Dysfunctional is far too mild of a word to describe the legislative branch of the United States government at this particular moment in time. In fact there might not be a word, or term in the English language, or any other for that matter, which accurately conveys the overall psychotic behavior of large numbers of senators and representatives.
Republicans in the House of Representatives, over the past couple of years, have found the time and will to attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act on 56 different occasions. Each time they voted the members of that august body knew any such measure would either die in the senate, or in the Oval Office where the president of the United States would veto it.
They went so far as to shut down the federal government in an attempt to overturn a law which was passed and upheld as constitutional by the Supreme Court. Then they brought the nation to the brink of financial default by refusing to raise the debt limit until the very last moment.
All of this horrid nonsense has been ramrodded by a first term senator whose psychosis borders on a new version of McCarthyism. With a smarmy smile, bellicose, not to mention surreal political theater, and an ego the likes of which the nation has never seen, Rafael Edward Cruz has, in effect, engineered a political coup which has overthrown the Speaker of the House--the person who is third in line when it comes to presidential succession.
Let's be honest. If you currently think John Boehner is actually in charge of the U. S. House you've eaten a pretty powerful hallucinogenic and you might want to sit tight in a darkened room somewhere until it wears off. Indeed, kick back with a lite beer and wait for the crocodiles to stop dancing with the hippos and the music playing on the stereo to no longer ooze out of the speakers in a viscous purple slime.
Today Boehner and the boys were supposed to vote on a watered down immigration bill. Watered down because Barack Obama had requested $3.7 billion to shore up security on the border with Mexico. The "compromise" the Speaker was pushing today would have budgeted not $3.7 billion, but $569 million.
Unfortunately for Boehner any sort of hint he and the GOP might be working with Obama, rather than against him, doesn't pass The Cruz Purity Test. Last night the senator from Alberta threw some of his house toadies a pizza party. Between slices of pepperoni and mushroom pie he riled up the troops and today they convinced a befuddled Boehner they had the votes to defeat the bill. The Speaker's heroic response to this bullshit was to fold up like a cheap cardboard box and refuse to allow any vote at all.
MSNBC is reporting when other republicans--you know, the ones who understand the GOP might not get a single Hispanic vote ever again--realized what was happening they mobbed Boehner, begging him to bring the measure to the floor. However, the Speaker, cowering in the cold and unblinking Cruzian Glare, refused.
Don't abandon all hope though America. The House of Representatives did pass something today. They authorized the speaker to bring a suit against the president because, according to them, he has "abused" his executive powers. Right--at least Obama has taken action during what amounts to the most incredible case of national constipation we've ever suffered through. Meanwhile Boehner has proved himself to be about as politically astute as Mad Magazine's favorite son, Alfred E. Neuman. The vote to sue was 225-201. Not a single democrat was for it. Five republicans joined the minority, not because they agreed a law suit was a massive waste of time and money, but because they want to impeach Obama and didn't think the action went far enough.
The other night, after boredom and a couple of vodka tonics had settled in I cruised Youtube for a bit. After a while I found a 10 minute, or so collection of video snippets and still photos. The post was titled, "Romney Supporters Mourn the Loss of America." It was a compilation of reactions by republicans at the moment they realized their guy had blown the presidential election. In all those video moments and still pics there was not a single face which could be described as anything other than Anglo-European.
What a fractured GOP told the nation today is, "That is the way we want it."
The bad news is the republicans control the demographics of congressional districts and there is no way to flush many of these grotesque bastards down the drain. The good news is, thanks to Cruz's reign of terror, it could well be they won't win the white house in the foreseeable future.
We are witnessing the last, bitter, throes of white rule in America. What else could ignite such vitriol, outright hatred, and a visceral disrespect of a president of these United States? It goes beyond politics and we all know it. The angry and terrified sons of bitches perpetrating it just won't admit it.
Hey, not even Ron Reagan would put up with these crazed assholes and he was so evil his administration tried to make us believe ketchup was equal to a vegetable when it showed up on a cafeteria tray in the public school free lunch program.
I'm not sure how much lower we can sink. But, with Ted Cruz in charge of the republican party and the House of Representatives, either in collusion with, or in fear of him, there is no bottom in sight.
The hard right edge of the republican party has gone down an ink black rabbit hole. The trick is to keep the rest of the nation from following them into that awful place.
sic vita est
7-31-14
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Monday, July 28, 2014
The Weekend That Was: Bad Craziness in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania, Saco, Maine, and Gujranwala, Pakistan
It was a rough Saturday night in a couple of places.
South of Philadelphia in Ridley Township, PA, Mr. Tyrell Styles went a little funny in the head. For reasons known only to him, he opened fire on his son and the child's mother with what is reported to be a 9mm Ruger hand gun. The boy had been attending a friend's birthday party.
The AP report claims Shymea Washington had been living with relatives for the past few days after an having an argument with her close pal, Tyrell. She was wounded in the shooting and their five year old child, Cion Styles was killed by a shot to the head.
After the shooting the elder Styles led local police on a high speed chase which ended when they cornered him. Instead of surrendering the shooter did what a lot of these cranks do. He attempted to kill himself. He is currently the resident of a hospital ICU, listed in critical condition and on life support.
It turns out, until the very instant he opened fire on his kid and partner, Tyrell Styles was one of the NRA's good guys with a gun. According to police, he didn't have a criminal record and was licensed to carry the weapon. If there was a motive for the shooting, other than insanity, the media hasn't reported it.
On the same day in Saco, Maine, Joel Smith, a guy people described as friendly and outgoing, loaded up a 12 gauge shotgun, then killed his two sons, aged 12 and seven while they were in their bedrooms. Tragically he wasn't done. The AP reports he then went into his own bedroom where he shot and killed his wife, Heather and their four year old daughter. He capped off the nightmare by killing himself.
Heather Smith had told a friend earlier in the day she thought her husband might be suicidal. Police claim the family was having "domestic and financial problems." Joel Smith's mother said her son's wife was suffering from an "addiction" and that Joel was artistic and loving. Well, maybe the first, but certainly not the second. At last look, loving people don't use a 12 gauge shotgun to kill their entire family and themselves. Such behavior is reserved for the wildy angry and demented
Finally, on a different track, a number of those mischievous Islamic jokers in Pakistan ran amok during the last few hours. Reuters reports the excuse this time is some of the citizens of a town called, Gujranwala got pissed off at a young man's post on facebook, which they considered blasphemous. Of course a lot of people in Pakistan think everything is blasphemous, so a cynical eye might question their judgement on the issue.
While a crowd of 150 or so demonstrated in front of the local police station another mob attacked the houses of people belonging to the Ahmadi sect of Islam. The Ahmadiyya believe their interpretation of Islam, based on a prophet who decided he was the one true embodiment of what Muhammed wanted Islam to be, is the religion in its purist form. But then, as we all know, every sect of Islam thinks the same thing and they really don't like anyone else, be it a Muslim who isn't one of their own, or the vast numbers of us who fall into that unwashed category known as infidels.
According to a 1984 Pakistani law, members of the sect are such heretics Ahmadis are not considered Muslims, cannot give the traditional greeting to another Muslim, or call their places of worship mosques.
The short of it is the crowd who attacked the homes killed a woman and two of her grandchildren, a seven year old girl and her infant sister. The guy who actually posted the alleged blasphemy is apparently unharmed at this time.
A leader of the Ahmadiyya told Reuters it is the worst attack on their community in four years. Back in 2010, 84 Ahmadi faithful, or according to the majority of Pakistanis, those evil bastards, were killed by mobs of outraged True Muslims. Indeed, the truth, depending on your version of it, is both painful and deadly to those who consider it so much bullshit.
Of course, it is easy for us here in the United States to shake our heads at all the craziness in Pakistan and think--how can those people act like that? What we have to keep in mind is, it is also easy for people all over the globe to look at the weekend's events in Pennsylvania and Maine and ask, how can Americans behave that way?
All I can say is, well, they don't have anything better to do and we've got guns--lots and lots of guns.
Hey, it's the only explanation I have. If you can come up with something better let me know.
sic vita est
7-28-14
South of Philadelphia in Ridley Township, PA, Mr. Tyrell Styles went a little funny in the head. For reasons known only to him, he opened fire on his son and the child's mother with what is reported to be a 9mm Ruger hand gun. The boy had been attending a friend's birthday party.
The AP report claims Shymea Washington had been living with relatives for the past few days after an having an argument with her close pal, Tyrell. She was wounded in the shooting and their five year old child, Cion Styles was killed by a shot to the head.
After the shooting the elder Styles led local police on a high speed chase which ended when they cornered him. Instead of surrendering the shooter did what a lot of these cranks do. He attempted to kill himself. He is currently the resident of a hospital ICU, listed in critical condition and on life support.
It turns out, until the very instant he opened fire on his kid and partner, Tyrell Styles was one of the NRA's good guys with a gun. According to police, he didn't have a criminal record and was licensed to carry the weapon. If there was a motive for the shooting, other than insanity, the media hasn't reported it.
On the same day in Saco, Maine, Joel Smith, a guy people described as friendly and outgoing, loaded up a 12 gauge shotgun, then killed his two sons, aged 12 and seven while they were in their bedrooms. Tragically he wasn't done. The AP reports he then went into his own bedroom where he shot and killed his wife, Heather and their four year old daughter. He capped off the nightmare by killing himself.
Heather Smith had told a friend earlier in the day she thought her husband might be suicidal. Police claim the family was having "domestic and financial problems." Joel Smith's mother said her son's wife was suffering from an "addiction" and that Joel was artistic and loving. Well, maybe the first, but certainly not the second. At last look, loving people don't use a 12 gauge shotgun to kill their entire family and themselves. Such behavior is reserved for the wildy angry and demented
Finally, on a different track, a number of those mischievous Islamic jokers in Pakistan ran amok during the last few hours. Reuters reports the excuse this time is some of the citizens of a town called, Gujranwala got pissed off at a young man's post on facebook, which they considered blasphemous. Of course a lot of people in Pakistan think everything is blasphemous, so a cynical eye might question their judgement on the issue.
While a crowd of 150 or so demonstrated in front of the local police station another mob attacked the houses of people belonging to the Ahmadi sect of Islam. The Ahmadiyya believe their interpretation of Islam, based on a prophet who decided he was the one true embodiment of what Muhammed wanted Islam to be, is the religion in its purist form. But then, as we all know, every sect of Islam thinks the same thing and they really don't like anyone else, be it a Muslim who isn't one of their own, or the vast numbers of us who fall into that unwashed category known as infidels.
According to a 1984 Pakistani law, members of the sect are such heretics Ahmadis are not considered Muslims, cannot give the traditional greeting to another Muslim, or call their places of worship mosques.
The short of it is the crowd who attacked the homes killed a woman and two of her grandchildren, a seven year old girl and her infant sister. The guy who actually posted the alleged blasphemy is apparently unharmed at this time.
A leader of the Ahmadiyya told Reuters it is the worst attack on their community in four years. Back in 2010, 84 Ahmadi faithful, or according to the majority of Pakistanis, those evil bastards, were killed by mobs of outraged True Muslims. Indeed, the truth, depending on your version of it, is both painful and deadly to those who consider it so much bullshit.
Of course, it is easy for us here in the United States to shake our heads at all the craziness in Pakistan and think--how can those people act like that? What we have to keep in mind is, it is also easy for people all over the globe to look at the weekend's events in Pennsylvania and Maine and ask, how can Americans behave that way?
All I can say is, well, they don't have anything better to do and we've got guns--lots and lots of guns.
Hey, it's the only explanation I have. If you can come up with something better let me know.
sic vita est
7-28-14
Friday, July 25, 2014
A Friday With the Republicans
Well, you have to give them their due--they never stop trying.
According to today's "The Oklahoman," both state Senator, Greg Treat and Representative Randy Grau are "confident" two anti-choice bills passed into law this year will be upheld in state and federal courts.The story, written by Rick M. Green, gives us the gist of the two measures which were signed by Governor Mary Fallin.
Senate bill 1814 mandates that a physician providing abortions must have admitting privileges to a hospital within 30 miles of the location where the procedure is performed.
Green quoted Grau as saying, "If you are performing this type of surgery on an individual, it just makes sense that you would have admitting privileges to a nearby hospital so you could continue the care of the patient."
Right. There isn't a sane person out there who believes that babble. Green noted Amanda Allen, the state legislative counsel for The Center for Reproductive Rights, said such legislation is nothing more than a crude attempt to make it more difficult for a woman to find an abortion provider. She also pointed out, despite Grau and Treat's optimism, similar laws in varying locales have been struck down by various courts because it places an undue burden on a woman who decides to have the procedure.
House bill 2684 would require abortion inducing drugs be administered only in accordance with Food and Drug Administration protocols. Boy that sounds reasonable doesn't it? Green wrote a similar bill was previously declared unconstitutional by the Oklahoma Supreme Court. According to the ruling 96% of abortions are provided by different regimens than the original FDA protocol. In other words the federal protocols are out of date and physicians know it. As Allen says, the law would prevent a doctor from using his or her best judgement during a medical procedure.
Grau responded, "This isn't the wild west. You can't take just any drug and, as a physician, use it however you want to with your patients."
Representative Grau is a lawyer by trade. Senator Treat has a degree in history and political science and since his graduation from college has been a career politician.
So what we have here are two guys, who are as qualified in the medical sciences as I am, trying to regulate the most private aspects of a woman's health and critical medical decisions which should be reserved for people who are actually qualified to make them. Yes, there is nothing quite like the republican version of a government which doesn't intrude into our personal lives. Meanwhile, according to 24/7 Wall Street, Oklahoma ranks 5th in the nation when it comes to per capita gun violence and in a study published in 2011 the state is third in meth use.
One might think these clowns would be more concerned with those issues rather than wasting everyone's time and money on two bills which are doomed to die in a courtroom somewhere. Of course something along those lines would make sense and as we know members of the Grand Old Party haven't come to grips with that particular concept.
A case in point is Texas governor Rick Perry's decision to send 1,000 national guardsmen to help patrol the state's border with Mexico. According to Perry himself, the troops won't have the authority to arrest, or detain anyone, much less shoot the little fuckers, which is what the loons in the tea party really want them to do.
As columnist Clarence Page observed, Mr. Perry's military expedition will cost around $12 million and he has no idea where the money will come from. Unfortunately, for those of us not from the Lone Star State, Texas republican Senator John Cornyn and democratic Representative Henry Cuellar do. According to Page, both men have sponsored bills which will have the federal government reimburse Texas for the cost of the deployment.
Yes, no one loves big government quite like a right wing republican. Oh they'll screech and squeal, but when push comes to shove they're the biggest, greediest, sloppiest, pigs at the trough. How else can you describe them when a senator who is supposed to be a fiscal conservative asks the federal government to shell out $12 mil for what amounts to a cruel and blatant publicity stunt?
While some of these contradictions may be puzzling to the lay person, they are no surprise to those of us who follow the process. These crass sonsofbitches have no shame and they certainly have no sense of honor.
It is simply the nature of the beast who serves the rich, panders to racists, lies to the middle class and poor--and--has led us into every economic catastrophe the nation has suffered through in the last 100 plus years.
No wonder even sewer rats refuse to hang out with them.
7-25-14
According to today's "The Oklahoman," both state Senator, Greg Treat and Representative Randy Grau are "confident" two anti-choice bills passed into law this year will be upheld in state and federal courts.The story, written by Rick M. Green, gives us the gist of the two measures which were signed by Governor Mary Fallin.
Senate bill 1814 mandates that a physician providing abortions must have admitting privileges to a hospital within 30 miles of the location where the procedure is performed.
Green quoted Grau as saying, "If you are performing this type of surgery on an individual, it just makes sense that you would have admitting privileges to a nearby hospital so you could continue the care of the patient."
Right. There isn't a sane person out there who believes that babble. Green noted Amanda Allen, the state legislative counsel for The Center for Reproductive Rights, said such legislation is nothing more than a crude attempt to make it more difficult for a woman to find an abortion provider. She also pointed out, despite Grau and Treat's optimism, similar laws in varying locales have been struck down by various courts because it places an undue burden on a woman who decides to have the procedure.
House bill 2684 would require abortion inducing drugs be administered only in accordance with Food and Drug Administration protocols. Boy that sounds reasonable doesn't it? Green wrote a similar bill was previously declared unconstitutional by the Oklahoma Supreme Court. According to the ruling 96% of abortions are provided by different regimens than the original FDA protocol. In other words the federal protocols are out of date and physicians know it. As Allen says, the law would prevent a doctor from using his or her best judgement during a medical procedure.
Grau responded, "This isn't the wild west. You can't take just any drug and, as a physician, use it however you want to with your patients."
Representative Grau is a lawyer by trade. Senator Treat has a degree in history and political science and since his graduation from college has been a career politician.
So what we have here are two guys, who are as qualified in the medical sciences as I am, trying to regulate the most private aspects of a woman's health and critical medical decisions which should be reserved for people who are actually qualified to make them. Yes, there is nothing quite like the republican version of a government which doesn't intrude into our personal lives. Meanwhile, according to 24/7 Wall Street, Oklahoma ranks 5th in the nation when it comes to per capita gun violence and in a study published in 2011 the state is third in meth use.
One might think these clowns would be more concerned with those issues rather than wasting everyone's time and money on two bills which are doomed to die in a courtroom somewhere. Of course something along those lines would make sense and as we know members of the Grand Old Party haven't come to grips with that particular concept.
A case in point is Texas governor Rick Perry's decision to send 1,000 national guardsmen to help patrol the state's border with Mexico. According to Perry himself, the troops won't have the authority to arrest, or detain anyone, much less shoot the little fuckers, which is what the loons in the tea party really want them to do.
As columnist Clarence Page observed, Mr. Perry's military expedition will cost around $12 million and he has no idea where the money will come from. Unfortunately, for those of us not from the Lone Star State, Texas republican Senator John Cornyn and democratic Representative Henry Cuellar do. According to Page, both men have sponsored bills which will have the federal government reimburse Texas for the cost of the deployment.
Yes, no one loves big government quite like a right wing republican. Oh they'll screech and squeal, but when push comes to shove they're the biggest, greediest, sloppiest, pigs at the trough. How else can you describe them when a senator who is supposed to be a fiscal conservative asks the federal government to shell out $12 mil for what amounts to a cruel and blatant publicity stunt?
While some of these contradictions may be puzzling to the lay person, they are no surprise to those of us who follow the process. These crass sonsofbitches have no shame and they certainly have no sense of honor.
It is simply the nature of the beast who serves the rich, panders to racists, lies to the middle class and poor--and--has led us into every economic catastrophe the nation has suffered through in the last 100 plus years.
No wonder even sewer rats refuse to hang out with them.
7-25-14
Thursday, July 24, 2014
Now is Not the Time to Fly
It would seem the year 2014 is not the time to fly--anywhere.
Last night Air Algerie flight AH-5017 disappeared off radar screens as it traveled from Ouagadougou, Barkina Faso to Algiers. According to NBC it departed at 1:17 AM local time and was due to arrive at 5:10 AM. NBC also reported that the Swiftair operated MD-83 contacted air control 21 minutes after take off and requested to change its route due to heavy rain and storms.
Initial reports say the aircraft was last contacted near Gao, Mali which is in the far south east part of that country. A day long search failed to find any signs of the plane A couple of hours ago Reuters, quoted Mali president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita as saying wreckage was spotted in the northern desert region of his nation. The report remains unconfirmed and in fact, at this moment, there are at least two other claims of wreckage being spotted in completely different areas of the country.
That's right, welcome to 21st century journalism, everyone can go global in a nano second and they do it before confirming anything.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Agency describes the air space over Mali as "potentially hostile." At least one expert on the area thinks none of the armed groups operating in the country have the means to bring down a jet flying at an altitude above 24,000 feet. Yes, yes, we've heard similar opinions lately, although in a different place and at a different height. The Malaysian prime minister makes sure we're well aware of them.
According to reports there were 116 passengers and crew aboard, 51 of them French nationals.
Yesterday, a Trans Asia flight crashed on the Taiwanese island of Penghu. Of the 58 people on board 48 were killed and 10 were injured. In addition five people on the ground were hurt. The turbo prop had made one attempted landing, but aborted and was going around again for a second attempt. Early speculation is weather was a factor in the crash.
Meanwhile a couple of more planes loaded with the bodies of victims in the Malaysia Airlines disaster last week have left Ukraine and are bound for the Netherlands.
Pro Russian separatist forces are still saying they don't have a weapon capable of shooting down the Boeing 777 aircraft. These same master propagandists have spent last 24 hours bragging their anti aircraft crews shot down two Ukrainian fighter jets yesterday. The planes were knocked out of the sky about 25 miles from the MH-17 crash site.
Obviously there are some missile systems in the eastern Ukraine, but not others--you know--the ones which shoot down civilian aircraft. To believe it all we have to do is trust the people around Donetsk who are blasting away at airplanes as if they're hunting ducks somewhere near Monroe, Louisiana.
And finally, as CNN keeps reminding us during this terrible parade of tragedy, Malaysian Airlines flight MH-370 is still missing and no one has a clue as to what, why, or where.
So far in 2014 more people have perished during air travel than the last five years combined.
What does this gruesome number mean? Is it just one of those statistical anomalies which every so often pops up and bites us in the collective ass? Or, as many conspiracy theory quacks speculate, is it the dreaded Illuminati trying to cement their control of the world?
Maybe the first, but certainly not the second. In the end, I tend to go with a third option. Let's face it, as fantastic as our technology has become you still need competent and sane human beings to operate it. Unfortunately, it has been proven time and time again during this century, competency and sanity are two commodities we are are dangerously short of.
sic vita est
7-24-14
Last night Air Algerie flight AH-5017 disappeared off radar screens as it traveled from Ouagadougou, Barkina Faso to Algiers. According to NBC it departed at 1:17 AM local time and was due to arrive at 5:10 AM. NBC also reported that the Swiftair operated MD-83 contacted air control 21 minutes after take off and requested to change its route due to heavy rain and storms.
Initial reports say the aircraft was last contacted near Gao, Mali which is in the far south east part of that country. A day long search failed to find any signs of the plane A couple of hours ago Reuters, quoted Mali president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita as saying wreckage was spotted in the northern desert region of his nation. The report remains unconfirmed and in fact, at this moment, there are at least two other claims of wreckage being spotted in completely different areas of the country.
That's right, welcome to 21st century journalism, everyone can go global in a nano second and they do it before confirming anything.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Agency describes the air space over Mali as "potentially hostile." At least one expert on the area thinks none of the armed groups operating in the country have the means to bring down a jet flying at an altitude above 24,000 feet. Yes, yes, we've heard similar opinions lately, although in a different place and at a different height. The Malaysian prime minister makes sure we're well aware of them.
According to reports there were 116 passengers and crew aboard, 51 of them French nationals.
Yesterday, a Trans Asia flight crashed on the Taiwanese island of Penghu. Of the 58 people on board 48 were killed and 10 were injured. In addition five people on the ground were hurt. The turbo prop had made one attempted landing, but aborted and was going around again for a second attempt. Early speculation is weather was a factor in the crash.
Meanwhile a couple of more planes loaded with the bodies of victims in the Malaysia Airlines disaster last week have left Ukraine and are bound for the Netherlands.
Pro Russian separatist forces are still saying they don't have a weapon capable of shooting down the Boeing 777 aircraft. These same master propagandists have spent last 24 hours bragging their anti aircraft crews shot down two Ukrainian fighter jets yesterday. The planes were knocked out of the sky about 25 miles from the MH-17 crash site.
Obviously there are some missile systems in the eastern Ukraine, but not others--you know--the ones which shoot down civilian aircraft. To believe it all we have to do is trust the people around Donetsk who are blasting away at airplanes as if they're hunting ducks somewhere near Monroe, Louisiana.
And finally, as CNN keeps reminding us during this terrible parade of tragedy, Malaysian Airlines flight MH-370 is still missing and no one has a clue as to what, why, or where.
So far in 2014 more people have perished during air travel than the last five years combined.
What does this gruesome number mean? Is it just one of those statistical anomalies which every so often pops up and bites us in the collective ass? Or, as many conspiracy theory quacks speculate, is it the dreaded Illuminati trying to cement their control of the world?
Maybe the first, but certainly not the second. In the end, I tend to go with a third option. Let's face it, as fantastic as our technology has become you still need competent and sane human beings to operate it. Unfortunately, it has been proven time and time again during this century, competency and sanity are two commodities we are are dangerously short of.
sic vita est
7-24-14
Monday, July 21, 2014
Flight MH-17: A Perfect Crime
The train has pulled away from the siding in eastern Ukraine. That would be the one holding the bodies of most of the victims from Malaysia Airlines flight MH-17. Where it will end up is still a tad fuzzy.
According to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, he cut a deal with pro-Russian separatists for both the return of the bodies, which, in theory, will go to the the Netherlands, and the plane's two black boxes which he says will be turned over to Malaysian authorities.
That is all fine and good, however it remains unclear how the nearly 300 casualties will reach their destination and who might want to get their hands on them before they do. In addition, Razak didn't announce a time table for the recovery of either the cockpit recorders or the dead.
Dutch experts who were allowed to see the bodies stored in refrigerated rail cars complimented the separatist for their work in recovering them. Of course those kind words might be motivated more by the close proximity of heavily armed rebels than actual gratitude. As we've learned tunes sometimes change once people get out of the range of automatic weapons.
Take for example Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott. There were 27 of his countrymen aboard the doomed flight and nearly a third of the passengers were headed down under for a conference on AIDS. He wasn't standing next to some dude with AK-47 when he was quoted by Reuters as saying of the recovery effort, "Its more like a garden clean up than a forensic investigation. This is completely unacceptable."
Dutch PM, Mark Rutte told Reuters, "If, in the coming days, access to the disaster area remains inadequate then all political, economic, and financial options are on the table against those who are directly, or indirectly responsible for that."
His statement likely explains why Reuters is also reporting access to the crash site has magically improved today. Well, that and the separatists have had four days to find and dispose of any damning evidence.
Secretary of State John Kerry is claiming U.S. and Ukrainian intelligence sources have mounting evidence pointing right at the rebels, who have been armed and trained by the Russians. This includes U.S. knowledge of a missile launch at the time of the downing and taped conversations between separatist commanders and people who are possibly Russian officers immediately after the plane slammed into the ground.
The Russian Defense Ministry is claiming it has never supplied rebel forces with the SA-11 BUK anti aircraft missile system thought to have been used to bring the Boeing 777 down. While also denying the separatists were involved in any way, a spokesperson hinted it was actually Ukrainian fighter planes who blew MH-17 out of the sky.
Meanwhile Vlad Putin was indignant over what he called the "exploitation" of the tragedy by people like the Ukrainians and Americans. The United Nations Security Council was supposed to meet today in order to vote on a resolution to condemn the shoot down and demand that those who are responsible be held accountable.The foreign ministers of the European Union are also ready to sit down tomorrow and discuss sanctions against the Russians.
It is safe to say no one in eastern Ukraine gives a rat's ass about U.N. resolutions, or some E.U. sanctions against the Ruskies, which were in the works before the plane was shot down in the first place.
The Dutch can convene a war crimes trial if they want, but the chances of getting their hands on whoever did this ranks right up there with Nigeria's prospects of putting the collar on Abubakar Shekau, the head of Boko Haram.
Let's face it, even if Malaysia gets the recorders untampered with the information revealed won't point to who fired the fatal shot. You know the rebels aren't going to give up any of their people. As for the Russians, hell, they found the remains of Adolf Hitler 69 years ago and still haven't told anyone what they did with them. Does anybody seriously think they'll admit to a single thing regarding MH-17?
Indeed, there might be scads of circumstantial evidence, but there will always be a valid argument every shred of it is tainted, because of the aims of those who gathered the information. And, without a smoking gun, or, in this case, a missile launcher, no one can definitively prove a thing.
Yes, many will rage, but the terrible truth is no one is going down for this foul act.
Tragically, in the end, it is a perfect crime.
7-21-14
According to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, he cut a deal with pro-Russian separatists for both the return of the bodies, which, in theory, will go to the the Netherlands, and the plane's two black boxes which he says will be turned over to Malaysian authorities.
That is all fine and good, however it remains unclear how the nearly 300 casualties will reach their destination and who might want to get their hands on them before they do. In addition, Razak didn't announce a time table for the recovery of either the cockpit recorders or the dead.
Dutch experts who were allowed to see the bodies stored in refrigerated rail cars complimented the separatist for their work in recovering them. Of course those kind words might be motivated more by the close proximity of heavily armed rebels than actual gratitude. As we've learned tunes sometimes change once people get out of the range of automatic weapons.
Take for example Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott. There were 27 of his countrymen aboard the doomed flight and nearly a third of the passengers were headed down under for a conference on AIDS. He wasn't standing next to some dude with AK-47 when he was quoted by Reuters as saying of the recovery effort, "Its more like a garden clean up than a forensic investigation. This is completely unacceptable."
Dutch PM, Mark Rutte told Reuters, "If, in the coming days, access to the disaster area remains inadequate then all political, economic, and financial options are on the table against those who are directly, or indirectly responsible for that."
His statement likely explains why Reuters is also reporting access to the crash site has magically improved today. Well, that and the separatists have had four days to find and dispose of any damning evidence.
Secretary of State John Kerry is claiming U.S. and Ukrainian intelligence sources have mounting evidence pointing right at the rebels, who have been armed and trained by the Russians. This includes U.S. knowledge of a missile launch at the time of the downing and taped conversations between separatist commanders and people who are possibly Russian officers immediately after the plane slammed into the ground.
The Russian Defense Ministry is claiming it has never supplied rebel forces with the SA-11 BUK anti aircraft missile system thought to have been used to bring the Boeing 777 down. While also denying the separatists were involved in any way, a spokesperson hinted it was actually Ukrainian fighter planes who blew MH-17 out of the sky.
Meanwhile Vlad Putin was indignant over what he called the "exploitation" of the tragedy by people like the Ukrainians and Americans. The United Nations Security Council was supposed to meet today in order to vote on a resolution to condemn the shoot down and demand that those who are responsible be held accountable.The foreign ministers of the European Union are also ready to sit down tomorrow and discuss sanctions against the Russians.
It is safe to say no one in eastern Ukraine gives a rat's ass about U.N. resolutions, or some E.U. sanctions against the Ruskies, which were in the works before the plane was shot down in the first place.
The Dutch can convene a war crimes trial if they want, but the chances of getting their hands on whoever did this ranks right up there with Nigeria's prospects of putting the collar on Abubakar Shekau, the head of Boko Haram.
Let's face it, even if Malaysia gets the recorders untampered with the information revealed won't point to who fired the fatal shot. You know the rebels aren't going to give up any of their people. As for the Russians, hell, they found the remains of Adolf Hitler 69 years ago and still haven't told anyone what they did with them. Does anybody seriously think they'll admit to a single thing regarding MH-17?
Indeed, there might be scads of circumstantial evidence, but there will always be a valid argument every shred of it is tainted, because of the aims of those who gathered the information. And, without a smoking gun, or, in this case, a missile launcher, no one can definitively prove a thing.
Yes, many will rage, but the terrible truth is no one is going down for this foul act.
Tragically, in the end, it is a perfect crime.
7-21-14
Friday, July 18, 2014
Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-17
Questions are being asked and denials, not to mention excuses, are being issued left and right concerning the latest disaster to hit Malaysia Airlines.
The one thing everyone seems to agree on is that somebody shot the Boeing 777 down. The Russians are blaming the Ukrainians and the Ukrainians are blaming both the separatists who control much of eastern Ukraine and their Russian sponsors.
The rebel's main argument is they don't have the weaponry to bring down a plane flying at 33,000 feet. It would seem to be a reasonable assertion. The only problem with it is Flight MH-17 was downed in an area where they're running the show and they've been busily shooting at Ukrainian aircraft for the past few weeks. The truth is it's highly doubtful either side will come clean in this nightmare, so the world will be stuck with yet another mystery about who and why.
Perhaps the most important question to be asked, besides who did it, is why was a Malaysia Airlines jumbo jet loaded with 298 souls flying over a war zone to begin with? Was the management of the company so concerned with added fuel costs and extended flying times they put their passengers and aircraft at risk? Reuters quoted the Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib Razak as saying, "The International Air Transportation Association has stated that the air space the aircraft was traversing was not subject to restrictions."
That little song and dance will certainly be of comfort to the families of the victims. Especially since Korean Air, Asiana, Quantas, Cathay Pacific, and Pakistan International all stopped flying over the same air space months ago out of concerns something like this might happen.
Australian air safety expert, Geoff Dell put it this way when told of jet's route, "I find it astonishing. I'm absolutely flabbergasted." Of course not everyone had taken his assessment of the situation to heart, at least not until the news broke yesterday. Air India, Thai Airways, Vietnam Airlines, Air China, and China Eastern Airways were all flying similar routes. Now they are assuring everyone they will be avoiding the area in the forseeable future.
Good choice. Customer relations tend to suffer when your planes get shot down by rogue anti aircraft crews because they're too stupid to know the difference between military troop transports and clearly marked passenger jets.
The flight originated in Amsterdam and carried 192 Dutch passengers, many of them AIDS researchers headed to Australia for a conference on the disease. One of the Dutch travelers held a dual American citizenship There were 44 Malaysians, not counting the crew of 19 all whom were Malaysian, 17 Australians, and 12 Indonesians. There were also passengers from the U.K. Canada, Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand. It is reported there were 80 children aboard.
Over on YouTube the space cadets are already posting conspiracy theories. One claims the United States brought the plane down--a couple say the aircraft was actually the 777 designated as Flight MH-370 which went missing back in March and has never been found. Yes, a lot of people use drugs, but only a few can handle them.
This morning some of the talking heads on CNN were wondering whether Malaysia Airlines could survive this second loss, even though it is subsidized by the government. The real questions here are should they and why would any of us want them to.
It wasn't their fault someone on MH-370 went off the deep end, but the company mis-handled the aftermath so badly you had to wonder if the team running the show was named, Moe, Larry, and Curly. Now this--a deliberate management decision to route a flight directly over an active war zone.
Indeed, given what has transpired since March it might be best for everyone if Malaysia Airlines went the way of TWA, Pan American, and countless other outfits who have collapsed because of their own incompetence.
It is, after all, the very essence of natural selection. Take care of business, or end up like the Triceratops.
For all you lawyers out there, the line will begin forming on the left tomorrow morning. And for God's sake, at least try to act dignified.
sic vita est
7-18-14
The one thing everyone seems to agree on is that somebody shot the Boeing 777 down. The Russians are blaming the Ukrainians and the Ukrainians are blaming both the separatists who control much of eastern Ukraine and their Russian sponsors.
The rebel's main argument is they don't have the weaponry to bring down a plane flying at 33,000 feet. It would seem to be a reasonable assertion. The only problem with it is Flight MH-17 was downed in an area where they're running the show and they've been busily shooting at Ukrainian aircraft for the past few weeks. The truth is it's highly doubtful either side will come clean in this nightmare, so the world will be stuck with yet another mystery about who and why.
Perhaps the most important question to be asked, besides who did it, is why was a Malaysia Airlines jumbo jet loaded with 298 souls flying over a war zone to begin with? Was the management of the company so concerned with added fuel costs and extended flying times they put their passengers and aircraft at risk? Reuters quoted the Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib Razak as saying, "The International Air Transportation Association has stated that the air space the aircraft was traversing was not subject to restrictions."
That little song and dance will certainly be of comfort to the families of the victims. Especially since Korean Air, Asiana, Quantas, Cathay Pacific, and Pakistan International all stopped flying over the same air space months ago out of concerns something like this might happen.
Australian air safety expert, Geoff Dell put it this way when told of jet's route, "I find it astonishing. I'm absolutely flabbergasted." Of course not everyone had taken his assessment of the situation to heart, at least not until the news broke yesterday. Air India, Thai Airways, Vietnam Airlines, Air China, and China Eastern Airways were all flying similar routes. Now they are assuring everyone they will be avoiding the area in the forseeable future.
Good choice. Customer relations tend to suffer when your planes get shot down by rogue anti aircraft crews because they're too stupid to know the difference between military troop transports and clearly marked passenger jets.
The flight originated in Amsterdam and carried 192 Dutch passengers, many of them AIDS researchers headed to Australia for a conference on the disease. One of the Dutch travelers held a dual American citizenship There were 44 Malaysians, not counting the crew of 19 all whom were Malaysian, 17 Australians, and 12 Indonesians. There were also passengers from the U.K. Canada, Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand. It is reported there were 80 children aboard.
Over on YouTube the space cadets are already posting conspiracy theories. One claims the United States brought the plane down--a couple say the aircraft was actually the 777 designated as Flight MH-370 which went missing back in March and has never been found. Yes, a lot of people use drugs, but only a few can handle them.
This morning some of the talking heads on CNN were wondering whether Malaysia Airlines could survive this second loss, even though it is subsidized by the government. The real questions here are should they and why would any of us want them to.
It wasn't their fault someone on MH-370 went off the deep end, but the company mis-handled the aftermath so badly you had to wonder if the team running the show was named, Moe, Larry, and Curly. Now this--a deliberate management decision to route a flight directly over an active war zone.
Indeed, given what has transpired since March it might be best for everyone if Malaysia Airlines went the way of TWA, Pan American, and countless other outfits who have collapsed because of their own incompetence.
It is, after all, the very essence of natural selection. Take care of business, or end up like the Triceratops.
For all you lawyers out there, the line will begin forming on the left tomorrow morning. And for God's sake, at least try to act dignified.
sic vita est
7-18-14
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Polls in Iowa and New Hampshire: Good-bye Mr. Biden, Hello Undecided
The year 2016 seems distant to many, but for those with their eyes on the big white house on Pennsylvania Ave. it is right around the corner. Just like potential candidates, 2016 seems like it is only a heart beat away to the people who cover the most exalted of all blood sports, American presidential campaigns. Yes, this year's November vote is only a little more than three months off and interest is keen, especially when it comes to the next make up of the senate. The difference being, covering mid term elections is rather like sitting around watching batting practice, compared to a presidential election which is akin to witnessing a seven game world series drama.
Everyone loves to focus on Iowa and New Hampshire because they are the first live fire tests for potential candidates. That's why NBC and the Marist people just published a poll of voters in those two states.
The results aren't really a surprise, especially on the democratic side. In Iowa 89% of democrats view Hillary Rodham Clinton favorably and in New Hampshire 94% of them do. If you are a fan of Jumping Joe Biden you are in for a long night in both places. When pitted against each other, Iowa democrats chose Clinton over Biden 70% to 20%. In New Hampshire it actually got worse for the vice president--Mrs. Clinton blew past him by a 74% to 18% margin.
The truth is if you were going to donate money to the Biden presidential campaign you might want to rethink your investment and go with something that has better odds, like the Power Ball Lottery. It is safe to say the democratic nomination is sitting firmly in Mrs. Clinton's lap. All she has to do at this point is say she wants it.
For the GOP things are far more muddled. NBC and Marist threw ten names at republican voters and the big winner in both states was a guy named, Undecided. In Iowa he pulled in 20% of those asked. His closest competitors were Jeb Bush and Rand Paul both with 12%. New Jersey governor, Chris Christie, who will be visiting Iowa shortly, was mired in 5th place with 8%. Currently he is running four points behind Paul Ryan, one behind Rick Santorum, and one point ahead of Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Rick Perry.
In New Hampshire the Undecided campaign is in full swing. He leads Rand Paul 22% to 14%. Governor Christie is playing better in the Granite State, coming in at 13% which is three points better than Jeb Bush and four points ahead of Ted Cruz.
There are few more things that can be gleaned from the available figures. One is Louisiana governor, Bobby Jindal should plan on staying in Baton Rouge. He was sitting at 4% in New Hampshire and a mere 1% in Iowa. A second is, outside of Texas, Ted Cruz's smarmy smile and monumental ego don't exactly fire up the republican base. In Iowa he was at 7% and his New Hampshire number was 9%. Those are hardly inspiring figures.
The third thing we learned is while Mrs. Clinton won't have to spend a dime during the primary season, she'll need a lot of them when it comes to the general election, at least in Iowa and New Hampshire. When all the potential voters were asked about specific republicans in a race against the former Secretary of State things got tight. In Iowa she was in a dead heat against Rand Paul and her leads against Christie and Bush were within the four and a half point margin of error. The only persons she had comfortable leads on were Cruz, and Wisconsin governor Scott Walker.
In New Hampshire Paul was within three points of her and she led Christie, Bush, and Rubio by only five points.
For Hillary Clinton the downsides are, among swing voters, there could be a lingering weariness of the Clinton name and Barack Obama certainly isn't doing her any favors. In fact the only time the party of an outgoing president has held on to the white house in recent history is when George H.W. Bush followed Ronald Reagan into the oval office. However, on the upside, especially among democrats, huge numbers will tell you, if he could run, they'd vote for ol' Wild Bill in a nano second--they are looking at her and figuring they're a getting, what we call on the southern plains, a two-fer.
There will be a lot more polls between now and 2016 so numbers will shift dramatically on the GOP side. If we've learned anything lately its when you put republicans in a primary debate many of them will immediately prove themselves to be abject fools. That and there is a huge block of tea party cranks who would rather fall on their swords than vote for a GOP candidate they decide is impure.
As they say, stay tuned. We're just getting warmed up.
7-17-14
Everyone loves to focus on Iowa and New Hampshire because they are the first live fire tests for potential candidates. That's why NBC and the Marist people just published a poll of voters in those two states.
The results aren't really a surprise, especially on the democratic side. In Iowa 89% of democrats view Hillary Rodham Clinton favorably and in New Hampshire 94% of them do. If you are a fan of Jumping Joe Biden you are in for a long night in both places. When pitted against each other, Iowa democrats chose Clinton over Biden 70% to 20%. In New Hampshire it actually got worse for the vice president--Mrs. Clinton blew past him by a 74% to 18% margin.
The truth is if you were going to donate money to the Biden presidential campaign you might want to rethink your investment and go with something that has better odds, like the Power Ball Lottery. It is safe to say the democratic nomination is sitting firmly in Mrs. Clinton's lap. All she has to do at this point is say she wants it.
For the GOP things are far more muddled. NBC and Marist threw ten names at republican voters and the big winner in both states was a guy named, Undecided. In Iowa he pulled in 20% of those asked. His closest competitors were Jeb Bush and Rand Paul both with 12%. New Jersey governor, Chris Christie, who will be visiting Iowa shortly, was mired in 5th place with 8%. Currently he is running four points behind Paul Ryan, one behind Rick Santorum, and one point ahead of Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Rick Perry.
In New Hampshire the Undecided campaign is in full swing. He leads Rand Paul 22% to 14%. Governor Christie is playing better in the Granite State, coming in at 13% which is three points better than Jeb Bush and four points ahead of Ted Cruz.
There are few more things that can be gleaned from the available figures. One is Louisiana governor, Bobby Jindal should plan on staying in Baton Rouge. He was sitting at 4% in New Hampshire and a mere 1% in Iowa. A second is, outside of Texas, Ted Cruz's smarmy smile and monumental ego don't exactly fire up the republican base. In Iowa he was at 7% and his New Hampshire number was 9%. Those are hardly inspiring figures.
The third thing we learned is while Mrs. Clinton won't have to spend a dime during the primary season, she'll need a lot of them when it comes to the general election, at least in Iowa and New Hampshire. When all the potential voters were asked about specific republicans in a race against the former Secretary of State things got tight. In Iowa she was in a dead heat against Rand Paul and her leads against Christie and Bush were within the four and a half point margin of error. The only persons she had comfortable leads on were Cruz, and Wisconsin governor Scott Walker.
In New Hampshire Paul was within three points of her and she led Christie, Bush, and Rubio by only five points.
For Hillary Clinton the downsides are, among swing voters, there could be a lingering weariness of the Clinton name and Barack Obama certainly isn't doing her any favors. In fact the only time the party of an outgoing president has held on to the white house in recent history is when George H.W. Bush followed Ronald Reagan into the oval office. However, on the upside, especially among democrats, huge numbers will tell you, if he could run, they'd vote for ol' Wild Bill in a nano second--they are looking at her and figuring they're a getting, what we call on the southern plains, a two-fer.
There will be a lot more polls between now and 2016 so numbers will shift dramatically on the GOP side. If we've learned anything lately its when you put republicans in a primary debate many of them will immediately prove themselves to be abject fools. That and there is a huge block of tea party cranks who would rather fall on their swords than vote for a GOP candidate they decide is impure.
As they say, stay tuned. We're just getting warmed up.
7-17-14
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