March 8 is International Women's Day — dedicated to celebrating the achievements of women in all areas: social, economic, cultural, political and personal as well.

Socially in the USA  

One in five women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives.  (click here)

46.4% lesbians, 74.9% bisexual women and 43.3% heterosexual women reported sexual violence other than rape during their lifetimes, while 40.2% gay men, 47.4% bisexual men and 20.8% heterosexual men reported sexual violence other than rape during their lifetimes. 

Nearly one in 10 women has been raped by an intimate partner in her lifetime, including completed forced penetration, attempted forced penetration or alcohol/drug-facilitated completed penetration. Approximately one in 45 men has been made to penetrate an intimate partner during his lifetime. 

91% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are female, and 9% are male (o) y In eight out of 10 cases of rape, the victim knew the person who sexually assaulted them 

(8% of rapes occur while the victim is at work.

Cost and Impact

Each rape costs approximately $151,423 

Annually, rape costs the U.S. more than any other crime ($127 billion), followed by assault ($93 billion), murder ($71 billion), and drunk driving ($61 billion) 

81% of women and 35% of men report significant short-term or long-term impacts such as PostTraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) 

Health care is 16% higher for women who were sexually abused as children

6,172 out of 203,000 women were assaulted in one year. Three percent of military women can count on being sexually assaulted every year.

The national rate is five percent. There are 157 million women in the USA. That is 7.85 MILLION women are sexually assaulted every year in the country.

The U.S. military (click here) received a record number of sexual assault reports in 2016, the Pentagon said on Monday, calling it a sign of service members' trust in the system.

Sexual assault and harassment in the U.S. military has come under scrutiny after a scandal involving some Marines sharing nude photos of women online came to light. The U.S. military has opened an inquiry and senior lawmakers on Capitol Hill have denounced the violations.

Service members reported 6,172 cases of sexual assault in 2016 compared to 6,082 last year, an annual military report showed. This was a sharp jump from 2012 when 3,604 cases were reported.

Total numbers: (click here) -- About 203,000 in 2011, or 14.5% of the active-duty force of nearly 1.4 million.

74,000 in the Army
53,000 in the Navy
62,000 in the Air Force
14,000 in the Marine Corps.

The vast majority of the Coast Guard (click here) is comprised of men, both on the officer and enlisted sides of the house. We’re looking at a force that is only about 10-15% female. The Academy has mostly male cadets, as women make up about 35-40% of the corps....Less than 10% of Coast Guard pilots are female...

Economic inequality in the USA for women

Equality in pay has improved in the US (click here) since 1979 when women earned about 62 percent as much as men. In 2010, American women on average earned 81 percent of what their male counterparts earned (BLS 2010; DOL 2011).

Women’s participation in the U.S. labor force climbed during the 1970s and 1980s, reaching 60 percent in 2000. However, in 2010 this figure has declined to 46.7 percent and is not expected to increase by 2018 (DOL 2011).

The Great Recession of 2007-2010 affected men and women differently. Men lost more jobs than women in the recession but also experienced a steadier recovery. One in five women are working part time because they cannot find full time work while at the start of the recession less than one in ten women were doing so. Despite these developments, the overall unemployment rate for women is lower than men’s and they are also less likely to be among the long-term unemployed.

Women are 50 percent more likely to work in the public sector. Women surpass men on education attainment among those employed aged 25 and over: 37.1 percent of women hold at least a bachelor’s degree compared to 34.9 percent for men (DOL 2011).

Women are 51 percent of the USA population, (click here) yet their place in government is far below that reality. There has yet to be a woman elected to the Presidency and until that occurs women will continue to be second class citizenns in the USA..

Statewide the percentages are not much better.

US has sunk from 52nd in the world (click here) for women’s representation to 104th today, according to data compiled by the Inter-Parliamentary Union. In the past year alone, the US has dropped nine places — from 95th to 104th — among more than 190 countries.




Happiness is a fairly good indicator of personal equally in marriage and family. Thirty-three percent of American women are reported to be happy. That was a poll conducted by "Harris" in 2016.

There is no longer deniability of involvement by Trump.

The Press Secretary, Huckabee stated "...There is a restraining order of Daniels.... Or something similar. Now, that is 'out there,' Trump will deny involvement at all. He will pin it on his attorney and his paranoia.

March 7, 2018

President Trump’s lawyer (click here) secretly obtained a temporary restraining order last week to prevent a pornographic film star from speaking out about her alleged affair with Mr. Trump, according to legal documents and interviews....

Additionally, that is why there is a lawsuit. There are conflicting stories and the outcomes are still undetermined. If Trump settles with Ms. Clifford, it might end there. 

I really expected Trump to be more slippery than this. Nearly too good to be true. He is trying to get the public to believe there is no basis to Ms. Clifford's statements by painting her as a criminal in need of a restraining order. That treatment of a woman only adds to his liability.

...Although Ms. Clifford said their relationship was consensual, the issue is particularly sensitive to Mr. Trump, whose campaign was dogged by allegations of groping and his boast of grabbing women’s crotches.

Ms. Clifford filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday asserting that the nondisclosure agreement that accompanied the $130,000 payment was void because Mr. Trump never signed it....

Poor, poor, Donald, he is always the victim and never the victimizer.

Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681 (1997), (click here) was a landmark United States Supreme Court case establishing that a sitting President of the United States has no immunity from civil law litigation against him or her, for acts done before taking office and unrelated to the office.

I am certain Ms. Allred and others are aware of such precedent. That is why the restraining order was sought. The women; I think it is 17 or so; have rights and can seek damages from Trump.

There are real reasons, Justice Ginsburg won't retire and women should be grateful for that.

Stevens, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Rehnquist, C. J., and O'Connor, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, Thomas, and Ginsburg, JJ., joined. Breyer, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, post, p. 710.

Robert S. Bennett argued the cause for petitioner. With him on the briefs were Carl S. Rauh, Alan Kriegel, Amy R. Sabrin, and David A. Strauss.

Acting Solicitor General Dellinger argued the cause for the United States as amicus curiae urging reversal. With him on the brief were Assistant Attorney General Hunger, Deputy Solicitor General Kneedler, Malcolm L. Stewart, and Douglas N. Letter.

Gilbert K. Davis argued the cause for respondent. With him on the brief was Joseph Cammarata....

In regard to Hillary Clinton; she was a victim, too. She has been villainized by Trump for the sake of politics, but, she was a victim of her husband's problems with women. She was told, no different than the American people, that Bill Clinton did not have a sexual affair with Ms. Lewinsky. So, the villain that is Hillary is not true.

Hillary is a Christian and values her soul. That's legal in the USA. She reflected on her own priorities in regard to her marriage and I am sure Bill is grateful for it.

Hillary also believes her beliefs to be personal. She can easily look across the spectrum of political dogma that traps the LGBTQ community in precarious ways and knows it is wrong for her to continue that victimization as well.

Hillary, no different than other Democratic legislators, believe their spirituality is personal and should remain that way for all Americans. There is nothing uniquely Christian, including Catholic, about marriage. Marriage, while spiritually recognized is a legal issue. Even when carried out in a religious ceremony, it carries very dense legal and moral rights.

Democrats don't play God, they believe in theirs. I think a clear conscience is capable in absence of malice when serving in government. The government at no time should be void of religious people, nor occupied by only religious people. In the USA, it is supposed to be representative of the people. All people.

Why is PAYGO bragging about their wash of wealth resulting in all kinds of bonuses and upticks to their employees?

Some of the most desperate uses of "Pay Day Loans" are senior citizens on fixed income. The goal of Republicans for decades has been to break the back of the "so called entitlements." I don't know an American that doesn't pay into the Social Security/Medicare programs, but, somehow they are called entitlements.

October 18, 2017
By Richard Kogan

As the Senate (click here) continues debating a budget plan that paves the way for a $1.5 trillion tax cut over ten years, the pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) law remains on the books, with potentially big implications for key budget programs.  Under PAYGO, which policymakers first enacted in 1990 and, after it expired, restored in 2010, the President and Congress must offset a tax cut or entitlement expansion with a compensating tax increase or entitlement cut.  A failure to do so triggers automatic spending cuts.

Under the law, were policymakers to enact a $1.5 trillion tax cut this year, as the Republican majority hopes, it would trigger automatic spending cuts to Medicare and a host of other programs by no later than January 15.  While policymakers will likely waive the PAYGO requirement and prevent such automatic cuts from taking effect, PAYGO is a timely reminder that tax cuts aren’t free....

It promotes corruption. Every one of these companies could have increased their payrolls and pay to their employees before the tax cut. They are Wall Street companies and have been experiencing record profits. When the accountants to the CEOs worked through the immediate tax cuts they didn't know what to do with their bankrolls, so they wanted to appear to be the way forward for the USA economy. The PTT was their best friend, even with their enormous profits already on their books.

January 16, 2018

One hundred sixty-four companies (click here) have gone on record stating they gave bonuses and pay raises to employees because of the new tax reform law, according to Americans for Tax Reform.

The list has been continually updated and jumped from 40 companies to 164 in 10 days, the Washington Examiner reports.

The businesses include American Airlines, AT&T, prominent banks and savings and loans, Boeing, Comcast, Pacific Power, and Visa.

The list shows what each company paid in bonuses and includes attached statements or press releases, saying tax reform was the catalyst for each company’s decision.

AT&T showed direct support for President Donald Trump in its statement and said it expects the changes to produce more jobs and “economic growth."...

It is the return of truthiness. The Trump Administration can't exist without truthiness. It is present in every meeting of the White House Press Briefing. If I hear Sarah "what's her name?" say one more time "there is no collusion" I know it will make me more ill than the flu.

Trump wants to be the first USA Royal Family and be a figure head forever. I suppose he will appear to guide policy when the legislature actually does something, but, this is getting to be ridiculous.

The reason the Wall Street companies gave out bonuses to their employees and upticks to customers, was to cover up the CEO's far bigger take after the Trump Tax Cuts. He can proudly wear the name because it is as corrupt as it comes.

The reason the pay increases and bonuses didn't happen before the tax cuts are because the CEOs didn't want to give their's up in the first place.

So, as the next ten years pass and the tax cuts amount to the $1.5 trillion mark and Americans' tax rates increase in the Middle Class and Poor; they will realize the pay increase they received was to help pay the increased profits of their employers. The real question is not about the pay increases, they will remain, but, what happens next year and the year after that when Middle Class tax rates increase and their pay stays the same? And what does the Middle Class make of their pay increases due to tax cuts and the liability the Trump White House and Congress placed on their children and grandchildren?

The increased tax burden of the Middle Class will return the Working Poor and their children will never question their poverty so much as their ability to purchase food.

The social safety net will be gone.

December 22, 2017

President Donald Trump (click here) signed the Republican tax-overhaul bill to little fanfare on Friday, delivering a major tax cut to U.S. corporations along with a package of temporary cuts for other businesses and most individuals.

“We are cutting taxes,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office before signing the legislation. “We are taking care of people.”

Trump’s signature caps a seven-week sprint that began when the House unveiled its tax bill last month, and it gives the GOP its first major legislative victory since January. The private setting was unusual given the significance of the legislation, but the process had been delayed until Congress passed a stopgap spending bill late Thursday.

The Florida Governor needs to sign the legislation.

"The Sun Sentinel" (click here)

There are a few articles speculating the substance was VX liquid.

March 8, 2018
By Lizzie Dearden and Samuel Osborne

A police officer (click here) who was poisoned by a nerve agent in the attack on a former Russian spy and his daughter is talking in hospital as the hunt continues for the culprits.

Security sources told The Independent several people are believed to be behind the assassination attempt in Salisbury, and are likely to be “either present or past state-sponsored actors”.

Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia remain in intensive care in hospital and authorities have not said whether they can recover....

...Ms Rudd said the nerve agent used was “very rare” but declined to name the precise chemical and emphasised that the risk to the public was low....

If I may?

VX degrades quickly in the presence of carbon. I think the length of exposure and the readily available emergency response may be the difference between the officer and the Russian expats. Hopefully, they will recover, but, any prolonged lack of oxygen due to failure of the nervous system could provide an adverse scenario.

The reports of VX, but, in trials by the USA military published in professional journals proved VX liquid as a highly volatile nerve agent which degrades quickly when exposed to carbon based surfaces. The impact on the human body is significant.

Perhaps the UK's law enforcement will provide more information, without speculation, when all their information is finalized.               

This is a really excellent article from "The New Zealand Herald" about melanoma. Pay attention, the diagnosis is intricate requiring high competency.

New Zealand (click here) has the worst skin cancer rates in the world and you never know who's affected until you get a skin check.

New Zealand is in summertime in the southern hemisphere. After a blistering summer, there is a reminder by their media of the dangers of sunbathing without protection. I was impressed by this article and the intricate diagnosis of melanoma. There is no current cure for it. A forty year old with undiagnosed melanoma will die and at an early age. It is better to prevent it and the New Zealanders now know it. The exam removes cancer at an early stage and phases out pre-cancerous lesions that most folks don't even notice.

Pay attention to physicians that absolutely do care about the health and longevity of Americans.

By Harold DeMonaco

If you watched (click here) or read the news this week, you probably heard a story about former President Jimmy Carter’s ongoing battle with metastatic melanoma. He was diagnosed this summer with lesions in his brain and liver. Since his announcement, he has undergone surgery to remove the lesion in his liver, brain irradiation, and treatment with a newly approved immunologic drug called Keytruda. On Sunday morning, he told his bible class, “My most recent MRI brain scan did not reveal any signs of the original cancer spots nor any new ones.”  For Mr. Carter and his family, this is wonderful news. His cancer was caught early with the detection of a single lesion in his liver that was operable and several small brain lesions. Technically, Mr. Carter is in remission. We can all hope that his continued treatment with Keytruda will prevent additional lesions from appearing. Importantly, Mr. Carter did not use the word “cure.”..

Looking for leaders in all the wrong ways.

The global reality of the TPP is that elected officials simply lie about their willingness to bring it to the shores of their country. If anyone sincerely wonders how Donald Trump is President of the USA; he didn't lie about his willingness to be part of a trade association that treats human beings as objects of wealth gathering.

NAFTA (click here) affected U.S. workers in four principal ways. First, it caused the loss of some 700,000 jobs as production moved to Mexico. Most of these losses came in California, Texas, Michigan, and other states where manufacturing is concentrated. To be sure, there were some job gains along the border in service and retail sectors resulting from increased trucking activity, but these gains are small in relation to the loses, and are in lower paying occupations. The vast majority of workers who lost jobs from NAFTA suffered a permanent loss of income...

Second, NAFTA strengthened the ability of U.S. employers to force workers to accept lower wages and benefits....

Third, the destructive effect of NAFTA on the Mexican agricultural and small business sectors dislocated several million Mexican workers and their families, and was a major cause in the dramatic increase in undocumented workers flowing into the U.S. labor market....

Fourth, and ultimately most important, NAFTA was the template for rules of the emerging global economy, in which the benefits would flow to capital and the costs to labor. The U.S. governing class—in alliance with the financial elites of its trading partners—applied NAFTA’s principles to the World Trade Organization, to the policies of the World Bank and IMF, and to the deal under which employers of China’s huge supply of low-wage workers were allowed access to U.S. markets in exchange for allowing American multinational corporations the right to invest there....

After NAFTA the loss of good paying jobs in the USA was palpable. That level of impact is not soon forgotten and the dialogue is still alive today. Who listened? Who listened to the people? Why is Donald Trump President of the USA, because, NO ONE gave a damn except to manipulate their votes. The American people are damn tired of it and the TPP is a very strong reminder.

The Dreamers are an unrealistic focus of the problem. The job markets in the USA are already closing in ways that would offer them a real place in the USA. The Dreamers are Americans and innocent victims of inappropriate anger and racism.

The fact of the matter is Donald Trump was a successful power player that gave the people what they wanted, but, has provided corruption in different ways including the new tax law. The Wall Street anger in the USA was used once again to gain power by a billionaire that further corrupted the American landscape and dumped trillions of corruption on the heads of generations to come. Additionally, the Trump White House is a failure and has been unable to harness real talent so much as angry Republican hacks.

Now, the TPP is an amended version of the original and the USA is not a part of it. Make no mistake, the people wanted it exactly this way. When the TPP goes into effect, the American people will breath a sigh of relief they are not a part of it. Americans wish everyone within the borders of the TPP well. When the oppressed peoples lose their economies to others without one, there will be better jobs waiting empty for them in the USA. Perhaps the TPP will result in the revitalization of Ellis Island.

8 March 2018

Oliver Hailes led an 80 person strong protest today (click here) against the new agreement, which is due to be signed in Chile tomorrow.

He also presented Green MP Golriz Ghahraman with a petition signed by 5000 people, calling for the government to pull out of the agreement.

Both Labour and New Zealand First had backtracked on their pre-election stance, Mr Hailes said.

"They are laying the foundations for exactly the same deal they said was so terrible for New Zealand; they said was so anti-democratic," he said.

"It's funny how now they're in government they've changed their tune."

Trade minister David Parker had "bamboozled" voters by failing to honestly discuss what the TPP would mean for New Zealand, Mr Hailes said.

"He has made such a big deal about the 22 [items suspended from the original agreement] as if they're absolute carve-outs, whereas they're not....

In some instances, the day after the deaths in Florida, school was cancelled because of false reports.

The only false alarms I ever experienced in relation to school were bomb threats. They were taken seriously and the student response was basically the same as a fire drill with a greater distance of a perimeter around the school, but, there were never threats of mass shooting.

This is different. With the prevalence of easy access to guns, school officials are left with difficult decisions. Those decisions include canceling a day of classes while police follow the trail of a potential murderer. It is expensive and creates an aire of uncertainty for the police, school administrators, teachers and students. Basically, it effects learning.

Oh, there never was any bomb either.

March 7, 2018
By Christal Hayes

Breathless and whispering (click here) through the phone, a 13-year-old student called for help from her Ohio high school. 

"Help," she said in between whimpers. "He's got a gun. He's got the gun in my mouth."

Anxiety was already running high: It had been only a week after the deadly shooting in Parkland, Fla. Police dispatchers then got three other calls from Withrow University High School in Cincinnati.

But it was all a hoax....

...The rise in threats after a high-profile mass killing is nothing new. But the incidents are hard to quantify because they are not tracked nationally by any government agency.

A review by USA TODAY of published accounts, however, paints a clear picture of a growing problem that is no joke.

More than 130 threats were reported and analyzed by the USA TODAY NETWORK in the nine-day span after the Valentine's Day shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland left 17 dead....

"Stormy Danels" is the professional name of Stephanie Clifford.

First Republic Bank is stated to be the one involved with the Trump payoff of Ms. Clifford under directions of Mr. Trump. The account was opened exclusively to pay Ms. Clifford. Now, remember this was a woman admired and pursued by Donald Trump, so I don't want to hear how this was a porn star. Ms. Clifford is a lover to Mr. Trump. He was enamored with her while he was married. 

Evidently, First Republic followed all the rules and reported the money transfer to the Treasury Department. The bank is not the issue here, except, it was used for illicit purposes by still yet another Trump lawyer.

5 March 2018
By Kevin Breuninger

Trump's lawyer's payment (click here) to former adult film star Stormy Daniels was reportedly flagged as suspicious and sent to the Treasury Department.

Cohen complained that the money he sent out of his own pocket had not been reimbursed, the WSJ reports, citing sources.

Daniels reportedly received the payment as part of a nondisclosure agreement regarding an alleged affair with Trump.

A $130,000 payment to a former adult film star by President Donald Trump's lawyer was flagged as suspicious and reported to the Treasury Department, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday, citing a source familiar with the matter.

Michael Cohen, Trump's longtime lawyer, sent the money through an account he created at First Republic Bank, the report says. Stephanie Clifford, known in her films as Stormy Daniels, received the money under the pseudonym Peggy Peterson, according to previous reports.

The payment, which Cohen said he paid out of his own pocket, was given to Clifford as part of an agreement not to discuss an alleged affair with Trump in 2006, people familiar with the matter told the Journal....

The law was misused once again by Mr. Trump.

My understanding of non-disclosure agreements is usually linked to company business and their relationships with employees. Such as, a company engaged in research and hiring personnel of any kind that comes in contact with that research.

Now, unless Ms. Clifford was employed by Mr. Trump there really is no room for a non-disclosure agreement as far as I am concerned. See, she was involved on the emotional level with Mr. Trump and that is not really an issue of non-disclosure so much as the privacy a couple seeks with intimacy. Now, either Ms. Cifford was an employee which is highly illegal if it was for sex or the relationship with Mr. Trump was one of the heart.

I think using the law inappropriately is a pattern for Mr. Trump. He uses it to advance his wealth through bankruptcy and he uses it to shield his image from the press in imposing his personal preferences on his relationships even long after they have ended. That is a pattern. That is not a pattern the average American can undertake either.

I think it is a character issue that includes the idea of "an exclusive elite" in the USA with entitlements.

See, it is my belief that people, in general, talk to each other about the troubles in their lives. They use dialogue to cope with life. I think to inhibit that dialogue is harmful. If we are to believe that any relationship of the elite is protected by law when others aren't, it creates a barrier to understand the true character of a person.

If a man like Mr. Trump wants to put forward an image as an international playboy able to charm any women in the world, then there are consequences that go along with that. Heartbreak and heartache is real. There is no reason why a relationship of a celebrity should be secluded by legal entanglements imposed to prevent the real world from seeing the truth. This is not a contract to protect a precious invention, it is a contract to control the image known to the public. That is dishonest. There is a great deal of dishonesty in Mr. Trump's use of the law.

What concerns me more is that we are seeing a White House continually disintegrating. Not only that but, there are staffers who believe they should be whistleblowers. This is not a relationship, this is not a business, this is the Executive Branch of the United States of America.

There is also the issue most prevalent regarding the rights and abuse of women by men. This is sexual assault, folks. It is knowing that when a woman goes on a date she will be returned to home in one piece without abused or scarred emotions or body. What warning signs a woman feels on a date needs to be respected.

There is a lot here with Ms. Clifford. In a way, we are lucky she feels legally safe to come forward and bring the truth to people in what she understands about her relationship with Mr. Trump and why the need for a non-disclosure agreement and a payout to maintain her silence. She has a heavy burden. There is every reason to believe she is not alone. This is important. It is important for many reasons and not just the next best headline for the "National Inquirer." Women. Average women are counting on people like Ms. Clifford to change the reality for them. This is important on many levels and I think Ms. Clifford and those like her are very brave.

Russian expats need to live in a bubble.

Putin has moved on to the relatives now, huh? Maybe that is just collateral damage, right, Vladimir? Didn't really mean it.

One of these days Russia will learn what the meaning to the word "extradite" and it will be a new world in Russia.

Well, so much for sanction relief. I suppose Russia knows it is walled off from civilization for a long while.

The UK and EU need to come up with a safe network of food for these folks. They need dedicated government approved cafes as well. This is just too frequent to be any other entity than the Russian government. There are other ways of poisoning people than food, but, there certainly seems to be a demand for murderers of Russian expats.

Let me say this, Europe and Great Britain really need to scrutinize their countries better when it comes to who is let in the country. Scanning for terrorists is important, but, add to the list anyone capable of murdering Russians.

I guess Scotland Yard is looking at approximately 14 murders, including these two, that could be related to a government killing. Putin needs to put his KGB credentials away and become a man of the people rather than the hatchet man for Russia. IT ISN'T WORKING WELL FOR THE PEOPLE OF RUSSIA!

Sooner or later, these murders will find their way to The Hague, then Putin will know everyone means business.

7 March 2018
By Danny Boyle and Jack Maidment

Police (click here) are close to a breakthrough in the Russian spy poisoning case, the Home Secretary has suggested, as she revealed "more is now known about the substance" used against Colonel Sergei Skripal and his daughter.

But emergency services had to be called to an office in central Salisbury on Wednesday lunchtime following reports that a person had been taken seriously ill.

Three fire engines and at least two ambulance incident response arrived at offices close to Zizzi's restaurant on Castle Street, Salisbury....

Gary Cohn is a Democrat? Well, they are pinning that attack on small business and the middle class otherwise known as the Trump Tax Code on him. He needs to write a book about how he screwed up so bad. He can begin with the loyalty code he learned at Goldman as a start.

Other than Bill Clinton, I don't know of anyone willing to advise Trump anymore.

More racism and over reaching by the Trump Administration.

Hey, Bubba, time for you to retire to your pretty white-pillared mansion in Alabama.

The Trump administration is the anti-Bush administration. Did anyone besides me notice that? They like to pretend it is the anti-Obama administration, but, it's far more than that.

The anti-Muslim mess is all about the opposition to the Bush doctrine of "Family of Nations." The racism of domestic Undocumented is anti-Bush immigration approach. The tariffs are an opposition of Bush Wall Street policy with cheap labor and impoverished Americans. I betcha Donald Trump doesn't even know what the Tri-Lateral Commission is.

But, as to Sessions, he brings a whole host of anti-American sentiment to the office of Attorney General. Mr. Sessions is sadly mistaken with his lawsuit against California. It has been tried before and the courts ruled in favor of California and the sanctuary cities.

Mr. Session lacks analysis of the bigger problem and how to end illegal immigration. Illegal immigration has nothing to do with "The Dreamers." The Dreamers are Americans.

I suggest Mr. Session look to an analysis of the Sanctuary City phenomena and understand his role better. Sending federal immigration authority into an American city is not the answer to the problem. Sanctuary cities are the symptom of the problem.

March 7, 2018
Marilyn Icsman

The Department of Justice (click here) is suing California over three state statutes that federal officials say interfere with their immigration authority.

The lawsuit combats California’s "sanctuary state" laws that shield immigrants from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Attorney General Jeff Sessions is expected to make a formal announcement Wednesday at a California Peace Officers’ Association event in Sacramento, the California capital.

“The Department of Justice and the Trump administration are going to fight these unjust, unfair, and unconstitutional policies that have been imposed on you,” Sessions says in prepared remarks for the event. “We are fighting to make your jobs safer and to help you reduce crime in America. And I believe that we are going to win.”...

There are currently more than 2,220,300 adults incarcerated in the USA. Questions?

If it takes up to four years to learn the trade, I strongly suggest they get started. Neighborhoods are waiting. (click here)

As a matter of fact, all the professions with a need for people should be looking to the prison systems to find people looking for opportunity and a change in their future path.

I've heard of all kinds of stuff inmates do to pass the time and earn a few dollars, but, none really lead to gainful employment after they leave jail or prison. I suppose caring for animals can lead to new feelings of nurturing and patience and that is important, but, it isn't going to pay the bills and they are right back on the losing side of life. 

Inmates should be leaving prison with a clear understanding and a certificate showing they are ready for work that will provide them a livelihood and not just a return to 'the hood.'

I can think of several professions like this, including obsure, past professions like becoming a shoe cobbler. Where can people go to have their wing-tips resoled? Lost professions are not a joke. It is a profound loss to society of very basic understandings of it's beginnings and innovation. Honestly, now. Where is there a good shoe cobbler in Manhattan? Or a real barber with a newsstand out front. If Americans are looking for the real country, they need to look harder.

Hint: NewsPAPERS can't be hacked by Russians.

March 6, 2018
By Quoctrung Bui and Roger Kisby

...Nearly two-thirds of bricklaying contractors (click here) say they are struggling to find workers, according to a survey by the National Association of Home Builders . And it can take three to four years before a person with no experience can become a journeyman bricklayer.

In addition, productivity — how much brick wall a laborer can complete in an hour of work — isn’t much better than it was two decades ago. Bricklaying’s most important tools — a trowel, a bucket, string and a wheelbarrow —  haven’t changed much over centuries.

These factors would seem to put the trade at risk of a robot takeover....

These women are to be taken seriously. I hope Ms. Daniels runs for President of the USA and wins! At least she is a brave voice of the truth.

March 6, 2018
By Fredreka Schouten and Christal Hayes

The adult film star (click here) who allegedly had a sexual relationship with Donald Trump is suing the president, alleging the "hush" agreement that silenced the story was invalid. 

Stormy Daniels filed a civil lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court, contending that the non-disclosure agreement she signed was invalid because Trump never signed it. 

Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, and Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, signed the agreement on Oct. 28, 2016, 11 days before the election.... 

No one should be sending Roy Moore money for a lawsuit for his crimes.

Send money to Leigh Corfman so she can hire a lawyer to continue her efforts to pursue Mr. Moore for the damages he caused her all these many years.

Roy Moore will cry and carry on forever if there isn't an end put to it. It is only right the women Mr. Moore sexually assaulted from solace in knowing their name is intact and they will have peace after so many years. It is time to end the ranting of a man that is an offense to decency.

Ms. Corfman needs to lead a trust fund that will benefit her and others like her.

January 4, 2018
By Paul Gattis

Leigh Corfman, (click here) who claimed that former Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore molested her when she was 14 years old, has filed a defamation lawsuit against him.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Montgomery County Circuit Court, also names Moore's campaign as a defendant.

Moore and his campaign committee "have defamed Ms. Corfman, repeatedly and in all forms of media, calling her a liar and questioning her motivation for publicly disclosing that Mr. Moore sexually abused her in 1979 when she was a 14-year-old high school freshman and he was a 32-year-old assistant district attorney."...

 

It is actually happening. Could the Non-Proliferation Treaty be returning to the forefront of international policy?

I fully expect this to be a major breakthrough for the Non-Proliferation Treaty. I also expect all the peacemakers to be in line for a Noel Peace Prize nomination. This is more hope than I have seen on our planet in decades. The entire region will be at peace with each other for the first time in millennium.

The people responsible for this breakthrough are very brave. One would expect South Korea to launch into nuclear proliferation themselves, but, instead the new President of South Korea saw a way forward. The entire world needs to come to a stop to realize the incredible movement toward peace and prosperity these meetings will bring, including bringing families together that have been separated by a border for decades. It is simply incredible.

March 7, 2018

North Korean (click here) leader Kim Jong Un (center right) sits with a visiting South Korean delegation in Pyongyang and other high-level North Koreans.

...North Korea expressed (click here) its intention to have a candid dialogue with the United States to discuss denuclearization and promised a moratorium on nuclear and ballistic missile tests during the period of talks, President Moon Jae-in’s special envoy to Pyongyang said Tuesday. 

The two Koreas also agreed to hold a summit at the truce village of Panmunjom in late April, Chung Eui-yong, head of the Blue House’s National Security Office, said in the evening as he announced the outcome of his two-day trip to Pyongyang, which included a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that lasted more than four hours.

“North Korea made clear its will for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” Chung said. “It also assured that it has no reason to own nuclear arms if military threats against the North are resolved and the regime’s security is guaranteed.”According to Chung, the North also expressed its intention to have candid talks with the United States to discuss denuclearization issues and normalization of North Korea-U.S. relations.... 

Rex Tillerson's closing of the Cuban mission does not answer what caused the health problems of the employees. I am still assuming there are actually health problems.

Who is being left in the embassy, the Cuban cleaning lady? Is she immune to the health issues caused by the mysterious cause of illness?

Where are the congressional investigations into this issue since no one really knows all the facts?

Cuba is 90 miles from Key West, Florida. A huge storm ran over that area of the world recently and could have picked up the contagion that caused the symptoms closing the Cuban embassy and dropped it all over Florida. So, what caused the problems with the people in Cuba. I am assuming they are on permanent disabilitly and have doctors that can speak for them and where is the CDC on this mess

March 2, 2018
By Doug Stanglin and Jessica Durando

...The State Department said the embassy (click here) "will operate as an unaccompanied post, defined as a post at which no family members are permitted to reside."

The move, which goes into effect Monday, stems from late 2016 when a series of U.S. diplomats in Havana began suffering unexplained losses of hearing and the beginnings of neurological symptoms.

The statement said the department still does not have "definitive answers" on the source or cause of the attacks and that an investigation continues.

But it said the key factor in the decision to reduce the number of personnel was Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's concern for the health, safety and the well-being of U.S. government personnel and family members. 

The decision follows a toughening of U.S. policy toward Cuba under the Trump administration in a reversal of President Obama's easing of U.S. sanctions against the island-nation in an effort to improve bi-lateral ties.           

A total of 114 children have died from the flu this season.

I am beginning to get the picture children don't have a chance in the USA. They don't have a chance in the classroom in case a "madman with a gun" drops in and they don't have a chance when a sincerely vicious flu exists. 114 children. I doubt their families care who Sam what's his name is.

March 2, 2018
By Kim Painter

The most intense nationwide flu outbreak (click here) in a decade appears to be losing steam, but it killed an additional 17 children, bringing the total to 114 pediatric deaths, federal health officials reported Friday.

The flu remained widespread in 45 states in the last full week of February, down from 48 the week before, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

Fewer people showed up at doctors' offices with flu-like symptoms. Such visits made up 5% of all outpatient visits, down from 6.4% the week before. 

A few weeks ago, that number was at 7.7%, the highest since the swine flu pandemic of 2009....                       

Morning Papers

The Rooster

"Okeydoke"

Sam Nunberg is putting on the show Trump wants him to display. He is trying to change the momentum in the country regarding Mueller. That has been a directive of Trump when the special counsel was first assigned and Robert Mueller accepted it. Nunberg is Trump's lackey.

March 5, 2018
By Josh Dawsey and Phillip Rucker

Former Trump campaign aide (click here) Sam Nunberg publicly defied the Justice Department special counsel on Monday, announcing in an extraordinary series of media interviews that he had been subpoenaed to appear in front of a federal grand jury investigating Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election but that he will refuse to go....