The protests are serious

Let's stop laughing at the protesters and snowflakes.  They are serious anarchists with outside organizers helping them.  Don't underestimate them whether it's on the interstate, a bridge, a pipeline, a flag pole, a Broadway play or a smart phone. Most of them didn't vote--many are not even citizens. They aren't disgruntled Hillary supporters--they are America haters threatening elected and appointed officials, police, firemen and they will be well organized by the next election. They have plans.

Fake news and other claims by progressives, by Michael Smith, guest blogger

The entire mainstream media are gnashing their teeth and rending their hair over "fake news" after an election where they chose a candidate and supported that candidate by reporting out of context, omitting information, conducting opposition research for their chosen candidate and propagandizing according to their own bias. Now they want to "filter out" so called "fake news." Know which country already has a "filter" for fake news?

China. They are communists (we call them progressives in America).

Progressive lefties worry about Trump building internment camps - but these camps already exist. Where are they and who built them?

University campuses.The progressive left built them.

The progressive left is screeching about the "racism" that Trump's cabinet appointments represent, yet which ideology separates all America by race, implements quotas based on skin color and disrespects minorities by the soft bigotry of low expectations?

Progressives.

Ditto with "hatred" these appointments supposedly represent but which ideology violently protests when their own governance fails as in Ferguson and Baltimore?

Progressives.

Prior to the election, the media and the progressive left were aghast that Trump wouldn't automatically agree with the outcome of the election but who refused to accept the results of the election, took to the streets after they lost and are threatening Electoral College electors in an attempt to corrupt the process?

Progressives.

Which ideological group believes in the Constitution and its Amendments (i.e. states rights and the Electoral College) until they lose?

Progressives.

Which ideological group hides behind "states rights" when challenged over open borders and so-called "sanctuary cities" but hypocritically supports centralized federal control in all other circumstances?

Progressives.

What ideological group thought secession of various states that disagreed with Obama's policies was against the Constitution but now wants California to secede?

Progressives.

President elect for 14 days

First the media gave Donald Trump millions of dollars of free advertising when they figured they'd help the DNC rig the primaries by knocking out the other candidates with the big money PACs like Jeb Bush. Then they slammed him every chance they could when he actually won that with the highest vote count in the history of the GOP. Then when he won the election against the anointed one who was to maintain the Obama legacy, they went into high gear.  They've been making up all sorts of rules he has to follow to make them happy.

1) Don't go to dinner without them, 2) don't speak after being lectured by Broadway actors, 3) tolerate riots in the streets by paid agitators. Now he's had a video chat ala FDR's fireside chats and  some are screaming he's Kim Jong-il (because Hitler didn't have the technology). I guess they've forgotten Obama's European tour preaching to huge crowds in Germany before he was elected.  Someone needs to write and publish a guidebook for presidents-elect, or at least the ones who are not accomplished, polished politicians.

June DeMott's Brown October Stew

A cousin asked if I had a cookie recipe of her grandmother, my Aunt Betty. I didn’t, but did look through my mother-in-law’s Betty Crocker's picture cook book, c1950, and found her hand written recipe for

Brown October Stew

• 3 lb. beef chunks
• 3 TBS flour
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 14 tsp. ground ginger
• 3 TBS salad oil
• 1 large onion, chopped, 1 cup
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups mixed vegetable juice
• 1 one-inch stick cinnamon
• 1 medium eggplant cut in large cubes
• 4 medium carrots scraped and quartered
• 4 stalks of celery, cut in 3 in. sticks
• 8 large prunes
• 8 large apricots
• Shake beef cubes in mixture of flour, salt, pepper and ginger in paper bag. Brown quickly in the oil. Stir in onion, garlic, mixed vegetable juice and stick of cinnamon. Arrange eggplant, carrots, celery around the meat. Cover and simmer for one hour. Split and pit the prunes, stuff each with apricot halves, lay on top of the stew; cover and simmer, one hour longer or until the meat is tender.

1968 at our home on Abington Road

Hate crime statistics for 2015

Most people don't follow crime statistics, and probably not hate crime statistics, but I do. The law that hate crimes had to be collected and analyzed is 26 years old, signed by GHW Bush with a Democrat Congress in 1990. It's been revised twice, and most recently in 2009 to add more categories for sexual orientation. Race/ethnicity and religion are the majority. Hate crimes are a small niche in crime given the attention it gets on TV--5,850 crimes of all types from assault to murder--person, business, institution, or society as a whole. And now there are 3 categories for sex: gender, gender identity and sexual orientation--that should goose the numbers a little. It must be tough to mark the box for a bi-sexual Muslim who assaults a transgender woman who is a lesbian Jew. Since we already have laws against all these crimes I've never understood a special hate motivation law. Only one rape (legacy definition) in the 2015 report was counted as a hate crime compared to 255 larcenies. https://ucr.fbi.gov/hate-crime/2015/topic-pages/victims_final

It's unclear to me if the San Bernardino murders of Dec. 2015 by Muslims were ever called a hate crime even though 14 people died and 22 were injured, 3 of them immigrants, and many Christians participating in a quasi-religious holiday party. Even though the FBI said the shooters were inspired by jihad and terrorist ideas, it wasn't a hate crime?

San Bernardino did however, inspire Donald Trump to say all immigration from Muslim countries should end until the U.S. had a better way to vet them. For this he was condemned--by Obama, Gov. Brown, the Pentagon, and most global leaders. When polled right before the election about 57.4% of American voters agreed with Trump on immigration, including 58.5% of Hispanic voters. (Zogby)

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/17/us/san-bernardino-attackers-discussed-jihad-in-private-messages-fbi-says.html?_r=0

Southern Poverty Law Center, which I consider a hate group, blames Pamela Geller for San Bernardino terrorists. https://www.jihadwatch.org/2016/03/southern-poverty-law-center-blames-san-bernardino-jihad-massacre-on-pamela-geller

Nothing goes away on social media

The left powers up the smear campaign against Trump-Pence

Someone about 18  months ago decided that because Donald Trump wasn't brown, black, female or gay, he must be a white supremacist, and that's all it took for the alt-right (used to be a valid term for people who disagreed with conservatives--the alternative right) accusers and hate mongers to run with it. Was that ever said about him before June 2015? He used to be a flamboyant celebrity who hung with all kinds of people--mainly rich celebrities. But Washington is a private club whether the Bushes or Clintons are in power.

Upon throwing his hat in the ring he became a target of both Republicans and Democrats. For almost 30 years he'd been saying this was a great country that wasn't being run well (I saw one clip from the Oprah show in 1988 where she asked him if he would ever run for president).  But in 2015, "make America great again" became a dog whistle according to the alt-left. Trump didn't say ALL immigrants from Muslim countries should be excluded, only that the process needed to be put on hold until the government could figure out how to vet them. Now there are memes on the internet showing arms with prison tattoos, poor Joseph and Mary facing a wall and Japanese American children looking through barbed wire.  He never said all Mexicans were drug dealers and rapists, and the CRS has reported almost exactly his assessment of the border problems.  (Heroin Trafficking in the United States, Congressional Research Service, Aug. 23, 2016.)

If the Broadway cast of Hamilton are so worried now, did they fear for their lives and careers in 2008-2012 when Obama lied about his support for traditional marriage, or when people who can't afford a night out on the town in New York were slandered as deplorables?  Did they interrupt their audience's pleasure after they'd paid $800 a ticket with calls for closing the gender pay gap at the Clinton Foundation? Would they have asked their audience to stop aborting disabled babies? Who but the 1% can afford a ticket to pay their salaries and build their careers? The Hamilton cast has very odd values and even worse manners. For the pleasure of lecturing one group of theater goers out for a pleasant event, they spoiled the evening for everyone else.

International trade--how it helps the global population

What's the cause of international trade and American jobs going off shore? We know our corporate tax rate is the highest in the world.  List of Countries by Corporate Tax Rate  I hope the new president can start there--bring down the taxes to make the United States more competitive.  If Mr. Trump can bring that down, will jobs return; or is it unions, environmental regulations, and the work ethic of Americans who have been told only college educated people should vote or have rights? What about all the products made or grown in the U.S. which are then shipped out and assembled in Vietnam or Bangladesh?  What about the people employed in countries that depend on American based companies? There is a Levi factory in Ouanaminthe, Haiti that is critical for many families.  There would be more if Haiti itself wouldn't be so corrupt in its trade arrangements. I care about American workers, but I also care about the very poor and unemployed in Haiti. It's a very low wage by our standards, but it helps stabilize those developing nations, and perhaps slows the flow of immigrants looking for economic opportunity.

One of the pleasures of volunteering at the pregnancy center is - - folding baby clothes. Sometimes I launder them if a new batch has arrive.  I’ve even ironed them (who in the world would dress a young child in linen with lace and appliqués--probably grandma?). Each new baby's parents who are clients are given a huge shopping bag full of baby items from size zero to about 12 months, onesies, diapers, underwear, seasonal outfits, coat and hat, footwear, sleepers, blankets, towels, with a toy, book and Bible. I love the little Buckeye shirts in size 3 months.  (Parenting classes and mentors are also available, but we can't put them into shopping bags.) Clothing that isn't given as layette gifts because of wear, or they are beyond the age range, are put in "free" boxes for the moms to look through and select.   Some are holiday wear like Halloween, Christmas or Easter that may have been worn only once.

 Here’s what I found last week--in one hour of sorting (by size, season, sex, type) and remember these are donated (used) so I have no idea what year or decade they were made.

 

I‘m assuming anything made in China is the oldest, because many American/global firms have moved to cheaper labor, first to other Asian countries, then Africa and South America. Carter's reports it sells more than 10 products for every child born in the U.S.! It just doesn't tell you, except on the label, where those products are made. The only clue on a company web page, may be a disclaimer like this at Garanimals, if anything is said at all: " Before any of our products can be sold in North America, the materials, paints, sealants and all components that comprise them are tested rigorously by independent testing facilities to ensure their safety."

• China:  Vitamins Baby, DG Baby, Carter’s, PLC Place, Baby Gear, Osh Kosh, Seseme Street, Strawberry Patch, Fisher Price, First Impressions.
• Hong Kong: No brand on label
• Vietnam: swim trunks (no brand label), Baby Gap, Gymboree, Carter’s
• Thailand: Okie Dokie, Gymboree, Little Lindsey. Carter’s,
• Cambodia: Carter’s, Faded Glory
• Malaysia: Carter’s
• Philippines: Carter’s
• Sri Lanka: Garanimals
• Bangladesh: Circo
• India: Baby Boden, Onesies
• Arab Emirates: Faded Glory
• Portugal: Baby Boden
• El Salvador: Garanimals
• Honduras: Garanimals
• Kenya: Faded Glory

What happened to minimum wage issues?

Minimum wage issues brought out the paid demonstrators during the Obama years, but little was said during the election. Why? Because it's a non-issue for financially improving lives. Very few people earn minimum wage--about 1.3 million hourly paid workers. Only 2% of full time hourly workers are at or below federal minimum. The increases are not going to change the economy, but can raise prices or close businesses while trying to make political points with this dead horse for the left to beat. The hope that an increase in minimum might reduce dependency on government assistance, is probably a pipe dream. They may be poor, but they aren't stupid. They will reduce their taxable hours to continue with Medicaid or housing assistance which are not taxed.  http://www.bls.gov/opub/reports/minimum-wage/archive/characteristics-of-minimum-wage-workers-2014.pdf

Riots, rudeness and ridicule

No surprises here. Riots, rudeness and ridicule--the very behavior that caused Democrats to lose the White House, Congress and most state governments. The Democratic party has become the party of wealth, celebrity and street protests by paid agitators who get their "fake" news from late night comedians. The party where bigoted designers, Broadway actors and abortion CEOs feel empowered to flaunt their out of touch ideas is now morally and ideologically bankrupt. It had no plan to improve the economy, education, security, national harmony or global threats--only a plan to put a woman in the White House.

"Sophie Theallet, who has dressed the current first lady Michelle Obama, offered a preemptive refusal to hypothetically dress the next first lady, Melania Trump, should she ask for some of her clothes— presumably not the ones available at The Gap. In her unsolicited letter, Theallet informed the world that a person who did not ask for any of her clothes would not be getting them."  http://thefederalist.com/2016/11/18/refusing-serve-customers-dont-agree-suddenly-cool/

Jeff Bezos the amazing capitalist

About three years ago Jeff Bezos of Amazon bought the formerly liberal, now leftist, Washington Post. Dennis Prager describes it as the National Enquirer of the left. Bezos is an amazing capitalist--has a greater networth than the Walton family of Walmart from whom he learned that moving products quickly and undercutting the competition was the quickest route to wealth. I don't think he's particularly interested in truth, objectivity or journalism; the "news" now seems to be mostly anecdotal and opinion based although there are still opinion columns. Occasionally, journalism breaks out, but not often, so maybe he just likes the idea. Only about 2% of Americans get their news from print (I read WaPo online, and am not sure how that's counted), and it's even less for those under 25 who prefer the fake news of late night comedy shows.

Just a few years ago--like thirty

Not since the mega-wealthy Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid has there been a bigger alarmist and liar than Elizabeth Warren, who got where she is by claiming to be a member of a protected group. I heard a clip of her speech today where she said a "few years ago" and then prattled on about Jeff Sessions. The incident she was referring to was 30 years ago. Well, 30 years ago she was self-identifying as a minority law teacher in directories right up through her appointment at Harvard. That was gold for government grants for the schools that hired her. If it was a few years ago for Sessions, it was a few years ago for Warren, and just a few years since the Democrats kept electing a former Klan member Robert Byrd as the longest serving (1959-2010) member to Congress.

Babies are a miracle not a mistake

http://blogs.cbn.com/thebrodyfile/archive/2008/03/31/obama-says-he-doesnt-want-his-daughters-punished-with-a.aspx?mobile=false   This article clarifies what President Obama said during the 2008 campaign.

Sports injuries reports compared

Ready for a walk around the neighborhood, April 2015

I've always been a non-athlete.  I got one C in college and it was in tennis.  The instructor was about 8 months pregnant, so I don't think she was expecting much from me, and I met her expectations.  Walking or riding my exercycle are my limits.  No golf.  No tennis. No yoga. No soccer. I meet women over 60 or 70 who at one time were serious athletes who played soccer or softball in college and on community teams or who were joggers and runners and now are in constant recovery in their later years from hip and knee problems and surgeries--and some battling obesity because they were accustomed to burning a lot of calories.   But I do read articles about sports and health because I'm sort of medical information junkie.  There are a lot of injuries. This article included summaries of several reports, one of which showed how injury statistics have been under reported because they used primarily ER statistics, but 50% get care at their doctor's office.

Girls are more likely to get injured than boys while playing the same sport. . . Football, lacrosse, and wrestling athletes were the most likely to suffer season- or career-ending injuries among boys, while gymnastics, soccer, and basketball were the most likely girls' sports to manifest these injuries. For both sexes, contact was the most common cause of major injuries. . . . yoga injury rates are increasing, especially in participants 65 and up -- who are also more prone to injury than others.. .Outside the U.S., a new study linking sports participation level with anterior crucial ligament injury risk also found contact to be the leading injury mechanism, and girls to be more injury-prone than boys while playing the same sport.  http://www.medpagetoday.com/SportsMedicine/GeneralSportsMedicine/61555

Temperature to match 1954!

Today (and yesterday) in central Ohio we’re supposed to match the temperature records for 1954! I think it will be about 72, depending on where you are, and I hope to get out for several walks. We get our weather about a day after Illinois, so I’m thinking it was warm there too in November 1954. I was a sophomore in 1954 at Mt. Morris High School so I pulled out my school annual (white, padded cover, Mounder title in red, 1955) to see what was going on. Tina Kable would walk from her home on North Hannah, stop at my house on South Hannah, we’d walk up Main Street and pick up Kay Alter and Priscilla Drummond.

In the fall months we also stayed in touch the old fashioned way—through our school newspaper, The Hilltopper put out by the journalism class. By doing this group project they learned writing style, proofing for mistakes, how to paste-up pages, typing copy and running a mimeograph—probably not useful skills today, but teamwork is always important. I see names from Facebook like Bob Rawes, Donna Coddington, Ralph Dollinger. On a warm November day we’d all walk together after school on our way to Felker’s for a cherry coke searching for our names in the Hilltopper.

By November, the annual staff had already begun preparations of this book by getting advertisers, developing a theme, taking photos and planning the art work. I see some Facebook or email list members I recognize like Joyce Kinsley, Bob Rawes and Jerry Wallace. A promotional sign says the year book cost $2.75! That was a good buy—mine is 60 years old. There’s even a photo of my sister Carol (d. 1996) whose grandchildren are on Facebook so I can keep up with their activities.

I’m looking through the names of the varsity football team who played that fall and see a number of people on Facebook or local e-mail lists, some deceased (Jim Mongan, Phil Egan, Gerald Blake, Stan Messer, Don Satterfield, Pete Smith), and some who seemed to have dropped out of sight. The junior class that fall presented “One Foot in Heaven” on Friday, November 19. I see Bill Allenfort, who is still active in community theater getting a beard.

And there’s the student council learning the basics of representative democracy with cute freshman Carol Samsel and junior Murray Trout (deceased). The Council organized all the Homecoming activities, sponsored dances and provided the concession stand. They sent delegates to district and state conventions—sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

We did have professional lyceum speakers for assembly in those days, but also our in-house thespians provided entertainment. It was a big group—I see Jerry Wallace, Harold Hanke, Mike Balluff, Joyce Kinsley, Connie Frey, Sally Olsen, all of whom are on Facebook.

The fall of 1954. It was warm, and so are the memories.

Democrats continue their meltdown and name calling

President elect Trump got only marginally more white voters in 2016 than Romney did in 2012, and many more minorities votes than Romney. But the Democrats smeared Romney as a racist, homophobe, sexist, etc. --and I think animal abuser for good measure. This year, people who had voted for Obama for two terms were tired of being maligned, ridiculed and called names, especially a basket of deplorables by Clinton, so they decided to try an outsider. The name calling is so much background noise now, and I don't think it works anymore except to incite more fear among Democrats. Now we've got teacher's unions preparing propaganda as "social studies units" about the election to terrorize their students. It's the 1950s duck and cover nuclear attack. The democrats are digging their own hole and pulling the dirt over top of themselves.

Meanwhile the protests continue.  Now the protestors are releasing the names and addresses of the electoral voters who are pledge to support candidates--they are trying to threaten them into changing their votes.  Really, despicable people.  But do Obama or Clinton say anything? I guess all that talk about a smooth transition was just talk.  

Each visitor to Trump Tower for discussions and interviews has wild stories written about him or her in the nasty main stream media.  They are terrified as their political base collapses and gravy train drains.  Clintons are gone.  Bidens gone. Harry Reid gone.  Maybe Nancy Pelosi is on the way out.  The most powerful woman in the world, Valerie Jarrett will soon leave DC (unless she's trapped in the revolving door of lobbying.  The DNC exposed for its corruption and deal making.

In 1883 we all got on board on November 18

 

On this day in 1883, 4 time zones simplified the country's railroad schedules and put cross-country friendships on track.

Here’s the story with some interesting links.
http://history1800s.about.com/od/railroadbuilding/fl/Why-We-Have-Time-Zones.htm

If you're a history buff, this is a very interesting site which will keep you wandering for a long time.

Guaranteed Latino vote

“Four million more Latinos were eligible to vote Tuesday than in 2012. So, no matter who was running and no matter how low the turnout, the number of Latino votes counted Tuesday was virtually certain to be higher than 2012. In fact, demographic growth alone would have guaranteed Mrs. Clinton an additional 1.3 million votes (about 1 percent of the total votes cast), even if turnout remained at the same dismal rate as 2012, and she got two-thirds of the Latino votes.” (Roberto Suro, NYT)

Interesting. This New York Times opinion piece assumes the Latino vote belongs to the Democrats. GUARANTEED. Maybe Latinos care about abortion, or religious freedom, or good jobs staying in the country, or crime syndicates exerting power across the border, or refugees flooding into the country without any vetting. Just a thought, of course. It’s possible their grandparents told them about Cuba, or Honduras, or Guatemala and they don’t want what their families left.

Subtle messaging in PSAs

This morning I watched a very sweet PSA, "Put a little love in your heart" and the sponsors were a variety of organizations and name brands which quickly left my mind. You know the song (I won't sing it here), and photos of various singles and groups and ethnicities roll by. The only nuclear family group--mom, dad, kids--were white. I think all elderly--black and white--were alone, young people were alone or shown with one or two others.  Not sure I saw disabled, but one young teen had the knit cap which might indicate cancer recovery, and she was playing guitar accompaniment, but again, was alone. Not sure that a message about love should feature so many solitary figures--especially the elderly. Life is hard; take a friend with you on the journey.

Elizabeth Warren and lobbyists

15 November 2016

Editor, Wall Street Journal
1211 6th Ave.
New York, NY 10036

Dear Editor:

Sen. Elizabeth Warren is upset that President-elect Trump’s transition team includes many corporate lobbyists ("Elizabeth Warren Criticizes Donald Trump Over Lobbyists in Transition Team,” Nov. 15). Well now. Sen. Warren is second-to-none at empowering Uncle Sam to exercise broad discretionary powers over corporate affairs - powers that, if exercised one way, yield that company hundreds of millions of dollars in additional profits or, if exercised another way, saddle that company with hundreds of millions of dollars of additional costs. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that corporations work hard to have their voices heard among the din of everyone clamoring for the new emperor’s attention.

For Sen. Warren to be upset that Trump’s transition team attracts hordes of corporate lobbyists seeking political favors is akin to a Madam being upset that her bawdyhouse attracts hordes of men seeking female favors.

Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Professor of Economics and Martha and Nelson Getchell Chair for the Study of Free Market Capitalism at the Mercatus Center George Mason University