May 25, 2017
By Rachael Bade and Burgess Everett
Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell (click here) are eager to avoid intraparty fights as they try to muscle through the GOP agenda.
...Speaker Paul Ryan and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell are taking a cautious approach to Trump’s Russia scandal, pointedly refraining from criticizing the president and tiptoeing around the topic — or simply avoiding it. It’s a strategy intended to avoid intraparty fights over Trump’s controversial presidency and sidestep confrontation with a president of their own party who has yet to sign key GOP agenda items like repealing Obamacare and cutting taxes....
It is the great pretending of the GOP. They have done this for decades, that is not going to change because the USA is actually being toyed with and citizens are in danger.
So, "Let's pretend none of this happened and it is a grand scheme by the Democrats." THE GREAT PRETEND. It is how Republicans are elected and how they stay in office.
"The Love Canal" returns.
May 23, 2017
By Garrett Ellison
...Trump had targeted the GLRI (click here) with a $50 million cut in 2017 to help cover early costs of a building a Mexican border wall.
The restoration program was launched in 2010 and funnels money to state and local projects to clean up contaminated sediments, restore watersheds, combat invasive species and build green infrastructure. It was given standalone authorization in Congress through 2021 in December....
That means there will be shortfalls in funding and companies currently involved in these efforts to restore the Great Lakes could be facing bankruptcy. There is no future planning. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has absolutely nothing to do with regulations, so much as returning a fishery and resort tourism to the Great Lakes. The idea this won't go forward threatens the entire tourism industry of Michigan which involves huge camping companies that sponsor RV seasonal rentals.
If The Initiative doesn't go forward the RV industry in Michigan will slump including recreational fishing.
...Funding advocates say ongoing projects to clean up "toxic hotspots" called Great Lakes Areas of Concern will grind to a halt without the GLRI, and projects in the pipeline will only become more expensive to tackle over time.
Republican governors Scott Walker of Wisconsin and Rick Snyder of Michigan have both publicly supported the GLRI after Trump's draft proposal.
In March, 63 members of Congress -- 23 Republicans and 40 Democrats -- signed a letter to U.S. House leadership urging the GLRI be funded at $300 million in the 2018 appropriations bill....
The country is in trouble in many ways. I don't know what is going to be more devastating to Wall Street 2008 or Trump. This is only one example.
Shipments of all RVs (click here) (travel trailers, fifth wheel trailers, truck campers, folding camping trailers and motorhomes) increased to 356,735 units in 2014, a gain of 11.1% over the previous year. This was the fifth consecutive annual increase and the fourth double digit percentage gain in the past five years. Forecasts for the years 2015 and 2016 see shipments continuing to grow with increases expected in most all vehicle categories....
2015 saw a delivery of $16.506 billion in RV value alone. The industry is huge and in Michigan where there is over 1000 lakes, the state is dependent on this industry and it's success. There are national campground chains that also SELL premium lots for RVs so they will return annually. They basically capture their business. Michigan is in trouble if the waterways and lakes are AGAIN threatened by pollution.
I doubt any Mexican border wall will generate any income to match the loss of national revenues from defunding the EPA.
Tuesday, May 30, 2017
Free Shipping, Free Returns
Evidently, with Trump's retreat from being the force of good in the world, the idea is to set everyone up with a missile defense in case his company in Russia goes bad.
Did anyone bill South Korea for the additional missile interceptors? They may be a freebie if shipped in error. Ouch. And the USA is supposed to be run like a business?
Expensive ideology.
May 30, 2017
By Hyung-Jin Kim
Seoul, South Korea — (click here) Calling it a “very shocking” incident, South Korea’s new president on Tuesday demanded an investigation into why his office wasn’t told by defense officials about the arrival of several additional launchers for a contentious U.S. missile defense system meant to cope with North Korea’s nuclear threat.
Did anyone bill South Korea for the additional missile interceptors? They may be a freebie if shipped in error. Ouch. And the USA is supposed to be run like a business?
Expensive ideology.
May 30, 2017By Hyung-Jin Kim
Seoul, South Korea — (click here) Calling it a “very shocking” incident, South Korea’s new president on Tuesday demanded an investigation into why his office wasn’t told by defense officials about the arrival of several additional launchers for a contentious U.S. missile defense system meant to cope with North Korea’s nuclear threat.
Before taking office on May 10, Moon Jae-in vowed to review the deployment of a system that has infuriated both North Korea and China, which consider its powerful radar a security threat. Many of Moon’s supporters don’t want the system, which U.S. President Donald Trump suggested Seoul should pay for.
On Tuesday, senior presidential adviser Yoon Young-chan said Moon has discovered that four additional launchers for the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, system have arrived in South Korea since the original two launchers were installed in April.
Yoon said senior Defense Ministry officials didn’t report the arrival of the additional launchers when they gave Moon’s policy advisory committee a briefing last Thursday.
“President Moon said it’s ‘very shocking’ after receiving a report” on the incident from his national security director, Yoon said at a news conference....
...A THAAD battery consists of six truck-mounted launchers that can fire up to 48 interceptor missiles, fire control and communication equipment, and a powerful X-band radar officially known as AN/TPY-2. The THAAD system was installed in the southeastern town of Seongju....
It is coming out of Trump's paycheck!
...It’s unclear if Moon will go ahead with his campaign pledge to re-examine the THAAD deployment because a request for the withdrawal of the system’s components could severely undermine ties with Washington, Seoul’s most important ally, analysts say. The United States stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea as deterrence against potential aggression from North Korea....
Japan and South Korea need to reassess their defense. Trump is giving away deployments of US nuclear submarines, that is a fact!
What is also a fact is that he didn't discuss the deployment of Russian nuclear subs at the same time.
...A THAAD battery consists of six truck-mounted launchers that can fire up to 48 interceptor missiles, fire control and communication equipment, and a powerful X-band radar officially known as AN/TPY-2. The THAAD system was installed in the southeastern town of Seongju....
It is coming out of Trump's paycheck!
...It’s unclear if Moon will go ahead with his campaign pledge to re-examine the THAAD deployment because a request for the withdrawal of the system’s components could severely undermine ties with Washington, Seoul’s most important ally, analysts say. The United States stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea as deterrence against potential aggression from North Korea....
Japan and South Korea need to reassess their defense. Trump is giving away deployments of US nuclear submarines, that is a fact!
What is also a fact is that he didn't discuss the deployment of Russian nuclear subs at the same time.
Closing down the Kurdish culture in Turkey is not the answer. It will create hatred, racism and civil war. It is a stupid idea and even more stupid policy.
...In August 2016, a Turkish court in Istanbul ordered Ozgur Gundem, one of Turkey’s most prominent pro-Kurdish newspapers, to close its operations for “continuously conducting propaganda” for the P.K.K. The newspaper’s staff, as well as academics and intellectuals who volunteered to write for the newspaper, was arrested and charged with “creating propaganda for a terrorist organization.” Those arrested included Dr. Kuni’s colleague and president of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, Sebnem Korur Fincanci, who could face up to 14 years in prison if convicted....
Arresting Kurds is not going to solve Turkey's problems, it only leads to regions such as the Russian Caucasus Mountains where hatred is bred by extremists and opens avenues for Daesh.
17 August 2017
A court in Turkey (click here) has ordered the interim closure of a newspaper for allegedly having links with Kurdish fighters waging a war against the state and spreading "terrorist propaganda" on behalf of them.
The judgment on Tuesday by the Istanbul court accused the Ozgur Gundem paper of "continuously conducting propaganda for Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)" and "acting as if it is a publication of the armed terror organisation".
The PKK, designated a "terrorist" group by Turkey, the European Union and the United States, took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict.
At least seven people, including three civilians, were killed on Monday in an attack on a police station blamed on PKK in the southeast of the country, which has seen some of the most intense fighting in decades after a ceasefire between the Turkish state and the PKK collapsed in July 2015....
This is only the beginning for Turkey. Russia's influence will have Turkey culling the Kurdish culture and then the Kurds themselves within it's borders. Putin's directive is simplistic and has high number of causalities. "We are Russians, don't cross the border. You are Turkish and we won't cross your border."
The world is not black and white, it is many shades of ethnicity. It is time The West learn diversity exists and the enemies of the past are now fighting the same war including Kurds and Shi'ite Muslims.
Daesh takes no prisoners, UNLESS, there is American US$ attached to their release as a hostage. Daesh already practices the culling of ethnic difference, Russia needs to stop being stupid! It's IDEOLOGY will destroy it.
The Syrian Shi'ite will stop supporting Assad if they seem him for what he is and are reassured their survival without him.
Welcoming Iran's Shia is the best idea The West has had for nearly a century of Middle East policy.
NATO may find the USA is more their enemy, ie: Iraq invasion, than the enemies the USA currently calls a threat.
There is opportunity to end decades of idiotic policy and find the peace within alliance against the charasmatic threat of Daesh. The best example of that is Saudi Arabia's current compassionate relationship with Yemen, while Houthi rebels continue to call them an enemy. The Houthi rebels cannot extend it's power beyond what it already has simply because their capacity is absent of that goal. It is time the Houthis realize their future lies in a power sharing government in Yemen and not more killing. An ambition to war will allow those that would see the Houthi ethnicty eliminated from Earth migrate into their ranks.
Arresting Kurds is not going to solve Turkey's problems, it only leads to regions such as the Russian Caucasus Mountains where hatred is bred by extremists and opens avenues for Daesh.
17 August 2017
A court in Turkey (click here) has ordered the interim closure of a newspaper for allegedly having links with Kurdish fighters waging a war against the state and spreading "terrorist propaganda" on behalf of them.
The judgment on Tuesday by the Istanbul court accused the Ozgur Gundem paper of "continuously conducting propaganda for Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)" and "acting as if it is a publication of the armed terror organisation".
The PKK, designated a "terrorist" group by Turkey, the European Union and the United States, took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict.
At least seven people, including three civilians, were killed on Monday in an attack on a police station blamed on PKK in the southeast of the country, which has seen some of the most intense fighting in decades after a ceasefire between the Turkish state and the PKK collapsed in July 2015....
This is only the beginning for Turkey. Russia's influence will have Turkey culling the Kurdish culture and then the Kurds themselves within it's borders. Putin's directive is simplistic and has high number of causalities. "We are Russians, don't cross the border. You are Turkish and we won't cross your border."
The world is not black and white, it is many shades of ethnicity. It is time The West learn diversity exists and the enemies of the past are now fighting the same war including Kurds and Shi'ite Muslims.
Daesh takes no prisoners, UNLESS, there is American US$ attached to their release as a hostage. Daesh already practices the culling of ethnic difference, Russia needs to stop being stupid! It's IDEOLOGY will destroy it.
The Syrian Shi'ite will stop supporting Assad if they seem him for what he is and are reassured their survival without him.
Welcoming Iran's Shia is the best idea The West has had for nearly a century of Middle East policy.
NATO may find the USA is more their enemy, ie: Iraq invasion, than the enemies the USA currently calls a threat.
There is opportunity to end decades of idiotic policy and find the peace within alliance against the charasmatic threat of Daesh. The best example of that is Saudi Arabia's current compassionate relationship with Yemen, while Houthi rebels continue to call them an enemy. The Houthi rebels cannot extend it's power beyond what it already has simply because their capacity is absent of that goal. It is time the Houthis realize their future lies in a power sharing government in Yemen and not more killing. An ambition to war will allow those that would see the Houthi ethnicty eliminated from Earth migrate into their ranks.
Doctors don't practice racism, politics or hatred in general. Their spirit is pure to administer to those that need them.
Every human being on Earth should be grateful for that fact.
May 29, 2017
By Christine Mehta
...Turkish forces (click here) laid siege to rebel towns and imposed long military curfews, and their tanks shelled the towns without restraint. In the subsequent months numerous neighborhoods in Kurdish cities and towns like Diyarbakir, Cizre, Sirnak, Silopi, Nusaybin and Yuksekova were reduced to rubble in the fighting. The International Crisis Group estimated that at least 2,721 people were killed by April 25, 2017, including 393 civilians, 927 members of security forces, 1,257 P.K.K. militants and “219 youths of unknown affiliation.”...
"Doctors without Borders" needs to come to the rescue for the fate of colleagues. It isn't as though the world has a surplus of physicians and surgeons to waste.
I am quite confident while Russia and Assad whisper in the ears of Turkish officials, these charges of Dr. Serdar Kuni are equivalent to the bombing of the aid warehouse to Syria.
See, there really are good guys and bad guys in the world and Dr. Serdar Kuni is definitely a good guy. There is a fine line to walk and it exists for a reason. Dr. Serdar Kuni is definitely on the side of 'good guy' when it comes to that thin line. However, forces on the bad side of that line, such as Russia and Assad would have the Turkish government and officials believe Dr. Serdar Kuni is a plague upon Earth.
Which brings me to the next point, in that President Trump's infatuation with Russia to insure his businesses flouish within it's borders, hurt men like
Dr. Serdar Kuni. Throwing away an alliance with NATO is a serious issue and this is one of them. Also included in that alliance is the bombing of the supply warehouse for Syria.
See, Putin and Assad see any support of so called Syrian Rebels as an assault on the sovereignty of Syria. In like terms, Turkey is now closer to Russia than the USA and sees Kurdish Rebels the same as Assad. Both countries see their rebels as arch enemies, when in fact, they are instrumental to end regimes such as Daesh.
But, as to the case of Dr. Serdai Kuni; he is not guilty of anything except caring for human beings in need of his services. He knows no difference between enemy and ally. His work is highly stressful and in an emergency he doesn't ask questions because seconds count. When a child is ill and a mother seeks help, there is no understanding as to the correct doctor to take the child. The practice of Dr. Serdai Kuni is one of action to protect life. That should always be his only practice and to that end there is no enemy or ally; there is only life and it's protections.
The USA and NATO need to move to protect these valuable practitioners and the Turkish Courts need to be enlightened as to who sincerely is the enemy. The bombings in Turkey nearly caused a collapse of the government in a military coup. I would think it would be Daesh and all it's charasmatic movement that needs to be focused on by any country fighting for it's sovereignty. War of such nature make strange bedfellows. Reaching out to rebel groups may prove enlightening and remove the stigma currently attached to Dr. Serdai Kuni.
Enough of the hatred. War is not about hatred, it is about the right to life and land and Dr. Serdai Kuni cannot discern who is wining or losing the war, he can only decide who in front of him is dying or sick.
May 29, 2017
By Christine Mehta
...Turkish forces (click here) laid siege to rebel towns and imposed long military curfews, and their tanks shelled the towns without restraint. In the subsequent months numerous neighborhoods in Kurdish cities and towns like Diyarbakir, Cizre, Sirnak, Silopi, Nusaybin and Yuksekova were reduced to rubble in the fighting. The International Crisis Group estimated that at least 2,721 people were killed by April 25, 2017, including 393 civilians, 927 members of security forces, 1,257 P.K.K. militants and “219 youths of unknown affiliation.”...
"Doctors without Borders" needs to come to the rescue for the fate of colleagues. It isn't as though the world has a surplus of physicians and surgeons to waste.
I am quite confident while Russia and Assad whisper in the ears of Turkish officials, these charges of Dr. Serdar Kuni are equivalent to the bombing of the aid warehouse to Syria.
See, there really are good guys and bad guys in the world and Dr. Serdar Kuni is definitely a good guy. There is a fine line to walk and it exists for a reason. Dr. Serdar Kuni is definitely on the side of 'good guy' when it comes to that thin line. However, forces on the bad side of that line, such as Russia and Assad would have the Turkish government and officials believe Dr. Serdar Kuni is a plague upon Earth.
Which brings me to the next point, in that President Trump's infatuation with Russia to insure his businesses flouish within it's borders, hurt men like
Dr. Serdar Kuni. Throwing away an alliance with NATO is a serious issue and this is one of them. Also included in that alliance is the bombing of the supply warehouse for Syria.
See, Putin and Assad see any support of so called Syrian Rebels as an assault on the sovereignty of Syria. In like terms, Turkey is now closer to Russia than the USA and sees Kurdish Rebels the same as Assad. Both countries see their rebels as arch enemies, when in fact, they are instrumental to end regimes such as Daesh.
But, as to the case of Dr. Serdai Kuni; he is not guilty of anything except caring for human beings in need of his services. He knows no difference between enemy and ally. His work is highly stressful and in an emergency he doesn't ask questions because seconds count. When a child is ill and a mother seeks help, there is no understanding as to the correct doctor to take the child. The practice of Dr. Serdai Kuni is one of action to protect life. That should always be his only practice and to that end there is no enemy or ally; there is only life and it's protections.
The USA and NATO need to move to protect these valuable practitioners and the Turkish Courts need to be enlightened as to who sincerely is the enemy. The bombings in Turkey nearly caused a collapse of the government in a military coup. I would think it would be Daesh and all it's charasmatic movement that needs to be focused on by any country fighting for it's sovereignty. War of such nature make strange bedfellows. Reaching out to rebel groups may prove enlightening and remove the stigma currently attached to Dr. Serdai Kuni.
Enough of the hatred. War is not about hatred, it is about the right to life and land and Dr. Serdai Kuni cannot discern who is wining or losing the war, he can only decide who in front of him is dying or sick.
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