If I lived in New York City, I too would be nervous about the upcoming 9-11 terrorists trial. But then I have been nervous about another al-Qaeda attack since 9-12-01. I live in a small town in Utah and I don't fear an al-Qaeda attack here. I think that they will attack again when they are ready with WMD's. Al-Qaeda has vowed revenge for the Muslims whose death we have caused, at least in their opinion. They blame us for more than 10 million Muslim deaths in Iraq and around the world. Thus I expect that they will attack large population centers to cause the maximum number of deaths. New York would be a target whether the 9-11 trial is held there or not.
Some opponents of the trial say that we will provide the terrorists with a propaganda platform. However, we will be affirming our commitment to justice for all, not justice for all except Muslims. The advantage that the terrorists receive will be more than offset, in my opinion, by our demonstration to the world that we practice what we preach. Hopefully our example will make recruiting for al-Qaeda more difficult.
Some prefer unbridled capitalism. I prefer capitalism with a bridle. Opponents call capitalism with a bridle socialism. I prefer to think of it as compassionate conservatism.
Michael Moore's new movie called Capitalism: a Love Story is an uneven treatment of the recent financial meltdown. There were two parts of the movie I found particularly interesting. He had extensive film of the recent, December 2008, sit-in in Chicago of the terminated workers at a factory that made windows until it could no longer get financing from Bank of America. The workers were not paid what they were owed and were thrown out of work just prior to Christmas. I grew up in Chicago and the film showed how close to the Loop the factory was. The Loop is Chicago's center of political and financial power. During the sit-in, a Catholic Bishop visited the strikers to voice support. He told how his life was shaped by growing up on the South side of Chicago where abandoned steel mills sit empty and the lost jobs they represent. His experience was similar to Barack's when he was a community organizer in the same area.
The other part of the movie that impressed me was a much shorter segment that showed FDR making a radio address just before his death. FDR thought that the voters should see that part of his speech so he invited movie cameras into the office where he was broadcasting. FDR proposed another bill of rights for the US in which certain rights would be guaranteed: adequate affordable healthcare, a living wage, decent housing and affordable higher education. He died before these rights could be enacted, but the US imposed these rights on the constitutions of our defeated enemies in WW2, Germany and Japan. Isn't it ironic that our defeated enemies enjoy those rights now and after more than 60 years, US citizens are still denied them?
A new day dawnedExactly one year ago tomorrow.His critics see a glass half emptyBarack sees a good beginning.The road ahead is hard and longThe BushMess will not yieldIn a day or month or year.Those of us with BarackShould stop from time to timeFor a bit of fun and to survey the pathHow far to go and how far we have come.The Right may raise their voicesBut that is all they raiseEverything else they lowerHopes, expectations and results.The BushMess is their doingAs much as it was George W.'s.BushMess, BushMess go awayDon't return another day.Wishing will not prevent a repeat.Only hard work and constant vigilanceWill preserve our freedoms and our democracy.
Only the Super-Rich Can Save Us! by Ralph Nader, 733 pages is a fast reading fable about what is wrong in the US and how with leadership and donations from billionaires we can right the wrongs. Nader gives names to the good guys and slightly disguised names to the bad guys. I found the inside details on the working of Wal-Mart and Congress the most interesting parts of the book. Whether you like Ralph Nader or not, he has done a lot of good for the country. In this book, he reveals knowledge that he has accumulated over a lifetime fighting for the average citizen.Some critics of Barack want the US to be the tough kid on the block in defense matters. This is Nader's response: "Asserting moral courage is being tough. Waging peace is tough. Standing up to arrogant power is being tough. And until we have the deeply just society our people deserve, doing the right thing even it costs us in the short run is being tough."
Nader also relates Lincoln's style on campaigning before there was mass media in 1840. Lincoln advocated dividing the voters into three categories: those who are with you from the get-go, those who are susceptible to persuasion, and those who are against you from the get-go. Then he guided his followers through the step-by-step process-- or more accurately the doorstep-by-doorstep process--of meeting with every voter except the opposition hardliners. Worked for Lincoln. Let's give it a go in 2010.
He also quoted Judge Learned Hand, "If we are to keep our democracy, there must be one commandment: Thou shall not ration justice." Nader contends..." that it is democracy, justice, and the rule of law that make capitalism produce a better material life for more people, not capitalism in itself.'I am giving my copy of this book to my son. I have purchased two additional copies of the book which I will send free of charge to the first two people who respond to this message. I wish that I could give away more than two copies. Please send an email to me at walthe@aol.com and put "Nader book" in the subject line. I will send a book to each of the first two responders.
Under the first amendment, Fox has the right to criticize the President. Under the first amendment, the White House has the right to criticize Fox.
George W. Bush's first press secretary was Ari Fleischer, who called reporters whose stories the White House did not like. Reportedly he threatened some with loss of access to White House sources in the future. If you are a White House reporter and cannot get access, you could very well lose your job. In my opinion, Fleischer's threats crossed the line. Can anyone truly say that the actions of the Obama White House have crossed a line?
Haste makes waste is the slogan of Haste International, a large multinational company, and the world's largest supplier of waste. At the beginning of George W. Bush's first term, they had 13 factories in the US and now there is only the one required for government contracts that specify made in the USA. The other factories have been closed and the jobs shipped to China. We now import 95% of our waste from China. The reason I am talking about Haste International now is that Dick Cheney is urging Barack Obama to use haste in deciding the next steps in Afghanistan. The Bush administration used a great deal of the Haste product and you can see the waste all around the US and the rest of the world.
Logic is facing a surge in unemployment since Bush left office. The sign on the door of employment offices at the Heritage Foundation, the American Enterprise Institute, and other conservative think tanks reads, No Logic Need Apply. Logic has gone out of fashion at the Republican party too. The policy now is make any charges against the Obama administration, however false and fanciful. If repeated often enough and loud enough, some will believe.
In a recent posting, I listed three causes of approximately 118,000 US deaths every year. I am reading Ralph Nader's most recent book, Only the Super-rich..., which I will review as soon as I finish reading it. In the meantime, some numbers just jumped off page 286 and I wanted to share them with you as soon as possible.
Numbers are again approximate
65,000 die each year from air pollution58,000 die from workplace related disease and trauma100,000 die from medical negligence or incompetence in hospitals100,000 die from adverse effects of commercially advertised drugs
That is an additional total of 323,000 added to the originally reported 118,000 for a grand total of 441,000 preventable deaths per year here in the US. Reducing those numbers must be a high national priority.
A college degree used to be a sure ticket of admission to a middle class life style. No more. With the rising cost of college and the accelerating disappearance of good paying jobs, exacerbated by the Great Recession, new grads are finding it very difficult to find jobs that will allow them to begin paying back the loans that got them through school. Many are forced to live at home with their parents as they postpone starting a life of their own.
Adding to the downward pressure on wages is the insistence of business to import temporary workers to fill jobs that Americans would fill but at a higher wage. A recent online study shows that IT workers, such as computer programmers and software engineers earn about 6% less than they would without the competition of H-1B visa workers. The undocumented and those with green cards or H-1B visas hold down wages for all of us.
When supply and demand are equal, the price set by their intersection is called the market clearing pricer since enough is supplied to meet demand with no overage. Business wants no government interference in setting the market clearing price since a price too low would lead to shortages and less profit on items they sell. However, when it comes to their purchases, business is happy with a price below the market clearing price since it reduces their costs and increases profits.
Let's assume no H-1B visas are issued. Jobs would be filled with American workers and wages would rise if some jobs are not filled. That would create an incentive for Americans to train themselves in the skills needed to fill what are now better paying jobs. It might take some time, but eventually, the supply of job applicants would increase to meet demand and a market clearing wage would be established at the higher level.
Today Barack has been in office for nine months and one day. His critics are saying that he should take full responsibility for the mess Bush left behind and stop blaming his predecessor. George W. Bush inherited a nation mainly at peace and a budget surplus. He left office with the nation at war and deeply in debt. During his eight years in office, he never fully accepted responsibility, continuing to imply that Bill Clinton was at fault for 9-11.
I predict that Barack will take full responsibility soon for the state of the economy and for our relations with the rest of the world, both peaceful and not. Barack is a man of high moral courage who will demonstrate progress both here and abroad before the elections of November, 2010. I predict that Barack will outsmart Osama bin Laden. That is something that George W. Bush was never able to accomplish, preferring force to strategy. I can make these predictions because of my high level of confidence in Barack Obama and his advisers.
At this time, I want to make another prediction that I am not as confident about. If you look at a map of the area, you see how central Iran is to wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. I predict that Iran will be an ally, perhaps our most valuable ally in our effort to defeat the Taliban and al-Qaeda, both Sunni organizations. Iran is a Shiite country with regional aspirations. If we do not attack Iran, I believe that Iran will be willing to help us, not tomorrow perhaps, but soon.
The Patrick Henry Caucus held a rally here in St. George on Saturday October 17. The rally started at 4pm under cloudless skies at Worthen park with a temperature in the low 90's. Entertainment was provided by a band and two vocalists who performed their We Are the People, which was available there on CD for a donation to the cause. The founder of the Caucus, Carl Wimmer, first spoke at 419pm when he introduced the giver of the invocation and then again at 426pm when he led the pledge of allegiance. Next he introduced his mentor, state senator Margaret Dayton, who spoke at length about several proposed laws for 2010 in the Utah legislature.
It was hot in the sun and at one point Carl and I were supporting the same tree as we sought its shade. Carl held up one side of the tree while I supported it from the other. When we left the shade, the tree was able to stand on its own. When I left the park and the rally, Carl was asking for donations to create a web site that would allow members of the Patrick Henry Caucus to talk to each other and to their elected legislators. We already have a site for the state at www.le.state.ut.us and the federal government at www.usa.gov I don't quite understand the need for another site. The easiest way to find someone is to do a search at www.google.com Another site will not guarantee its use by our elected officials. I email Orrin Hatch often and he always responds by letter delivered days or weeks later by the US Postal Service. I can predict his reply; he always disagrees with my ideas. Why do I bother to write? I want him to know that his constituents have a variety of views.
The local newspaper estimated the audience that day at 125 people. I think that is a bit generous but I will not disagree. Most of the audience were senior citizens. The children there were bored. Young adults attending were a distinct minority. I saw no other minorities in attendance. I will not venture a prediction about the future of the Patrick Henry Caucus although I understand that this rally drew less than half the attendance of a prior one.
The organizers of the event were wearing name badges that sometimes listed their professions. One young adult's badge stated constitutional lawyer. Here in St. George? I wondered about that. Perhaps he teaches or perhaps he traveled to St. George from Salt Lake City. In any case, I place my faith in Barack, a constitutional lawyer that we elected President.
