they had no clue.
Trump is a liar! He treats the US military as a toy in his political and personal wealth ambitions and this is a prime example of same. I am glad General Dunford is the grown up in the room.
July 27, 2017
By Barbara Starr
Washington - The Joint Chiefs of Staff, (click here) including chairman General Joseph Dunford, were not aware President Donald Trump planned to tweet a ban on transgender service members, three US defense officials told CNN -- the latest indication that top military leaders across all four service branches were blindsided by the President's announcement.
For now, Dunford has informed service members that there will be "no modifications to the current policy until the President's direction has been received by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary has issued implementation guidelines."
"In the meantime, we will continue to treat all of our personnel with respect," Dunford wrote in a memo to the military that was obtained by CNN. "As importantly, given the current fight and the challenges we face, we will all remain focused on accomplishing our assigned missions."
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said Thursday that, to date, he has not received "directives on implementation" for a ban and learned about the President's decision through the media....
One of the measures that President Obama tried to instill in the USA's educational system was that transgender children can use the bathroom of which they identify. Sounds right to me! From a national security stand point, that is.
By David Remnick
...Let’s begin with the retrograde cruelty. (click here) There are thousands of transgender people already serving among the 1.3 million active-duty members of the military. These are people who have volunteered their service and have potentially put their lives on the line, and yet their President, who managed to come up with a flimsy doctor’s note back in the day, denies them their dignity, their equality. He will not “accept or allow” them in the military. Imagine the scale of this insult....
We don't know because people didn't worry about it until Same Sex Marriage became a political issue. Why did it become a GOVERNMENT political issue? Because of Texas and it extremist right wing evangelicals that covet government as if the Bible gives them the authority to do so. The problem is the break down of the wall between church and state. This is a prime example of how personal choices become directives in government that started with the Hyde Amendment.
By Noga Tarnopolsky
Gay Pride Parade in Tel Aviv.
...Retired Gen Elazar Stern (click here) was stupefied when a reporter from Israel Army Radio called Wednesday to ask for his reaction to President Trump’s series of tweets about banning the service of transgender military personnel.
“What?” Stern asked. “Why?”
“It makes us strong that we don't waste time on questions like this," said Stern, the former commander of the Israel Defense Forces Manpower Command. "It’s something to be proud of."
Speaking with The Times, Stern, now a member of Israel’s parliament for the centrist Yesh Atid party, said that throughout his 34-year career in the army, “in every post, at every level, always, I knew there were homosexual individuals serving with me. No transgendered people that I knew of, but maybe. We would never ask, honestly, and we’re not supposed to know. The army’s task is to support its soldiers no matter what their needs, not meddle about in their lives.”...
Ever since the damn evangelicals have taken over Texas politics and the Hyde Amendment became law, they think they can run the country as a theocracy. "marie claire" has some numbers.
July 28, 2015
By Kenny Thapoung
...The life of a transgender person (click here) —in the U.S. and around the world—can be vastly challenging and rife with discrimination. But it can also be joyful, triumphant, and transformative—not just for the individual, but for those who love and accept them....
Basically, 15,000 transgender members in the USA military which is something like 0.1 percent. The cost $15,000 for the sex reassignment surgery. So the cost for the surgery IF EVERY TRANSGENDER MILITARY MEMBER WANTS IT is $225,000,000. You got that? Let me spell it for you; two hundred-twenty-five million dollars US. Donald Trump can pay for it himself without a pain to his pocket book.
Now if Donald Trump finds the military dysfunctional over 0.1 percent of its' members he seriously is looking for a reason to TAKE MATTERS IN HIS OWN HANDS and release a few nukes. That is the ONLY reason this is an issue!
The United States of America is behind the curve in instituting CHILD RIGHTS to a safe and sane childhood when faced with being transgender. When the USA institutes practices allowing transgender children to be a real partner in their country there WON'T BE ANY PROBLEM IN THE USA MILITARY with transgender people.
Right now 'the religious bedroom' is the focus of wackos like Trump when it comes to politics and so here we are AGAIN.
Barbara Starr has been at the epicenter of military issues for as long as I can remember and if she says the Joint Chiefs had no clue, then they had no clue.
Trump is a liar! He treats the US military as a toy in his political and personal wealth ambitions and this is a prime example of same. I am glad General Dunford is the grown up in the room.
July 27, 2017
By Barbara Starr
Washington - The Joint Chiefs of Staff, (click here) including chairman General Joseph Dunford, were not aware President Donald Trump planned to tweet a ban on transgender service members, three US defense officials told CNN -- the latest indication that top military leaders across all four service branches were blindsided by the President's announcement.
For now, Dunford has informed service members that there will be "no modifications to the current policy until the President's direction has been received by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary has issued implementation guidelines."
"In the meantime, we will continue to treat all of our personnel with respect," Dunford wrote in a memo to the military that was obtained by CNN. "As importantly, given the current fight and the challenges we face, we will all remain focused on accomplishing our assigned missions."
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said Thursday that, to date, he has not received "directives on implementation" for a ban and learned about the President's decision through the media....
One of the measures that President Obama tried to instill in the USA's educational system was that transgender children can use the bathroom of which they identify. Sounds right to me! From a national security stand point, that is.
I think Senator McCain has it right. The cost needs to be understood.
Banning Transgender Americans from serving in the military is out of the question. They are valuable people that are well trained and have dedicated themselves to service of our country. They should be honored no differently than any other solider at all times during and after their service.
Trump made promises he will never keep. It was impossible to know who an American was voting for when they pulled the lever for Trump.
26 July 2017
Trump made promises he will never keep. It was impossible to know who an American was voting for when they pulled the lever for Trump.
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) (click here), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement today on President Trump’s tweet regarding transgender Americans in the military:
“The President’s tweet this morning regarding transgender Americans in the military is yet another example of why major policy announcements should not be made via Twitter.
“The statement was unclear. The Department of Defense has already decided to allow currently-serving transgender individuals to stay in the military, and many are serving honorably today. Any American who meets current medical and readiness standards should be allowed to continue serving. There is no reason to force service members who are able to fight, train, and deploy to leave the military—regardless of their gender identity. We should all be guided by the principle that any American who wants to serve our country and is able to meet the standards should have the opportunity to do so—and should be treated as the patriots they are.
“The Department of Defense is currently conducting a study on the medical obligations it would incur, the impact on military readiness, and related questions associated with the accession of transgender individuals who are not currently serving in uniform and wish to join the military. I do not believe that any new policy decision is appropriate until that study is complete and thoroughly reviewed by the Secretary of Defense, our military leadership, and the Congress.
“The Senate Armed Services Committee will continue to follow closely and conduct oversight on the issue of transgender individuals serving in the military.”
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