29 June 2015

Update no.706

Update from the Heartland
No.706
22.6.15 – 28.6.15
To all,

            On Friday, 26.June.2015, President Obama eulogized those citizens who lost their earthly lives last week, at Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina [17.6.2015, 705].  His speech lasted less than 30 minutes, but he proved to be in rare form, even for him.  His pace, his rhetorical structure, his message were worthy of the best of Sir Winston Churchill.  It was a masterful speech, expertly delivered.  He had the confidence to sing the first verse of “Amazing Grace,” the words evoke history and the long struggle for equal rights for all citizens . . . regardless of the social factors.  I continue to be struck by the enormous and dramatic contrast between the aftermath of Charleston and what happened after Baltimore, Ferguson, New York City, et al.  There are lessons in this tragedy for all of us.

            The follow-up news items:
-- The original form of the trade authorization bill (H.R. 1314) [704] was suspended.  The Senate commandeered H.R. 2146 to pass their amended version of the trade negotiation authorization bill.  The House approved the Senate version.  The bill was submitted to the President on the 24th; he is expected to sign it into law.  The bill passed by Congress is titled: Defending Public Safety Employees' Retirement Act [PL 114-xxx; H.R.2146; Senate: 60-38-0-2(0); House: 218-208-0-8(1); 129 Stat. xxx].  Title I of H.R. 2146 is the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015 [129 Stat. xxx].  Since the issue of congressional oversight of future trade agreements has been a topic of discussion in this forum, I must illuminate Title I, §104, which provides a set of oversight requirements on the Executive Branch.  The bill gives the President “fast track” authority to negotiate trade agreements and complete the 12-nation trade deal with countries around the Pacific Ocean, known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership.  The bill also provides for any trade deals to be submitted to Congress for an up-or-down vote without amendments.
-- The U.S. Supreme Court rendered their decision in the case of King v. Burwell [576 U.S. ___ (2015); no. 14-114], which preserves a centerpiece of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) [PL 111-148; 124 Stat. 119; 23.3.2010] [432].  The ruling allows federal subsidies for health-insurance purchases by lower-income Americans across the country.  The ruling marks the second time PPACA has been affirmed by the Supremes – National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius [566 U.S. ___ (2012); 28.6.2012] [554].  I doubt this latest SCOTUS ruling will end congressional and state challenges to the health care law.
-- The Supreme Court also released its decision in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges [576 U.S. ___ (2015); no. 14-556], which established non-heterosexual partners have a constitutional right to marry, sweeping away state bans on gay unions and extending marriage equality nationwide.  The ruling reversed a 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in a number of cases in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee.  I would like to think we can move on from here, but based on the bellicose and defiant rhetoric of some of the Republican presidential candidates, I suspect we are still a distance away from equal rights for all citizens.
            I will reserve my opinion comments until I complete my reading of the above decisions.  However, since some have renewed their objection to equal marriage rights on religious grounds, I will simply say, if any citizen does not agree with same gender marriage, then do not marry someone of the same gender.  The challenge for all of us will be proper, or acceptable, conduct in the public domain.

            The incessant trickle of stolen, highly classified documents from WikiLeaks, Snowden, Greenwald, et al, stirred up France this week to condemn the big, bad, nasty, United States.  A friend, colleague and contributor added his opinion:
“Way to go America, piss off your friends (or ex-friends).  Geez! This is starting to get really old, when not only our geo-friends cannot trust us, but We the People surely cannot trust BIG GOV and the agencies like NSA (to name just one of way too many).  What a gross abuse of both power, privilege and our civil liberties.  Not to mention will France accept overtures from a mega combined Russia and China as our U.S. current and world peg of our Petrodollar burn up?   If you thought $5/gallon milk was bad prepare for $30/gallon milk, and the zombies who all are tatted-up and pierced, lurking outside your bedroom windows at night. Not only thank the current corrupted and cancerous leaders we have, but it goes back to many before Obama & cartel/cabal.
“For those with passports like me, it may soon be the time to exercise your only capacity to leave, and find some nice little country, even Costa Rica, to lay low in, and try to survive as the American Housewives and too many other American zombies, are destroying each other in riots and more.  Of course before that, prepare for CNN to prep you on political correctness, causing you to down your Confederate Flag, burn your Bible, and announce your hatred of the past, and your bullying behavior of another.
“France, Germany, and our other friends, might get close to dumping U.S.A. soon, and then tell me, who in the world will we actually have as our friends?  Ourselves!”
 . . . to which I responded:
            In 1929, then SecState Henry Stimson said, “Gentlemen do not read each other’s mail.” as he rationalized zeroing funding for the Black Chamber, the State Dept's signals intelligence program, and we were left virtually blind during the prelude to WW2.  Stimson changed his tune 180 degrees, when he became SecWar in 1940.  I understand the general and inherent resistance to intelligence operations, but frankly I would be truly shocked if we did not try to gather all we can about friend and foe.  This is a prime example of Snowden's treason and the extraordinary damage done to our national security by his betrayal.  
 . . . and he added:
“You might be interested in this article, it might be some good info for your Update.”
[The article proffered:]
“Why the U.S.-France Spying Scandal Will Quickly Blow Over”
by Simon Shuster / Berlin
Time
Published: June 24, 2015
 . . . and responded with the following comment:
“Thank you for your angle/input/opinion.  Please feel free to include my response or any others, to your Update.
“I suppose a veiled matrix of operations and spying occurs in many ways we cannot imagine, not limited to nation-states but as you know, complex and elaborate corporate espionage. 
“Since 9/11 America, in my opinion, has taken a dangerous course on the slippery slope of protecting our basic civil liberties and expectations of privacy, sold as the War on Terrorism.  I don't doubt we have real and present threats escalating with rabid runaway Islamic fascism, not to mention other threats abroad and internal.  If one signals gathering (data collection/warehousing/mining) was able to avoid one dirty bomb from being used in an America city (or for that matter, in our friends cities like France or Germany), then I might be that one to say "maybe it was all worth spying on the collective". 
“The problem, I believe much of this surveillance state combined with what I believe has been a deliberate fueling the fires for Islamofascism, whether through our own direct actions (Iraq War) to lack of action (like making sure something we broke was fixed), is all part of some sinister endgame, perhaps to achieve the next set of objectives.
“The risk of us spying on France is to cause an outcry there from the populace, as Greece is about to default, and many both geopolitical and geo-economic changes (if not some Black Swans) could be on the horizon.  I find this all too convenient and suspicions.”

            News from the economic front:
-- Greece temporarily closed banks and their stock exchange for the next week to deal with rapidly dwindling cash reserves and the likely default by the Greek government on their debt.  Default now appears inevitable on Tuesday, when the government will probably fail to make a US$1.3B debt payment to its creditors.  The Greek default may well lead to expulsion of Greece from the European Union, which in turn might push the socialist government farther down the road to Russia.  The consequences to NATO and the world economies are difficult to predict.  Buckle up!  This is going to be a rough ride.

            Comments and contributions from Update no.705:
As I read your opening paragraph questioning how Dylann Roof was raised I am immediately reminded of a quote I heard many years ago, the profundity of which resonates again with me in this circumstance.

“I fear there will be many more Dylann Roofs.”
[FYI NOTE: The quote comes from a 1941 play – Der aufhaltsame Aufstieg des Arturo Ui (The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui) – by German playwright Eugen Berthold Friedrich ‘Bertolt’ Brecht.  The play is a satirical allegory of the rise of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist movement in Germany.  Brecht left Germany in 1933 and did not return to Germany until 1947; he lived in East Berlin, until his passing in 1958.]
My response:
            Excellent choice.  Brecht was an interesting character.  His words in that play certainly resonate with me as well.  Brecht expresses my opinion in far more carnal terms.  I also share your fear.
 . . . a follow-up comment:
“I first encountered the quote when viewing Cross of Iron, Sam Peckinpah’s WWII Masterpiece from 1977.  The words struck me then and have resonated with me since.”
 . . . my follow-up response:
            I’ve not seen the movie, as I recall.  I’ll have to look it up on Netflix.

            Another contribution:
“You are spot on about this clown Gosnell.  He previously has made intemperate racial comments from the bench and has done other questionable actions in relations to other judges.  The South Carolina Supreme Court is making noises about removing him from the Roof case.
The fact that he is still on the bench shows a lot about South Carolina.
“Also the imbroglio about the flag has me angry.  They lowered the state of South Carolina and national flags to half-mast, but the confederate battle flag, which is nearby on a monument remained at full staff.  The hapless governor said that she had no power to lower it- a real profile in courage. This has raised anew the issue of flying that flag on public property, as well.   While the proponents of the flag prattle on about ‘honoring their ancestors’- others see it as a symbol of treason and racial oppression.   The flag went into abeyance after the end of the Civil War- but the KKK brought it back.  For those who live or have lived in the South, that flag is a symbol of white supremacy and overlording over blacks (and others).  Remember that at the outset of the Civil War, the South explicitly said that the war was over slavery and maintaining the superiority of whites over blacks.  That flag is one of intimidation and racial discrimination- I don’t buy that nonsense about ‘honoring those who fought.’  I am in Austria now, and don’t see the Haakenkreutz (Nazi swastika) flag flying here or in Germany by those whose ancestors fought in WWII- even though they may have not been members of the Nazi party.”
My reply:
            Indeed.  My source as well was the South Carolina Supreme Court’s finding and conclusion in their reprimand of Gosnell.  Guys like Gosnell must think no one is listening.  I also agree with your observation regarding Gosnell remaining as a practicing judge and a reflection of the state.
            As a student of history, I seek and advocate for preserving our history – good, bad and ugly.  Yes, the Stars & Bars was the flag and battle ensign of the Confederate States of America – that is history – and should not be forgotten or pushed to the rubbish bin.  However, since the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan in 1915, that particular flag has become a far more overriding symbol, having been commandeered by segregationists, racists, white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and many other brands of xenophobes in our society.  It no longer represents the CSA; it now stands for the oppression of our citizens.  The claim of history for the display of CSA flag no longer rings true; the flag must be removed from public property and relegated to appropriate museums.

            Another contribution:
“Magistrate Gosnell has been removed from the case by the State supreme court.”
My reply:
Kevin,
            Hadn’t heard that.  Thx for the news update.  Good riddance.

            A different contribution:
“A little reality on the Greek situation:

“Europe wants Greece to suffer: The truth about the never-ending financial crisis & the cult of extreme austerity – Greece's financial nightmare has lasted five years now. There's no sign of real relief—for a very specific reason”
by David Dayen
salon.com
Published: Tuesday, JUN 23, 2015 04:57 AM CDT
My response:
            Thank you for the article.  I had not read that before.
            Dayen laments the ‘punishment’ exacted by Greece’s creditors, and rightly so.  The people who have, are and will pay the terrible price for the extravagance of days gone by are not the ones who put Greece into its current predicament.  I certainly agree with his assessment of the penalty on the Greek people in the main and in general.  However, like most folks, he missed the root cause and thus the necessary fixative changes.
            One sentence in Dayen’s article stands out above all the others, to me.  “Three governments ago, Greece rang up a series of debts that they have no practical ability to pay back.”  Some group of someones benefited from all that money.  If the creditors want their money back, go after the beneficiaries.  Allowing a government employee to ‘retire’ at 45yo on a very generous lifetime pension hardly seems realistic.  Anyway, easy to say, nearly impossible to accomplish, just a reflection of frustration the perpetrators are getting away with their crimes.
            Dayen’s last two sentences set the peg in the ground.  “The entire continent of Europe is stuck in a box of their own making, led by vain economic illiterates who think heaping more pain on the public is the path to glory. Without new thinking, I’ll be writing this same column in another six months, in perpetuity.”  In this, he is spot on.  New thinking is indeed required.  The ’Troika’ could seek prosecution of the perpetrators, demand societal corrections like require working age people take significant ‘pension’ reductions and return to work, and at least for a time, artificially create jobs to at least stabilize the economy and rebuild confidence for investors to create real jobs for the future.  Writing off the Greek debt that three-governments-ago signed up to, is not the answer.

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap                        :-)

22 June 2015

Update no.705

Update from the Heartland
No.705
15.6.15 – 21.6.15
To all,

Yet another tragedy played out in Charleston, South Carolina.  The details of the crime and the apprehension of the perpetrator have been well covered.  I can add nothing.  However, I do have one consuming observation.  Angry young men like Dylann Roof are not born with hatred or animosity toward innocent people.  He was taught to hate.  The Press has focused considerable attention on his racism.  While it is important to see what he has become, I am far more interested in the parents who created this mad man.  The parents (or whomever raised Dylann) should be subjected to intense scrutiny, and I strongly suspect we will find the genesis of Dylann’s hatred.  The only explanation for the reticence to the Press to dig into the contribution of the parents may well be similar logic as that proffered by Charleston County Chief Magistrate James B. ‘Skip’ Gosnell, Jr., at Dylann’s bail hearing, who proclaimed, “We have victims — nine of them.  But we also have victims on the other side.  There are victims on this young man’s side of the family.  Really!?!  The urge to let loose a string of profanity is taxing my sense of restraint and propriety to its bloody limit.  Gosnell went on to say, “Nobody would have ever thrown them [presumably, Dylann’s parents and family] into the whirlwind of events that they are being thrown into.  We must find it in our heart at some point in time not only to help those that are victims but to also help his family as well.”  NO!  You are flat-ass wrong.  I would bet good money the real culprits in this tragedy are in fact the parents.  They created this boy, and if they did not directly teach him the racial hatred that consumed him, they sure as hell produced the environment in his head that made him so easily susceptible to racial animosity in the community around him.  If he had been taught from birth to respect all human beings, regardless of their genetic skin pigmentation, he would not have become who he is today.  The parents should be put on trial for crimes against society.
            I am angry, very angry, which makes my praise for the families and parishioners of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Charleston, South Carolina, all the greater.  They are far better people than me.  I can only aspire to be a fraction of the goodness they have presented to all of us.  They have handled themselves well and the often-oppressive insistence of the Press far beyond my threshold of tolerance.  To them I say, I mourn with you in your hour of such horrific loss.
            Lastly, since I am already well into a rant, I emphatically and publicly condemn Magistrate Gosnell for his idiocy and ignorance.  Beyond the foolishness noted above, on 6.November.2003, in a bond reduction hearing for a defendant with dark skin pigmentation, he said, and I quote exactly, “There are four kinds of people in this world: black people, white people, red necks, and niggers.”  I wrote the word because he said it, and it deserves impact.  The Supreme Court of South Carolina publicly reprimanded Gosnell [24.June.2005] for that ridiculous statement in court.   Gosnell is most likely a product of his childhood teachings, as well.  I say to Gosnell, No, Judge, you are as wrong as wrong can be.  There are only human beings.  We learn and attach social factors that govern or drive our associations and attitudes, but none of those social factors – not a one – alter our status as human beings and the right to the dignity and respect our common humanity deserves.

News from the economic front:
--The Federal Reserve indicated its benchmark interest rate near zero “remains appropriate.”   The Fed also signaled it is likely to raise interest rates in the months ahead now that signs of an economic slowdown earlier in the year are diminishing, but the course of rate increases could be less steep than officials anticipated before.

London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (LIBOR) Debacle [552]:
-- Well, well, well!  We see another benefit of public trial.
“Libor trial: Hayes handed over a UBS 'instruction manual' on rigging, prosecution says – Serious Fraud Office received the bank's internal guide on submitting Libor”
by Marion Dakers and agencies
The Telegraph [of London]
Published: 4:32 PM BST 18 Jun 2015
The first trader to stand trial in the Libor-rigging scandal – Thomas ‘Tom’ Hayes, 35, a former trader for Swiss bank UBS – handed over the bank’s “Guide to Publishing Libor Rates” to the Serious Fraud Office, which Hayes claims was “an instruction manual on fixing Libor.”  If true and substantiated in court, the revelation may lead deeper into the bank’s management hierarchy.  An interesting twist, if I may say so.
-- So we don’t lose focus . . . the infamous 16, involved, international banks are:
  • ·      Barclays [UK] – US$454M fine [550, 701]; Singapore sanctions [600]; three charged {Johnson, Mathew, Contogoulas} [636]
  • ·      Bank of America [U.S.] – Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      BTMU [Japan] – Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Citigroup [U.S.] – Singapore sanctions [600] [701]
  • ·      Credit Suisse [Switzerland] – Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Deutsche Bank [Germany] US$654M LIBOR profit [578]; set aside €500M (US$641M) for LIBOR liability [589]; Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Lloyds TSB [UK] – fined US$370M [659]
  • ·      HSBC [UK] – Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      HBOS [UK]
  • ·      JPMorgan Chase [U.S.] – Singapore sanctions [600][701]
  • ·      Norinchuckin [Japan]
  • ·      Rabobank [Netherlands] – fined €774M (£663M, US$1.06B); CEO resigned; 30 others censured [620]; three charged {Robson, Thompson, Motomura} [631]
  • ·      RBC [Canada]
  • ·      RBS [UK] – £390M (US$612.6M) in fines, 21 employees involved [582, 701]; Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      UBS [Switzerland] – US$1.5B fine, two charged {Hayes, Darin} [575, 701]; Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      West LB [Germany]

Added to the list by the Monetary Authority of Singapore [600]:
  • ·      ING [Netherlands] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      BNP Paribas [France] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Crédit Agricole [France] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      DBS [Singapore] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation [Singapore] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Standard Chartered [UK] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      United Overseas Bank [Singapore] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. [Australia] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Macquarie [Australia] Singapore sanctions [600]
  • ·      Commerzbank [Germany] Singapore sanctions [600]

Others involved:
  • ·      R.P. Martin Holdings Ltd. [UK] – two charged {Farr, Gilmour} [583]
  • ·      ICAP [UK] fined US$87M + three executives charged {Read, Wilkinson, Goodman} [615]
  • I trust none of us will lose sight of what these banks have done.  Lest we forget!

Continuation from Update no.702:
“I believe much of what we see in our world with the main players is 'resource wars' for all finite/precious resources with the focus most likely on energy sources.  Tapping asteroids or the moon, now that will be interesting to apply for a fracking job on another planet.
“Interesting views we have on standing up to Russia/PRC, or the other angle that they are threatened by perceived USA/NATO expansion and hegemony.”
My reply:
            Re: resource wars.  Such motivation will only get worse. To my knowledge, Russia has vast resources, many as yet untapped.  I do not think Russia seeks resources in Ukraine.
            USA/NATO hegemony . . . really?  Eastern Europe seeks affiliation with NATO for freedom from the oppression of Russia.  I’m not aware of any efforts to impose our values on Eastern Europe.  The West is NOT a threat to Russia.  The only question is, how long and much we will tolerate Russia’s intimidation and imposition of her neighbors?

Comments and contributions from Update no.704:
Comment to the Blog:
“I tire of the discussion of what Muslims ‘should’ be and do based entirely on interested parties' analysis of their professed religion. We do not do that to Christians here in the U.S., nor do we assume that all of our citizens are Christians. Also, I see no reason to believe that time brings maturity to a religion. The strongest example of a religion acting in international affairs is Israel. Their Judaism is the parent to both Christianity and Islam, and they as a nation are insane. They fight all their neighbors all the time and drain resources from the co-dependent United States without remorse.
“The contents of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade bill at the center of the current debate are a secret even from Congress, which is nevertheless expected to vote on it. That creates a great deal of stress. The TPP is being promoted by President Obama and by some of the Republicans. The opposition comes from progressives and from Democrats and Republicans who want to know what they are passing or blocking. Given that trade agreements are already in place and working well with most of the nations concerned, few believe that the TPP is a sincere effort to improve international trade.
“We shall disagree on the intentions of Greece. At this point, the European Union has no future without a stronger effort at real unity by the more prosperous nations. (Let us remember that the EU could control the bankers if it would.) In its current state, the EU economic authority is merely another way for the wealthy to exploit everyone else. That has become obvious, and a rebellion has been brewing. I find it curious that you support big banks in that case while seeing them very differently in such instances as LIBOR and the 2008 damage to the U.S. economy. In some cases, these are the same entities. Why would they be doing honest business with Greece while crashing the U.S. economy due to their greed and deception?  My role model for dealing with bankers is Iceland, which jailed some of them after the 2008 recession. Iceland’s economy is doing quite well.
“A note on funding ‘terrorists’: one reason we may never know the funding of organizations that we currently oppose is that some of them have been supported in the past by the U.S. The Taliban and the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq stand out in my mind in this context, but I am sure there are others. The manipulative and ever-shifting nature of current U.S. foreign policy even makes us fight ourselves sometimes, as with al-Qaeda fighting on our side in Syria even as we fight against them elsewhere.”
My response to the Blog:
            Re: Muslims.  I am certainly not trying to impose anything on Muslims.  They are entitled to believe and live as they wish, if they only let me believe and live as I wish (and every other human being).  What they will NOT be allowed to do is impose their values, their beliefs, their opinions on others, in the name of political correctness, or any other rationale, including Sharia.  If women in bikinis offend them, do not go to the beach or visit any other Western country.  Muslims do NOT have the right to demand women cover up in this country or any Western country . . . there country yes, but not here.
            Re: Israel.  I guess you are not a fan.  Israel is NOT a theocracy.  The government may be over-the-top in advancing Judaism, but they are not killing non-believers.
            Re: Trade Act of 2015.  Interesting perspective.  I cannot see the secrecy you mention.  What this really appears to be is a labor fight, not significantly different from the organizing fights of the early 20th Century.  Given your opinion, what do you see as the motive to pass H.R. 1314?
            Re: Greece.  Wow!  So, Greece borrowing more money for social programs and corruption they could not pay for is some kind of banker conspiracy to default Greece?  Really?  Why do you think it is the banker who must be “controlled” rather than the insane spending of Greece?  I understand Greeks want to be as prosperous as Germans, but they do not have the industry to support their artificial property.  I do not see the connection between the LIBOR criminal conduct and Greece’s brinksmanship on their debt.  Perhaps you can enlighten me to the criminal conduct you see in the Greece financial crisis?  We have discussed many times generalizations; the same points apply to bankers as any other group; they are not all greedy, money-grubbing, bottom-dwellers.  Greece has no right to expect the rest of the world to pay for their socialism.
            Re: terrorist funding.  Well, you pegged that one.  Yes, the U.S. did fund & supply the Taliban when they fought Soviet hegemony in Afghanistan, and yes, the U.S. funded & supplied Saddam Hussein’s Iraq when they fought similar hegemony by the Islamic Republic of Iran.  To my knowledge, we are not funding or supplying ISIL in Syria.  Yes, we are trying to figure out how to support the anti-Assad forces without helping ISIL.  I think the U.S. would support ISIL against Assad, if they were not violently imposing their radical version of Islam on everyone they can and exporting their violence to Europe, the U.S., and beyond.
 . . . follow-up comment:
“I do not understand where you got a comment about imposing anything on Muslims, and I have no clue where you got the notion that Muslims would try to impose their customs on Western nations.
“Israel is not a theocracy? This is the nation founded for the purpose of giving Jews a homeland, and it acts the part. The Israelis kill non-believers, especially Palestinians, by means of their law enforcement, by using their military at every chance, and they do many other things to cause them harm. That is not limited to Palestinians, either. Just ask the Lebanese.
“If you cannot detect the secrecy around the Trans Pacific Partnership, I refer you to any news network, with the possible exception of Fox ‘News.’ Members of Congress are allowed to see the text of that agreement only under restricted conditions and may not take notes by any means or discuss what they have seen. We cannot know the motivation behind this thing or its potential outcomes without knowing the contents.
“Your discussion of the Greek situation appears to be founded on long-discredited trickle-down economics (what George H.W. Bush called ‘voodoo economics’) and on the notion that bankers would not misuse others' trust in their expertise to manipulate Greek officials in the same ways they manipulated U.S. consumers. They had the same advantage; they could depend on government officials to collect for them or to bail them out just as the U.S. government did. I share neither that view of economics nor the willingness to believe in innocent or well-meaning international bankers.
“My point in addressing the funding of terrorists was to point out that U.S. manipulations in the Middle East and elsewhere have met with more failure than success in the long term at least back to Vietnam. We need to find some more effective way to reach our objectives or, better yet, use what is left of our national wealth and our young people to rebuild our own nation.”
 . . . my follow-up response:
            Re: “I do not understand where you got a comment about imposing anything on Muslims.  Well, in your original contribution, you said, “I tire of the discussion of what Muslims “should” be and do based entirely on interested parties' analysis of their professed religion.  That sounds an awful lot like someone, presumably Christians, are attempting to tell Muslims what they “should and should not” do, i.e., imposition of beliefs.  I was simply responding to my understanding of your words.
            Re: “Muslims would try to impose their customs on Western nations.  I trust that was a sarcastic statement.  In case it was not, the destruction of history and historic sites that are as much our heritage as it is theirs is certainly a graphic example.  The beheading of non-believers is another.  Those examples are about as extreme imposition as we have seen in contemporary times.
            Re: “The Israelis kill non-believers. Whoa dawgy . . . way too far!  The Israelis kill people who are trying to kill them.  Is there collateral damage?  Yes, absolutely, as there is in all war.  An enemy cannot attack and then claim immunity by hiding among civilians.  While I will agree, the Israelis can be a bit heavy-handed at times, I absolutely cannot agree with your statement.  Further, I have never agreed with the Israeli West Bank settlement policy.
            Re: “TPP.”  I do not know enough to go farther.
            Re: Greece.  The responsibility for due diligence belongs squarely and totally with the Greek government; no body forced them to sign the papers and take those loans.  If any bankers gave the government fraudulent counsel, prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.  It is absolutely unreasonable for the Greeks to expect the rest of the world to pay for their neglect, malfeasance, incompetence, or whatnot.  I would agree in general that international bankers, or even local bankers, are not innocents in this tragedy; after all, they are motivated by profit, not nation-state welfare.  I’ve seen no effort by the Greek government to prosecute bankers who did not perform properly.
            Re: U.S. foreign policy failures.  I will agree.  Public debate on the use of available public funds – international vs. national – is certainly quite appropriate.  There is plenty of room for that debate.  I will not defend the choices of the USG in all cases.

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap                        :-)

15 June 2015

Update no.704

Update from the Heartland
No.704
8.6.15 – 14.6.15
To all,

Aslan Soobzokov forwarded the following relevant article:
“What ISIS -- and the West -- gets wrong about 'jihad'”
by Abed Awad
CNN
Published: 2113 GMT (0413 HKT) May 29, 2015
First, I must say, thank you, Aslan.
Second, I urge everyone to read Awad’s opinion article.
Awad effectively opens with quotes, as he notes, that are scripture and could easily be assumed to be rationale used by ISIL to justify their indiscriminate violence and destruction of anyone and everything they do not agree with in their areas of domination or influence.  The quotes are actually from The Bible’s Old Testament – Exodus, Deuteronomy and Numbers.  Awad wants us to stand back just a little, and not be quick and general in our condemnation of Islam and Muslims.  ISIL is NOT Islam.  What ISIL is doing is the antithesis of what Islam stands for in so many ways.
            I will go farther than Awad to say, ISIL is a rabid mutation of jihadist justification for what appears to be just another version of megalomania – they seek to impose their beliefs on as many people as possible and intimidate everyone else.  I would also observe that the Bible versus Qur’an comparison supports my contention that Islam is roughly 600 years behind Christianity in maturation, tolerance and perspective.  While I suspect most Christians will appreciate Awad’s message, the real audience has to be Muslims.  If Muslims are offended by the United States, or infidels, or non-believers, or crusaders, fighting bad guys in predominately Muslims countries, then they must stop bad Muslims from exporting their violence and violent ideology outside their countries.

Various elements of the Press reported on what was actually the continuing effort of Congress to pass a trade bill at the President’s urging.  The Wall Street Journal flash headline read, “House Deals Blow to Obama's Bid for Trade Deal.”  My curiosity peaked.  What did they object to and why?  The event that sparked the WSJ flash report was House Roll Call Vote 361 recorded at 13:47 [R] EDT, Friday, 12.June.2015, as 126-302-0-6(1), which supposedly rejected Title II of H.R. 1314, provisionally titled: Trade Adjustment Assistance Reauthorization Act of 2015 [FYI: Title I of H.R. 1314 provisionally titled: Trade Act of 2015].  What was not reported in the Press (at least so far) were subsequent votes in the House of Representatives later that afternoon.   After spending far too much time trying to sort out what was rejected, what was passed, and what Congress was trying to accomplish, I gave up.  As best I can determine, the negotiations in the back rooms, offices and halls of Congress are still quite fluid and uncertain to be spending this quantity of time, especially when I have other writing projects on my plate.  Forgive me!  I will need to let things settle down before attempting to understand all this.

News from the economic front:
-- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) halted bailout talks with Greece after failure to make progress in negotiations with the government of the beleaguered Mediterranean nation over their terrible debt situation.  The frustration of the international banking community involved with helping Greece out of their predicament appears to be growing to the point of intolerance.  The potential and looming failure of Greece presses heavily on the international banking and monetary system.  Greece appears to be carrying out a program of brinksmanship as they try to get the rest of the world to pay for their past unsustainable borrowing and spending.

Continuation from Update no.702:
“Sorry I did not get this out earlier, I flagged it for a response and got behind on those (my failure, sorry!).  I appreciate you replying my friend.  I always appreciate and respect your analysis and intellect on important issues Cap.
“I just downloaded the book onto my Kindle called Colder Wars (which I sent a review out on tonight).  I am wanting to explore the energy or resources wars side of all this geopolitics we see my friend.
“Your last sentence ‘Both are very dangerous in their current mindset’ is for sure a concern all of us have.  Let me ask you, do you think America and NATO has been pushing the envelopes for both Russia and China?
“I think on ISIS or ISIL, it will be interesting to ultimately discover who is really funding them.  Just like 9/11, I am not yet certain who was really behind that whether just AQ or state sponsors that funneled support/resources to them.”
My reply:
            No worries.  At least you contribute, which is more than most folks on the list do.  
            Resources have been a major factor in contemporary conflicts and wars of the last century.  The pressure will only increase as earthly resources dwindle and until we figure out how to tap asteroids, planets proto-planets and moons.  Eventually, we will have to leave our solar system for the same reason.
            Re: “do you think America and NATO has been pushing the envelopes for both Russia and China?  My opinion: quite the contrary; I do not think we have pressed Russia or the PRC enough.  Both countries have gotten away with far too much already.  Japan has come the closest to drawing the line.  I would like to see a harder line on both Russia and the PRC, and less tolerance of their hegemonic efforts.
            Re: funding of ISIL.  Not an easy answer to find.  AQ, ISIL, et al, receive funding from a variety of sources.  I would bet the USG knows far more about parts of the answer than have been or probably ever will be made public.  State sponsors of terrorism are less prevalent today than prior to 9/11, but states, or at least those bad guys with access to state assets, are still involved.

Comments and contributions from Update no.703:
Comment to the Blog:
“Your description of your motorcycle trip is easily the best I have ever seen of your writing. Your trip flowed off the page exceptionally well, your pictures had true clarity, and you kept it simple enough that nothing impeded the experience. Using the sense of smell particularly improved the experience. That and the bird striking your thigh highlight the distinctions of riding a motorcycle versus enclosed vehicles. You could sell Harleys with that ride. The Great Plains get a boost from you as well. I have a mechanical quibble (not an artistry point at all) in that the phrase “how many large wind turbines” needs no commas. That, as stated, is only a mechanical issue, and it takes very little away from the description. Write more about riding; you excel at that.
“The earth moving must have startled you as much as it would (or will) me. We live in places not accustomed to that.
“I am sad for you that you must live in Kansas right now.
“The only things I have to say about Caitlyn Jenner are that I did not immediately recognize the person from that first, most known photograph of her and that few women indeed retain that skin tone to that age. Nothing other than that is anyone's business.
“The discussion of hydraulic fracking continues. We have a saline injection well in the rural county where I am living, and it bothers me. Between the potential for water pollution and the unknown effects of fracturing rock layers, I would have preferred much more study before our state government allowed this process to expand here.
“I see no way to functionally limit surveillance to its announced purpose. With secrecy as a dominant feature of spying, the public has no way to know if a credible threat even exists. The recent study of airport security suggests that weapons could have been brought into our nation almost at will. The uses of the collected information other than those proclaimed publicly are even murkier. Any suggestion that we trust either the spies themselves or the politicians and bureaucrats who are supposed to supervise them fails the test of history. J. Edgar Hoover's antics come immediately to my mind, along with the assassination attempts on Castro and the Pinochet affair. I have written elsewhere about the Iran-Contra mess and its effect on the rule of law in the United States. I have not changed my opinion.
“I have a low opinion of the United States' results in international affairs, which is not the same as a moral judgment. I do not pretend to know the content of people's spirits, and I will leave that judgment for their Higher Powers. Given that many of them are conservative Christians, that ought to be harsh enough to satisfy any critic.”
My response to the Blog:
            Thank you for your generous words.
            I have a number of bike rides sketched out, so there will be more travelogues ahead, as soon as I am able to ride . . . just too much fun.  I will most assuredly write more about my adventures as they come.
            We can argue about my use of punctuation . . . comma use is often a good topic.  I have always used the guidance . . . multiple adjective modifiers should be separated by a comma for clarity.  In this instance, I could argue the comma either way.  Thus, I will accept your constructive criticism in the spirit it was given.
            I grew up (all my school years) in the San Francisco Bay Area, so I am quite familiar with earthquakes.  I’ve been through far worse than anything we’ve experienced on the Great Plains.  Yes, it did disturb my cherished naptime, but hey, that’s life.  To me, the timing was more significant given the release of the draft fracking report.  There is little doubt in my little pea brain the earthquakes we are experiencing out here are a consequence of fracking or some other human induced action.  There are no fault lines close by.  These are comparatively small tremors and quite shallow, well within drilling range.  The 3-5 magnitude earthquakes are not likely to cause much damage, but if these induced quakes grow into 6 & above magnitude, there will be damage, and that will change the equation.
            Yes, well, our state governor and legislature are an embarrassment to many of us, but Kansas is still a nice, peaceful, place to live.
            Re: limiting surveillance.  This will remain an important topic of discussion for all of us, for quite some time.  Again, the language in the USA FREEDOM Act is loose enough to allow a wide range of actions, so interpretation will be a critical element.  The law prohibits the USG (all its agencies) from bulk metadata collection as had been carried out by interpretation of §215 USA PATRIOT Act.  The best I could determine from the text, the USG can access such data, if someone else held the data (i.e., the telephone companies).  There are also a number of hurdles the USG must negotiate in order to search such files.  I understand and appreciate your distrust of the government with surveillance data.  J. Edgar Hoover is a perfect, prime example of what can happen; he was about as close to a dictator we have approached since the founding of this Grand Republic; he collected intelligence illegally and used it to influence politicians and bend them to his will.
            I cannot agree with blaming ‘conservative Christians’ for foreign policy failures.  I think political and religious leanings cover the spectrum in that arena.  Further, as noted previously, I suspect my list of foreign policy failures by the United States is smaller than yours.  Some of those ‘failures’ were well intentioned, but poorly executed.
 . . . follow-up comment:
“My generous words fit the case. You wrote exceptionally well about your ride, perhaps because you were fully engaged in your riding. In any case, you wrote an engaging item.
“Grammarian alert: the sentence I mentioned does not include a series, hence no series commas. "I have no idea how many, large, wind turbines occupied that farm," was the clause that bothered me. "How many" modifies "large," not "wind turbines"; therefore, no series and no comma. I test that issue in my own writing by rearranging the modifiers. "No idea how large, many wind turbines . . ." does not follow. "Large" modifies the phrase "wind turbines." "Wind" modifies "turbines."
“I agree with your analysis of fracking and tremors. We experience similar events (fracking activities and new seismic phenomena) here in Ohio and in Pennsylvania, among other places. I share your fear of stronger seismic phenomena. In addition, many of us fear water contamination via the chemicals used in fracking, the nature of which is a "trade secret," unknown to water consumers or regulators.
“Again, I'm not indulging in moral judgment of conservative Christians or anyone else in regard to foreign policy, but merely pointing out results. Intentions, whether professed or inferred, are a difficult factor in any enterprise. A well-intended failure fails just the same, and that describes many foreign policy results. Beyond that, anyone's perceptions of others' intentions are sketchy at best. Human beings lack access to minds other than their own, and even one's own is often difficult to read in its depths. That is why blame games have no winner. I do not attach such blame to conservative Christians (in foreign policy or elsewhere) due to their religion, but if we believe "their God will judge them," the results of that judgment would be more harsh for them than for those with a more loving Higher Power or with none. Thus my statement.”
 . . . my follow-up comment:
            Nonetheless, thank you very much.  I shall endeavor to improve.
            Re. comma.  I will concede the point.  You are correct.
            Re: fracking.  The concern is real and appropriate.  My reason for illuminating the draft EPA report on potential water contamination does not support a systemic problem . . . yet.  Vigilance is warranted.
            Re: Christians & foreign policy.  Thank you for your explanation.  ‘Nuf said.

Another contribution:
“Be careful on the motorcycle!!  A friend of mine, a fellow Marine judge advocate who went on to work at the Agency, was seriously hurt a month ago- he hit a deer (or vice versa).  Broke bones in his leg and knee.  Says he will likely need a knee replacement to walk again.  And he was lucky to survive.”
My reply:
            I ride like I fly . . . head on a swivel and always cautious.  Deer are a problem in this neck of the woods.  The state tries to keep the margins clear, but when not, I slow down . . . just in case.
            Hope your friend heals quickly and the accident doesn’t turn him off from riding.

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap                 :-)