Today is the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attack. Unlike Pearl Harbor, it didn’t launch a traditional war. It did mark the beginning of a much stronger effort against those who would do is harm, both foreign and domestic.
We still have a presence in Afghanistan. I don’t have sufficient information to know whether or not it is in our best interest to keep troops there. We do need to recognize that the Taliban will do as they please once we have left. Any negotiations will likely be fruitless since we won’t be able to enforce the agreement. I don’t have a problem if we do try to reach an agreement. Giving them the honor of meeting President Trump at Camp David is absolutely ridiculous. I am glad that Trump cancel it.
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Many people respond to proposed legislation solely on the basis of their ideology. It is easier for those of us in the middle to judge it on its merits.
Several Democratic presidential candidates are proposing a mandatory buyback of assault weapons. Their purpose is to cut down on the number of mass shootings. On the surface it may sound like a good idea. Anyone looking at the facts would realize it makes no sense at all. There are around twenty million assault weapons out there. A tiny number, certainly less than 100, are in the hands of people who are likely to use them in mass shootings. The government would spend billions buying guns from law-abiding owners. Those potential shooters would keep their guns. If they are thinking about killing people, I doubt they would worry too much about violating federal gun laws. The only way to cut down on the number of mass shootings is by trying to find these people before they commit mayhem. Assuming all 330 million of us are potential shooters is ridiculous. People killed in mass shootings are an infinitesimally small percentage of total murders. Reducing the murder rate should be the focus of any legislation. In a book on Voltaire, author Evelyn Hall wrote the famous phrase “I disapprove of what you say but will defend to the death your right to say it”.
Freedom of thought and expression is a basic tenet of our democracy. There have been times in our history when we fell badly short of our ideals. The years following World War 2 was one such time. People could lose their jobs or even go to jail if they were accused of being a communist or communist sympathizer. These practices became known as McCarthyism, named after a crackpot senator from Wisconsin. We are entering a similar time. This time it is a grassroots effort aimed at conservatives. First Amendment protections are rapidly disappearing from college campuses. People that speak up may be shouted down or even physically attacked. In some places, efforts are under way to shut down businesses where the owner expresses conservative beliefs or donate to the Trump campaign. There have been a couple of examples in the news recently. A pair of sitcom actors seemed to be proposing a blacklist for anyone attending a Trump fundraiser. They have since backed off that position. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a non-binding resolution declaring the NRA to be terrorist organization. Apparently, they think having the wrong political views should be grounds for incarceration. People of all political beliefs should denounce these tactics. Very few offer criticism, even when groups like Antifa commit violence. One member of Congress called them peaceful demonstrators. Our democracy is weakened whenever people lose their rights. Preserving it is far more important than who is president or which side of an issue becomes law. In the past, presidents had to rely on newspapers to communicate with the people. They were often a lot more brutal than their 21st century media counterpart.
Eventually, technology provided a platform for the presidents. Franklin Roosevelt gave his first radio address in 1933. Modern day presidents have more options. As we all know, President Trump uses Twitter. Last Friday Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey had his account hacked. The hackers posted racist, pro-Nazi material. The company was able restore the account after fifteen minutes. Suppose someone hacked into Trump’s account? It could create a panic. News travels around the globe at the speed of light. I am no tech expert but it is vital that security be tightened. This is a national security issue. Hopefully, they don’t decide to install a private server in the basement of Trump Plaza. The Federal Reserve’s job is to manage the economy based on economics, not politics. Most presidents have respected their role. Presidents Reagan, Clinton and Obama renominated chairs appointed by a president of the opposite party. That certainly wouldn’t happen in this highly charged political era.
Presidents may have tried to subtly influence the Fed. Of course, there is nothing subtle about President Trump. His bellicose tweets will accomplish nothing except to make him feel better and give his base some raw meat. Some are suggesting that they ignore their mission and pass judgement on Trump’s trade war with China. I guess the idea is that they should manage the economy only if they approve presidential policy. Otherwise, they should stand by and let a recession happen. Apparently, the adverse impact on the population is of little concern. One prominent economist has gone even further. Bill Dudley, a former member of the Fed, said they should consider how their actions will impact the 2020 election. What’s next? Asking FEMA to go slow on rescuing people? I am sick and tired of both parties putting their political battles ahead of the welfare of the American people. Sadly, there is no sign things are going to get better. Many millions of people are concerned about the levels of carbon emissions and its impact on climate change. Most are trying to make a difference. Some, like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, are a bunch of kooks predicting the end of the world in a few years. A few seem to be more concerned about perception rather than reality.
There are a number of examples. The government has spent billions promoting electric cars. They extol the virtues of the clean electricity that powers them but seem to forget that much of it comes from coal-fired power plants. Just today I heard an “expert” telling people to heat their homes with electric heat pumps instead of natural gas furnaces. The classic example is Dell Computer. They proudly proclaimed to have a zero-carbon footprint. They outsourced all their manufacturing to China and bought some rain forest property. I’m sure that Chinese factories emit a lot more carbon than ours. Then there is all the fuel burned up hauling the computers across the Pacific. Some feel that we should be the ones to sacrifice, not them. They jet around the country in private planes. I wonder about the carbon footprint of Al Gore’s mega-mansion. There is one thing that puzzles me. If rising oceans will cause massive flooding, how come the Obamas are buying a $15 million home on Martha’s Vineyard? I have used this title before in referring to President Trump. Today I am looking at the media and how they cover him Generally, over 90% of their stories are negative. Slanting stories is one thing; making them up is an entirely different matter.
We have seen two egregious examples on cable news channels in recent days. An MSNBC guest claimed that Trump has killed more people that Hitler, Stalin or Mao. The moderator let it stand without challenging it. CNN excitedly reported that Trump had borrowed money from Russian oligarchs. They had one source with no confirmation. They did say they didn’t know if it was true but they shouldn’t have run it. It seems to me that journalist could operate with one or of four motives:
The first motive seems to be falling out of favor. Putting out stories like these ultimately hurt themselves not him. If you are going after a charging elephant, wildly shooting a BB gun isn’t the way to go. It looks to me that they are focused on the last two motives. Yesterday I criticized President Trump. I believe his shoot from the hip style of governing and communicating make him less effective. While his language is often offensive, it is mild in comparison to what some twisted individuals on the Left are saying.
They are celebrating the death of David Koch. He was one of the billionaire brothers that contribute heavily to conservative candidates. None seemed more gleeful than Bill Maher. During the monologue of his show he said “I’m glad he’s dead and I hope the end was painful”. One of his “jokes” was that he would be cremated and his ashes would be blown into children’s lungs. Maher and his ilk seem to believe that people that disagree with them politically deserve to die. He wouldn’t kill anyone personally. However, I don’t think he would be upset if someone listening to all the hate being spewed forth would do so. He certainly has a right to speak his mind but I don’t want to be part of his warped vision for America. Koch, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and I have something in common. We all suffer from recurring cancer. I don’t wish anyone ill, especially my cancer brothers and sisters. Tweets were flying from the Oval Office yesterday. They covered the economy and trade with China. He was his usual self but with an interesting twist.
Once again, he showed he has less self-control than a two-year old. He was at his nastiest when implying that the head of the Federal Reserve was an enemy of the country. He is smart enough to know that isn’t likely to help him get his way but he doesn’t seem to care. His bull in a china shop (no pun intended) approach to diplomacy was on display. We need to get tough with China on a number of issues such as theft of intellectual property. Starting a trade war without addressing these issues is counterproductive. His ignorance of basic economics is surprising. The man has a degree in economics from Wharton. He seems to think that a trade deficit means we somehow lost money. We gave them money and got goods and services in return. Anyone who buys a Big Mac and fries has a trade deficit with McDonalds. He also insists that China is paying the tariffs. Companies have no choice but to pass the cost along. Many industries that export to China are being hurt. We used to send them billions of dollars of soybeans. Now they buy them elsewhere. The most bizarre tweet was when he ordered US companies out of China. Apparently, he must think he has dictatorial powers over business. Businesses knew that President Obama hated them and would do everything he could to increase regulation. They may not have liked it, but could deal with it. What really scares them is uncertainty and President Trump is giving them plenty of that. This will cause them to think twice before expanding and hiring new employees. His many accomplishments are proof of his intelligence and abundant skills. There is a lot he could do if he had more patience and a willingness to listen to others. Governing through temper tantrums is not good for the country. It also hurts his chances of reelection. It doesn’t seem possible, but it has been fifty years since I started college. Some things haven’t changed. Both were times of political tumult. Students of today behave much as we did. The way we learned is the same. The textbooks may now be electronic but students still sit in classrooms listening to professor’s lecture.
We have seen incredible changes over the last half century. Science and technology have had a tremendous impact. Forget smart phones, we didn’t even have portable calculators. Nobody back then could have foreseen the progress women and minorities have made. The current generation faces a much more difficult time than we did. The cost of education has grown rapidly. Many leave school with a mountain of debt. Back then, having a degree almost certainly meant you could find a job. I knew someone with a degree in medieval literature who worked as a computer programmer. Now, many degrees have little or no economic value. Giving everyone a free education is not the answer. What is the point in spending untold billions so that people can get worthless degrees? Instead, colleges need to find ways to provide cost effective, meaningful education. Unfortunately, most want to keep doing things the way they always have. Kodak fought digital cameras and ultimately lost their film business. Netflix embraced the future and went from mailing DVDs to streaming. Most schools are more like Kodak than Netflix. |
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