- Mark
Saturday, February 29, 2020
Friday, February 28, 2020
HOW RELIGIOUS STUPIDITY CAN UNDERMINE PUBLIC HEALTH
South Korea initially seemed to have the COVID-19 epidemic under control, armed with efficient bureaucracy and state-of-the-art technology. However, since Feb. 18, the number of coronavirus cases in South Korea has exploded to more than 1,700 as of Thursday. The battle plan against the epidemic was derailed by the oldest of problems: religion and politics.
When it came to preparation, it helped that South Korea had one hell of a practice run: the MERS outbreak in 2015 that caused 38 deaths. At the time, the incompetent response by the conservative administration of then President Park Geun-hye put South Korea in the ignominious position of having the greatest number of cases outside of the Middle East. The fallout, which contributed to the public distrust of government that culminated in Park’s impeachment and removal, pushed the South Korean government to significantly revamp its preparation for the next viral event ...
You can read the rest of the article by clicking here.
- Mark
Thursday, February 27, 2020
NASA'S ON-GOING SPACE WALK
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- Mark
Hat tip to my nephew Thomas for the Katherine Johnson piece.
Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Monday, February 24, 2020
MORE CORPORATE "SOCIALISM" ... OR JUST PLAIN TRUMPISM
Specifically, Donald Trump's direct payments to farmers hurt by his trade dispute with China have totaled some $28 billion — more than twice what the auto bailout cost. These payments don't have to be paid back, ever.
And, yes, the payments are still flowing to America's farmers, with no end in sight to the trade dispute.
- Mark
Friday, February 21, 2020
Wednesday, February 19, 2020
A DISTINCTION WITHOUT A DIFFERENCE ...
Less than 10 days after our GOP-led Senate voted to acquit Donald Trump it appears campaign cash and legislative gifts were handed out to Republican Senators who sided with Trump. Is this bribery or a quid pro quo? You make the call ... though, to be clear, in Trumpland it's probably a distinction without a difference.
- Mark
- Mark
Tuesday, February 18, 2020
Monday, February 17, 2020
SINCE TRUMP SEEMS TO HAVE FORGOTTEN ...
Happy Recovery and Reinvestment Act Anniversary!
As a reminder, it's President Obama who's responsible for our current economic conditions ...
- Mark
As a reminder, it's President Obama who's responsible for our current economic conditions ...
- Mark
Friday, February 14, 2020
AND, YES, OBAMA'S ECONOMY WAS BETTER ...
Department of Labor statistics are clear. There is nothing "unprecedented" when it comes to job growth in America, as Donald Trump has claimed. In fact, under Trump the economy has created 1.5 million fewer jobs in his first 3 years as president than were created in President Obama's last 3 years.
As well, apart from the jobs disparity, after adjusting for inflation we learn that "real" wages under President Obama's grew at a faster rate (1.1%) during the last two years of his administration than they have under Trump (0.6%) ...
(In the FYI category, the blue "Nominal" line are wages that are NOT adjusted for inflation; this is what Trump was bragging about during the SOTU.)
You can read the details by clicking here.
While you're thinking about all of this, also think about this fun fact. President Obama didn't have the luxury of spiking his jobs' numbers with annual trillion dollar budget deficits, or a $1.9 trillion dollar tax giveaway to the already rich in America (which we can't pay for).
So, yeah, while budget deficits decreased drastically from the built-in trillion dollar deficits that President Obama inherited, they have soared under Trump.
Nothing wrong with spiking your "record breaking economy" with borrowed money, right?
- Mark
Thursday, February 13, 2020
AND PUTIN SMILES ...
Putin's a genius. Seriously. Putin's assets in the United States - Trump and the (seemingly) unwitting, but very eager GOP - are literally handing him the dismantling of America's institutional pillars.
As a reminder, this is how it all started. And, yes, our intelligence community saw it coming a long time ago, as did I ...
"It was a plot aimed at corroding the foundation of America's system of government and ... upending 'the U.S.-led liberal democratic order'."
If you want to understand Putin's real "long game" click here. But let's be clear - and, Putin, if you're listening - Russia is winning the long game, bigly.
Sigh ...
- Mark
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
DONALD TRUMP'S CIRCUS MAXIMUS IS JUST BEGINNING ... AND THAT'S BAD FOR EVERYONE
Unfortunately, there's too much truth to the TIME cover below. In a few words, what we're learning in real time - for the slow ones who didn't see it coming - the GOP has traded what was left of their self-serving souls for access and flattery from their "chosen" one.
As spot on as the TIME cover is, for my money, this Salon piece nails it. What's happening now is only the beginning. A snippet from the article ...
... Trump assembled his coterie of sycophants and minions in the East Room of the White House, where like Stalin, Hitler, Caligula, Nero or some other autocratic fiend from the worst annals of human history, he promised that retaliation and destruction would be visited upon those people who dared to oppose him.
Trump again claimed that he was a "victim"; his heroism in the face of such great and evil opposition was the stuff of legend. As the Guardian reported, his speech "quickly turned into a screed against all of the investigations into his administration, starting with special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election interference. 'We first went through Russia, Russia, Russia,' Trump said. 'It was all bullshit.'"
Trump's court performed on cue, clapping, nodding their heads and smiling in approval.
So, yeah, this is only going to get worse.
Thank you GOP.
- Mark
WORKING FOR A LIVING ... NOT NECESSARILY GOOD IN AMERICA
According to Brookings, more than 53
million Americans – or about 44% of the workforce – qualify as “low-wage” income
earners. Their median hourly wages are $10.22, which means they earn about
$18,000 per year.
In other news, U.S. households are now sitting on a record $14 trillion in mortgage, credit card, student loan, and other forms of debt. This is about $1.3 trillion higher than the previous peak, set in 2008, right before the market collapse.
Oh yeah, with a "booming" stock market, we're supposed to believe everything's just fine.
OK, I guess I feel a little better ... 😐.
OK, I guess I feel a little better ... 😐.
- Mark
Silver lining? You be the judge ... the ratio of "required household debt payments" (minimum payments) is lower than it was before the 2008 market collapse (12.8% to 9.69%). If you're not impressed you're not alone.
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
HUNGER GAMES AMERICA, HERE WE COME?
Hunger Games "Kern County" here we come?
The largest private prison corporation in America, GEO, wants to expand in the Central Valley of California. In a few words, a private company that profits off of misery and the incarceration of our undocumented population wants to expand its facilities into the Kern County city of McFarland, an impoverished community where 95.6% are Hispanic and 87% speak Spanish.
For those of you who aren't from California, Kern County lies about 2 hours northeast of Los Angeles and, politically speaking, wouldn't skip a beat if you dropped it in the middle of Texas. It's conservative and very Republican.
In effect, GEO wants to help create an American dystopia in California's Central Valley, where poverty is not only a daily reality, but where the incarceration of the region's poor and powerless is going to stare McFarland's citizens right in the face. With a per capita income of $10,139 (2017), over 35% of McFarland's residents live in poverty, with many being the undocumented targets that GEO wants to incarcerate.
Meanwhile, GEO's institutional investors profit off of helping to create a culture of fear, and have even started - according to one reliable source - offering McFarland citizens $20 an hour to knock on doors to "share the good news" about GEO's economic presence in the community.
GEO is trying to capitalize on these conditions by claiming that it will bring jobs (the pay makes GEO guards effectively rent-a-cops), but GEO says little about how they ultimately profit off of the incarceration of people who are the neighbors and families of the McFarland community.
It's as if we're heading for Hunger Games America, where we don't think twice about sacrificing a portion of our neighbors for the profit and entertainment of a group of investors who could care less about what their "product" (incarceration and fear) brings to the communities they tear apart.
For those of you in the Kern County region, who are interested in voicing your concerns, McFarland's second planning commission public hearing has been scheduled for Tuesday, February 18, 2020 at 6 pm.
Let the games begin ...
- Mark
If you're wondering, yes, we're talking about the city of McFarland, of Disney fame.
The largest private prison corporation in America, GEO, wants to expand in the Central Valley of California. In a few words, a private company that profits off of misery and the incarceration of our undocumented population wants to expand its facilities into the Kern County city of McFarland, an impoverished community where 95.6% are Hispanic and 87% speak Spanish.
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In effect, GEO wants to help create an American dystopia in California's Central Valley, where poverty is not only a daily reality, but where the incarceration of the region's poor and powerless is going to stare McFarland's citizens right in the face. With a per capita income of $10,139 (2017), over 35% of McFarland's residents live in poverty, with many being the undocumented targets that GEO wants to incarcerate.
Meanwhile, GEO's institutional investors profit off of helping to create a culture of fear, and have even started - according to one reliable source - offering McFarland citizens $20 an hour to knock on doors to "share the good news" about GEO's economic presence in the community.
____________________
GEO is trying to capitalize on these conditions by claiming that it will bring jobs (the pay makes GEO guards effectively rent-a-cops), but GEO says little about how they ultimately profit off of the incarceration of people who are the neighbors and families of the McFarland community.
It's as if we're heading for Hunger Games America, where we don't think twice about sacrificing a portion of our neighbors for the profit and entertainment of a group of investors who could care less about what their "product" (incarceration and fear) brings to the communities they tear apart.
For those of you in the Kern County region, who are interested in voicing your concerns, McFarland's second planning commission public hearing has been scheduled for Tuesday, February 18, 2020 at 6 pm.
Let the games begin ...
- Mark
If you're wondering, yes, we're talking about the city of McFarland, of Disney fame.
Monday, February 10, 2020
Thursday, February 6, 2020
Wednesday, February 5, 2020
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
Monday, February 3, 2020
TRUMP OUTTRUMP'S ... WELL, TRUMP
This shouldn't be so funny, but it is. Coming off of yet another one of Donald Trump's ignorance-filled Tweets, this satirical markup of Trump congratulating the state of Kansas for the Kansas City Chief's Super Bowl victory is classic.
And, no, this isn't just another innocent faux pas. Trump's a real moron.
- Mark
And, no, this isn't just another innocent faux pas. Trump's a real moron.
- Mark
GOP VIOLATING THE LAWS OF JUSTICE
This was published over a year ago, but it's certainly appropriate given the GOP's violation of the rules of impeachment. Bringing no witnesses and ignoring evidence is not what impeachment and the laws of justice are all about. Because of his failure to call witnesses, which he can do, Chief Justice John Roberts is in on this too.
- Mark
- Mark