Government shutdown . U.S.A .

 All Flag's in the  country should be flown half staff
because of a possible government
shutdown.

The vary notion of a "government shutdown " is in my eye's proof how ungovernable the nation has become . You expect your elected officials to do the job and keep government running . You would imagine that "they" the senators alike care about the little guy. President Obama has ditched congress .The funding bill isn't the only issue at hand, Obama said. He warned against any attempt by Republicans to attach items of their agenda onto a bill authorizing the Treasury Department to increase the debt limit. Obama vowed once again not to negotiate over the debt limit - saying raising it to ensure the country can pay its bills is Congress' Constitutional responsibility - although he said he would negotiate over “our economic future.” “I don’t know how to be more clear about this: No one gets to threaten the full faith and credit of the United States of America just to extract ideological concessions,” he said. On this one you can't blame Obama. You have to put the finger on both parties running the show.They are failing. If there is a government shutdown the public should show it's displeasure by flying the flag at half staff .Yes all public and federal buildings . Our government is passing  away. Let the Tea Party shut down the government & make that obstructionism the issue in next year's election. Pretty much it damages the Republicans , and dashes their GOP future hopeful of any White House win.What’s fascinating, and this speaks to the perceived power of the tea party in primaries, is that it’s taking only a small minority of House Republicans to push toward Armageddon. The Washington Post’s Lori Montgomery and Paul Kane estimated that roughly 40 conservatives revolted against their leadership’s efforts to keep the government open past Sept. 30. That’s 40 in a 435-member House of Representatives. Stopping ObamaCare, in their view, is necessary to prevent the country from reaching the end of the road to serfdom. Compared with this hellish prospect, who cares about shutdowns? Last of  all is this "advice" that former President Bill Clinton   said on ABC’s This Week that “the current price of stopping [a shutdown] is higher than the price of letting the Republicans do it and taking their medicine.”

Iran's new Peace with America and maybe the world.

Iran's new jester of peace will it be
welcomed by America and Israel ?

After so many years Iran's  new president, Hassan Rouhani, declared that "peace is within reach ". I welcome that , because the last Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad whoes own rhetoric was vary terrifying  that borrowed heavily from a Nazi playbook . Ahmadinejad was reportedly arrested over the summer for various offenses ,  to the west it may have been welcoming news . Iran for the most part has been a misunderstood country since the Iranian Revolution in some part took the American hostages . I remember those 444 days  that gripped our nation . I was growing up back then watching how President Carter failed on all levels of diplomacy with the Iranian revolutionaries. The Carter years were for Americans deplorable . The Hostage taking was in fact the first terrorist act against America .   Our nation has since then crafted Iran as an "axis of evil" , and Iran's ruling mullah's  have been calling America  the "great Satan" . It was a mini could war that was crafted for 40 years . Iran as far as I could conceive is the middle-east most modernized of all the so called Islamic theocracies . The Most "westernized" is Turkey , but Iran is not westernized in any sense of the word , but more productive toward Woman's rights , which America's best ally Saudi Arabia still wont allow a woman to drive a car.  I have to say . I have Iranian friends who visit Iran , who come and go as they please . One thing they tell me is the America media has distorted their country . This bad press for Iran over the years may have been self inflicted , but Iranian's guard their Shia heritage . Shia,s are a separate sect Islam which Iranians are mostly members of , the Shia are a Islamic minority , often subject to persecution by Sunni Muslims . The Iranian president, elected in June, was speaking a few hours Barack Obama had stood at the same podium and pledged to focus his administration's foreign policy in its remaining three years on the Middle East, particularly on reaching a diplomatic settlement in Iran. In a near staccato burst of pronouncements, statements and speeches by the new president, Hassan Rouhani; his foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif; and even the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leadership has sent Rosh Hashana greetings to Jews worldwide via Twitter, released political prisoners, exchanged letters with President Obama, praised “flexibility” in negotiations and transferred responsibility for nuclear negotiations from the conservatives in the military to the Foreign Ministry. Still, Rouhani's comments on Jews, for all their remarkable amicability, have been at times awkward and even equivocal, undercutting his message and raising concerns among skeptics who worry that he may not be all he seems. In this way, his steps and missteps on reaching out to Jews have been symbolic and symptomatic of his larger effort toward the West -- and of the divide Rouhani is creating among those in the West who do and do not take his outreach as genuine.President Obama said he and the Iranian leader directed their teams to "continue working expeditiously" in cooperation with the P5+1 group of nations to pursue an agreement.Even with the history of mistrust between the U.S. and Iran, Obama said, steps taken so far could offer hope for resolving the dispute over Iran's nuclear program. "We are mindful of all the challenges ahead.  The very fact that this was the first communication between an American and an Iranian president since 1979 underscores the deep mistrust between our countries, but it also indicates the prospect of moving beyond that difficult history," said Obama.

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

Israelis and their government have taken a cautionary approach to any Iranian peace plan . I believe it's time to create peace for both Israelis and Arabs . Iran holds all the cards. and it is crucial for America to have Iranian support . Tearing down the wall of decades of name calling and warmongering is now also in Obama's court . Lets hope President Obama won't screw thus opportunity up , but it's sure time for a little peace in the middle-east.

Ted's Crusade & Government Shutdown.

Senator Ted Cruz's crusade was all wind, and
not action. 

Obviously the "threat" of of a government shutdown again brings to mind of a government failure .  Eight in 10 Americans find it unacceptable for either President Obama or members of Congress to threaten to shut down the government during budget negotiations in order to achieve their goals, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. Fewer than 1 in 5 think the stalemate between Mr. Obama and the Republicans in Congress is acceptable.  Republicans, Democrats, independents and Tea Party supporters alike object to the threat of a shutdown, the poll says. Why is either party going to risk public disapproval  ? The bottom line here is that Texas Senator Ted Cruz who  GOP critics believe his strategy is politically suicidal, arguing there is no way to stop Obamacare as long as Democrats maintain control of the Senate and Obama is in the White House. Senator Cruz spent several hours on the floor debating  "ObamaCare isn't working," Cruz said Wednesday, as he departed the Senate floor after speaking in opposition to the law from Tuesday afternoon straight through until noon on Wednesday. Cruz's speech was a symbolic stand, as he was not actually able to stall the bill at this point. In the end, he and every other senator voted to advance the bill and proceed to debate. The vote was 100-0. But Cruz, anticipating that Reid will re-fund ObamaCare, is trying to rally Republicans and moderate Democrats to join in blocking the bill before it comes to a final vote. Another test vote, which will require 60 senators to proceed, is expected in the coming days. Cruz has not gotten much support from other Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who said Monday that he will not join Cruz in trying to filibuster the House bill, which does exactly what Cruz and McConnell want -- defund Obamacare. Any how what a fiasco , what a waste of time with "threats" of shutting down government .If Cruz did succeed in defunding obamacare, the mandate would likely not go into effect but the companies would still, by law, have to accept people with pre existing conditions.What we see in Ted Cruz is a walking, talking billboard. Pay him some money and he'll say whatever you want said, no matter how outlandish or foolish it makes him look.All these actions to halt government seem to be counter productive , and if one is looming it's making America look a failure .The CNBC All-America Economic Survey of 800 people across the country conducted by Hart-McInturff, finds that, in general, Americans oppose defunding Obamacare by a plurality of 44 percent to 38 percent. Opposition to defunding increases sharply when the issue of shutting down the government and defaulting is included. In that case, Americans oppose defunding 59 percent to 19 percent, with 18 percent of respondents unsure. The final 4 percent is a group of people who want to defund Obamacare, but become unsure when asked if they still hold that view if it means shutting down the government.

NOTES and COMMENTS:

There would a entry in the Guinness Book of World Records. As one of the longest and boring speeches on record . Sen. Ted Cruz's all-night talk-a-thon on the need to defund Obamacare finally ended , clocking in at 21 hours and 19 minutes. Cruz  who is just babbling on and on about Dr. Seuss and Duck Dynasty.Well other wise my critique is like Obama . Cruz said he would go to Washington and change Washington. He has -- he's made it worse just like Obama .

Smoking : a New and Dangerous trend.

The 'New' Marlboro man , but take
heed.

The 'old ' Marlboro man died
of cancer.

There are a lot of things that "disgust" me . First of all I never touched a cigarette , I don't think that smoking anything is healthy ,  and growing up I remember the  Marlboro Man  a figure used in tobacco advertising campaign for Marlboro cigarettes. Today there is a new image of a smoking man that is making headway in the advertising campaign to introduce new smokers to E-cigarettes .By now, you've probably seen them being smoked on the subway or in a bar -- those shiny, futuristic, battery-operated nicotine inhalers better know as electronic cigarettes that are apparently all the rage these days. Big Tobacco companies have taken notice, too, and are determined to cash in on the industry, which is expected to bring in $1.7 billion in U.S. sales this year alone, according to The New York Times. But the Food and Drug Administration does not yet regulate the growing $1.7 billion industry.  If the  old Marlboro man was considered "sexy" back in the 1970's , today in our 21st century and new image of a distorted manhood is being plastered by the media. It's raw and disgusting that sex is still being used to sell any kind of tobacco product, so far the electronic cigs are an UNKNOWN as far as "health risks" .While much is still unknown about the health risks of e-cigarettes, here’s what we do know: E-cigarettes are addicting. And while they may not be as harmful as tobacco cigarettes, critics like the British Medical Association and the World Health Organisation are wary of the trend and warn of the dangers that may be associated with the smoking devices. First we don't know how much Nicotine as far as levels are contained in these devices . Nicotine is considered a drug by the FDA , but not regulated like Marijuana THC . We all know that Nicotine is addictive and dangerous , and I am so curious how the FDA gave a green light to E-cigarettes ?. Some note that : FDA notified healthcare professionals and patients that a laboratory analysis of electronic cigarette samples has found that they contain carcinogens and toxic chemicals such as diethylene glycol, an ingredient used in antifreeze.Their visibility is becoming ever greater as well, with television and online marketing campaigns of what they describe as more socially acceptable, "guilt-free" smoking.The reasoning behind such claims is that e-cigs, which have the look of conventional cigarettes stylishly updated for the techno-age, produce vapor instead of ash or smoke. They also generally deliver lower amounts of nicotine ??? than conventional cigarettes—a feature that may make e-cigarettes useful as an aid to smoking cessation.--- in theory. Another disturbing trend is that E-cig's are becoming popular with teenagers . Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examined data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey, which polls about 20,000 adolescents in grades six through 12 on their tobacco-related beliefs and attitudes, use habits and exposure to pro- and anti-tobacco influences.They found e-cigarette use increased from 4.7 percent of surveyed high school students in 2011 to 10 percent by 2012, the last year data was collected.E-cigarette use increased from 1.4 percent of middle school students in 2011 to 2.7 percent last year.That worries health officials, because 90 percent of all smokers start when they're teenagers, according to the CDC. So why are so many kids taking up e-smoking? Public health advocates say e-cigarette companies are following the playbook tobacco companies used to attract young people back in the mid-20th century — flashy marketing designed to appeal to young people, and candy flavorings like bubble gum, chocolate chip cookie, and "Atomic Fireball." As it all goes it's a new disgusting trend to make you sick and addicted .

A few "little" bits today.

I love to write and give my opinions on things . Right now there are many issues, here are a few that deserve some thought , so I would like to say a few words on them . Although late.

Her father must be
vary Proud of Miley.

There has been much rancor over Miley Cyrus. What that has to do with politics ? I am going say that she is just a perfect example how too much liberalism shapes a clean cut girl into a whorish young women who paraded her self  in a dance that simulated sex  on live TV. It was not even close to entertaining . Almost laughable , however Miley also made a music video where she is naked and crying on a bell. We all saw this girl grow up from Hanna Montana image that it now seems she is trying to shed so desperately to get acceptance in the entertainment world of the Lady Gaga image . Remember she is a grown woman now, she is 20 years old . She is asserting he independence in a modern way.   Just "imagine" if it was Shirley Temple Black  doing this in her day , you would not think it , yes times have changed .  Social commentary from the liberals also boasted some criticism :

On MSNBC, "Morning Joe" co-anchor Mika Brzezinski was not amused by the performance at all. After showing a clip of the performance coming out of a commercial, Joe Scarborough and the other panelists were joking about it, but not Brzezinski, who called it "really, really disturbing.""Real Time" host Bill Maher took to Twitter to comment: "Haven't been in a strip club in awhile, but good to see nothing has changed."On NBC's "Today" show, guest co-anchor Brooke Shields, who played Miley's mom on "Hannah Montana," called the performance "desperate." "Today" show co-anchor Willie Geist characterized it as "a big Disney over-correction," citing Britney Spears as another example of a sweet kid actor who felt the need to oversexualize herself to show that she's no longer a child. I am sure that her  Daddy is vary *** "proud" of his girl .

COMMENTARY NOTE :

*** Billy Ray Cyrus actually said , not misquoting him :  " Billy admitted that she is "either a love or hate" kind of artist, but puts this down to "passion". ''Miley's smart enough to know that to come out of the shadows of 'Hannah Montana,' it really takes something extremely drastic, which when you go to that level, it creates passion, and passion is either love or hate. But there's no middle of the road for passion," he said.''She has risen to a whole new level. I thought I had seen it all - until these last couple of weeks.'' Even with her naked Wrecking Ball music video, Billy Ray insists that he's proud of his daughter, as she is "real", and says that she's still his little girl.

_______________________________________________________

What drove this man to murder ? He got
his guns "legally".

Well it's happened again . America had had another mass shooting . A heavily armed shooter entered the Navy Yard in Washington on Monday and opened fire, killing at least 18 people before being shot to death by authorities. The killings brought the horror of mass shootings back into the national spotlight, as President Barack Obama condemned the "cowardly act" and honored the victims during an address. Monday's violence marked the sixth mass shooting since the one in Newtown, Conn., in December, according to some counts. It was also the first publicly recognized by Obama since the elementary school massacre, which claimed the lives of 27, including 20 children. There have been six mass shootings over the past nine months -- and at least 20 during Obama's presidency. That may be disturbing. But some would argue even that startling figure grossly under-reports the number of shooting sprees. My question now turns to the press it's self. I am finding that maybe there is a lot in common with American society at large which glorifies violence as entertainment , but secondly how guns are so available in the first REGARDLESS of all the background checks . Third how our government , yes Mr. Obama is powerless to do-anything about it. Also a note : 268 gun deaths in Chicago thus far in 2013. If the "mass shootings" which have resulted in about 80 deaths over the last 15 months are a bigger problem than the 268 gun deaths in nine months in Chicago you have to ask yourself if we are being misled by the press. Wouldn't the Chicago situation be much more newsworthy? Or maybe it's all just politically driven skewed reporting.

_________________________________________________

He could be our NEXT President after Obama , you
just wait and see....

My NEXT and Last BRAIN pick is John Kerry ( Secretary of the State) .John Kerry's case for intervention was so weak it even put Obama back on the fence. Hearing his "speeches" condemning the attack on Syria  just made me think. Sen. Kerry’s weaknesses are not as self-evident as those of UN Ambassador Susan Rice, who misled the nation about Benghazi and had a long record of other failures. Yet Sen. Kerry has been on the wrong side of nearly every foreign policy issue for the past 40 years. His “experience” is much like that of supposed foreign policy guru, Vice President Joe Biden: a long track record of grievous mistakes. The Syria "crisis" although it is SAD that innocent people were killed by saran gas . John Kerry is obviously a hypocrite , first of all he is an anti-war Vietnam vet, and he was one of the foremost critics of Bush's invasion of Iraq . Kerry's warmongering speeches don't give any credence for the United States to attack Syria . Meanwhile Pres. Obama sends the nation into a tail spin, and sending oil prices souring . During this feigned war mongering, Obama has routinely claimed that U.S. credibility is at stake. In reality, though, the only credibility on the line is his own. Of course Obama doesn't want to invade Syria. It makes no sense for him. It's wildly unpopular with the public (to the tune of a48% to 29% margin), politically disastrous within his own party, and garnering support from the sort of people the president wants nothing to do with (we're looking at you, Sen. Lindsey Graham). But he couldn't back off his previous stance, and he couldn't appear weak. If there's one thing Obama hates, it's looking weak. He has to thank Kerry for looking so weak.  So what does the president do when he wants to save face? First, he does some macho posturing, using phrases like "a danger to [U.S.] national security" and making it clear he's not afraid to go it alone. He calls out the UN Security Council for being, essentially, useless. He sends Secretary of State John Kerry out to present the evidence of a chemical attack and lay down the number of casualties and death toll. He makes everyone really, truly believe the U.S. is set for a strike on Syria. -----------well hum.Former President Bill Clinton, for example, before a supposedly private audience, recently complained that the president risks appearing like “a total wuss” over his inaction in Syria. The president frequently adds familiar emphatic s like “make no mistake about it,” “in point of fact,” and “let me be perfectly clear” that in paradoxical fashion serve as tip-offs that consequences will not follow his tough rhetoric. The last word to this was given by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad,  in an interview Monday with the French newspaper Le Figaro. “For us, a strong man prevents rather than starts a war…Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,” al-Assad said.

Why America should be like Canada .

This says it all.

I have often wondered , and yes I would be accused of being some kinda "socialist" for saying this . Here it is . I wish America was more like Canada.  The great north holds a lot of promise , a great model for the United States . So far our nation (the U.S.A) is turning more and more the the "south" IE : MEXICO . I like Mexicans , yes . I don't like much of the political system there , but in our Country the system seems to be just slipping an economic down-slide . Our Dollar in a world context looks more like the Peso , and you know that the high inflation devalues the "dollar"as a global currency . First, for context, we need to do a numbers comparison with the U.S. Canada’s unemployment rate is now 7.3%, whereas the current U.S. unemployment rate is 8.2%. Canada’s combined federal and provincial debt to GDP ratio is 57.9%, while Canada’s federal debt to GDP ratio is 34%.  Meanwhile, the U.S. debt to GDP ratio reached 101.5% in 2011. Then there is the Canadian banking system. Canada’s banks are among the best capitalized in the world and far exceed the norms outlined by the Bank for International Settlements. During the financial crisis, no Canadian banking institutions had to be bailed out. The rest of this article, of course, could be filled with details about the troubles with U.S. banks and the Democrats’ Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, but I’ll let all that be addressed in other articles. It’s worth noting here that homeowners are also in better shape in Canada. Today just 0.35% of Canadian mortgages are behind on their payments, whereas TransUnion reported that in the January-March 2012 quarter 5.78% of U.S. mortgage holders were behind on their payments by 60 days or more (that’s more than 10 times more than in Canada). ( Canada Canada Dreams Link ) For its higher taxes Canada has a larger system of social programs than the United States. This includes having a national broadcaster in the CBC, a largely government-funded health care system, and having all major universities receive partial government funding. The United States, however, does have most of its major universities subsidized by state government. The US also has two national public broadcasters which receive partial government funding, PBS (television) and NPR (radio).The greatest difference in social programs is in health care. Contrary to popular belief, the U.S. Government spends as much on health care, 7% of GDP, as the Canadian government does,^[12] and total healthcare spending is much higher - 14.6% of GDP in the US vs. 10% in Canada.^[13] Canadians, however, receive comparable care to those Americans who receive treatment, and result measures. The Canadian health care system is said by some also to be attractive to employers, as in Canada health care is mostly paid through employee income taxes, while in the United States most companies choose to extend health benefits to full-time employees. Many employers in Canada do offer employees some additional medical coverage, for non-necessary treatments, and for pharmaceuticals which are not universally covered by the government-paid health insurance system. The most common complaint regarding the Canadian system are the long lines and waiting periods that have appeared for minor and non-life threatening procedures over the last 15 years, since the introduction of widespread cuts to public funding. Separately, a number of medical tests and screenings are not covered (or due to increasing costs, are no longer covered) by the Canadian health system, forcing patients to pay for these services out of their own pockets. For these reasons, some relatively wealthy Canadians undergo treatment at private healthcare facilities at their own expense, either in Canada, in India, or in other nations^[14] to avoid waiting for medical treatment, joining "medical tourists" from many nations, including the US.^[14] Despite these sporadic problems, Canada's healthcare performance is generally on par with the US. Efforts were made to reduce wait times by many provincial governments in the 1990s and 2000s, in an effort to improve care. Furthermore, healthcare coverage is universal for Canadians, and transferable outside a home province within Canada. In the United States, however, the most common complaint is that approximately 50 million people are uninsured, and thus do not have access to even the most basic healthcare services which Canadians have access to. This puts a burden on the emergency room services in the States and causes increases in healthcare costs significantly. They have a better standard of living for their population overall. They have less crime, less racism, less ignorance, less poverty, less political divide, less guns, less pollution... and on top of that they have an excellent public education system (Canada is one of the most educated societies in the world), a universal health care system that covers everyone both rich and poor, and a sound economy.  Canadian cities consistently rank as the cleanest and the most livable in the world with Toronto, Ontario; Calgary, Alberta; and Vancouver, British Columbia routinely taking the top spot. If I get the chance to move to Canada I'll do it in a heartbeat. It's a perfect place to live if you ask me. I'll leave America to the mob.  I won't wait until they turn us into a Third World Country.

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

*** Canada is a good example what America should be . They never meddle in world affairs , they have virtually no enemies .

2013. Post 9-11 reemergence.

Post 9-11 rant . No war with Syria.

Which line did you say I crossed?

September 11th is this week, and our nation ( United States of America )  is drumming up the war drums again . Not that a "terror" attack just happened , but the issue of "intervening" on behalf of a rebel group in Syria is a bit over bearing . Just poised to fire missiles at Syria in response to chemical attacks on Syrian civilians. But the assault will also pit the U.S. against one side of the civil war and aid the other side, which includes Al Qaeda. That falls just days before the anniversary of Al Qaeda attacks against both the World Trade Center and Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001. President Obama plans to address the nation tom morrow at 6 PST.  Obama's goal is to win support of the American people. Sorry to say ZZZ. Obama using the eve of 9-11 to peddle his war on Syria to the American public disgusts me.  We are not even getting the truth from the news media . Broadcast news outlets are clearly aware of the Islamic terror group’s role in Syria, but rarely report it. Nearly 94 percent of all Syria stories since the gas attacks have made no mention of Al Qaeda whatsoever.In the CBS interview, Assad said his forces were not in the area of the chemical weapons attack Aug. 21, saying "our soldiers in another area were attacked chemically. ... But in the area where they said the government used chemical weapons, we only had video and we only have pictures and allegations. We're not there." Kerry said that Assad's denial is "contradicted by fact." The facts are the United States is being "drawn" into the war in Syria by a cleverly orchestrated attack .When it comes to diplomacy, Russia is playing chess, Syria is playing checkers and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is playing tiddlywinks.  On Monday, Kerry said that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could avoid having his country bombed into oblivion by turning over “every single bit of his chemical weapons to the international community in the next week.”  Of course Kerry just assumed that Assad would never do such a thing, but the Russians immediately pounced on his statement.  Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov quickly announced that Russia would encourage Syria to turn over their chemical weapons to international control in exchange for a guarantee that the U.S. will not attack, and subsequently Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem stated that his government was prepared for “full cooperation with Russia to remove any pretext for aggression.”  Later on Monday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon indicated that he is thinking about asking the UN Security Council to support such a deal. If you think it's sinister in nature , yes it is. Something or some one wants America in another war. I don't believe ( may be I am wrong) that Assad ( Bashar Assad ) is responsible for the chemical attack . I have often wondered since 9-11 , and if you look at the world map carefully . It shows America in Iraq , Afghanistan and parts of Yemen and Saudi Arabia lined up with air bases . America also has navel aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf armed with possible nukes patrolling near Iran .  It seems like the biblical "King of the North" swarming in at all sides in the middle -east  ( Bible Daniel 11 " `And the king of the north hath turned back, and hath caused a multitude to stand, greater than the first, and at the end of the times a second time he doth certainly come in with a great force, and with much substance;- Youngs Literal Bible ) The biblical "king of the north" was described by many to be the anti-Christ , some religious groups said it is Russia . It's beginning to sound like America.  For me the United States seems to be an "occupying power" in the whole middle -east at the expense of tax payers. The Arab world hates America , I am vary belittled about it . The middle -east , Egypt , Saudi Arabia , Syria, Libya and Israel . Each of those nations were a bygone product of colonialism , none of those nations existed outside of some "empire" in the last 2,000 years . Even so independent in the last 100 years from the British Empire.   The President has not learned to be a leader. When he made his red line statement (which should have never been made), he should have taken ownership of the statement instead of putting it off on the United Nations (who voted for the ban on chemical and biological weapons) and the Congress (for ratifying the chemical and biological weapon ban). He should have stood up and took military action immediately, without warning, (which again I oppose). Why? BECAUSE HE DREW THE LINE. Once he took that action he needed to follow through. Now Russia, China, Iran and every two bit despot knows the President of the United States is a man of empty promises. And THAT threatens the security of our country more than dropping bombs on Syria. With all the talk of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s transgressions against his people, perhaps it’s time we consider what our own government is doing right here in America. And while we don’t support the dictatorial means by which Assad controls his country, isn’t it hypocritical to accuse him of crimes against humanity when our very own government engages in similar activities against its people? In the following insightful article Chris Carrington of The Daily Sheeple explores the arguments set forth by the Obama administration, and turns them inwards. President Obama could potentially launch the opening salvos of *** World War III within the next week, and we’re doing so by claiming Bashar Al-Assad’s regime is violating the human and civil rights of his people. What about our government? Isn’t it behaving in much the same way? And thus, would China or Russia be able to make similar claims in the future should they choose to turn their military power on us in the future?



NOTES AND COMMENTS:

*** We were all fooled , the latest developments are :WASHINGTON --#Breaking: Obama wants to delay a vote on authorizing force in Syria until a diplomatic solution has a chance to play out. A White House official says President Barack Obama has agreed to discussions at the United Nations Security Council on a proposal from Russia to secure Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles. The official says Obama discussed the proposal Tuesday with French President Francois Hollande (frahn-SWAH' oh-LAWND') and British Prime Minister David Cameron. France's foreign minister says France will float a resolution in the U.N. Security Council aimed at forcing Syria to make public its chemical weapons program, place it under international control and dismantle it.

Adieu the California STAR TEST.

Common Core standards require electronic devices for
"testing" students , get ready for
for a crash.

Well I could not believe my eyes when I read the Mercury News paper here in San Jose California . If   Assembly Bill 484 pushes through , California will end decades long end the use of STAR tests in math and English for the school year now underway. In its place, schools could opt in to new assessments aligned to Common Core Standards. I am  sure my teacher friends all must of shouted for joy. As a skeptic for anything that comes out out of government , state or federal . It's always a catch -22 , bait and switch . Careful thought on this . While the bureaucrats in Washington D.C.  , or Sacramento California , both Democrats and Republicans , yes both of them are usually in co-hoots when they come to the issue of  "education". The both parties jump the gun on "accountability" and "controlling" what we have called the American education system . Now is a bye word of draconialism . The "testing" will not go away with Common Core, but it will get worse on this insane thing we are all calling "teacher accountability" . Where is the NEA on Common Core?The bill originally called for 20 percent of the state's schools to participate in a trial run of the new tests. Now, any district can  opt in to test the computer-based test this school year. Gov. Jerry Brown strongly supported the amendments. The bill is sponsored by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson."It's time for a clean break from assessments that are out of date and out of sync with the work our schools are doing to shift to the Common Core and help students meet the challenges of a changing world," Torlakson said in a statement. STAR tests will be permanently replaced next school year by the new test, called Measurement of Academic Performance and Progress, or MAPP. The real problem isn't the testing, though I agree that a standardized test of some sort should always be used to monitor learning and progress.  The real problem is Sacramento and Washington. According to a report by EdSource's John Fensterwald, Deputy Superintendent Deb Sigman laid out the plan for the California board of education.  Here is what a  report said , I quote . In a telephone interview with EdWeek, Sigman explained that the state proposes to give the math field test to 10 percent of its students and the English/language arts field test to another 10 percent. That will meet Smarter Balanced's need for a scientific sample to advance the development of the test. The rest of the state's students would be expected to take either the math or the English/language arts field test as well, she said. The savings realized from cutting out most STAR testing can be used to finance the broader administration of the field tests, she said. My italics here , she is saying that "cost savings" are about reducing the printing of the STAR tests . It's VARY EXPENSIVE to print the "tests" and much as the "school text books" in California . The answer is obvious to me that the NEW testing tied to Common Core are likely to be electronic , which is like everything else these days . I don't think it's going to make being a teacher any easier , but more conditioning seems to coming .   double-testing is a concern in spring 2014, since both PARCC and Smarter Balanced are planning field tests then. It's a particular problem in Smarter Balanced states, since more students are required to participate in order to make a bank of test items big enough for the consortium's computer-adaptive exam. California, however, is not a state that obtained a waiver from key provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act. So its change in testing would presumably need approval from the federal Education Department.  ***Remember the transition from paper test materials to Common Core computer testing may look in the long run as a budget savings for the state , but hardly when you have to buy enough computers for testing each child to each school district in the state .  Just to accommodate the new 'Standard' . The long haul is vary expensive . The tsunami is coming. Get ready. For School burn out.

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

***There are many pros and cons with online testing as, say, compared with paper-and-pencil tests. But whatever those pros are for paper-and-pencil tests, they are out slugged and outstripped by the surge of buying new devices and piloting of computer-based tests to get ready for Common Core assessments (see hereand here). Los Angeles Unified school district, the second largest in the nation, just signed a $50 million contract with Apple for  iPads. One of the key reasons to buy these devices for the initial rollout for 47 schools was Common Core standards and assessment. Each iPad comes with an array of pre-loaded software compatible with the state online testing system and impending national assessments. The entire effort is called The Common Core Technology Project.