Scientific findings MUST be disclosed by the scientific community as they know the facts.

December 21, 2020
By David Gutman

Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday (click here) announced new travel restrictions for people arriving from the United Kingdom, South Africa and other nations where a new variant of the novel coronavirus has been reported.

I told you it just wasn't in the UK. It existed from September. Give me a break. If the people in government can't do better than this, how do they expect citizens to believe them?

Early estimates indicate that the new mutation of the virus, while not more deadly or vaccine resistant, spreads faster and more easily than prior strains. There is not yet evidence of this new strain of the virus in the United States, but Inslee said it was crucial to act early, “before the horse is out of the barn.”

Inslee’s new proclamation requires anyone arriving in Washington from those countries within the last 14 days to quarantine for 14 days — and the restriction applies to those who have recently arrived. It also urges those people to get tested for the virus.

The quarantine is mandatory and legally enforceable, but the state is not likely to take many enforcement measures, Inslee said....

No one can confiscate voting machines.

Voting machines are purchased by the people of the states. States Rights dictates the ownership first has to be honored. There would have to be profound reasons to confiscate property that belongs to the states.

Trump cannot write an Executive Order and confiscate any States' property. He is wacko.

He would have to take EVIDENCE before a judge to begin to examine election machines while in possession of the state.

He is a crazy bastard.

The new variant attacks children.

December 22, 2020

A new variant (click here) of the coronavirus spreading rapidly in Britain carries mutations that could mean children are as susceptible to becoming infected with it as adults - unlike previous strains, scientists said on Monday....

I have stated over and over KEEP THE KIDS AT HOME. I mean that more now than ever. We do not have a vaccine for children. The youngest that can receive it is 16 and that is the Pfizer vaccine.

This entire paradigm facing the world and especially the USA is due to really bad leadership that has no respect for human life.

There is every reason to believe this new strain of SARS-CoV-2 is already throughout the world and will begin to spread widely. This strain was found in September. Gee, the time the kids go back to school. September was three months ago and the worst has already happened.

It is unfortunate in the USA that children with disabilities and those from poor families benefit the most in returning to in-person classrooms. There is a reason for that and maybe, just maybe the time has come to examine why children do better in a school setting rather than a home environment.

Why are children hungry at all in the USA? These children can be supported better in a home environment rather than RISKING THEIR LIVES. Unfortunately, no one seems to think it is important to find out why that is the case. They just want to "get back to normal."

"There is a hint that it has a higher propensity to infect children," said Neil Ferguson, a professor and infectious disease epidemiologist at Imperial College London and also a member of NERVTAG.

The more the virus is exposed to human beings the more it adapts. 

With children? Ever hear of growth hormones. There is no reason to believe a variant of the virus actually prefers a regular diet of growth hormones. It was going to happen. 

George W. Bush ENDED SARS before it ever got started. New Zealand ENDED the SARS-CoV-2 virus before it ever got a foothold. 

END THIS VIRUS NOW!

There are powers that find Trump's rantings insignificant.

Sometimes you have to go with the power where it is found. Bill Barr at least upholds the elections of the US Constitution. As far as Trump's minions like Flynn and Powell, they are making money. They are making money in a country whereby many people are not.

Money is the driving force behind all this. The people that run the Tea Party were not great politicos before the Koch brothers. They organized a political base and gained their wealth from the Kochs for doing so.

When you look at others within the power structure, Moscow Mitch is the obstructionist he is because of wealth and protecting it along with his wife. They hold power in the very areas where their wealth exists. Elaine Chao's wealth lives with her Chinese father and his transportation ships. There is no secret about this. 

The power of the Republicans has always laid with the wealthy and pandering to them. The Tea Party is no different and Trump is a product of the Tea Party. 

AG Bill Barr has finally showed his red, white and blue stripes, by stating clearly all the rantings of Powell, Flynn and others have no basis in constitutional law. It doesn't mean the ranting will end, Dear God we have a little less than a month and the noise will not cease, HOWEVER, it doesn't belong on the front page. It belongs in the tabloids and FOX News is nothing but tabloid nonsense. The factual aspects of FOX News is a cover for it's riotous tabloid journalism and commentary.

I am hopeful every sane American will grab hold tight of the light of the truth every major news service and our magnificent newspapers have fought so hard to protect. For those Americans that are unable to live with the truth, there are tabloid news rags that can predict the Martians will be landing to turn the tide for Trump's second term.

Thank you, AG Barr. This is a rare gratitude, but, it belongs to you and I am sorry you aren't working for a man that embarrasses the truth or the US Constitution. Happy Holidays.

December 21, 2020
By Katelyn Polantz and Devan Cole

Washington - Attorney General William Barr (click here) on Monday rejected several of President Donald Trump's inflammatory and unfounded statements regarding the presidential election, saying at a news conference that he doesn't plan to appoint a special counsel to investigate President-elect Joe Biden's son Hunter or the election.

"If I thought a special counsel at this stage was a right tool and was appropriate, I would name one, but I haven't and I'm not going to," Barr said in response to a question on the presidential election. He said that widespread fraud wasn't found in this election.

Barr also roundly rejected suggestions from the President's supporters in recent days who've called for the US government to seize voting machines....

"Good Night, Moon"

Waxing crescent

6.6 days old

41.9 percent

December 17, 2020
By Dan Robitzski

NASA just struck a historic deal (click here) with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) that will entail, for the first time in history, a non-US astronaut orbiting the Moon.

The agreement says that the CSA will help NASA with its upcoming Artemis Moon missions in exchange for a seat on some of the flights, according to Space.com. Not only is the CSA’s support good news for the Artemis missions specifically, but it’s a major international development in the future of crewed space exploration....

There are a great deal of optimism about Brexit. There are plenty of opportunity for the financial sector is rock solid real opportunity.

The end of this pandemic may still lie in a variety of strategies, including shutdowns to reduce the spread. The longer the virus is exposed to human beings the more likely it will become more and more virulent. It Is important a decent man takes the helm of the USA and end this disarray and terror.

Flights to and from the UK effected by concern for a more virulent virus (click here).

A new variant (click here).

December 16, 2020
By Elliot Smith

London - Sterling broke through the long-awaited $1.35 barrier (click here) on Wednesday morning after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said progress had been made toward a post-Brexit trade deal between the U.K. and the European Union.

Addressing the European Parliament, von der Leyen said that while she could not say whether there would or would not be a deal, “there is a path to an agreement now” and the next few days will be critical.

“We have found a way forward on most issues but two issues remain outstanding: the level playing field and fisheries,” von der Leyen said.

“I am glad to report that the issues linked to governance now have largely been resolved. The next few days are going to be decisive.”...

“If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs.”

December 17, 2020
By Emily Graffeo

“The most important words (click here) in the inauguration speech were ‘protection will lead to great prosperity and strength.’ The border-adjustment tax was the answer to corporate-tax reform; it’s trade protectionism.“ ——David Rosenberg.

Economist David Rosenberg (click here) told Bloomberg he believes bitcoin is in a bubble and investors don't understand supply dynamics of the cryptocurrency.

"You speak to most people that are asking me to put money in bitcoin, they can't even tell you who the person was that developed it or even how it's actually mined," the Rosenberg Research chief economist said. "It's just a classic, follow-the-herd, extremely crowded trade. It's in a massive bubble."

Bitcoin reached a record high of $23,777 on Thursday shortly after topping $20,000 for the first time ever on Wednesday, marking a 20% gain over the past day. The cryptocurrency is now up over 200% year-to-date, but Rosenberg said the chart looks "absolutely crazy right now."

Bitcoin's rally comes as several institutional investors and fund managers place sky-high predictions for the coin. On Wednesday, Guggenheim's global chief investment officer, Scott Minerd, said bitcoin will surge to $400,000 based on its scarcity and value relative to gold....

The new administration of President Joe Biden has a great deal of rebuilding the infrastructure that protects Americans.

There has been extensive damage done to these agencies, the scientists that support them, and the labs. It is believed the labs were destroyed and decades of files destroyed.

16 December 2020
By "Nature" Editorial Board

When former US president Richard Nixon (click here) proposed establishing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970, he spoke of the need to preserve Earth as a place that is both habitable by — and hospitable to — people. Nixon, a Republican, acknowledged his own fear of creating a new federal bureaucracy. But the task of rescuing the natural environment, he argued, required a strong, independent agency that would be able to marshal “a coordinated attack on the pollutants which debase the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the land that grows our food”.

The EPA’s successes are undeniable. Over the past 4 decades, US emissions of the most common pollutants, as measured by weight, have fallen by 71%, even as the country’s population grew by some 105 million people and the size of its economy nearly tripled. Most emissions from the average automobile have fallen by 98–99% over the same period, to take just one industrial sector. Petrol is cleaner — and free of toxic lead. City sewage and industrial waste no longer flow unchecked into waterways, and rivers no longer catch fire as a result of discharged oil waste. And, internationally, the EPA’s science and regulatory standards have helped other countries to protect their environments, too....

...Biden’s campaign pledges suggest that he and his team have every intention of working to restore and strengthen rules and regulations, and to rebuild the EPA’s in-house science teams. But the incoming administration must think seriously about structural reforms. In addition to the need for past damage to be repaired, the agency must be strengthened in a way that makes it harder for any future administration to even think about strangling the structures of evidence that are essential to good policy. This will not be easy, but the following actions will help.

An EPA administrator will soon be nominated. Once in the post, they must make it an urgent priority to nominate an assistant administrator for the EPA’s research division, the Office of Research and Development (ORD). This position has not been filled for eight years. Senate Republicans refused to confirm former president Barack Obama’s last nominee, and the EPA leadership appointed by Trump never nominated anybody....

Well. So much for sovereign currency. What is this ridiculous relationship between Republicans and Wall Street?

Both Senators from Georgia are notorious for putting Wall Street trading at the top of their daily calendar and now Lummis believes using the USA Treasury to back Bitcoin is the end of the national debt. Amazing.

December 15, 2020

Former cattle rancher, Cynthis Lummis

Senator-elect Cynthia Lummis (click here) plans to broaden the coversation in Congress around bitcoin when she assumes office in January.

On an episode of the What Bitcoin Did podcast on Monday, the Wyoming Republican said bitcoin is a great store of value and can help tackle one of her biggest concerns-the US national debt.

Lummis said the US needs to develop a plan to retire the debt, and also needs to develop an "alternative path" in case that fails.

"I see the alternative half as bitcoin, because you have the ability to invest in something that has stability in the store of value," Lummis said....

Anti-racism protesters gather in Washington, DC.

Scientists (click here) were among the millions of protesters who gathered around the world in 2020 to denounce racism and police brutality in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in May. Researchers shared their experiences of racism in science and called for stronger action to address systemic inequalities. Many major scientific organizations released public messages supporting the newly energized Black Lives Matter movement. And on 10 June, thousands of researchers, along with scientific societies, universities and organizations (including Nature), stopped work to reflect on and plan how to fight anti-Black racism in science, following an online campaign that urged the community to #ShutDownSTEM, #ShutDownAcademia and #StrikeForBlackLives.... 

Redistribution of wealth is normally a bad word to the wealthy.

But, I suppose once a person has made his fortune it is far easier to discuss the redistribution of wealth, especially with a wildly new cryptocurrency. It is called an opportunity to offer a new window on wealth when a catastrophic virus has closed most others.

Perhaps Mr. Novogratz should be backing the people in the US Congress with his same vision.

December 20, 2020
By Emily Graffeo

Macro trader (click here) turned bitcoin bull Michael Novogratz is calling for fixes to capitalism — and a possible tax on Wall Street.

Bitcoin bull Mike Novogratz (click here) explained how the coronavirus pandemic accelerated the "cryptocurrency revolution" during a Real Vision interview published Friday.

"In five years from now, we are going to see 2020, as horrible as corona was, and lots of people have lost their lives...we are going to look back and in some weird way, this is going to have been a blessing for the cryptocurrency revolution," Novogratz said.

The Galaxy Digital CEO explained that two pandemic-induced trends propelled cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum to see 216% and 390% year-to-date returns, respectively....

17 December 2020
By Alexandra Witze

Lightning is striking the Arctic many times more often than it did a decade ago, (click here) a study suggests — and the rate could soon double. The findings demonstrate yet another way Earth’s climate could be changing as the planet warms, although not all researchers agree that the trend is real.

Robert Holzworth, an atmospheric physicist at the University of Washington in Seattle and leader of the study, defends the findings. “We’re seeing a symptom of global climate change,” he says. Holzworth is director of the World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN), the collection of ground-based sensors that measured the data. He reported the results on 8 December at a virtual meeting of the American Geophysical Union (and published them before peer review as a preprint1).

Another lightning-detection network, whose records do not extend as far back as those Holzworth studied, does not find the same increase.

Whether or not lightning is increasing in the Arctic could have a significant impact on the region. The past two years have set records for the largest area of land burnt by wildfires — some of them ignited by lightning — and the most carbon dioxide emitted in the Arctic since records began. More lightning would mean even more chances that wildfires will start, which could in turn put even more climate-altering soot and gases into the air....

Bitcoin is a daydream when things go poorly in the world of finance. Even it's creator is a mystery.

December 17. 2020
By Ben Winck

Bitcoin (click here) was created by Satoshi Nakamoto, a pseudonymous person or team who outlined the technology in a 2008 white paper.

Bitcoin (click here) climbed to an all-time high on Thursday as the cryptocurrency's extraordinary 2020 momentum continued through the end of the year.

The world's most popular cryptocurrency leaped to a 24-hour high of $23,770.85 on Thursday, marking a 20% gain over the past day. The climb comes just one day after bitcoin topped $20,000 for the first time, and brings the token's year-t0-date gains above 200%.

Bitcoin advocates have cited the adoption of cryptocurrencies among institutional investors and financial-services companies as a major boon for the token this year. Investing giants including Paul Tudor Jones and Mike Novogratz praised the cryptocurrency earlier this year and forecasted bigger gains to come. The token's rally accelerated in October after PayPal announced it would allow users to buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrencies....

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act must be reviewed to strengthen our agreements with our partners.

December 12, 2020

Thalassarche melanophrys (click here)

Europe’s breeding bird populations (click here) have shifted on average 1 kilometer north every year for the past three decades, likely driven by the climate crisis, according to one of the world’s largest citizen science projects on biodiversity.

The European Breeding Bird Atlas 2 (EBBA2) provides the most detailed picture yet of the distribution of the continent’s birds, after 120,000 volunteers and field-workers surveyed 11 million square kilometers, from the Azores in the west to the Russian Urals in the east.

The book documents changes in the range of Europe’s 539 native bird species in the 30 years since the first EBBA, which was published in 1997 but was based on observations from the 1980s. It shows that since the first study, each population can be found around 28 kilometers further north.

Mediterranean species such as the European bee-eater and little egret are now reaching the UK, France, and the Netherlands, mainly due to milder winters. Eurasian bitterns, pied avocets, and red kites have also expanded their range, probably in response to better protection of habitats coupled with laws banning persecution.

Overall, 35 percent of birds increased their breeding range, and 25 percent contracted their breeding range. (As for the rest, either they did not show any change or the trend is unknown.) Forest birds and those protected by international legislation have generally expanded their range, while farmland birds occupy a smaller total area....

Has Trump closed USA borders? The pandemic is only beginning to be addressed with a vaccine.

It is my understanding the vaccines are based on interfering with the spines that exist on the virus coat. If that is the case it should be effective against all coronavirus and not just SARS-CoV-2. 

New York needs to think about closing airports until the circumstances in the UK resolves.

December 20, 2020

European nations (click here) have begun to impose travel bans on the UK after it reported a more-infectious and "out of control" coronavirus variant.

Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium are all halting flights. The measures vary and are initially short-term but the French rules also affect Channel freight.

An EU meeting on Monday morning will discuss a more co-ordinated response.

The new variant has spread quickly in London and south-east England.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday introduced a new tier four level of restrictions for those areas, scrapping a planned relaxation of rules over the Christmas period for millions of people....

Fight Extinction

December 20, 2020
By Lauren M. Johnson

Sunday's Google Doodle (click here) is paying tribute to Sudan, believed to be the last northern white rhino born in the wild.

The illustration looks back on this day in 2009 -- when Sudan and three other white rhinos arrived at their new home at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a wildlife sanctuary in Kenya.

Before the rhinos were moved, the species had been declared extinct in the wild.

In 1976, Sudan was moved to the Dvůr Králové Zoo in what was then Czechoslovakia in hopes of saving the subspecies. He fathered two children and a grandchild, who were all part of the group moved to their natural habitat in Kenya....

It may surprise Wall Street, but, President Joe Biden actually care about the people before their greed.

December 20, 2020
By Matthew Fox

...But a swift reopening of the economy (click here) and return to normal could deliver strong trend reversals for stock market investors in early 2021, DeSpirito highlighted....

Those are the words of Tony DeSpirito, chief investment officer of US fundamental active equity for BlackRock.

The USA has a President in Joe Biden that will put the American people first over investors seeking quick money out of a stimulus-funded by Congress. The investments made on behalf of the people in any recovery of the USA economy will focus on the future and the return of safe land to live on for generations.

President Joe Biden isn't about "fast cash" so much as solving problems. That is what governance after all.

It's Sunday Night

Are they wearing masks on the floor of Wall Street?

One more month and the USA begins to have a President that remembers how it was before the USA entered into darkness that extinguished it's light of hope.

"Wall Street" by Wig Wam (Official website - click here)

Buy me a suit with the cash in hand
Trade my guitar for a company brand
Don't need much, but for a man on my fields
Just need a place up in Beverly Hills
I don't care about the money
Wanna a trance of a life so sweet
I'll be square about the hot air
What I need is to have a little luck on Wall Street
(Wall Street) (Wall Street)
The grass is always greener around the other side
Greed turns me into Dr. Jekyll and Hyde
The well I'll surely dry
Such strain movin' up my tie
I don't care about the money
Wanna a trance of a life so sweet
I'll be square about the hot air
What I need is to have a little luck on Wall Street
(I don't care) about the money
Just enough to keep me on my feet
I'll be square about the hot air
What I need is to have a little luck on Wall Street
(Wall Street) (Wall Street) (Wall Street)
Must be legion being a bilionaire
But I don't much as keep your hands on my share
(Guitar Solo)
I don't care about the money
Want a trance of a life so sweet
I'll be square about the hot air
What I need is to have a little luck on Wall Street
(I don't care) about the money
Just enough to keep me on my feet
(I'll) be square about the hot air
What I need is to have a little luck on Wall Street
Have a little luck on Wall Street
Have a little luck...
Wall Street