Ever since 2004 I have kept a list of all of the books I read each year. Mostly I prefer fiction. It's my escape. I'm partial to who-done-it's but I can't do a steady diet of any one genre. Below is my list for 2016.
The three Ken Follett books were a series of historical fiction spanning most of the 20th Century beginning right before WWI. The first book was the best of the three and they were LONG. "Pretty Girls" was a good thriller. The bestseller "A Man Called Ove" was a sweet story about a grumpy sad old man and his finding purpose again in life. Trevor Noah's "Born a Crime" was really interesting. It's about his life growing up in South Africa before and after apartheid.
Whenever I look over my list for the year, I can never really pick out a favorite. Some years I read more of a particular genre or I get started on one particular author and want to read everything they wrote.
I'm also one of those people that occasionally rereads books. I have a few that I have read multiple times. Those include "Lonesome Dove" and "Gone With the Wind". It's like revisiting old friends or watching favorite old movies. You know how "Christmas Vacation" is always funny no matter how many times you watch it? For me, it's the same with certain books.
Anyway, here is the list for this year. Maybe you'll find a suggestion if you're looking for something to read. Enjoy!
Title Author
1 In The Unlikely Event Judy Blume
2 Head Full of Ghosts Paul Tremblay
3 The Japanese Lover Isabella Allende
4 Sweet Caress William Boyd
5 The Goldfinch Donna Tartt
6 Carrying Albert Home Homer Hickham
7 The Husbands Secret Liane Moriaty
8 Pretty Girls Karin Slaughter
9 Who Do you Love Jennifer Weiner
10 The Nightengale Kristin Hannah
11 Fall of Giants Ken Follett
12 Winter of the World Ken Follett
13 The Letter Writer Dan Fesperman
14 A Man Called Ove Fredrik Backman
15 Edge of Eternity Ken Follett
16 All Summer Long Dorothea Benton Frank
17 The Nest Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney
18 Born a Crime Trevor Noah
19 The Unlikely Pilgrimage
of Harold Fry Rachel Joyce
Saturday, December 31, 2016
Friday, December 30, 2016
Putin and Trump
Dear President-Elect Trump,
What the heck Mr. Trump? Are you and your BFF Mr. Putin playing some kind of sick game? Your tweet from a couple of hours ago stated "Great move on delay (by V. Putin) - I always knew he was very smart!" How can this even be an adult response, much less a responsible one from the next leader of the worlds leading Democracy?
In an earlier post, I asked you Mr. Trump to Man Up and face the press and answer questions like a responsible leader of our country and to stop using Twitter to discuss serious issues such as nuclear arms. We have a foreign country tampering with our election process and President Obama and the current administration have responded appropriately. And this is your response? Seriously?
Even the opposing party agrees to the sanctions and Senator McCain has scheduled more hearings into this matter for next Thursday. The link is an article about these hearings.
http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/312216-mccain-schedules-hearing-on-foreign-cyber-threats-to-the-us#.WGan5LBtjiE.twitter
Mr. Trump, how in heavens name can you be so dismissive of the intelligence community's reports? Do you not understand that the hacking of any portion of our election process is a threat to our country and our way of life? You will take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. Do you know what this entails? Do you realize that you're responsible for fair and free elections? This is not about the results of the election. Stop thinking that this is somehow just the Democrats whining about losing the election. IT IS NOT. This is about our basic freedoms.
I'm going to keep re-iterating my demand that you MAN UP and act like a responsible leader of this country. We did not elect you to roll over and be the lap dog of Mr. Putin.
--A Very Frustrated Midwest Moderate
What the heck Mr. Trump? Are you and your BFF Mr. Putin playing some kind of sick game? Your tweet from a couple of hours ago stated "Great move on delay (by V. Putin) - I always knew he was very smart!" How can this even be an adult response, much less a responsible one from the next leader of the worlds leading Democracy?
In an earlier post, I asked you Mr. Trump to Man Up and face the press and answer questions like a responsible leader of our country and to stop using Twitter to discuss serious issues such as nuclear arms. We have a foreign country tampering with our election process and President Obama and the current administration have responded appropriately. And this is your response? Seriously?
Even the opposing party agrees to the sanctions and Senator McCain has scheduled more hearings into this matter for next Thursday. The link is an article about these hearings.
http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/312216-mccain-schedules-hearing-on-foreign-cyber-threats-to-the-us#.WGan5LBtjiE.twitter
Mr. Trump, how in heavens name can you be so dismissive of the intelligence community's reports? Do you not understand that the hacking of any portion of our election process is a threat to our country and our way of life? You will take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. Do you know what this entails? Do you realize that you're responsible for fair and free elections? This is not about the results of the election. Stop thinking that this is somehow just the Democrats whining about losing the election. IT IS NOT. This is about our basic freedoms.
I'm going to keep re-iterating my demand that you MAN UP and act like a responsible leader of this country. We did not elect you to roll over and be the lap dog of Mr. Putin.
--A Very Frustrated Midwest Moderate
Political Exhaustion
In the months leading up to the election I like many in this country became very wrapped up in the news regarding the candidates. Rather than policy driven campaigns it became the political equivalent of a Jerry Springer show. Is that show even still on anymore? It was trashy, disgusting and you became morbidly fascinated enough to watch it.
However, after the election and the surprising results I felt sick of politics and exhausted by the entire process. And while my team did not win, I was willing (and I still keep trying) to be a grown up about the new administration and see something positive. I'm not naturally a pessimist so looking for the bright side is my normal mind set. I desperately would like to get back into my normal mode of watching the news but not being consumed and worried about major issues. This seems to be a problem.
Mr. Trump is still 20 days out from being sworn in as president and the controversies have not slowed down any. I am so tired and his term hasn't even started yet. Is this indicative of the next four years?
The following link is to the article "Donald Trump and The GOP, I want My Party Back" by Patrick Tomlinson. He is writing about his frustration with his party, the GOP. His op-ed hit home with me since I think of myself as a moderate. It's a good read and it struck me that maybe Mr. Tomlinson is tired as well.
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Libraries are Non-partisan
The article "It's Not About the Economy" by Alana Semuels stated, "People's predispositions affect their factual beliefs about the world," said Brendan Nyhan, a professor of government at Dartmouth College who has researched why people believe what they do about politics. "What we want to be true influences what be believe to be true." The link to the article is below. It discusses the polarization that is happening in our country and uses Elkhart, Indiana's improving economy as an example. Many people there do not believe that President Obama had any effect on this improvement since the recession.
The article further states, "Time and again, Schaffner said, people evaluate their own economic situations differently depending on who is president. During the Obama presidency, Republicans were less likely to say that their economic situation had improved over the past year. When Trump becomes president, though, this will likely switch, and Democrats will say their economic situation has not improved."
It seems like we're in a vicious cycle of extreme politics. What can we do to break this circle? According to the article, "There is, however, one way to pierce partisan biases, Nyhan said. If reality intrudes, people may be more willing to accept it. Someone can debate climate change for years, but if his house is threatened by a tide that rises every year as the planet warms, he may be more likely to accept that climate change exists."
It is a depressing thought that we may need such extreme events in order to wake people up. I cannot fathom that we may have to go through more of the crazy polarizing elections in the future. All of us need to be striving to overcome our unwillingness to consider views other than what fits with our own biases. Even many religions waded into the political arena in this last round.
My personal salvation from all of this division is to do more reading and research than I have ever done before. My library card is getting a daily workout as I try to read as many sources as possible when attempting to learn about an issue. Our public libraries are one of the last bastions of non-partisanship. RELIABLE, FACTUAL information is there for all of us to consume. Please encourage your friends and relatives to investigate the resources that your public library offers. Mine offers on-line access to many newspaper and magazine data bases in addition to books. And it's all available for the cost (FREE!) of a library card. Maybe if we take more advantage of this non-political environment it will translate into more tolerance in our politics.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/12/its-not-the-economy-stupid/511634/
The article further states, "Time and again, Schaffner said, people evaluate their own economic situations differently depending on who is president. During the Obama presidency, Republicans were less likely to say that their economic situation had improved over the past year. When Trump becomes president, though, this will likely switch, and Democrats will say their economic situation has not improved."
It seems like we're in a vicious cycle of extreme politics. What can we do to break this circle? According to the article, "There is, however, one way to pierce partisan biases, Nyhan said. If reality intrudes, people may be more willing to accept it. Someone can debate climate change for years, but if his house is threatened by a tide that rises every year as the planet warms, he may be more likely to accept that climate change exists."
It is a depressing thought that we may need such extreme events in order to wake people up. I cannot fathom that we may have to go through more of the crazy polarizing elections in the future. All of us need to be striving to overcome our unwillingness to consider views other than what fits with our own biases. Even many religions waded into the political arena in this last round.
My personal salvation from all of this division is to do more reading and research than I have ever done before. My library card is getting a daily workout as I try to read as many sources as possible when attempting to learn about an issue. Our public libraries are one of the last bastions of non-partisanship. RELIABLE, FACTUAL information is there for all of us to consume. Please encourage your friends and relatives to investigate the resources that your public library offers. Mine offers on-line access to many newspaper and magazine data bases in addition to books. And it's all available for the cost (FREE!) of a library card. Maybe if we take more advantage of this non-political environment it will translate into more tolerance in our politics.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/12/its-not-the-economy-stupid/511634/
Friday, December 23, 2016
Man Up
Dear Mr. President Elect Trump,
Even though I did not vote for you in this last election I have tried very hard to not add to the hysteria that seems to emanate from the opposing side since the election. I believed that the crying and carrying on of some of Clinton's supporters was ridiculous. Colleges that were babying students who were upset were being silly. And crazy people that were asking the Electoral College members to change their votes in my book were wasting their breath. You won fair and square.
Since then, I have taken exception to a number of your cabinet appointments and what I believe to be mistakes on specific policies. That is my right in this great country to have differences of opinion and be able to express them freely. However, I do believe that there is a mature, adult way to deal with matters. I'm failing to see the same behavior from you in your communications with the citizens of this country.
Mr. Trump, your tweets in the last 24 hours have ranged in topics from nuclear arms to bashing Boeing and Lockheed, to complaining about "A" list celebrities at the inauguration to whining about your son having to give up fund raising in order to avoid conflicts of interest. WOW.
Mr. Trump, I believe that you don't have the guts to face reporters and answer tough questions. I'm assuming that your refusal to release your tax returns was also a cowardly move that would keep you from answering questions. Your propensity to only communicate in 140 character bites is immature, irresponsible and potentially dangerous. Your team is constantly trying to interpret you latest tweet. MAN UP and answer questions like an adult.
While people may have wanted "change", they do not want a coward for a leader who is seemingly afraid to answer questions directly. Your silly tweeting is becoming more ridiculous every day. The following link is an article in regards to your nuclear tweet posted yesterday where you stated: "The United States must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes"
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/12/trump-nuclear-arms-race-russia-232944
The article " Trump Threatens to Upend U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy" by Madeline Conway has a quote regarding Mr. Putin's response to this tweet:
"But Putin at an annual news conference on Friday said Russia has no interest in a nuclear arms race and seemed to normalize Trump's statements, calling his tweet unsurprising."
Mr. Trump, can you not see how crazy your 140 character statements are? Not every world leader may just dismiss such talk. For the next 4 years do we need you to use emoji's so that we know whether or not you're jk (just kidding)? I know that you think Twitter is an effective tool for communicating directly with citizens but in matters with such serious consequences like nuclear weapons maybe you could communicate in a more adult fashion instead of like a petulant teenager. I for one am sick of trying to understand when you're being serious and when you're not.
So, I say again, MAN UP. This country needs a leader that is not afraid to answer questions directly. Have press conferences, articulate your positions in complete sentences and paragraphs. Stop avoiding the press. We deserve better than this.
Sincerely,
A Midwest Moderate
Even though I did not vote for you in this last election I have tried very hard to not add to the hysteria that seems to emanate from the opposing side since the election. I believed that the crying and carrying on of some of Clinton's supporters was ridiculous. Colleges that were babying students who were upset were being silly. And crazy people that were asking the Electoral College members to change their votes in my book were wasting their breath. You won fair and square.
Since then, I have taken exception to a number of your cabinet appointments and what I believe to be mistakes on specific policies. That is my right in this great country to have differences of opinion and be able to express them freely. However, I do believe that there is a mature, adult way to deal with matters. I'm failing to see the same behavior from you in your communications with the citizens of this country.
Mr. Trump, your tweets in the last 24 hours have ranged in topics from nuclear arms to bashing Boeing and Lockheed, to complaining about "A" list celebrities at the inauguration to whining about your son having to give up fund raising in order to avoid conflicts of interest. WOW.
Mr. Trump, I believe that you don't have the guts to face reporters and answer tough questions. I'm assuming that your refusal to release your tax returns was also a cowardly move that would keep you from answering questions. Your propensity to only communicate in 140 character bites is immature, irresponsible and potentially dangerous. Your team is constantly trying to interpret you latest tweet. MAN UP and answer questions like an adult.
While people may have wanted "change", they do not want a coward for a leader who is seemingly afraid to answer questions directly. Your silly tweeting is becoming more ridiculous every day. The following link is an article in regards to your nuclear tweet posted yesterday where you stated: "The United States must greatly strengthen and expand its nuclear capability until such time as the world comes to its senses regarding nukes"
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/12/trump-nuclear-arms-race-russia-232944
The article " Trump Threatens to Upend U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy" by Madeline Conway has a quote regarding Mr. Putin's response to this tweet:
"But Putin at an annual news conference on Friday said Russia has no interest in a nuclear arms race and seemed to normalize Trump's statements, calling his tweet unsurprising."
Mr. Trump, can you not see how crazy your 140 character statements are? Not every world leader may just dismiss such talk. For the next 4 years do we need you to use emoji's so that we know whether or not you're jk (just kidding)? I know that you think Twitter is an effective tool for communicating directly with citizens but in matters with such serious consequences like nuclear weapons maybe you could communicate in a more adult fashion instead of like a petulant teenager. I for one am sick of trying to understand when you're being serious and when you're not.
So, I say again, MAN UP. This country needs a leader that is not afraid to answer questions directly. Have press conferences, articulate your positions in complete sentences and paragraphs. Stop avoiding the press. We deserve better than this.
Sincerely,
A Midwest Moderate
Random Thoughts
1. Wow--apparently the GOP in Wisconsin is now basically deciding what classes that the University of Wisconsin-Madison can teach to the students. I thought the academic realm was a place for the free discussion of ideas. What's next, no classes on meteorology if they don't believe in climate change?
http://thehill.com/homenews/news/311499-wis-republicans-want-answers-about-class-on-whiteness
2. This is amazing. So much money concentrated in the hands of so few. More wealth than the lowest third of our country combined. Do they have any incentive to make policies that will possibly level the playing field a bit for the rest of us?
http://qz.com/862412/trumps-16-cabinet-level-picks-have-more-money-than-a-third-of-american-households-combined/#int/words=dinner_supper&smoothing=3
3. Seriously Ted? Have we been living in the same country for the last 8 years? Why don't you throw a little more gas on the divisive fire in this country?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/12/21/ted-cruz-says-democrats-will-be-historys-biggest-obstructionists-but-what-does-that-word-even-mean/?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.8e6978b3dc8a
4. This is an awesome letter written by the mayor of South Bend, Indiana. Solutions begin at home. It is an excellent letter to not only Democrats but to all of us.
https://medium.com/@buttigieg/a-letter-from-flyover-country-5d4e9c32d2ac#.bfu8xb6do
5. And finally a feel good story from my hometown. We need all the feel good stories we can find these days.
http://www.kansascity.com/living/health-fitness/article122069834.html
http://thehill.com/homenews/news/311499-wis-republicans-want-answers-about-class-on-whiteness
2. This is amazing. So much money concentrated in the hands of so few. More wealth than the lowest third of our country combined. Do they have any incentive to make policies that will possibly level the playing field a bit for the rest of us?
http://qz.com/862412/trumps-16-cabinet-level-picks-have-more-money-than-a-third-of-american-households-combined/#int/words=dinner_supper&smoothing=3
3. Seriously Ted? Have we been living in the same country for the last 8 years? Why don't you throw a little more gas on the divisive fire in this country?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/12/21/ted-cruz-says-democrats-will-be-historys-biggest-obstructionists-but-what-does-that-word-even-mean/?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.8e6978b3dc8a
4. This is an awesome letter written by the mayor of South Bend, Indiana. Solutions begin at home. It is an excellent letter to not only Democrats but to all of us.
https://medium.com/@buttigieg/a-letter-from-flyover-country-5d4e9c32d2ac#.bfu8xb6do
5. And finally a feel good story from my hometown. We need all the feel good stories we can find these days.
http://www.kansascity.com/living/health-fitness/article122069834.html
Thursday, December 22, 2016
Automation
The Trump team continues to preach the gospel of bringing back large numbers of manufacturing jobs to the United States. This was an important talking point during his campaign and the rhetoric has not been tempered any since he won the election. The Trump/Pence dog and pony show of "saving" the Carrier jobs was exactly that. Even the union boss, Chuck Jones said that the politicians mislead the public about how many jobs were going to be kept in the U.S. The small print with the Carrier deal looks to include provisions that the company will be investing millions in their U.S. facility. Apparently a large share of that money will be for automation. That means fewer jobs. See the link below for further information.
From what I have been reading, the effects of automation have been more of a factor in the loss of manufacturing jobs than bad trade agreements. The Chinese are unfazed by the threat of U.S. tariffs. My Wall Street Journal today had an article about the Chinese electronics hub of Shenzhen. The article "Chinese Electronics Hub Embraces Change" by John Lyons discusses how this area has become so efficient at manufacturing and shipping goods that they feel no pressure from other competition. Per the article:
"If these jobs come back to the U.S., they are going to be for people who manage 1,000 robots in an automated factory", said Christopher Balding, a finance professor at Peking University in Shenzhen. "It will be jobs for computer nerds, not the people who voted for Trump."
We need to be discussing this issue more in terms of educating or re-educating our work force. Globalization is here to stay no matter what the politicians tell us. This is obvious even to those of us not in the manufacturing realm. The Secretary of Labor nominee Andrew Pudzer has apparently commented on automation.
The article "What's Really Killing Jobs? It's Automation, Not China" By Claire Cain Miller in today's New York times stated the following:
"Andrew F. Puzder, Mr. Trump's pick for labor secretary and chief executive of CKE Restaurants, extolled the virtues of robot employees over the human kind in an interview with Business Insider in March. "They're always polite, they always upsell, they never take a vacation, they never show up late, there's never a slip-and-fall, or an age, sex or race discrimination case," he said."
The article also discussed the lack of skills that workers have in shifting to more automation. It stated: "Even in the best case, automation leaves the first generation of workers it displaces in a lurch because they usually don't have the skills to do new and more complex tasks, Mr. Acemoglu found in a paper published in May."
It further noted: "Over time, automation has generally had a happy ending: As it has displaced jobs, it has created new ones. But some experts are beginning to worry that this time could be different. Even as the economy has improved, jobs and wages for a large segment of workers -- particularly men without college degrees doing manual labor -- have not recovered."
Is this topic being addressed by Mr. Puzder or Betsy Devos, Secretary of Education nominee? It is vital that we have plans on how to help our workforce stay competitive in the global market. I am not seeing much news regarding the necessary education changes that our citizens need in order to compete in this technology driven manufacturing environment. The article mentioned some of the changes needed:
"Labor economists say there are ways to ease the transition for workers whose jobs have been displaced by robots. They include retraining programs, stronger unions, more public-sector jobs, a higher minimum wage, a bigger earned-income tax credit and, for the next generation of workers, more college degrees. The White House on Tuesday released a report on automation and the economy that called for better education from early childhood through adult job transitions and for updating the social safety net with tools like wage insurance. Few are policies that Mr. Trump has said he will pursue."
However, there is another element to this discussion. The individual worker. If we as citizens have indicated with our votes that we desire a smaller government, with less regulation (the GOP dream) then we as citizens also have a responsibility to adapt to the changing job market. We must be willing to learn new skills or move where the jobs are located. To just be complacent and do nothing but sit in a no-win situation and complain about the loss of jobs and our past way of life is shear laziness on our part. We must be active participants and willing to adapt to our rapidly changing world. Change is sometimes painful but to do nothing but expect the government to wave their magic wand is wrong.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-factories-are-working-again-factory-workers-not-so-much-1482080400
From what I have been reading, the effects of automation have been more of a factor in the loss of manufacturing jobs than bad trade agreements. The Chinese are unfazed by the threat of U.S. tariffs. My Wall Street Journal today had an article about the Chinese electronics hub of Shenzhen. The article "Chinese Electronics Hub Embraces Change" by John Lyons discusses how this area has become so efficient at manufacturing and shipping goods that they feel no pressure from other competition. Per the article:
"If these jobs come back to the U.S., they are going to be for people who manage 1,000 robots in an automated factory", said Christopher Balding, a finance professor at Peking University in Shenzhen. "It will be jobs for computer nerds, not the people who voted for Trump."
We need to be discussing this issue more in terms of educating or re-educating our work force. Globalization is here to stay no matter what the politicians tell us. This is obvious even to those of us not in the manufacturing realm. The Secretary of Labor nominee Andrew Pudzer has apparently commented on automation.
The article "What's Really Killing Jobs? It's Automation, Not China" By Claire Cain Miller in today's New York times stated the following:
"Andrew F. Puzder, Mr. Trump's pick for labor secretary and chief executive of CKE Restaurants, extolled the virtues of robot employees over the human kind in an interview with Business Insider in March. "They're always polite, they always upsell, they never take a vacation, they never show up late, there's never a slip-and-fall, or an age, sex or race discrimination case," he said."
The article also discussed the lack of skills that workers have in shifting to more automation. It stated: "Even in the best case, automation leaves the first generation of workers it displaces in a lurch because they usually don't have the skills to do new and more complex tasks, Mr. Acemoglu found in a paper published in May."
It further noted: "Over time, automation has generally had a happy ending: As it has displaced jobs, it has created new ones. But some experts are beginning to worry that this time could be different. Even as the economy has improved, jobs and wages for a large segment of workers -- particularly men without college degrees doing manual labor -- have not recovered."
Is this topic being addressed by Mr. Puzder or Betsy Devos, Secretary of Education nominee? It is vital that we have plans on how to help our workforce stay competitive in the global market. I am not seeing much news regarding the necessary education changes that our citizens need in order to compete in this technology driven manufacturing environment. The article mentioned some of the changes needed:
"Labor economists say there are ways to ease the transition for workers whose jobs have been displaced by robots. They include retraining programs, stronger unions, more public-sector jobs, a higher minimum wage, a bigger earned-income tax credit and, for the next generation of workers, more college degrees. The White House on Tuesday released a report on automation and the economy that called for better education from early childhood through adult job transitions and for updating the social safety net with tools like wage insurance. Few are policies that Mr. Trump has said he will pursue."
However, there is another element to this discussion. The individual worker. If we as citizens have indicated with our votes that we desire a smaller government, with less regulation (the GOP dream) then we as citizens also have a responsibility to adapt to the changing job market. We must be willing to learn new skills or move where the jobs are located. To just be complacent and do nothing but sit in a no-win situation and complain about the loss of jobs and our past way of life is shear laziness on our part. We must be active participants and willing to adapt to our rapidly changing world. Change is sometimes painful but to do nothing but expect the government to wave their magic wand is wrong.
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
Obamacare Repeal
Let's think back to pre-2008, to the time before the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare) existed. At that time I think most of us agreed that something needed to be done about our health care system. Costs were sky-rocketing and there were vast numbers of uninsured people. For many of those uninsured, the Emergency Room became their primary care. Those of us that were fortunate enough to have insurance, either through our employer or purchased in the open market, recognized that our premiums also reflected the costs of the uninsured. If clinics and hospitals have to treat large numbers of people for little or no revenue, then the paying customers will have to bear higher prices.
Move forward to 2009-2010. Obama and the Democrats were in control of the whole congressional shebang. (Sound familiar only with opposite party?) The ACA legislation passed with only 1 GOP senator and no GOP representatives supporting it. See the link to the Forbes article by Walker Ray, MD and Tim Norbeck that recaps how the law passed.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/physiciansfoundation/2014/03/26/a-look-back-at-how-the-president-was-able-to-sign-obamacare-into-law-four-years-ago/#38dee9c4096c
It seems to me that from that point on the conservative rhetoric became obsessed with this legislation. The rallying cry of the GOP became about repealing this legislation. We have all been listening to this for 6 years. And if you're a person who consistently gets your news from 1 or 2 conservative sources, you probably had even more of this rhetoric thrown at you than those of us that consume a lot of different sources for our news. The battle cry of Obamacare Repeal. There are a number of reasons why the GOP do not like this legislation but that is a discussion for another day.
Meanwhile, according to many media sources I have read, some 20 million people have signed up for insurance through the ACA federal and state exchanges. I am most certainly not an expert on how the ACA works. I have been fortunate enough to have insurance through an employer. However, while helping millions to gain insurance, the ACA has apparently not been without problems as well. I hear of many people whose insurance premiums have significantly increased in the last couple of years. Plus there are stories that insurers are losing money and may leave the exchanges.
Mr. Trump and the GOP have campaigned relentlessly about repealing this legislation. Given that 20 million people would be without insurance, their position is that they will replace it with something better. To date, I have not read any specific suggestions on their plan to replace the ACA. A lot of what I'm reading indicates that they may repeal it but delay the effective date. That would, in theory, give them time to come up with an alternative plan.
According to the Washington Post article by Dana Milbank and the Vox.com article by Sarah Kliff (links below) a number of Trump supporters in Kentucky are now worried that Mr. Trump and the GOP will repeal this law (just like they promised). Many never believed that they would actually repeal a law that benefits so many people. These articles indicate that many Trump supporters did not take everything he said during the campaign as a literal truth. The Vox.com article also highlights that many of the KY supporters were not aware that their state exchange Kynect was a part of Obamacare. The state did not emphasize this point when they set up their exchange. The Washington Post article also points out other things that Mr. Trump has promised that, if delivered, will end up hurting regions that voted for him.
My question after this entire summary is WHY? Why would people vote for policies that will hurt them? Are we so callused to the lying that happens during the election season that we are surprised when politicians do what they promised? I have very little sympathy for people that refuse to think critically about issues. I keep hearing that people wanted "change". Well does that mean that you just vote for the opposite party with no regard for the issues? It seems like the seesaw of our politics will just keep these wide swings as long as individuals buy into things like voting "for change" with no regard for specific policies. This partisan pendulum effect is not good for our country. The change this country needs is to have politicians that work TOGETHER regardless of party affiliation. We also all need to assume our personal share of the responsibility for these wild swings if we're not voting based on ISSUES instead of vague ideas like "change".
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trump-voters-didnt-take-him-literally-on-obamacare-oops/2016/12/20/46ef3cae-c6f3-11e6-bf4b-2c064d32a4bf_story.html?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.5a9c3e8b9592
http://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2016/12/13/13848794/kentucky-obamacare-trump
Move forward to 2009-2010. Obama and the Democrats were in control of the whole congressional shebang. (Sound familiar only with opposite party?) The ACA legislation passed with only 1 GOP senator and no GOP representatives supporting it. See the link to the Forbes article by Walker Ray, MD and Tim Norbeck that recaps how the law passed.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/physiciansfoundation/2014/03/26/a-look-back-at-how-the-president-was-able-to-sign-obamacare-into-law-four-years-ago/#38dee9c4096c
It seems to me that from that point on the conservative rhetoric became obsessed with this legislation. The rallying cry of the GOP became about repealing this legislation. We have all been listening to this for 6 years. And if you're a person who consistently gets your news from 1 or 2 conservative sources, you probably had even more of this rhetoric thrown at you than those of us that consume a lot of different sources for our news. The battle cry of Obamacare Repeal. There are a number of reasons why the GOP do not like this legislation but that is a discussion for another day.
Meanwhile, according to many media sources I have read, some 20 million people have signed up for insurance through the ACA federal and state exchanges. I am most certainly not an expert on how the ACA works. I have been fortunate enough to have insurance through an employer. However, while helping millions to gain insurance, the ACA has apparently not been without problems as well. I hear of many people whose insurance premiums have significantly increased in the last couple of years. Plus there are stories that insurers are losing money and may leave the exchanges.
Mr. Trump and the GOP have campaigned relentlessly about repealing this legislation. Given that 20 million people would be without insurance, their position is that they will replace it with something better. To date, I have not read any specific suggestions on their plan to replace the ACA. A lot of what I'm reading indicates that they may repeal it but delay the effective date. That would, in theory, give them time to come up with an alternative plan.
According to the Washington Post article by Dana Milbank and the Vox.com article by Sarah Kliff (links below) a number of Trump supporters in Kentucky are now worried that Mr. Trump and the GOP will repeal this law (just like they promised). Many never believed that they would actually repeal a law that benefits so many people. These articles indicate that many Trump supporters did not take everything he said during the campaign as a literal truth. The Vox.com article also highlights that many of the KY supporters were not aware that their state exchange Kynect was a part of Obamacare. The state did not emphasize this point when they set up their exchange. The Washington Post article also points out other things that Mr. Trump has promised that, if delivered, will end up hurting regions that voted for him.
My question after this entire summary is WHY? Why would people vote for policies that will hurt them? Are we so callused to the lying that happens during the election season that we are surprised when politicians do what they promised? I have very little sympathy for people that refuse to think critically about issues. I keep hearing that people wanted "change". Well does that mean that you just vote for the opposite party with no regard for the issues? It seems like the seesaw of our politics will just keep these wide swings as long as individuals buy into things like voting "for change" with no regard for specific policies. This partisan pendulum effect is not good for our country. The change this country needs is to have politicians that work TOGETHER regardless of party affiliation. We also all need to assume our personal share of the responsibility for these wild swings if we're not voting based on ISSUES instead of vague ideas like "change".
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trump-voters-didnt-take-him-literally-on-obamacare-oops/2016/12/20/46ef3cae-c6f3-11e6-bf4b-2c064d32a4bf_story.html?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.5a9c3e8b9592
http://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2016/12/13/13848794/kentucky-obamacare-trump
Monday, December 19, 2016
Minimum wage
There have been a lot of stories in the news about people wanting to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour. There have even been protests in my home town in support of this. Trump's nominee for Labor secretary,Andrew Puzder, has been a critic of this idea. Mr. Puzder is an executive in the fast food industry.
Many Democrats have criticized Puzder's nomination. They feel he will harm low paid workers by not supporting the minimum raise increase. I do not believe this is necessarily the case. I'm certainly no economic expert but as an accountant for a fast food franchise early in my career, I know that the margins in this industry are very low. These employers would have to pass along these additional costs to their customers. It seems to me that people on the low end of the income spectrum are also fairly big consumers of low cost restaurant food. Isn't this just a vicious circle?
The following quote is from the article "Labor Department Pick is Critic of $15 Minimum wage" from the Washington Post on December 9, 2016 by Jonnelle Marte:
"Puzder has said that government policies that increase labor costs, such as significantly raising the minimum wage, hurt small businesses and "encourage automation." In March, he told Business Insider that he and other fast-food companies are investing in automation and considering machines that could tackle simple tasks such as taking customers' orders. "If you're making labor more expensive and automation less expensive - this is not rocket science," he said at the time, though he later added that he would never remove all front-line employees." This doesn't sound like unreasonable logic to me. Those who want this raise are not thinking about the long term effect of this.
Below is a link to an article on the PBS Newshour site. The article by Diana Furchgott-Roth outlines studies that confirm that an increase in the minimum wage will result in less jobs for lower skilled workers since employers will want more skills in return for having to pay higher wages. Therefore the increase in the minimum wage ends up hurting those it's supposed to help.
I'm not saying that the minimum wage should never be raised. However, a drastic increase from $7.25 to $15 certainly seems to put excessive cost burdens on businesses. It subsequently may hurt low income employees by encouraging businesses to hire more skilled workers or resort to automation. The article below states that less than 2% of the workforce are paid minimum wage or less. So it would seem to me that supply and demand for labor is doing a pretty good job of setting wage rates.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/making-sense/column-minimum-wage-lowers-employment-teens-low-skill-workers/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=pbsofficial&utm_campaign=newshour
Many Democrats have criticized Puzder's nomination. They feel he will harm low paid workers by not supporting the minimum raise increase. I do not believe this is necessarily the case. I'm certainly no economic expert but as an accountant for a fast food franchise early in my career, I know that the margins in this industry are very low. These employers would have to pass along these additional costs to their customers. It seems to me that people on the low end of the income spectrum are also fairly big consumers of low cost restaurant food. Isn't this just a vicious circle?
The following quote is from the article "Labor Department Pick is Critic of $15 Minimum wage" from the Washington Post on December 9, 2016 by Jonnelle Marte:
"Puzder has said that government policies that increase labor costs, such as significantly raising the minimum wage, hurt small businesses and "encourage automation." In March, he told Business Insider that he and other fast-food companies are investing in automation and considering machines that could tackle simple tasks such as taking customers' orders. "If you're making labor more expensive and automation less expensive - this is not rocket science," he said at the time, though he later added that he would never remove all front-line employees." This doesn't sound like unreasonable logic to me. Those who want this raise are not thinking about the long term effect of this.
Below is a link to an article on the PBS Newshour site. The article by Diana Furchgott-Roth outlines studies that confirm that an increase in the minimum wage will result in less jobs for lower skilled workers since employers will want more skills in return for having to pay higher wages. Therefore the increase in the minimum wage ends up hurting those it's supposed to help.
I'm not saying that the minimum wage should never be raised. However, a drastic increase from $7.25 to $15 certainly seems to put excessive cost burdens on businesses. It subsequently may hurt low income employees by encouraging businesses to hire more skilled workers or resort to automation. The article below states that less than 2% of the workforce are paid minimum wage or less. So it would seem to me that supply and demand for labor is doing a pretty good job of setting wage rates.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/making-sense/column-minimum-wage-lowers-employment-teens-low-skill-workers/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=pbsofficial&utm_campaign=newshour
Saturday, December 17, 2016
Name Calling
According to the Fox news story (link below), Mr. Trump referred to Evan McMullin, a former presidential candidate and former CIA officer, as Evan McMuffin in a recent speech. The article indicates that Mr. McMullin has been a vocal critic of Mr. Trump. It further mentions other rude nicknames that Mr. Trump as consistently used against opponents during his campaign.
When did our society fall to such a level as to be accepting of the amount of name calling that Mr. Trump employs? Have our standards of decency fallen to such a level that this is our new norm? Is this the kind of behavior want we want in our leader? To me, it's embarrassing. When traveling outside of the country, I sometimes feel the need to apologize to others for the behavior of our leaders. That's a pretty sad state of affairs.
We're all well versed in Mr. Trump's Twitter feed and his propensity to attack individuals over criticisms or perceived slights and the name calling seems to be his normal mode of speaking. I used to think it was just for show but it doesn't seem to have changed even though he won the election.
I regularly heard comments during the campaign that people were tired of all of the 'political correctness' in our society. I feel like people are just using that as an excuse to be crass and rude. I know my language can be pretty salty at times but what I say in the privacy of my home or with my friends is very different that what I use in other realms. I do not believe that being polite ever hurts. You can be brutally honest and still not resort to such petty name calling. It demeans all of us and further damages our society to resort to rude behavior on such a consistent basis.
I understand that Mr. McMullin was being critical of Mr. Trump and his cabinet nominees. But when you run for public office you have to be an adult and realize that criticisms are going to come with the territory. I don't see Mr. McMullin using derogatory name calling in this article. (I can't attest to his past however). Our president needs to lead by example. You cannot expect to gain people's respect by name calling like a 3 year old would do when someone won't share their toys in the sandbox.
Mr. Trump, I know you're busy with setting up your cabinet and reveling in the adoration of those who are attending your Thank You Tour, but could you please stop the name calling and offer respect to even those people who may not agree with your policies or views?
How else will this country ever heal the division that exists if our leader doesn't act with mutual respect for everyone?
Friday, December 16, 2016
Media Bashing and the Blame Game
Is anyone else sick to death of all the media bashing and blaming that is going on today? Everyday it's a constant barrage of of one person or group blaming the media for something.
The Democrats are blaming the fake news (and the Russians) for the election results and the Republicans are constantly blaming the media for being biased and printing stories they they say delegitimizes the Trump victory. In today's Kansas City Star, the article by Bryan Lowry and Hunter Woodall (link below) is about how Kansas Governor Sam Brownback believes his policies are misunderstood by the media(frankly, I'm not sure how almost driving your state's finances into the ground can be misunderstood but that is a discussion for another day) and of course Mr. Trump is once again using Twitter and blaming Vanity Fair for an article(link below) he didn't like. The article was a review of a restaurant in Trump Tower. It was harsh but seriously, I would have never bothered to read it if he hadn't been crying about it on Twitter again. And then he was also complaining about the media's reporting on his business interests and potential conflicts. (See my post about Conflicts of Interest for a link to a good article on Newsweek).
It's time to act like adults and stop the blame game. In my opinion, the biggest problem in all this media bashing, is the failure of us media consumers to take OUR responsibility for this shit show. We just keep right on clicking on stories that are obvious fakes, we refuse to entertain dissenting opinions in our on-line media consumption, and we rarely take time to read lengthy articles to better understand issues. I'm as guilty as the next person so don't think I'm saying otherwise. With our smart phones glued to our hands, we have come to expect that all news comes in 140 character bites. Plus we demand to be kept updated on a real time basis.
The media, while serving a vital function in our country, is also a business. They provide what their customers demand. We all need to refuse to support outlets that deal in misinformation. I refused to pay for cable TV for 15 years while raising my children because I didn't believe in what was being shown. (While the children may have felt tortured at the time, they turned out just fine.) What would happen if Mr. Trump's Twitter faithful stopped following him? The stories I see indicate that most citizens wish he would use it less. He won't change until he realizes it's not effective. We need to put up or shut up about the media since we are a large part of the problem.
The main stream media needs to also realize that if our elected officials decide to bypass traditional media practices, then they are going to have to adapt. We need more detailed, factual reporting and less blurbs about Mr. Trumps Twitter hissy fits with Saturday Night Live skits. Contrary to people saying that we live in a 'post truth' world, this is simply not the case. Factual, detailed, unbiased reporting matters. We as consumers must demand this.
A quote I saw that was attributed to Thomas Jefferson says "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter". So true.
http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article120984588.html
http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/12/trump-grill-review
The Democrats are blaming the fake news (and the Russians) for the election results and the Republicans are constantly blaming the media for being biased and printing stories they they say delegitimizes the Trump victory. In today's Kansas City Star, the article by Bryan Lowry and Hunter Woodall (link below) is about how Kansas Governor Sam Brownback believes his policies are misunderstood by the media(frankly, I'm not sure how almost driving your state's finances into the ground can be misunderstood but that is a discussion for another day) and of course Mr. Trump is once again using Twitter and blaming Vanity Fair for an article(link below) he didn't like. The article was a review of a restaurant in Trump Tower. It was harsh but seriously, I would have never bothered to read it if he hadn't been crying about it on Twitter again. And then he was also complaining about the media's reporting on his business interests and potential conflicts. (See my post about Conflicts of Interest for a link to a good article on Newsweek).
It's time to act like adults and stop the blame game. In my opinion, the biggest problem in all this media bashing, is the failure of us media consumers to take OUR responsibility for this shit show. We just keep right on clicking on stories that are obvious fakes, we refuse to entertain dissenting opinions in our on-line media consumption, and we rarely take time to read lengthy articles to better understand issues. I'm as guilty as the next person so don't think I'm saying otherwise. With our smart phones glued to our hands, we have come to expect that all news comes in 140 character bites. Plus we demand to be kept updated on a real time basis.
The media, while serving a vital function in our country, is also a business. They provide what their customers demand. We all need to refuse to support outlets that deal in misinformation. I refused to pay for cable TV for 15 years while raising my children because I didn't believe in what was being shown. (While the children may have felt tortured at the time, they turned out just fine.) What would happen if Mr. Trump's Twitter faithful stopped following him? The stories I see indicate that most citizens wish he would use it less. He won't change until he realizes it's not effective. We need to put up or shut up about the media since we are a large part of the problem.
The main stream media needs to also realize that if our elected officials decide to bypass traditional media practices, then they are going to have to adapt. We need more detailed, factual reporting and less blurbs about Mr. Trumps Twitter hissy fits with Saturday Night Live skits. Contrary to people saying that we live in a 'post truth' world, this is simply not the case. Factual, detailed, unbiased reporting matters. We as consumers must demand this.
A quote I saw that was attributed to Thomas Jefferson says "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter". So true.
http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article120984588.html
http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/12/trump-grill-review
Thursday, December 15, 2016
Fortunate Hypocrites
The following quote from President Obama in a recent interview (link attached below, article by Brooke Seipel) has stuck a chord with me today. It made me reflect on hypocrisy that we all experience at various times in our lives. The President said:
"I’m careful not to attribute any particular resistance
or slight or opposition to race. But what I do believe is that if somebody
didn’t have a problem with their daddy being employed by the federal government,
and didn’t have a problem with the Tennessee Valley Authority electrifying
certain communities, and didn’t have a problem with the interstate highway
system being built, and didn’t have a problem with the GI Bill, and didn’t have
a problem with the [Federal Housing Administration] subsidizing the
suburbanization of America, and that all helped you build wealth and create a
middle class — and then suddenly as soon as African Americans or Latinos are
interested in availing themselves of those same mechanisms as ladders into the
middle class, you now have a violent opposition to them — then I think you at
least have to ask yourself the question of how consistent you are, and what’s
different, and what’s changed."
This quote made me step back and really think about the role
our government has played in all of our lives. While the President's quote was about a discussion on minorities, it's pertinent to all of us. It's so easy to dismiss the government, especially at tax time. We all question what we are getting in return for our
tax dollars. We forget how fortunate we are to live in this country and pay taxes.
There are many ways that we all have received a hand-up from our government. To me there are more obvious methods of assistance such as
welfare payments, Medicare, subsidies for health insurance, and even federal
jobs. The less obvious ones that pop
into my mind are things like the GI Bill, FHA loans, Pell grants for education,
agricultural subsidies, FEMA loans after natural disasters, and even federal parks for
our enjoyment. I know from a
personal standpoint that the GI Bill allowed my father to go to college which allowed him to get a job where he and my mother could provide for 4 children to go to college. Pell grants were instrumental in helping my husband
get a college education. These hand-ups produce benefits for multiple generations.
As human beings it's so easy to fall into that hypocrite
mode at times. We may see someone using
or asking for government assistance and think to ourselves 'Get a job. No one is helping me.' NOT TRUE.
This country has helped most of us at one time or another. It's part of the reason this country is already great.
In these politicized times when it's become the norm to
complain about the government overreach and disparage others for availing themselves of
assistance, let's all try a little harder to be mindful of the help we have
received. If we want the government to
get rid of services then what are we, as individuals, willing to do to help
others? Are we willing to donate more
time and money to help our neighbors up?
Offering a hand up to fellow citizens whether through the government or
through the private sector is the right thing to do. When individual citizens succeed, so does our
country. Please think on this as you
demand change from our elected officials or when paying your taxes.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Conflicts of Interest
Too many of us today aren't paying enough attention to our country's foreign policy. I know I'm as guilty as the next person. It's so easy to get caught up in our daily lives that events happening in other countries do not really register with us. We have family members that live in other countries and they have a hard time understanding our lack of attention to foreign policy matters. I try to explain that our country is so vast that especially here in the middle we just don't get the emphasis on it in our daily lives. Whereas a small country in Europe is as close to another country as we are to the next state over.
However, if you value having leaders who are acting in the best interests of the country both at home and abroad, please read the article from Newsweek below. It is by Kurt Eichenwald and it is excellent. It's a long article but worth the 10 minutes or so it will take to read it. You will have a much better appreciation of how intertwined Mr. Trump's businesses are with his potential foreign policy. The domino analogy Mr. Eichenwald uses is a very good illustration of how complicated and messy this situation could get. Please read it.
http://www.newsweek.com/2016/12/23/donald-trump-foreign-business-deals-jeopardize-us-531140.html
As a follow up to my previous post regarding Trump and the EPA: The following article says that the Department of Energy will NOT be providing individual names to the Trump transition team. Good for them!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/12/13/energy-dept-rejects-trumps-request-to-name-climate-change-workers-who-remain-worried/?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.33be4fc4a869
Former Texas Governor Rick Perry was announced as Mr. Trumps choice for Secretary of Energy. Is this another logic defying pick? In the past this position has been held by prominent scientists. Mr. Perry wanted to abolish the Department of Energy during his presidential bid. For pete's sake, he couldn't even remember the name of the department in one of the debates.
Why is the Trump team nominating people that seem to be at complete odds with the department they are going to be running if confirmed? This certainly seems to be the ultimate in conflicts of interest. I understand the businessman's desire to try and streamline agencies and reduce costs. And I do believe there is a lot of waste in our government. However, not ALL business practices translate well to the government sector. I don't want to send our sons and daughters to war with equipment that came from a vendor that was chosen because they provided their wares "under budget and on time". I want our soldiers to have the BEST equipment available. I don't want to be burning fossil fuels with no regard to the air I'm breathing. And won't disregarding things like the melting ice caps wreck havoc with our communities that are in coastal areas due to the rising sea levels?
There is a fine line between believing in your mission while working to improve the agency you're charged with running vs. NOT believing in your mission and actively working to tear down that agency. There certainly seem to be a number of nominees that at this point look to be the later type rather than the former.
I hope our Congress members have the testicular fortitude (my apologies to the female Congress members) to ask the Cabinet nominees the hard questions and ensure that only qualified individuals are given responsibility for the vast agencies they must manage. We citizens must stay ever alert if we are going to hold our government officials accountable.
However, if you value having leaders who are acting in the best interests of the country both at home and abroad, please read the article from Newsweek below. It is by Kurt Eichenwald and it is excellent. It's a long article but worth the 10 minutes or so it will take to read it. You will have a much better appreciation of how intertwined Mr. Trump's businesses are with his potential foreign policy. The domino analogy Mr. Eichenwald uses is a very good illustration of how complicated and messy this situation could get. Please read it.
http://www.newsweek.com/2016/12/23/donald-trump-foreign-business-deals-jeopardize-us-531140.html
As a follow up to my previous post regarding Trump and the EPA: The following article says that the Department of Energy will NOT be providing individual names to the Trump transition team. Good for them!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/12/13/energy-dept-rejects-trumps-request-to-name-climate-change-workers-who-remain-worried/?tid=sm_tw&utm_term=.33be4fc4a869
Former Texas Governor Rick Perry was announced as Mr. Trumps choice for Secretary of Energy. Is this another logic defying pick? In the past this position has been held by prominent scientists. Mr. Perry wanted to abolish the Department of Energy during his presidential bid. For pete's sake, he couldn't even remember the name of the department in one of the debates.
Why is the Trump team nominating people that seem to be at complete odds with the department they are going to be running if confirmed? This certainly seems to be the ultimate in conflicts of interest. I understand the businessman's desire to try and streamline agencies and reduce costs. And I do believe there is a lot of waste in our government. However, not ALL business practices translate well to the government sector. I don't want to send our sons and daughters to war with equipment that came from a vendor that was chosen because they provided their wares "under budget and on time". I want our soldiers to have the BEST equipment available. I don't want to be burning fossil fuels with no regard to the air I'm breathing. And won't disregarding things like the melting ice caps wreck havoc with our communities that are in coastal areas due to the rising sea levels?
There is a fine line between believing in your mission while working to improve the agency you're charged with running vs. NOT believing in your mission and actively working to tear down that agency. There certainly seem to be a number of nominees that at this point look to be the later type rather than the former.
I hope our Congress members have the testicular fortitude (my apologies to the female Congress members) to ask the Cabinet nominees the hard questions and ensure that only qualified individuals are given responsibility for the vast agencies they must manage. We citizens must stay ever alert if we are going to hold our government officials accountable.
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
Russian Hacking
Well, it's been a busy day in the media. It began on the front page of my Kansas City Star, my usual starting place for the days news. The topic of the day is the Russian hacking during the recent election.
The CIA has apparently come to more definitive conclusions regarding the hacking of both political party's computer records. The way I understand it, is that while the Russians did hack the GOP as well, only the records and emails of the Democrats were released through Wikileaks. Any hacking at all should alarm every citizen of our country. Free and fair elections are one of our bedrock foundations for this country. Congress has taken up this matter with 4 Senators, John McCain (R-AZ), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Jack Reed (D-RI)calling for an inquiry into this matter. This is what makes America great: While we may have differences of opinion on politics, when threatened by foreign aggressors, we rally together. Well done Senators. We all deserve complete answers as to what happened in order to safeguard our national security.
One of the troubling aspects of this has been the reaction from the Trump camp. Mr. Trump dismissed the findings of our own intelligence agencies by saying something like "These were the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction". How can we be accepting of a president who disparages his own citizens and government? Shouldn't the commander in chief be the first to insist on an investigation whenever there is any foreign aggression?
One of Mr Trump's tweets said "Can you imagine if the election results were the opposite and WE tried to play the Russian/CIA card. It would be called conspiracy theory!" Mr. Trump, I have news for you, the election is over. It's no longer "WE" and "THEM", it's US. This country needs you to grow up and act like a leader for ALL citizens. Take a lesson from the Senators who are putting politics aside for the good of our country. Also, citizens like myself do not regard a foreign country meddling in our elections as "playing the Russian/CIA card". We regard it as a threat to our national security. Good grief.
According to other articles I'm reading Mr. Trump is only receiving intelligence briefings about once a week. Apparently is he not only smarter than the generals about ISIS but he is smarter than the entire intelligence community of the United States. Even if there are no changes to a particular situation from one day to the next, isn't that in and of itself important to know? Mr. Trump, your seeming lack of attention does not help your citizens feel safe.
After the article I discussed in yesterday's post, I wonder if the Trump team will start to ask for individual information on our brave citizens in the intelligence community like they are asking about in the EPA. Is it going to be a daily question on who get's called out and chastised by the President after he takes office?
All of this is happening while Mr. Trump is nominating a "friend" of Putin's, Rex Tillerson, an executive for ExxonMobile for Secretary of State. I can't even go down this road tonight. This topic has exhausted me.
The CIA has apparently come to more definitive conclusions regarding the hacking of both political party's computer records. The way I understand it, is that while the Russians did hack the GOP as well, only the records and emails of the Democrats were released through Wikileaks. Any hacking at all should alarm every citizen of our country. Free and fair elections are one of our bedrock foundations for this country. Congress has taken up this matter with 4 Senators, John McCain (R-AZ), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Jack Reed (D-RI)calling for an inquiry into this matter. This is what makes America great: While we may have differences of opinion on politics, when threatened by foreign aggressors, we rally together. Well done Senators. We all deserve complete answers as to what happened in order to safeguard our national security.
One of the troubling aspects of this has been the reaction from the Trump camp. Mr. Trump dismissed the findings of our own intelligence agencies by saying something like "These were the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction". How can we be accepting of a president who disparages his own citizens and government? Shouldn't the commander in chief be the first to insist on an investigation whenever there is any foreign aggression?
One of Mr Trump's tweets said "Can you imagine if the election results were the opposite and WE tried to play the Russian/CIA card. It would be called conspiracy theory!" Mr. Trump, I have news for you, the election is over. It's no longer "WE" and "THEM", it's US. This country needs you to grow up and act like a leader for ALL citizens. Take a lesson from the Senators who are putting politics aside for the good of our country. Also, citizens like myself do not regard a foreign country meddling in our elections as "playing the Russian/CIA card". We regard it as a threat to our national security. Good grief.
According to other articles I'm reading Mr. Trump is only receiving intelligence briefings about once a week. Apparently is he not only smarter than the generals about ISIS but he is smarter than the entire intelligence community of the United States. Even if there are no changes to a particular situation from one day to the next, isn't that in and of itself important to know? Mr. Trump, your seeming lack of attention does not help your citizens feel safe.
After the article I discussed in yesterday's post, I wonder if the Trump team will start to ask for individual information on our brave citizens in the intelligence community like they are asking about in the EPA. Is it going to be a daily question on who get's called out and chastised by the President after he takes office?
All of this is happening while Mr. Trump is nominating a "friend" of Putin's, Rex Tillerson, an executive for ExxonMobile for Secretary of State. I can't even go down this road tonight. This topic has exhausted me.
Monday, December 12, 2016
Trump and the EPA.
Today my thoughts have been about the following article from the Washington Post :
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/12/09/trump-transition-team-for-energy-department-seeks-names-of-employees-involved-in-climate-meetings/?utm_term=.47789590e484
I'm certainly no expert but it seems to me that the vast majority of scientists agree that human activity is having an effect on the worlds climate. In all of my reading I very seldom run into articles where scientists disagree with the climate change theory.
The information I'm seeing indicates a world population of around 7.5 billion people this year. The population of the United States is in 300 million range. That is 4 percent of the entire world's population. We consume somewhere between 20 and 25 percent of the worlds oil reserves. This is an astounding number. I certainly don't know how long the worlds resources will last but can we all agree that with a population of 7.5 billion (and projected to grow to 10 billion in the next 40+ years) that we all have a vital interest in protecting our environment?
To that end the United States Environmental Protection Agency is the government arm that is to help us in this aim. While I may not be around in 40 years, I certainly want our future generations to enjoy all the beautiful bounties of this life on earth.
President-elect Trump has nominated Scott Pruitt, the former Attorney General from Oklahoma to head up this agency. It's been well publicized that Mr. Pruitt has been a vocal denier of climate change. He has even sued the EPA over regulations pertaining to power plants is what I understand. Is it just me or does this appointment just defy logic?
Don't get me wrong, I do not like the fact that the Obama administration used executive orders to institute many of their policies. That is not good government. So I certainly get the frustration of the republicans over these issues. But why appoint someone who seems to be at odds with the mission of the agency he will have to oversee?
The other troubling fact for me in this article is the questionaire that the Trump team is requesting of the current EPA. The article suggests that the Trump team is asking for an alarming amount of information pertaining to individual citizens who work in this realm. Given Trumps history of badgering individual citizens over issues where he doesn't agree, it's alarming that many in our scientific community are having to worry. Scientific advancements are not made in this world by always just agreeing with the current thoughts. For pete's sake people, everyone used to think the world was flat.
The Trump administration owes the citizens of this country a clear outline of their plans with regards to our environment. Not to mention owning up to our responsibility to the rest of the world since we are one of the biggest fossil fuel consumers. We all need to stand up for the scientists in our country. They should not be made to worry about pursuing information that will help all of us in the future. Let's encourage our lawmakers to avoid making a potentially fatal error for all of us by not pursuing a goal of preserving our environment for our children.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/12/09/trump-transition-team-for-energy-department-seeks-names-of-employees-involved-in-climate-meetings/?utm_term=.47789590e484
I'm certainly no expert but it seems to me that the vast majority of scientists agree that human activity is having an effect on the worlds climate. In all of my reading I very seldom run into articles where scientists disagree with the climate change theory.
The information I'm seeing indicates a world population of around 7.5 billion people this year. The population of the United States is in 300 million range. That is 4 percent of the entire world's population. We consume somewhere between 20 and 25 percent of the worlds oil reserves. This is an astounding number. I certainly don't know how long the worlds resources will last but can we all agree that with a population of 7.5 billion (and projected to grow to 10 billion in the next 40+ years) that we all have a vital interest in protecting our environment?
To that end the United States Environmental Protection Agency is the government arm that is to help us in this aim. While I may not be around in 40 years, I certainly want our future generations to enjoy all the beautiful bounties of this life on earth.
President-elect Trump has nominated Scott Pruitt, the former Attorney General from Oklahoma to head up this agency. It's been well publicized that Mr. Pruitt has been a vocal denier of climate change. He has even sued the EPA over regulations pertaining to power plants is what I understand. Is it just me or does this appointment just defy logic?
Don't get me wrong, I do not like the fact that the Obama administration used executive orders to institute many of their policies. That is not good government. So I certainly get the frustration of the republicans over these issues. But why appoint someone who seems to be at odds with the mission of the agency he will have to oversee?
The other troubling fact for me in this article is the questionaire that the Trump team is requesting of the current EPA. The article suggests that the Trump team is asking for an alarming amount of information pertaining to individual citizens who work in this realm. Given Trumps history of badgering individual citizens over issues where he doesn't agree, it's alarming that many in our scientific community are having to worry. Scientific advancements are not made in this world by always just agreeing with the current thoughts. For pete's sake people, everyone used to think the world was flat.
The Trump administration owes the citizens of this country a clear outline of their plans with regards to our environment. Not to mention owning up to our responsibility to the rest of the world since we are one of the biggest fossil fuel consumers. We all need to stand up for the scientists in our country. They should not be made to worry about pursuing information that will help all of us in the future. Let's encourage our lawmakers to avoid making a potentially fatal error for all of us by not pursuing a goal of preserving our environment for our children.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Be Informed
Like slightly more than half of the voters in America this last election, I did not vote for Donald Trump. And, like many, I did not have an overwhelming love of Hillary Clinton. (However the feminist side of me loves the idea of a woman president!) As with most, it boiled down to who was the lesser of two evils. For me, this boiled down to Clinton. I tried to base my decision on who had policies I could agree with and who I felt was more experienced and fit for the job. My candidate did not win but that's the way it goes. There's another election in four years.
Somewhere in this election, policy issues got lost along with civility. I don't want to rehash the ugliness of this election. What I want is a return to respectful discourse about where we are headed now. In order to do this, we need informed citizens. This is a duty of all citizens of a democracy. BE INFORMED.
In our house we have the Wall Street Journal and the Kansas City Star delivered daily. With my library card, I access the on-line data bases that my library subscribes to and I read the Washington Post and the New York Times as well. Granted, I sometimes don't have the time to read every article I would like, but even when pressed for time I try to catch the front page news. Like many today, I also follow several news sources on various social media platforms. Social media news requires extra vigilance on all of our parts. Don't fall for tabloid type headlines. Refuse clickbait. If you consume news from television--watch MULTIPLE channels.
If we refuse to educate ourselves with a variety of sources, we become part of the ugliness and this cycle is doomed to be repeated and our country suffers for it.
Technology today has made it easier than ever to become informed about issues. However, this same technology has also made it easier than ever to ignore all other view points. With the click of a button we can "unfollow" or "block" viewpoints that we do not want to agree with or learn about.
Don't get me wrong, if someone is rude and not willing to have a discussion then I have no time for them. Discussions however require LISTENING and FACTS. Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist sent the following tweet "When facts are what people want to be true, in spite of contrary evidence, witness the beginning of the end of an informed Democracy". Well said Mr. Degrasse.
Somewhere in this election, policy issues got lost along with civility. I don't want to rehash the ugliness of this election. What I want is a return to respectful discourse about where we are headed now. In order to do this, we need informed citizens. This is a duty of all citizens of a democracy. BE INFORMED.
In our house we have the Wall Street Journal and the Kansas City Star delivered daily. With my library card, I access the on-line data bases that my library subscribes to and I read the Washington Post and the New York Times as well. Granted, I sometimes don't have the time to read every article I would like, but even when pressed for time I try to catch the front page news. Like many today, I also follow several news sources on various social media platforms. Social media news requires extra vigilance on all of our parts. Don't fall for tabloid type headlines. Refuse clickbait. If you consume news from television--watch MULTIPLE channels.
If we refuse to educate ourselves with a variety of sources, we become part of the ugliness and this cycle is doomed to be repeated and our country suffers for it.
Technology today has made it easier than ever to become informed about issues. However, this same technology has also made it easier than ever to ignore all other view points. With the click of a button we can "unfollow" or "block" viewpoints that we do not want to agree with or learn about.
Don't get me wrong, if someone is rude and not willing to have a discussion then I have no time for them. Discussions however require LISTENING and FACTS. Neil deGrasse Tyson, Astrophysicist sent the following tweet "When facts are what people want to be true, in spite of contrary evidence, witness the beginning of the end of an informed Democracy". Well said Mr. Degrasse.
Saturday, December 10, 2016
Welcome!
My mother describes me as a realist. I'm never quite sure if she means it as a compliment or if she's trying to tell me (in her very sweet way) that I'm a bossy bitch. I'm choosing to believe that it's the first option even though I'm very aware that at times the later option is an apt description.
The dictionary says a realist is a person who tends to view or represent things as they really are. I very much try to "call 'em like I see 'em". After this brutal election season I have decided to create this blog as an outlet for my views (and to save my husband's sanity from my rants).
If you are reading this, welcome. Most of what I intend to write about here has to do with the current news. I will probably espouse heavily about politics. However, there will be the occasional foray into my other passions: Kansas State sports (I'm watching the basketball game as I type this), Kansas City Royals baseball, a love of books and libraries, and the periodic comments about my crazy animal laden (2 dogs, 2 cats, 2 grandcats and 1 granddog) world.
In regards to politics, I tend to think that I have a mostly moderate or possibly one tick to the left of moderate view. Hence the title of the blog. I would guess that I have voted for an equal number of both democrats and republicans over the years. At times my views may seem very liberal and other times they will fall on the conservative end of the spectrum. You the reader are forewarned. I have lived my entire life in the fly-over section of the country, in both rural and urban areas. Mine is an ordinary life filled with a happy marriage, great kids, good friends, and a job that while not glamorous is filled with people I enjoy. None of this qualifies me as an expert on anything. While you may not always agree with my opinions, I'm writing from the point of view of an ordinary citizen who is just trying to muddle my way through life and make sense of the crazy world around me. Comments and opinions are welcome as long as they are constructive and respectful. Thanks for reading!
The dictionary says a realist is a person who tends to view or represent things as they really are. I very much try to "call 'em like I see 'em". After this brutal election season I have decided to create this blog as an outlet for my views (and to save my husband's sanity from my rants).
If you are reading this, welcome. Most of what I intend to write about here has to do with the current news. I will probably espouse heavily about politics. However, there will be the occasional foray into my other passions: Kansas State sports (I'm watching the basketball game as I type this), Kansas City Royals baseball, a love of books and libraries, and the periodic comments about my crazy animal laden (2 dogs, 2 cats, 2 grandcats and 1 granddog) world.
In regards to politics, I tend to think that I have a mostly moderate or possibly one tick to the left of moderate view. Hence the title of the blog. I would guess that I have voted for an equal number of both democrats and republicans over the years. At times my views may seem very liberal and other times they will fall on the conservative end of the spectrum. You the reader are forewarned. I have lived my entire life in the fly-over section of the country, in both rural and urban areas. Mine is an ordinary life filled with a happy marriage, great kids, good friends, and a job that while not glamorous is filled with people I enjoy. None of this qualifies me as an expert on anything. While you may not always agree with my opinions, I'm writing from the point of view of an ordinary citizen who is just trying to muddle my way through life and make sense of the crazy world around me. Comments and opinions are welcome as long as they are constructive and respectful. Thanks for reading!
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