Kellyann CONway, why did we spend all this money if Trump didn't state it was going to be WALL? (click here for a description of all eight samples - thank you)

There are only two fence samples that provide a see through section. To answer the impatience of Kellyann Conway with the media; I think the use of the word wall is a poorly decided description of what is possible for the American people to provide at the southern border.

BORDER SECURITY is the most descriptive of what is needed at our borders. Border Security is used frequently by Speaker Pelosi when discussing the issues with the USA southern border. Realizing "Border Security" is used by Speaker Pelosi may be why it gets stuck in the throat of Kellyann Conway. 

BORDER SECURITY. This is not a wall, it is a multi-dimensional approach. Mexico will be hard pressed to provide such border DEFENSE for the USA.



The picture above is what the Border Patrol considers important to secure the southern border. That is not a fence. The picture is of TWO see through barriers with an electronically monitored zone between them. There is a paved road leading up to the first barrier on the USA side. A tunnel would work well under that construction. 

It is expensive. It cannot be paid for within the definition of a national emergency. It is very expensive and the electronic zone will require regular patrol in order to prevent vandalism. If the picture is what is needed it will have to be built over time with appropriations dedicated every year. I don't see a massive effort to build the barriers and electronic zone in one single effort. The southern border would have to be assessed and the most dangerous addressed first.

Below is a very successful action by the Border Patrol that stopped 200 pounds of fentanyl from entering the USA for distribution. I hope the arrest of the 26 year old results in a trail to the people who loaded the truck and the lab where it was produced.

This was incredible work. I thank the Border Patrol for their bravery and successful intervention to protect Americans from dying. I believe the transportation of the fentanyl tells the tale that the deaths of Americans due to fentanyl laced heroine are intentional. It is murder, not just drug trafficking.

This discovery occurred at a legal USA crossing. It wasn't found in the desert.

January 31, 2019
By Ida Domingo

Roanoke - Customs and Border Protection officers (click here) said they discovered more than 200 pounds of fentanyl hidden in a floor compartment of a truck loaded with cucumbers.

According to NBC News, they also found 395 pounds of methamphetamine, officials said in a report Thursday.

CBP valued the 254 pounds of fentanyl at $3.5 million and the methamphetamine at $1.1 million.

The drug bust is believed to be the largest in history and is more than twice the size of the apparent previous record of 118 pounds which was found in Nebraska in 2017. 

Authorities say the truck was driven by a 26-year-old man. He was arrested and charged with possessing drugs with intent to distribute. His identity hasn't been released.

CBP says the tractor-trailer was stopped four days ago in Nogales, Arizona when it was trying to enter the U.S. at the southern border.

Michael Humphries, Nogales Area port director, praised his staff and drug-sniffing dog for the record-breaking arrest....

Stone? Roger Stone? The histrionic political hack? Treated roughly? I didn’t see a mark on his Richard Nixon raised arms. 

There is no evidence to back up his whining.

Just as a side note about the cold. I saw a live news broadcast where there was steam coming off the Chicago River. The steam seems counter-intuitive to some. That is water vapor created by the sunlight. That is actual subliming of the ice to water vapor.

When in the Arctic and crossing glaciers while the sun is out, scientists can wear shorts while cross country skiing. Why? it is plenty cold, however, the reflection of the sunlight off the ice heats the air enough to be comfortable in shorts.

Polar vortex: -46C temperatures as Chicago River turns to ice (click here)

I was in northwest Michigan during the winter of 2012-2013 and the Polar Vortex displaced for the first time. A bubble of air came over Traverse City with a temperature of -60 F. I am not saying -46 F is not significant, but, it is 14 degrees warmer than 2013's winter in northwest Michigan.

I always carry a sleeping bag in the car during winter.

No lie. There is one there now. In case of accident by even other people and traffic snares. Snow and drifts that can cause stranding. Three things prudent during severe winter weather; air to breath, contained body heat to stay warm and fluids to drink. Uncertainty can be wicked.

That said, the big talk in the Midwest is “Frost Quakes.” They are a loud “bang” coming from the ground and sometimes buildings. Frost Quakes are caused by freezing water in the ground. Freezing water expands and will disrupt soil around it. In the case of a deep freeze the point at which frozen water disrupts soil structure a loud bang results. What folks, including mayors and governors, need to keep in mind is any damage to anything by the ice won’t necessarily show up until the ice melts.

Frost Quakes are mostly harmless when they occur and primarily take place under ground.

Michael Franti & Spearhead - The Flower (feat. Victoria Canal) (click here for mass shooting archive 2019 - thank you)

December 13, 2018

Gun deaths in America have reached a record high. (click here)

Nearly 40,000 people in the United States died by guns last year, marking the highest number of gun deaths in decades, according to a new analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s WONDER database....

"Innocent and naive"

To begin that is sexist. I don't care if Trump is talking about men as well as women, but, those words are a chronic word choice to assert his superiority to any other intelligence.

He said the same thing about Saudi Arabia, Brett Kavanaugh and others. "Innocent and naive" is how his white, male base thinks about women. "Father knows best."

When Trump employs those words, he is getting ready to make a "new reality" for the country. Those words PROTECT as well as DISCIPLINES.

When "Father knows best," that means he loves you, but, you have it all wrong and have to accept his wisdom. It is his dictator's voice. It is based in sexism.

Trump’s Republican House withheld authority from the Special Council? So, the only effective way for Trump to block testimony now from the Special Council is through the Senate. I thought it was interesting how the US Senate issued a subpoena to Michael Cohen before the US House could act after Cohen canceled his testimony.

I suppose the Special Council has all the information it needs already when it comes to Michael Cohen, but, you never know really. And then there is the issue of making unclassified material available to the public that may be an issue for Trump.

What did they talk about in Helsinki?

Putin is planning a multi-front attack on The West. Europe will be busy with Ukraine and the USA will be held in place by it's near border wars. North Korea is a direct threat to allies and that might just complete the picture with China a grateful servant to secure it's monetary dominance of the world. Israel is hemmed in by interceptor missiles in Syria.

I suppose one could say that is quite an imagination and my response would be, "You betcha and it is all based in real possibilities."

Impeachment takes a while, although it doesn't have to; so the way to work with Trump still in the Oval Office and move the USA to protect itself and allies, is to bring on former Presidents and their assessments.

Estimates value this at nearly a trillion dollars US. A lot of things come to mind of which money laundering is one, but, weapon systems can be easily purchased for that kind of money.

Trump has to be the most gullible idiot on the planet if he isn't clamping down on Russian activity in the Western Hemisphere.

The Pentagon should be examining satellite data to find out what kind of cargo has been sent to the region lately. Columbia may have the answer and then again with refugees pouring in, Columbia may be overwhelmed to know the particulars of the Russia plan for a near border war with the USA.

30 January 2019
By Daria Litvinova

Russian authorities (click here) have moved to quash suspicions that 20 tonnes of gold are about to be moved from the Venezuela’s national bank to Moscow.

Allegations that a Russian jet which landed in Caracas was due to load an $840 million portion of the country's gold reserves surfaced early on Wednesday.

Venezuela’s opposition-controlled parliament, sidelined by the Maduro regime, said in a tweet that they received information from the Bank of Venezuela that a plane from Moscow arrived to Caracas to “extract at least 20 tons of gold” - 20 per cent of the bank’s holdings.

“We are demanding the Bank [to reveal] details of what is happening. That gold does not belong to Calixto Ortega, [head of the Bank]. It belongs to the Venezuelan people,” the tweet read....

I hate to say I told you so, but, I am telling you. This is more than money laundering, this is a strategic deployment.

Caravan's from the Northern Triad make for an interesting distraction for Trump and Putin evidently.

January 30, 2019
By Madeline Roache

As Washington intensifies its push (click here) to drive Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro from power, Russia's Vladimir Putin has vowed to support his South American "strategic partner" and warned of the "catastrophic" consequences if the United States were to send military assistance to opposition leader Juan Guaido.

When the US called a special United Nations Security Council session on Saturday, focused on the crisis in Venezuela, Russia used the session to warn against foreign intervention in the Latin American nation and accused the US of attempting a "coup".

Russian private military contractors have flown into Venezuela in recent days to increase security for Maduro, according to Reuters news agency.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has denied the reports.

On Friday, Russia offered to mediate between Maduro's "legitimate" government and the opposition if necessary, saying it was ready to cooperate with all political forces that acted responsibly....

Putin is selling weapons to Venezuela. The region has huge issues now. Russia probably wanted to be paid up front, but, there could have been smugglers acting and the payment is coming after the fact delivery took place.

...Pete Duncan, a Russian politics professor at University College London said: "Losing ties with Venezuela would be a huge blow to Russia. Putin will do his utmost to prevent regime change."...

It isn't like Trump won't lay down cover for Putin either, he will. Trump will deny and make a story for the desperate Russian president. This is trouble. Big trouble and Trump doesn't trust USA intelligence. I'll be darn.

The USA needs to remove any doubt about what it will tolerate from Venezuela. An arms build up will destabilize the region. 

The climate anomalies are really adding up to a movement toward a homogeneous climate.

I usually address current issues before the public on the weekends. But, let's get this out there for those sincerely interested in the truth.

Below is a graph that Danish scientists record every year. The first particular graph is from 1958. The graph at the bottom of this entry is from 2018.

DMI Danish Meteorological Institute (click here) 

Comparing those two graphs seems obvious to me. I am willing to guess it is not obvious to everyone.

The green line. Oh, wait a minute. I betcha folks are going, so what is this mess? Right? At the top of the graph is a TITLE. "Daily Mean Temperature for plus 80N - with ERA40 climate." 80 N is 80 North Latitude. In the image to the right is a map. Denmark can be noted on that map. What also is noted on that map is the latitude of the Arctic Circle, 66 degrees, 30 minutes north.

So, the Danish scientists have been making measurements of the climate at these high latitudes (North Pole is  90.0000° N, 135.0000° W) since 1958. That is 60 years of a unique record and this year will be the 61st year of such scientific assessments.

Now, as to the assessment part, the green line is a mean (average) over time. It is a standard to measure and compare climate change over time. The green line is applied to the graph every year in the same way. That said, the green line is assigned a name, "climate." Climate is a long term measurement and not a day to day, week to week reporting of the WEATHER. Weather is important to note because we live on a planet with a very active day to day, week to week changes in weather. BUT, CLIMATE IS A LONG TERM MEASUREMENT. The green line is climate.

The blue line across the top is titled, "melt." That is fairly straight forward. That is where the ice at these high latitudes melt. So, noting that CONSTANT in this equation of monitoring climate is to note how much ice is MAINTAINED in any given year. We all know that ice in the artic areas of Earth is what COOLS the climate. So, high fluctuations in that reality could be dangerous to life on Earth.

Now to the 'real time' information that tells scientists what is happening NOW is the red line called "mean temp., Era 40." In viewing both these graphs it is really easy to see the vast difference between the two.

The DEPARTURE from the green line is what tells the tale. The labels of this graph are obvious. Yes? The Y-axis (the left side of the graph) is Temperature recorded in Kelvin (click here for history and comparison between the Kelvin Scale and Fahrenheit and Celsius).

The line at the bottom of the graph; the X-axis: is days of the year. So, day 0 (zero) doesn't matter because there is no day 0 on the calendar used by countries on Earth. The calendar begins with Day 1 (January 1). The zero-day is important on the graph because it is also a CONSTANT in recording and assessing the information. The zero is always in the same place with the graph, hence, the red line is consistently based on the same MEASUREMENT OF TEMPERATURE.

Scientists always conduct QUALITY OF METHOD, QUALITY OF INSTRUMENTS to be sure there is a very high degree of accuracy.

So, to close this entry, the dedicated Danish scientists that have carried out these measurements can easily report there are VERY significant changes in Earth's temperatures in the highest Arctic areas of Earth. The 2018 graph has very few records that dip below the green line. That is not the case with 1958.

2018 is not an anomaly. For all the record heat years, consistently there are records that do not cross the green line or only come close to crossing it.

This is a climate crisis. It is not a lie and what people are experiencing in these next few days in the American Midwest is a climate crisis. Know, that the polar vortex is displaced and meanders now at lower latitudes and not over the North Pole. It is too warm at the North Pole to support the Polar Vortex.

For those folks citing the temperature of Chicago as -12 F and temperature in Antarctica of -12 F; the real question is not that Chicago is frigidly cold, but, why is Antarctica ONLY -12F.

Think about it.

I personally thank the Danish people for their dedication to the truth and providing their scientists with the ability to monitor a very, very important aspect of Earth's nature. I thank the Danish scientists for their dedication to provide such a factual reality. I send my best regards.

27 February 2018
By Jonathan Watts

An alarming heatwave(click here) in the sunless winter Arctic is causing blizzards in Europe and forcing scientists to reconsider even their most pessimistic forecasts of climate change.

Although it could yet prove to be a freak event, the primary concern is that global warming is eroding the polar vortex, the powerful winds that once insulated the frozen north.

The north pole gets no sunlight until March, but an influx of warm air has pushed temperatures in Siberia up by as much as 35C above historical averages this month. Greenland has already experienced 61 hours above freezing in 2018 - more than three times as many hours as in any previous year.

Seasoned observers have described what is happening as “crazy,” “weird,” and “simply shocking”.

“This is an anomaly among anomalies. It is far enough outside the historical range that it is worrying – it is a suggestion that there are further surprises in store as we continue to poke the angry beast that is our climate,” said Michael Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University. “The Arctic has always been regarded as a bellwether because of the vicious circle that amplify human-caused warming in that particular region. And it is sending out a clear warning.”...

There is an issue in Texas with the efficacy of it's voter rolls.

Was someone monkeying around with voter records before the 2018 election? It just seems odd it falls into question now.

January 29, 2019
By Julieta Chiquillo, James Barragan and Robert T. Garrett

The Texas secretary of state’s office (click here) asked several county elections offices Tuesday to hold off on demanding proof of citizenship from people on a state list of 98,000 potential non-U.S. citizen voters because the data may be flawed.

Dallas County Elections Administrator Toni Pippins-Poole said her office got a call from a state official Tuesday asking her to not send any notices to the nearly 10,000 county voters who appear on the list. Pippins-Poole said the state official told her office that some names on the list had provided proof of citizenship to the Texas Department of Public Safety, which also facilitates voter registrations.

Remi Garza, the county elections administrator for Cameron County in the Rio Grande Valley, said the secretary of state's office gave his office information on Tuesday morning that suggested the numbers they were originally provided "may have been overstated" and that "individuals that had already provided proof of citizenship to the DPS office had been included in the original list provided to the county."

The state initially told Cameron County that about 1,500 of the nearly 1,600 names on their list had been placed there in error. The state then called Cameron County and said they had given them the wrong number, Garza said....

States Rights

Donald Trump has a fatal flaw to his border wall. It is "States Rights." No one understands their borders better than the states themselves. Even though the USA sovereign borders are the authority of the federal government and eminent domain can be used to obtain the land for a wall, that is the exact problem Trump doesn't seem to understand. He understands "The Wall" is an emotional issue with his base, but, to actually have a workable plan requires information from the states affected by "The Wall." The lack of research and insight into what actually works will bolster the idea of States Rights and competing plans for the USA sovereign border. 

The Democrats need a spokesperson and the best person for that job is Beto O'Rouke. He knows Texas, the state with the longest exposure to the USA southern border. He is clear and concise to what will work and what won't. Texas does not want interference by the federal government, but, it needs the support of the federal government in providing border security when the state cannot provide a budget for it's plans.

November 26, 2018
By Megan Keller

Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) (click here) said Monday the U.S. should follow its own standing immigration laws in dealing with the caravan of migrants attempting to cross the border.

"Let’s do this the right way and follow our own laws," O'Rourke, who unsuccessfully challenged Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the recent midterms, wrote in a post on Medium. "Allow asylum seekers to petition for asylum at our ports of entry."

"They must do so peacefully and follow our laws; but we must also ensure the capacity to effectively and timely process those claims (right now 5,000 waiting in Tijuana and only 40 to 100 are processed a day)," he continued. "Those who have a credible fear of returning to their home country (as determined by a U.S. judge) will be able stay until their full asylum request has been determined....

The current critics of the new prison and sentence reform law are wardens of prisons and the reformers that work with inmates. The problem with current releases of prisoners from prison is not its correctness, most state such reform is long overdo. The criticism is money. Inmates walking out the front doors of prisons now do not have enough money to prevent recidivism.

Most of these inmates were on programs planned for the length of their prison terms. Not only are these inmates ill prepared for their release, there is little support outside of prison for them. Just as a reality check, people wrongfully convicted of crimes like murder have recourse through the courts, but, these inmates having served far longer sentences than appropriate may not have that option.

It is easy to criticize Elizabeth Warren’s tax plan, but, when doing so how does Mike Bloomberg and Howard Schultz plan to pay down the national debt so many generations are not burdened with their greed. In the USA, there are “sundown” options to end such measures after they have served their purpose. I don’t want to hear how tax laws are not the way the wealthy get and keep their wealth, otherwise, why do it in a way that burdens American taxpayers with continuing going debt? I thought million-billionaires had wealth because they had a corner on invention and innovation, not because they embrace “easy street.” 

Basically, when does the wealthy care about the country enough to realize their own adverse effect on others paying higher tax rates? One more time, why does Warren Buffet pay a smaller percentage of his income than his secretary?

I believe Vladimir Putin sees Donald Trump, as President, no differently than he sees other oligarchs that he has use for in Russian politics. Donald Trump is a political icon in Russia. That is a fact. Trump is viewed favorably by the Russian people. There may exist a loyalty between Trump and Putin as well

It is my opinion Trump is well over the line with Putin. Russia is not an ally and it is inappropriate to treat Vladimir Putin as a friend when Trump can’t do the same for leaders of NATO. 

What is going on with the Chinese oligarchs after the Kushner family meeting waving American visas around?

Why are the American people paying Kellyann CONway to spew propaganda from the White House for the Trump campaign 2030. There are your NO information voters, right there.

I understand there is a Trump approval rating of 32 percent and some question who they are considering what the country just went through with the government shutdown. Trump has a following of no information voters. When Wilbur Ross says he doesn’t understand why people don’t get low interest loans, I would guess those he is addressing are as clueless as he is. 

There isn’t anyone in the world that knows what is happening with the Special Council. Former FBI Director is and always has been the best person for the job. He is securing the country. Everyone, without exception, should be releaved about that. Realizing the thorough nature of the Special Council’s expertise and dedication, the country is safer. I have no doubt about that. Former Director Mueller should have all the respect, resources and time needed to act to protect the country from foreign influence that seeks to undermine our democracy. I trust him.

Let me go on the record in stating I hate artificial intelligence. It appears to be a one way street. What it thinks it learns is never unlearns. It is a huge mistake to include it in national defense of this country.

AI wastes my time. It second guesses me and has authority in doing so. It worries me that it could second guess the trajectory of missiles. AI in national defense is a really stupid idea.

Don't do it again!!!!!

January 28, 2019
By Gina Heeb

The longest partial US government shutdown (click here) on record that ended Friday cost the US economy billions of dollars as it kept a fourth of federal agencies shuttered for five weeks, the Congressional Budget Office said Monday.

About 800,000 workers were furloughed or forced to work without pay after the shutdown began December 22, leading to a delay in spending and weighing on private-sector activity. The nonpartisan office estimates that shaved about $3 billion, or 0.1%, from inflation-adjusted gross domestic product in the fourth quarter and $8 billion, or 0.2%, from that of the first quarter of 2019.

While the economy will eventually make up most real gross domestic product lost during the shutdown, according to the office, about $3 billion will never be recovered....

The communists can't do it without The West and greed has no allies.

28 January 2019

Australia (click here) is playing a role in helping China develop its rival global positioning system that will be used for guiding missiles and other military technology, according to a leading expert.

New Zealand academic Anne-Marie Brady — who says she has faced a campaign of harassment and intimidation for her research on the Chinese Communist Party — said the "BeiDou" alternative to the American-controlled GPS carries significant benefits for the Chinese military.

A tracking station in Perth has been a key factor in the global advance of the BeiDou satellite navigation system, Professor Brady said, with the Western Australian infrastructure the first to be established in the critical Pacific region.

"Australia is playing a small part in helping China to get a GPS system as effective as the US system," she told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

"China is aiming to have a better one than the US has by 2020, and so is Russia. They need ground stations to co-ordinate their satellites and they need them in the Pacific. Their first ground station in the Pacific region was built in Perth."...

Of all places to look for stable governments, poverty will tell the tale. This is from Oxfam.

There is growing concern (click here) about increasing instability and tensions in the Pacific. In Melanesian societies, particularly Papua New Guinea/Bougainville, Solomon Islands and Fiji, instability is characterised by ethnic or tribal clashes, soaring crime rates and a deterioration in government control and accountability.

The circumstances and causes of conflict in each country are unique, but there are some common and interrelated causes....

The more poverty that exists, the greater chances of corruption and vast instability.

January 28, 2019

Tensions between China (click here) and both the Philippines and Vietnam have recently cooled, even as China increased its military activity in the South China Sea by conducting a series of naval maneuvers and exercises in March and April 2018. Meanwhile, China continues to construct military and industrial outposts on artificial islands it has built in disputed waters.

The United States has also recently stepped up its military activity and naval presence in the region, including freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs) in January and March 2018. In a speech during his November 2017 visit to Southeast Asia, President Donald J. Trump emphasized the importance of such operations, and of ensuring free and open access to the South China Sea. Since May 2017, the United States has conducted six FONOPs in the region....

It is becoming increasingly difficult to guarantee peace. Russian politics demands the fight rather than have an economy that is stable, growing and people taken care of with equality of national wealth. With Russia a regional player and communism entrenched in China, the future is still unpredictable, especially when a USA president rather isolation over allies.

 Oxfam was founded in Great Britain in 1942. This is an article brought to the attention of the Free World

21 January 2019

Billionaire fortunes (click here) increased by 12 percent last year – or $2.5 billion a day - while the 3.8 billion people who make up the poorest half of humanity saw their wealth decline by 11 percent, reveals a new report from Oxfam today. The report is being launched as political and business leaders gather for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

‘Public Good or Private Wealth’ shows the growing gap between rich and poor is undermining the fight against poverty, damaging our economies and fuelling public anger across the globe.  It reveals how governments are exacerbating inequality by underfunding public services, such as healthcare and education, on the one hand, while under taxing corporations and the wealthy, and failing to clamp down on tax dodging, on the other.  It also finds that women and girls are hardest hit by rising economic inequality.

Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International, said:

“The size of your bank account should not dictate how many years your children spend in school, or how long you live – yet this is the reality in too many countries across the globe. While corporations and the super-rich enjoy low tax bills, millions of girls are denied a decent education and women are dying for lack of maternity care.”...

The concern of the Afghan government is a peaceful transition to an Afghanistan that does not use killing to maintain fear and a divided loyalty to the country.

29 January 2019
By Mujib Mashal

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, centre, speaks to US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, third left, at the presidential palace in Kabul on Monday.

Kabul: American and Taliban officials (click here) have agreed in principle to the framework of a deal in which the insurgents would guarantee to prevent Afghan territory from being used by terrorists, and that could lead to a full pullout of US troops in return for larger concessions from the Taliban, the chief US negotiator said Monday.

American envoy Zalmay Khalilzad said those concessions must include the Taliban agreeing to a cease-fire and agreeing to talk directly with the Afghan government, issues that the insurgents have doggedly opposed in the past.

"We have a draft of the framework that has to be fleshed out before it becomes an agreement," Khalilzad said in an interview in Kabul. "The Taliban have committed, to our satisfaction, to do what is necessary that would prevent Afghanistan from ever becoming a platform for international terrorist groups or individuals."

He added: "We felt enough confidence that we said we need to get this fleshed out, and details need to be worked out."...

...A senior Taliban official confirmed the draft agreement on the issue of foreign troop withdrawal and that the Taliban pledge that Afghan soil would not be used against others. He said "working groups" would iron out details on the timeline of the withdrawal....

..."We want peace quickly, we want it soon, but we want it with prudence," Ghani said. "Prudence is important so we do not repeat past mistakes."...

Afghanistan has become interesting for many powers in the world. The Taliban while important to peace really isn't significant to a larger picture.

One of the reasons the USA military has been content to maintain a presence in Afghanistan is it's strategic location. It is central to Pakistan, a nuclear country; Iran, a proclaimed enemy by Trump; India, an ally in chronic conflict along it's Pakistan border and in Kashmir and a neighbor to China; the former Soviet countries of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are all of concern to the USA. To the north of these three former Soviet countries is Russia. Of course, there is the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea. All these countries and regions surrounding Afghanistan are of concern to the USA military.

When the USA leaves there will be capitalists highly interested in the minerals in the Afghanistan mountains. Finally, Afghanistan has a chance to have an economy different than poppies.

The economic expansion of Afghanistan demands warring parties stop their warring. I don't believe the ideologues, like the Taliban, care about the wealth in the mountains of Afghanistan and for all anyone knows there is some mining that exists that might even benefit the Taliban and perhaps the remnants of Daesh.  But, as far as international concerns, currently no one expects the Taliban to be an issue after the USA leaves, because Russia and/or China will not tolerate any interference in their interests in mining.

Basically, China and/or Russia in their friendship pack, will bring about killing the interference they confront when seeking to mine the Afghan mountains. Those mountains, by the way, are their own enemy when it comes to climate and the removal of any objects mined. I haven't been in a mine in the deep winter of Afghanistan, but, they can probably be made warm enough to allow miners to be warm enough. However, removing tailings and minerals encased in rock to the harsh elements outside the mine is an entirely different story.

June 5, 2016

The mines of the rugged northeastern province of Badakhshan (click here) are one of the richest assets of the Afghan people, an extraordinary national treasure that should be a powerful resource for development.

Instead, as a two-year investigation reveals, they are a major source of conflict and grievance, supply millions of dollars of funding to armed groups, insurgents, and strongmen, and provide a tiny fraction of the benefit they should to the Afghan people. Without a coherent response, these mines – and others like them across Afghanistan – represent not just a lost opportunity, but a threat to the whole country....

Besides all the hostilities of the region that inhibit economic progress of the country of Afghanistan there are the chronic earthquakes. (click here)

Time	Mag. / Depth	Location	Map	Source
Sat, 26 Jan
Sat, 26 Jan 13:39 UTC	M 4.8 / 210 km - [info]	Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan I FELT IT	[Map]	GFZ
Tue, 22 Jan
Tue, 22 Jan 04:33 UTC	M 3.5 / 10 km - [info]	- 4km SSW of Boshkengash, Tajikistan I FELT IT

So, when the USA military assesses the reasons to leave Afghanistan they don't see any. While the USA military likes to point to better quality of life of the people of Afghanistan, that can be disputed. However, in disputing that fact, there is the reality that if the USA leaves, the Afghan people may not be any better off if there is no overriding moral authority that can hold the line on killings. If the USA leaves, will Afghanistan finally have a lasting peace or will the anarchy return with a vengeance? The countries that settle in the mountains for a feast of greed for minerals will seek to push the killing fields out of the mountains and into the cities that have no reason to entertain mines.

The current authorities of Afghanistan will have their hands full in maintaining a stable military to uphold the government. If the Afghanistan government falls after the USA is completely out of the way, the wealth of the mountains will never reach the people of Afghanistan and the poverty will return with no end in sight.

When I think of the Lapis mines, I think of Haqqani (click here).

A new investigation today reveals how Afghanistan’s 6,500 year old lapis mines are driving corruption, conflict and extremism in the country. Global Witness has found that the Taliban and other armed groups are earning up to 20 million dollars per year from Afghanistan’s lapis mines, the world’s main source of the brilliant blue lapis lazuli stone, which is used in jewellery around the world. As a result, the Afghan lapis lazuli stone should now be classified as a conflict mineral. 

The lapis mines are in the Badakhshan region, once one of the more stable areas in Afghanistan, even at the height of Taliban control. However, violent competition for control of the lucrative mines and their revenue, between local strong men, local MPs and the Taliban has deeply destabilised the province and made it one of the hotbeds of the insurgency. With the Taliban on the outskirts of the mines themselves, as well as controlling key roads into the mining areas, there is now a real risk that the mines could fall into their hands....

Lapis is a really obvious rock. It is easy to mine by crude methods.

18 March 2018
By Tamin Hamid

A suspected gem stone smuggler (click here) has said mines in Badakhshan’s Karan-o-Manjan district, especially those extracting Lapis Lazuli, are out of government’s control and are being mined illegally.

Speaking to TOLOnews, the man from Keshm district in Badakhshan, said he turned to smuggling after losing all his money in the construction sector three years ago.

The smuggler, who was recently apprehended by border forces at Torkham while carrying almost three kilograms of Lapis Lazuli to Pakistan, said he has smuggled a large amount of gemstones from Karan-o-Manjan mines.

The 43-year-old man said he takes them to Peshawar in Pakistan where he sells them.

“If you go to Peshawar, you can see trucks full of these stones, that have crossed at Torkham because the stones cannot be transported by air,” said the smuggler.  

He said that the mines in Karan-o-Manjan district are mostly under the control of local mafia....

The making of Lapis jewelry can be crude as well. Some are very sophisticated.

This is on Etsy (click here).

Could the illegally mined Afghanistan Lapis be the next Blood Diamond?

Typical, typical CEO fear of a woman president.

January 28, 2019

By Jim Gergaghty

The first version of the logo was based on a 16th-century “Norse” woodcut. Starbucks siren was topless and had a double fish tail. The original brown logo was used from 1971–1987.

Schultz started as Marketing Director at Starbucks in 1981. Sexist.

Making the click-through worthwhile: (click here) the man who brought cappuccinos to seemingly every street corner in America announces that he’s thinking about running for president as an independent; a long list of news, sights, and comments from the Koch network’s winter meeting in Indian Wells, Calif.; and a surprising figure tries to persuade Democrats that they don’t want to nuke the filibuster if they win a majority in the Senate in 2020....

Howard Schultz is still involved with "Starbucks" as Chairman Emeritus. (click here)

The issue with Schultz is that diversity lacked enormously under his leadership at Starbucks. Currently, 30 percent of Starbucks executive lineup is female and nine percent minority. How many were promoted by Schultz?

Schultz bio (click here)

As Putin embraces Bitcoin as a national currency, the strategy is looking dim. Money laundering may be a better outcome for Russia under Putin.

January 28, 2019
By Ethel Jiang

Bitcoin, (click here) the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, was down as much as 4.8% to below $3,388 a coin early Monday, printing at its lowest level since December 17, 2018.

That was not far above $3,136, bitcoin's lowest level since September 2017. Its rivals ether (-7.21%), litecoin (-4.7%), and bitcoin cash(-8.77%) were also under pressure.

"The cryptoasset movement today is nothing more than technical," Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst at eToro, told Business Insider.

"There’s no need for overreaction here. Bitcoin is continuing to trade within the core area of support between $3,000 and $3,500, within the broader range of $3,000 - $5,000, where it’s been since November 2018."

Investors in the digital currency saw its price explode in 2017 as cryptomania swept over the world. Bitcoin began 2017 worth less than $1,000 a coin before soaring more than 2,000% to a high of $19,511. However, the year of 2018 was a different story, with the cryptocurrency's value plunging by 70%....

"Morning Papers"

The Rooster

"Okeydoke"

Ann Coulter is a two faced hack.

I don't pay attention to her and Limbaugh because they are hate mongers, rarely have anything intelligent to say and thrive on attention from decent people. I do consider myself a decent person.

There were complaints from average people interviewed by journalists about Ann Coulter during the Trump government shutdown. Then, in order to get attention from the political left, which I consider a silly reference, she appeared on Bill Maher's show on HBO. She sat for the interview and not much else. Her ability to take up two political positions at once is an unfortunate ability.

Coulter's primary focus was "hard working Americans." In this particular instance, she thought the federal workers were hard working Americans. It was their best interest she believed she represented as a martyr because no one else was willing to take up such a position and solely believed she was their champion.

Her position was that by taking a hard line against the Undocumented; my word, not hers; she was advocating and protecting hard working Americans. See the Undocumented take jobs from Americans and cause low wages of Americans.

Ann Coulter has to be the most stupid commentator on the air. She obviously has never heard to the minimum wage or unions.

I don't see that a political commentator has the right to influence a USA president into a corner of ignorance and extremism. The president should be advocating a better wage for Americans through improving the minimum wage and employer sponsored benefits including vacation time for the family. A USA president should be working with facts and not extremist politicians' hate speech.

Ann Coulter has power over politics because of the extremist party called The Tea Party with it's Freedom Caucus. Donald Trump is afraid of Limbaugh and Coulter and they dictate his DECISIONS. They rank right up there with Russia in influencing this Americans' president.

Coulter can't state she is helping Americans by forcing a government shutdown while putting our country AT RISK. She cannot state she is beneficial because she believes she is positioning politics to benefit hard working Americans while closing out paychecks to the best workers and the most loyal workers in the country. This country would not be the United States of America without it's federal workers. She should at least LEARN THAT from a Coulter/Limbaugh/Russian nightmare.

The government shutdown, if it had lasted any longer, would have put Russia in a very good position of watching the American democracy crumble to it's advantage.

Understand this Ann Coulter, there is no wall that is going to stop the drug cartels or the Undocumented from crossing the USA southern border. That is a fact. Walls are a "Republican feel good feeling," but, they are worthless without a strong staff of Border Patrol in place to mitigate the crossings. The fact of the matter is without a visual component to the southern border for the Border Patrol a wall inhibits the effectiveness of the USA Border Patrol.

The issue with Coulter, Limbaugh and Russia is fear. Putin chimed in during the 2016 elections stating, "If Hillary Clinton was elected to the presidency there would be nuclear war, but, not with Trump." Putin learns and he learns that spoken fear is effective in influencing Americans. He learned from the extremist pundits of the Republican preferred media. With Putin as an ally, I would not consider the Republican preferred media as patriots and healthy for the national dialogue of an enormous democracy.

The USA has historically stood the breach. Freedom and democracy have standing in the world because of the strength and steadfastness of the USA. That is compromised when hate speech overrides the facts and truth of the political landscape. Is the extremist hate speech of Coulter and Limbaugh a threat to the USA? It has that appearance.