Update no.771

Update from the Heartland

No.771

19.9.16 – 25.9.16

Blog version:  http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/

To all,

            The follow-up news items:

-- Independent, open-source investigators with Bellingcat believe they have calculated the launch site location of the Russian Buk Mark 1 Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) system (NATO: SA-11) that shot down Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 (17.July.2014) [657, 665, 722].  They believe the missile that brought down MH17 was fired from a field south of the town of Snizhne, in the contested Donetsk region of Eastern Ukraine – in rebel-held territory.  So, whether a Russian or a rebel crew fired the fatal missile is immaterial.  The Russians either fired or supplied the Buk SAM system to whoever fired the missile.  It is my opinion only, since I cannot prove it, that the Russians operated that SAM system and fired the fatal missile in an airspace denial operation on behalf of the so-called rebels in Donetsk.

Reconstruction of MH17 Cockpit

[File: MH17 contruct.jpg]

[Photo credit: Getty Images]

In the associated, FYI category: I chose to add the MH17 image above for one reason only.  This is a near perfect example of what happens to an aircraft that is hit by an SAM, like the Russian Buk SAM system, which is roughly equivalent to the U.S. Standard and Patriot SAM systems.  Note the numerous penetrations on the upper left side and the shredding in that area of the fuselage (compared to the almost pristine lower fuselage).  This image is exactly why I have contended a U.S. Navy Standard missile could NOT have brought down TWA 800 (17.July.1996) – the associated damage would have been virtually impossible to cover-up.

-- A French appeals court ordered former Société Générale trader Jérôme Kerviel to pay €1M (US$1.12M) to his former employer.  As part of his sentencing in October 2010, a French court ordered Kerviel to repay the €4.9B to the bank – the amount the bank lost in the affair.  Kerviel argued that he could not bear sole responsibility for the bank's entire loss from unauthorized, risky trades in 2008 [353, 460], so the latest court ruling was quite a recovery for Kerviel.  The legal wrangling continues between Kerviel and his former employer.  This was one of the precursor events for the Great Recession.

            What is it that is so hard for some folks to comprehend . . . compliance with a law enforcement officer’s orders is the best course of response, especially when the officer involved is aiming his pistol at you.  Non-compliance, no matter how passively aggressive such conduct might be, is a threatening action in that the officer has no idea what the subject is thinking, his intentions, what weapons he has access to until he is cleared and secured.  The non-compliance threat has absolutely nothing to do with the pigmentation of a subject’s skin.  Now, we could argue, why is the law enforcement officer aiming his pistol at someone?  The reality is, the reason does NOT matter.  S/he feels threatened from some reason – situation, intelligence, action, whatever – it does not matter.  Many years ago, on a traffic stop, proper or not, I always got out my automobile and moved to the curb side of the car – out of respect for the officer being exposed on the street side.  Then, one day, decades ago, a police officer barked at me to stay in the car.  I did exactly as he instructed me to do.  Rather than rioting, perhaps community instruction sessions would be useful.  Every citizen, regardless of skin pigmentation or apparel, should simply comply with instructions from a law enforcement officer.  I believe that there would be near zero of these controversial officer-involved shooting if the subject simply complied with the officer’s instructions.

            News from the economic front:

-- The Bank of Japan announced an interest-rate target for 10-year government bonds, as part of a new policy framework to achieve its inflation objective of at least 2% annually.  The central bank also indicated it would continue quantitative easing until the target is met.  After the bank’s announcement, the yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond briefly rose above zero for the first time since March.

-- The Federal Reserve left short-term interest rates unchanged.  In the central bank’s public statement, they said, “The [Fed] judges that the case for an increase in the federal funds rate has strengthened but decided, for the time being, to wait for further evidence of continued progress toward its objectives.”  The statement suggests there are internal divisions within the policy committee that leave the potential for a rate hike before year-end.

            Comments and contributions from Update no.770:

Comment to the Blog:

“Maybe I just don't take the presidential race quite as seriously as others with political interests. One reason is that either of the two major-party candidates will face a hostile Congress upon winning. Trump has been publicly disowned by enough Republicans that we might best consider him as an outsider who has taken the GOP nomination. However, should he achieve election, he's unlikely to accomplish anything the Republican Establishment opposes. Clinton continues to be popular with the Democratic Establishment who, however, do not control Congress and are gradually splitting along progressive versus centrist lines. (Regardless of platform statements, Clinton will act as a centrist. Her funding sources will permit nothing more.) Either of those two aligns with Wall Street, and either will permit the ‘too big to fail’ banks to bring the economy to its knees again. Neither will be able to repair our international image as a bully with a pitiful side. And neither will act on the climate issues that will ultimately make life far harder for everyone on the planet.”

My response to the Blog:

            That seems like a particularly cynical perspective; however, I must confess, you may well be correct; it is definitely plausible given the reality of what we have endured this silly season.  I certainly hope you are wrong, no matter who becomes the 45th POTUS, but regrettably, I suspect you are closer to being correct than wrong.

            It is most unfortunate and a serious disservice to the citizens of this Grand Republic that the federal Commission on Presidential Debates cannot find a more reasonable and representative threshold, or just ignore their money masters and do the right thing.  We need Gary Johnson and Jill Stein to be in those debates . . . a full 4-way.  As we approach the first debate, a week away, we know they will not be in the first debate, and I suspect they are not likely to “qualify” for any of the debates.  CNN has been the only major news source that has given the Libertarian and Green Party candidates a national / international stage.  I hope they can find the courage to do that again in the last two months of this silly season.  If nothing else, have Johnson and Stein debate each other.

Another contribution:

“Re: Herr Drumpf, the foreign policy establishment - both R’s and D’s - are becoming united against him.  And he has already caused a lot of damage to the United States with his comments.  That is clear.

“From the Post - Eliot Cohen, an active anti-Trump voice, said that he has never seen foreign-policy professionals so stridently hostile to a candidate.

“He is not only an ignoramus, but he’s a dangerous ignoramus who doesn’t know the first thing about foreign policy and doesn’t care and has some very dangerous instincts,” Cohen, who served in the George W. Bush administration, told The Washington Post in a recent interview. “Part of what is so dangerous about him is not just his ignorance and contempt for our alliances, but his failure to understand how important these have been to our security since 1945. And he has already done a lot of damage. Our allies are deeply shaken by this election.”

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/foreign-policy-experts-grow-more-hostile-to-trump-as-n-korea-tests-missiles/2016/09/18/401648de-778c-11e6-8149-b8d05321db62_story.html?wpisrc=nl_politics&wpmm=1

My reply:

            Herr Drumpf indeed!

            Subscribers and readers of this humble forum are shaken by the lack of respect and dignity in this particular silly season.  Unfortunately, it is the outrageousness of one particular candidate that has stimulated and attracted so many American citizens that apparently support that outrageousness – let’s shake this place down to the bricks attitude – have told the myriad pollsters they support his drivel.  We cannot say anything about the votes he got in the primaries, since far too many state primaries were open primaries and votes for him could have just as easily been Democrat leaning voters seeking a Republican candidate they figured would be easiest to beat in November; we cannot separate real votes from anti votes.  The same with polls, frankly.  People can and do say what they want the pollsters to hear.  The only way we are going to determine the end of this is by our votes on 8.November . . . and even then, I think what he has done will have lasting effects.  I suppose we ceased to be a nation of debate, negotiation, and compromise . . . oh, perhaps we could peg the transformation at Nixon’s paranoia and crimes, or maybe even Johnson’s foolish and costly attempt to do just enough . . . who knows.

            As I did in the 70’s, when so much was going wrong, I have to maintain my faith in this Grand Republic.  We shall endure no matter who becomes POTUS.  I would prefer not to return to those ugly days of the 60’s and 70’s, but I have faith we shall overcome.

A different contribution:

“Also, Trump exploiting fear and hate to gain power is exactly what Hitler did, and what every demagogue does.”

My response:

“Quite so.”

One last contribution:

“At least [Trump] got the media to give him free coverage of the people who support him … clever move!”

My reply:

            Yes, indeed.  We must give him credit for that.  He has played the media quite well.

            My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.

Cheers,

Cap                        :-)