Where to begin. Andrew Yang intrigues me because he thinks similarly about technology as I do. I do believe he is an important voice. He mentioned tonight there was a federal office of technology that closed in 1995. A bell went off for me; figuratively, not literally; when he said that. Given the facts below I have to wonder who was paid off to shut those doors that would have definitely monitored the effect of technology on the country and society. That is more than interesting to me. But, my opinions of the debate does not stop there.
In that same year, this is what occurred:
For Microsoft, 1995 was filled with Windows. (click here) On January 7, 1995, during his first keynote at the consumer electronics show in Vegas, Bill Gates announces Microsoft "Bob" for Windows. Microsoft and Dreamworks SKG announce that they have signed a joint-venture agreement to form a new software company and we announce internet explorer 1.0 for Windows 95.
1995 Revenue/Headcount
The 1995 fiscal year-end sales total $5,940,000,000. The 1995 fiscal Year employee headcount totals 17,801 people.
Official Subsidiaries Launched: Microsoft d.o.o., Ljubljana (Slovenia), Microsoft Hungary,Microsoft Philippines, Inc., Microsoft Slovakia s.r.o. (Slovak Republic), Microsoft De Panama, S.A., Microsoft De Guatemala, S.A, Microsoft Corporation (The People’s Republic of China) ,Microsoft Uruguay S.A. ,PT Microsoft Indonesia
Senators Booker and Harris are very important voices on that stage and they need to continue to be a part of this dialogue going forward. I remain disappointed Senator Harris is not more appreciated by the American people.
I still cannot relate to Rep. Gabbard. She focuses on the military and that is the least of the problems in the USA unless there is a former military intelligence officer in the Oval Office. That combination is a problem that should be plainly obvious to any American.
Senator Sanders and Warren know the issues at the grassroots level. They know how to solve them, but, the American people are cautious of rapid change. That is how the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act resulted. It was a combination of all the great medical values of our society, the known benefit of of preventive care as it relates to longevity, the need to have those values appreciated and practiced by all Americans at all socioeconomic levels with or without disabilities and a guarantee to all Americans that after all that preventive medicine registered it's assessment ACCESS to treatment, including medications as part of life without worry.
Senator Warren provided a picture of her first 100 days of administration from the Oval Office and it sounded absolutely wonderful. She also stated before Medicare for All would come to be the law of the land, there would be a vote. I am not sure who is included in that vote, the people or the legislature, but, a vote may prove to be a more stabilizing idea. Senator Sanders, while authoring the original idea into a bill has not spoken in the debates in the same way Senator Warren did. Maybe he should be more specific as to how his bill will roll out and spell out HEALTH SECURITY to Americans.
Senator Booker may be correct about a tax refund whereby renters could receive the difference between one-third of their income and the excess paid in rent above that as a means to level of playing the field while providing an opportunity to move into paying a mortgage rather than paying rent. There is a backlash to that knowing landlords would increase rents relentlessly with a guarantee of refunds to renters. The legislation would have to address exploitation by property owners as well. But, housing is an issue and I was surprised that Tom Steyer was as astute as he was on the subject. He is very correct in stating housing needs to be sustainable and built with alternative energies in mind. He is also correct in understanding there are NO MULTIPLE DECADES OF TIME TO COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE. I don't' think Rep. Gabbard mentioned that once even though the USA military has been prioritizing it as a national security issue for nearly ten years now.
Ten years, folks. Tom Steyer has that much right and no one else seems to see it in the paradigm it needs to be seen. There has to be a national standard, overlay if you will, of the Climate Crisis to every construction project in the USA.
I heard a lot about farms tonight and their income plight, but, not one person bothered to address farm production.
This is from Iowa (corn and soybeans are the larger numbers of acres):
August 12, 2019 (click here)
Iowa corn production is forecast at 2.52 billion bushels according to the latest USDA, National Agricultural
Statistics Service – Crop Production report. Based on conditions as of August 1, yields are expected to average
191.0 bushels per acre, down 5.0 bushels from last year.
Corn planted acreage is estimated at 13.6 million acres.
An estimated 13.2 million of the acres planted will be harvested for grain.
Soybean production is forecast at 502 million bushels. The yield is forecast at 55.0 bushels per acre, 2.0 bushels
lower than 2018. Soybean planted acreage is estimated at 9.20 million acres with 9.13 million acres to be
harvested.
What is a few bushels here or there, right? MATH. Like Andrew Yang's lapel pin. Do the math.
5 bushels X 100 acres = 500 bushels.
The current price of corn as of November 19, 2019 is $3.7000 per bushel. (click here) The price as of October 21, 2019 was $3.87. It is a significant loss in a small family farm's income.
An Iowa farmer losing 5 bushels per acre with 100 acres INVESTED in soybeans will lose $1850.00. Not just a few bushels here or there, is it? For a small family farmer with small acreage that approximate $2000.00 means purchasing next year seed or not. Oops, there goes the farm.
One of the things I find myself writing more often than I care to is that Wall Street futures and the losses due to trade tariffs are only one aspect of LOSS for Americans farmers. There is a real loss for these farmers from the Climate Crisis. Why? BECAUSE THE USA HAS NO COMPREHENSIVE CLIMATE CRISIS POLICY. That's why. Without a comprehensive policy that addresses the emergencies BEFORE they are emergencies, the USA is nothing more than a reactionary country slapping money on it like a bandaid. When the food production of the USA falls, the people elected to office to protect Americans will receive the wrath of empty store shelves as well as angry farmers.
5 bushels this year was LOST IN PRODUCTION and HARVEST. 5 bushels of corn per acre of Iowa farmland was lost this year. That should be an emergency, without a doubt in my mind. The American people can't eat money. American babies cannot drink money. Some of those babies rely on soybeans for their formula and Iowa soybeans ain't doin' so good either.
Senator Klobuchar, the candidate that can burn a red state blue, from Minnesota, which is part of the Midwest.
June 25, 2019
By Greta Kaul
Last week, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (click here) rolled out a state program that aims to inject cash into the state’s struggling dairy industry.
More than 1,100 Minnesota dairy farms closed up between 2012 and 2017, leaving only about 3,600 farms in an industry beset by years of low milk prices and a long, hard winter that delivered enough snow and wind to collapse the roofs of at least two dozen dairy barns.
The Minnesota Legislature passed the $8 million Minnesota Dairy Assistance, Investment and Relief Initiative (DAIRI) this year, in response to crisis in the dairy industry in Minnesota, the seventh-biggest dairy producer in the United States.
While an influx of cash could help, dairy industry watchers are looking toward the future with trepidation....
In increasing numbers across the USA this is becoming the reality of dairy farms. Efficiency and milk production could not be better, but, if there ain't any grain to feed the cows and the costs of a shrinking grain market increase, that farm isn't going to do well. The problems that beset the American farmer is more than what money can correct.
Roe v. Wade. It does need to be codified. Make is a national referendum on the ballots. People will definitely turn out.
Former Vice President Biden has to watch out for his gaffs, like punching the issue of "Violence Against Women's Act." Punching was not the word I would have used.
The health care system in the USA is beginning to fail to address the needs of more and more Americans by action taken to eliminate the ACA. The needs of Americans have to become foolproof, Vice President Biden. The FACT is the ACA for as good as it was to the American people was actively attacked and it is showing it now. There is a threat to the well being of the American people. I think one of the items that have to be on the ballot after the election of the new president is an amendment to the USA Constitution guaranteeing Americans the right to health care. I think everything after that will take care of itself.
What I like about the Former Vice President is his interest in domestic and international issues and his enthusiasm for them. There is this that has come to the surface today:
It surprised me. This is the issue Republicans use to drive down support for unions. This is exactly the problem and it lead to the rise of "The Right to Work Act" which has destroyed good pay to Americans.
Vice President Biden, he abused his power as the union's president, yet he gets his pension as he exists. There is a lot here and someone needs to address it. Unions are the way to protect the Middle Class and this is absolutely intolerable practice. It is outright corruption that DIRECTLY effects the rights and well being of the members. Something has to be done!
November 20, 2019
Detroit - United Auto Workers President Gary Jones (click here) abruptly resigned Wednesday, capping a tumultuous day that saw union leaders move to oust him, and General Motors accusing rival Fiat Chrysler in a lawsuit of bribing union officials to get more favorable contract terms from the UAW.
Jones has notified the union that he would retire, his attorney, Bruce Maffeo of New York, said in an email.
The news of Jones’ resignation came shortly after the UAW’s International Executive Board filed paperwork to expel him and Regional Director Vance Pearson from the union over allegations raised by a federal investigation into union corruption that has resulted in multiple arrests starting in 2017. The move to oust the two leaders would have brought union trials for both....
By the way, UPS isn't paying federal taxes anymore. They figured out a way under Trump to impoverish the USA Treasury. Supposedly the company was going to replace equipment, but, that never occurred.
It must give a leg up to UPS over it's competition.
end
Wednesday, November 20, 2019
Do I detect discrimination? They should not be begging for a small consideration either.
Non-religious addiction treatment programs should be receiving a proportional amount of funding based on the populations they are treating. If 25 percent of the USA are non-believers, there must be a significant number of Americans not receiving the treatment they need.
November 20, 2019
By Pamela Manson
With millions of people working to overcome addiction, (click here) the Secular Coalition for America has begun lobbying Congress to shift some federal funding for recovery help to nonreligious programs.
Sarah Levin, the coalition's director of governmental affairs, said the idea is getting support."
Comprehensive and evidence-based approaches to the opioid epidemic are both popular and bipartisan," Levin told UPI in an email. "Heading into 2020, we are pleased with our progress and are optimistic that we can secure the funding necessary to save lives and build a better future."
At a Capitol Hill gathering on Sept. 27, representatives from some of the coalition's 19 member groups -- including Black Nonbelievers Inc., the American Humanist Association, American Atheists, the Center for Inquiry, the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the Society for Humanistic Judaism -- visited nearly 100 House and Senate offices to talk policy....
...Twelve-step and other faith-based programs are widely accessible, but with the unaffiliated religious demographic at 25 percent in the United States, there is a growing population of nonbelievers who want faith-free meetings, she said....
November 20, 2019
By Pamela Manson
With millions of people working to overcome addiction, (click here) the Secular Coalition for America has begun lobbying Congress to shift some federal funding for recovery help to nonreligious programs.
Sarah Levin, the coalition's director of governmental affairs, said the idea is getting support."
Comprehensive and evidence-based approaches to the opioid epidemic are both popular and bipartisan," Levin told UPI in an email. "Heading into 2020, we are pleased with our progress and are optimistic that we can secure the funding necessary to save lives and build a better future."
At a Capitol Hill gathering on Sept. 27, representatives from some of the coalition's 19 member groups -- including Black Nonbelievers Inc., the American Humanist Association, American Atheists, the Center for Inquiry, the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the Society for Humanistic Judaism -- visited nearly 100 House and Senate offices to talk policy....
...Twelve-step and other faith-based programs are widely accessible, but with the unaffiliated religious demographic at 25 percent in the United States, there is a growing population of nonbelievers who want faith-free meetings, she said....
Ukraine's history displayed at the Holodomor illustrates it's oppression by the failed Soviet Union.
There is absolutely no way Ukraine's walk to freedom and democracy is contrived by Western influence, so much as it's experience with Soviet-style aggression. Ukraine's burgeoning membership in NATO and it's characterization of the USA as a good friend IS AN HONOR to be among them.
November 20, 2019
By Elina Kent
The board of the Holodomor Museum presents the plans for a new museum and research center that is currently being built at the Holodomor Museum Special Event at the on November 19, 2019.
The soft music played (click here) by the National Quartet of Soloists Kyiv Camerata stopped; an elderly gentleman stood up on stage and started his story.
“I was dying of hunger twice. The first time, when I was seven-years-old, my mother said to me, ‘Do not go outside for they will eat you.’ The second time I was dying of hunger, this time in a concentration camp that no one survived, I turned to god. I looked up at the sky and asked ‘God please help me. Just give me some bread, nothing else.’ For bread is life.”
Mykola Onyshchenko is a survivor of the vicious Holodomor, the artificial famine which Stalin systematically implemented in 1932-1933 through political decrees aimed at Ukrainian farmers to repress hopes for autonomy and wipe out opposition to Communist rule.
Communist officials would confiscate food and grain, leaving Ukrainians to eat grass to survive.
The total death count of the Holodomor is unknown but is estimated in the range of four to 15 million....
November 20, 2019
By Elina Kent
The board of the Holodomor Museum presents the plans for a new museum and research center that is currently being built at the Holodomor Museum Special Event at the on November 19, 2019.
The soft music played (click here) by the National Quartet of Soloists Kyiv Camerata stopped; an elderly gentleman stood up on stage and started his story.
“I was dying of hunger twice. The first time, when I was seven-years-old, my mother said to me, ‘Do not go outside for they will eat you.’ The second time I was dying of hunger, this time in a concentration camp that no one survived, I turned to god. I looked up at the sky and asked ‘God please help me. Just give me some bread, nothing else.’ For bread is life.”
Mykola Onyshchenko is a survivor of the vicious Holodomor, the artificial famine which Stalin systematically implemented in 1932-1933 through political decrees aimed at Ukrainian farmers to repress hopes for autonomy and wipe out opposition to Communist rule.
Communist officials would confiscate food and grain, leaving Ukrainians to eat grass to survive.
The total death count of the Holodomor is unknown but is estimated in the range of four to 15 million....
This is from the "Kiev Post." Sort of sounds like "The Washington Post," right? I love the way people who love democracy and freedom share identities in some ways.
In many ways the hearings with the US House Intelligence Committee is about Ukraine, too. They are looking to see how a 200 + democracy works and sorts out immoral and dangerous issues from that which upholds and honors the USA Constitution.
Ukrainians are in a place on the globe where Russia is a hostile entity and they will decide many things while paying attention to the US House hearings. I sincerely don't want them to decide that their fight and sacrifice to date is not worth it. They made their will known at the Euromaidan. Pray this will is upheld as a noble and important purpose to continue their walk to a greater and stronger Ukraine. Their will to date is remarkable and they are returning military strength on a daily basis. The USA cannot compromise this important country and must hold the people dear to the purpose of democracy and freedom.
There is no doubt the corruption freely tossed around as a driving force in Ukraine was instilled long ago by a relationship the then-president Yanukovych had with Russia. I don't want to hear debate over these facts. Viktor Yanukovych disarmed the national military and instilled instead oligarch militias to oppress and control the people. That level of corruption undermines the definition of Ukraine's sovereignty. There is no mistake about this understanding. Oligarchies propel the Ukraine economy and the transition has been difficult, but, it moves with the help of global institutions and guidance such as the IMF, World Bank and ambassadors from Western trading partners.
Russia has successfully exerted CONDITIONS on the most recent elections in Ukraine. That is troubling. It is troubling because while President Zelenskyy is an interesting choice, the pressure on the electorate by Russia appears to have had an effect. President Putin has been playing with the hearts and minds of Ukrainians while still involved with war at their eastern and Russia's western border. That is astounding. A Russian president is openly having a conversation with Ukrainians while killing them in war. That is among the most concerning realities of Ukraine at this time. The hostile acts by Russia in openly opposing the reunification of Ukraine with Crimea by building a bridge that threatens sovereign authority by an independent and free Ukraine and the war in Donbass are methods of fear.
Russia justifies these deadly, hostile and fearful acts because these are "Russian People." Somehow they dont' belong to Ukraine. The people of Donbass and Crimea may be affiliated with Russian heritage, but, they are Ukrainians and it is completely wrong for Russia to place ownership over them. The aggression by Russia is that of past methods of the fallen Soviet Union. That is a fact. Russia is revealing itself as a hostile international partner of which any country is vulnerable to it's methods and ultimately war. Unfortunately, Deash gave Russian intelligence and it's president a reason to portray Russia as a friend. It is not. There is no doubt Russia's intention in the world is to take over corrodors of power. Strong men love it and democracies recognize it.
Ukraine is often characterized as a "border country" or one that is a landmass that provides a safe zone to Europe and ultimately the USA. Ukraine is much more than that. They are people that have experienced oppression and poor quality of life due to the fallen Soviet Union/Moscow dominance. They don't want it back and that should be a profound message to the entire world. Ukraine is also a partner in treaties to other Post-Soviet states. Those Post Soviet states are members of NATO. Ukraine's relationship with those Post-Soviet states carries brevity to their economies and stability. Ultimately, Ukraine is important to itself and it's position in the world.
The delay in Javelins to Ukraine is not only uncalled for, but it is also a threat to that country. Ukraine now knows there was a lot of shifting of loyalties within the Trump White House that was asking for favors which is definitive to adding corruption to the burden of a new government pledged to end it.
Ukraine's national defense is NEVER to be questioned or diminished when it comes to the United States of America's participation. Never again. Got that? There was no real reason for it in the first place. Ukraine is not a political toy and it never was. I am grateful to France and Germany for their steadfast belief in democracy and freedom and the inclusion of Ukraine in that reality. The impeachment inquiry is proof the USA will never turn it's back on Ukraine again and there is only ONE WAY TO ENSURE IT.
November 21, 2019
The U.S. House Intelligence Committee (click here) holds the fourth day of public hearings in Democrats’ impeachment inquiry on Nov. 20.
Scheduled to testify in the morning is Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union. Earlier, Sondland amended his closed-door deposition to confirm the link between U.S. aid to Ukraine and Ukraine’s willingness to investigate Trump’s political rival.
The transcript of Sondland’s closed-door deposition can be found here, and the key excerpts from it are here.
Defense Department official Laura Cooper and State Department official David Hale will testify in the afternoon on Nov. 20....
Ukrainians are in a place on the globe where Russia is a hostile entity and they will decide many things while paying attention to the US House hearings. I sincerely don't want them to decide that their fight and sacrifice to date is not worth it. They made their will known at the Euromaidan. Pray this will is upheld as a noble and important purpose to continue their walk to a greater and stronger Ukraine. Their will to date is remarkable and they are returning military strength on a daily basis. The USA cannot compromise this important country and must hold the people dear to the purpose of democracy and freedom.
There is no doubt the corruption freely tossed around as a driving force in Ukraine was instilled long ago by a relationship the then-president Yanukovych had with Russia. I don't want to hear debate over these facts. Viktor Yanukovych disarmed the national military and instilled instead oligarch militias to oppress and control the people. That level of corruption undermines the definition of Ukraine's sovereignty. There is no mistake about this understanding. Oligarchies propel the Ukraine economy and the transition has been difficult, but, it moves with the help of global institutions and guidance such as the IMF, World Bank and ambassadors from Western trading partners.
Russia has successfully exerted CONDITIONS on the most recent elections in Ukraine. That is troubling. It is troubling because while President Zelenskyy is an interesting choice, the pressure on the electorate by Russia appears to have had an effect. President Putin has been playing with the hearts and minds of Ukrainians while still involved with war at their eastern and Russia's western border. That is astounding. A Russian president is openly having a conversation with Ukrainians while killing them in war. That is among the most concerning realities of Ukraine at this time. The hostile acts by Russia in openly opposing the reunification of Ukraine with Crimea by building a bridge that threatens sovereign authority by an independent and free Ukraine and the war in Donbass are methods of fear.
Russia justifies these deadly, hostile and fearful acts because these are "Russian People." Somehow they dont' belong to Ukraine. The people of Donbass and Crimea may be affiliated with Russian heritage, but, they are Ukrainians and it is completely wrong for Russia to place ownership over them. The aggression by Russia is that of past methods of the fallen Soviet Union. That is a fact. Russia is revealing itself as a hostile international partner of which any country is vulnerable to it's methods and ultimately war. Unfortunately, Deash gave Russian intelligence and it's president a reason to portray Russia as a friend. It is not. There is no doubt Russia's intention in the world is to take over corrodors of power. Strong men love it and democracies recognize it.
Ukraine is often characterized as a "border country" or one that is a landmass that provides a safe zone to Europe and ultimately the USA. Ukraine is much more than that. They are people that have experienced oppression and poor quality of life due to the fallen Soviet Union/Moscow dominance. They don't want it back and that should be a profound message to the entire world. Ukraine is also a partner in treaties to other Post-Soviet states. Those Post Soviet states are members of NATO. Ukraine's relationship with those Post-Soviet states carries brevity to their economies and stability. Ultimately, Ukraine is important to itself and it's position in the world.
The delay in Javelins to Ukraine is not only uncalled for, but it is also a threat to that country. Ukraine now knows there was a lot of shifting of loyalties within the Trump White House that was asking for favors which is definitive to adding corruption to the burden of a new government pledged to end it.
Ukraine's national defense is NEVER to be questioned or diminished when it comes to the United States of America's participation. Never again. Got that? There was no real reason for it in the first place. Ukraine is not a political toy and it never was. I am grateful to France and Germany for their steadfast belief in democracy and freedom and the inclusion of Ukraine in that reality. The impeachment inquiry is proof the USA will never turn it's back on Ukraine again and there is only ONE WAY TO ENSURE IT.
November 21, 2019
The U.S. House Intelligence Committee (click here) holds the fourth day of public hearings in Democrats’ impeachment inquiry on Nov. 20.
Scheduled to testify in the morning is Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union. Earlier, Sondland amended his closed-door deposition to confirm the link between U.S. aid to Ukraine and Ukraine’s willingness to investigate Trump’s political rival.
The transcript of Sondland’s closed-door deposition can be found here, and the key excerpts from it are here.
Defense Department official Laura Cooper and State Department official David Hale will testify in the afternoon on Nov. 20....
I am proud of Ranking Member Devin Nunes, his speech this morning at the impeachment inquiry was mostly original venom. I think he is finally finding his own words of communication.
If I may?
The real plausible reason the Intelligence Committee hasn't completed their report on the Special Counsel Report is that Trump's hits keep on coming. How can one report be completed with falling staff numbers, experts to contribute and time alone to assemble it. I am confident, if the demand for hearings due to Trump's poor behavior as president diminishes, the report will be forthcoming.
Other than that I think the Ranking Member found new originality in producing his daily venom. He should continue down that path as I am confident his ability to effectively address the reality and issues of the US Constitution will improve.
If I may?
The real plausible reason the Intelligence Committee hasn't completed their report on the Special Counsel Report is that Trump's hits keep on coming. How can one report be completed with falling staff numbers, experts to contribute and time alone to assemble it. I am confident, if the demand for hearings due to Trump's poor behavior as president diminishes, the report will be forthcoming.
Other than that I think the Ranking Member found new originality in producing his daily venom. He should continue down that path as I am confident his ability to effectively address the reality and issues of the US Constitution will improve.
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