The "State of the Union" Action Plan....

President Obama calls for action , but will
the public trust him?

The State of the Union address that was presented by President Obama was a great speech , but I was looking for substance for his  "year of action ". Can he pull this off? He has  3 years left . Second terms have historically been tough ones for presidents. From Ronald Reagan's Iran Contra scandal to Bill Clinton's Lewinsky affair to Hurricane Katrina during George W. Bush's second term, U.S. leaders have so often found their second four years going off the rails that it's known colloquially as the "second-term curse."

President Obama's message to Congress is  "My way or the High way." Brazile: Obama's message: A dysfunctional Congress, but we'll get it done anyway . Last year was Mr. Obama's worst , today he is not even trusted by the public at large . ***A recent poll Fully 62 percent of respondents say they "dislike" Obama's policies. Less than one-third said they like both him personally and his policies. Conservatives should also take note that relatively few Americans (33 percent) say they dislike the president on a personal level. The polls are don't always say things right , but the President's credibility is a problem , and it deteriorated with his Health Care law . So this all means  is Can President Obama "regain" the public trust , and try to fix some of the mistakes of his last term? Hes has to , he has no choice but to really focus on domestic issues , but he has to walk cautiously . The Republican's have been having the "jitters" on the President's call to "action" with Obama's threat ++ of executive orders .  “We can go to court,” said John McCain. “We haven’t got many more options except [to] tell the American people that we’re seeing an abuse of the intent of the Constitution.” House Speaker John Boehner declared, “We’re going to watch very closely, because there’s a Constitution that we all take an oath to, including him, and following the Constitution is the basis for House Republicans.“ And Texas Senator Ted Cruz, no stranger to hyperbole, warned that this is just part of a ”persistent pattern of lawlessness” and a “willingness to disregard the written law and instead enforce his own policies via executive fiat.” Well , OK.  @ 8 million jobs is a terrible recovery and you throw in the trillions Obama has spent it's downright nauseating. Remember 750 billion of the 1 trillion bailout went to GOVERNMENT union jobs. He lied about Benghazi coverup. He has used executive mandates more than anybody. He has failed to fufill a single campaign promise in 6 years other than obamacare that is the worst bill passed every. He liked about the tax payer cost of obamacare. We are still at war. We still have gitmo. He has hired lots of lobbyist to his counsel. He has spent twice as much as bush in 1/2 the time, will increase federal debt by 7 trillion dollars. Facing a still sharply divided Congress, President Obama pledged to charge forward on his own to push a second-term agenda focused on rising worries about economic inequality and opportunity in his State of the Union address. The strategy is aimed at shifting emphasis to the power of the executive branch after many of his proposals remained unfinished or untouched in the halls of Congress in 2013. "America does not stand still – and neither will I," Obama told lawmakers in a joint session at the Capitol. "So wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that's what I'm going to do.""Let's make this a year of action," he said.

This year, Obama faces the difficult challenges. 

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

***President Obama starts his sixth year in office with the public dissatisfied about almost everything he has done. His overall approval rating is 46-50 percent, yet only 37% trust him to make the right decisions in the last three years left to his presidency, a new Washington Post/ABC poll shows.

In terms of Foreign Policy, 49% of Americans disapprove Obama’s handling of Iran, only 39% approve. The president’s 50-42 percent rating for handling the threat of terrorism has slipped under majority approval for the first time in his presidency. More personally, too, Americans divide on whether Obama’s a strong leader (48-51 percent) or honest andtrustworthy (49-48 percent). His favorability rating is essentially even split, 49/50.

@ . The Presidential speeches have always sounded to me like propaganda . With specialty "State of the Union" speeches . The State of the Union is the address presented by the President of the United States to a joint session of the United States Congress, typically delivered annually. The address not only reports on the condition of the nation but also allows presidents to outline their legislative agenda (for which they need the cooperation of Congress) and their national priorities.^[1] The address fulfills rules in Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, requiring the President to periodically give Congress information on the "State of the Union" and recommend any measures that he believes is necessary and expedient. 

++The American Presidency Project at the University of California, Santa Barbara keeps atally of every executive order from every president. And where does Obama rank compared to other post-World War II presidents?  Second from the bottom. At 168 executive orders in five years, he has two more than George H.W. Bush. Above him, with 169, is Gerald Ford. Then, the numbers take a leap. JFK had 214 executive orders; George W. Bush had 291; Jimmy Carter had 320, and Lyndon Johnson had 325. Bill Clinton signed off on 364 during his eight years, and Ronald Reagan came in with 381. The winners in this game are are Dwight Eisenhower with 484, Harry S. Truman with 907, and the awful tyrant Franklin Roosevelt with a whopping 3,522.

Gov. Jerry Brown . My Opinion.

Gov. Jerry Brown  severed too many terms. His
shadow has dominated the state for decades.

AS crazy as I am about to say . Gov. Jerry Brown should be "impeached" . Yes he has already violated the State Constitutional law . How ? Has anyone  ever heard of term limits ?   How can Jerry Brown run for governor, since we have term limits in California? I have to admit that something as obvious as this never occurred to me, trust me , I think Gov. Jerry Brown has been vary shrewd how he handled the state financially .  He spoke of surpluses , and rainy day funds.That's how much of a 70's comeback "genius" he is in the world of politics .  Gov. Brown has made California even bluer , with the Democratic majority in the legislature . ***I am against his bullet railway train plan  that would cost over 90 billion dollars , and likely to bankrupt the whole state.  Gov. Brown has done a better job than the previous Gov . Arnold Schwarzenegger . Yet the Governor Brown  has his flaws , he follows the policy of a  tax and spend  liberal , his recent "state of the state" addressed emphasized more spending.With no solution  for  California's high unemployment rate. Brown served as governor from 1975-1983, two terms of four years each. Two terms, four years each, eight total: so how does he get to run again?  The Mercury News recently as quoted said :

"Jerry Brown intends to be the longest-serving governor in state history, and he's going about his business pragmatically, prudently and aggressively to assure that destiny takes place," said Larry Gerston, a San Jose State political science professor. "This is not the Jerry Brown that we knew 35 years ago, and it shows."

Its almost unbelievable ,  The statewide survey showed that 58 percent of registered California voters currently approve of the job Brown, a Democrat, is doing as governor, with 33 percent disapproving and 9 percent having no opinion. The poll also found that when Brown was pitted against four possible Republican contenders for an open primary in June he would dominate the field - with 52 percent of those surveyed choosing him. The Money is flowing right to Jerry's re -election committee although no mention yet from Brown's mouth that he is trying to run again . "He has millions of dollars in his campaign account, solid approval ratings and a small number of potential challengers who are virtually unknown, but Gov. Jerry Brown still won't say whether he'll run for reelection next year," the Los Angeles Times reports.  Gov. Brown is quoted as saying that he : “I want to advance the progressive agenda,” Brown said at the press conference unveiling his supposedly balanced budget, “but consistent with the amount of money people made available … I respect and embrace my role of saying ‘no.’” The governor wants to strengthen the rainy day fund by requiring the legislature to make deposits when capital gains revenues rise to more than 6.5% of the general fund (this year, capital gains revenues made up 10%) and to ## use the reserves to stabilize education funding during downturns. But taxpayers shouldn't be fooled. Democrats in the legislature could still suspend required deposits. What's more, this plan merely locks in higher taxes and spending, which will be shifted forward. The teachers' union will be the biggest beneficiary since more money will flow to education in downturns. Schools will continue to collect on windfalls due to a state constitutional amendment that guarantees a minimum level of education funding. For instance, schools are slated to receive nearly $10 billion in additional funding this year under the governor's budget in part due to the 2012 voter-approved tax hike, which is throwing off more revenue than the state projected. Under Gov. Brown The California legislature has approved driver’s licenses for illegals and a law that forbids local authorities from cooperating with the Federal gov and deporting jailed illegals unless they’ve been convicted of serious violent offenses. How exactly does that benefit California? It doesn’t. It only adds to our problems. It will only attract more indigent illegals when our educational system, health care system and social services system are already overloaded with problems and rising costs that the taxpayers are forced to sustain. Mean while think on this, The past week has been abuzz about the possibility that Jerry Brown, currently in his third term as governor, could run for president in 2016. While a long-shot, Brown’s impulsiveness over his long political career has led to many phoenix-like adaptations. If Brown wins decisively in 2014 for his fourth term, his eyes might just wander toward the political prize he so desperately wants.  Gov. Brown says it all : On whether he still has any presidential ambitions:

No, I think I've had my fill of that. I've run more than most living people. And, my work here is in California. And I said I would run, do what I could to fix the budget -- which is well on its way -- and to give the spur to innovation, which is the key to our future.

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

 ***Jerry Brown has a reputation for governing in contradictions. For example, he preaches fiscal prudence—and then insists that the state charge full-steam ahead with its quarter-baked $70 billion bullet train. Another example would be his budget plan for the upcoming year. ## By approving Prop. 30, the state’s voters have assured a delay in addressing the state’s real fiscal problems for yet another year. Crisis is the only thing that has driven reform here, and now that the state has extra money there won’t be any impetus for fundamental reform. We can at least hope that Brown makes good on his promise to put the kibosh on any big new spending programs to come from the newly empowered Democratic legislative super-majorities.

The "FAT CATS" of Congress.

Recently a list was released that contained who's who on the congressional millionaire list.  Congress is loaded *** there is no escaping it. Despite the pathetically poor approval ratings of Congress these days, there is apparently one big advantage to being elected to the nation’s legislative body.

 With Americans increasingly becoming concerned about the state of income inequality in their country, a new report is showing that the disparity between the average American’s wealth and that of their Congressional representative is, to put it mildly, stark, with the Center for Responsive Politics reporting that nearly half of Congress is worth more than $1 million, and their total wealth increased 11% since 2009. We have fat cats , personal financial disclosure data from 2012 of the 534 current members of Congress and found that, for the first time, more than half had an average net worth of $1 million or more: 268 to be exact, up from 257 the year earlier. The median for congressional Democrats was $1.04 million and, for Republicans, $1 million even. Having  always sort of leaned more towards a conservative view when it comes to politics; however, over the last year or two I have really started to see a shift from what was a proud responsible hard working type of people, to a whiny silver spoon fed entitled bunch of dense idiots who care more about their ego than the people they serve. Republicans ruined their party's reputation by being intolerant to any sort of change, and ignorant to reality. they caused the gov shut down, and will continue to ruin how this country is governed as long as they have the majority. they care more about getting what they want, than whats best for our country, and are not ashamed of it. they are intolerant to change, or compromise. they continually and purposely delay laws from being passed, and doing their job. I personally hate the idea of a bunch of rich people making decisions that mainly effect the ( Poor )  middle class. With nearly 1/2 of Congress being millionaires what possible chance is there to reform the income tax code? Also, can you confirm whether or not Congress got a $3000 COLA this year. I always suspected that our Congress\'s insistence for a tax cut for the wealthy was really personal greed. you have confirmed my suspicions. Greed rules the Congress! Chris Hayes writes a lot about the concept of distance between elites and the rest of us. "A wide distance between the governors and the governed will produce a state that is predatory toward its own citizens, indifferent to their desires, and subject to the inbred whims and compulsions of its ruling class... [T]hose members of the elite who occupy the high offices of our pillar institutions and organizations are already psychologically disposed to close themselves off to the perspectives of others... Time and again, in radically different contexts, we saw those in charge be so blind to the interests of those outside their small circle that they pursued a course of action that would ultimately bring ruin and disgrace."

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

*** The research shows many of them are rich. Very rich. The median estimated net worth of Congress is $966,000, according to the center. By contrast, the median net worth of the typical American household is slightly more than $66,000. Ten members had a net worth greater than $100 million on one or both sites.

The multimillionaires include:
-- House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, who has at least $3 million in stocks and mutual funds.
-- U.S. Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., whose road to riches began in the 1970s as a writer on "Saturday Night Live." He has a listed net worth of about $8 million.
-- Darrell Issa, R-Calif., the former CEO of a company that created the Viper anti-theft system for vehicles, who has a net worth of nearly $500 million.
-- Outgoing U.S. senator and newly-appointed Secretary of State John Kerry, a Democrat from Massachusetts, whose wife is an heiress of the Heinz ketchup fortune. He has an estimated net worth of about $200 million.
-- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California, whose family real estate holdings are worth an estimated $100 million.
-- Republican Tim Scott of South Carolina, who was appointed to the Senate in January and owns about $3 million worth of real estate.

" Trickle down economics ." Revisited .

Trickle down only works one way . It's always UP!

WE just had a showcase of budgets lately .  You could read the entire 1,582-page, $1 trillion omnibus spending plan announced in Congress. If You all remember that there is a economic theory once spouted but not quite so forgetting . Called "Trickle-down economics" and the "trickle-down theory" are terms in United States politics to refer to the idea that tax breaks or other economic benefits provided by government to businesses and upper income levels will benefit poorer members of society by improving the economy as a whole.^[1] The term has been attributed to humorist Will Rogers, who said during the Great Depression that "money was all appropriated for the top in hopes that it would trickle down to the needy."^[2] The term is mostly used ironically or as pejorative. This year is the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, and a new paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research puts us in a far better position to judge how it’s gone. It appears that government programs significantly reduce the number of people living below the poverty line. Yet at the same time, by any global standard, America’s performance in turning economic growth into poverty reduction is incredible—as a negative.If treating the symptoms of poverty were not the answer, then, perhaps, we should address the real problem - the U.S. economy. As it is currently configured, the U.S. economy has failed to provide opportunity and adequate income to care for our citizens. As a consequence, citizens cannot afford medical care, education for their children, or save for a retirement. In addition, there is increased unemployment and income inequality that further threaten our tenuous economy.We have a fundamentally flawed economy. It is unbalanced (jobs in some sectors;none in others); we import much more than we export (a $17 trillion cumulative current account deficit); we have lost numerous industries, because other nations have better technology (we need more engineering research); we reward outsourcing by both corporations and individual investors with tax breaks (why does an investor pay 15% on dividends derived from production in China or Korea that does not create jobs at home?); the fixed exchange rate of Chinese currency to the dollar favors Chinese exports to kill jobs at home .  The  budget lists BIG LOSERS in the Congress spending plan , are here quoted from a recent newspaper article San Jose Mercury News:

Parts of the Congress plan  has cut some of the "pork" out as you can see.

EPA: The deal restores some of the funds cut by sequester to the Environmental Protection Agency, but not all. In a summary of the measure, Republicans boasted that with this bill, they have cut the EPA's funding by 20% since 2010.

IRS: The tax agency's funding has been cut to 2009 levels, according to the Republican House Appropriations Committee. And just to send a more direct message, this appropriations bill states that the agency cannot use its funds to target citizens or groups based on their ideology.

TSA: You have millions of passengers to screen everyday and now Congress has capped the number of employees you can hire. If passed, the deal would set a limit of 46,000 TSA screeners and require the TSA to find a way to make half of the traveling public eligible for "expedited" screening by the end of this year.

Russia: Two reasons. 1. Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Illinois, told CNN the deal fully funds a U.S. missile defense system in Romania, which the Russians do not like. 2. The measure makes it harder for the United States to buy weapons from Russia, including some controversial helicopters. To get around the ban, the omnibus requires the Pentagon to reveal the number of anti-aircraft missiles the Russian weapons agency has sold to Syria's Bashar al-Assad.

Obamacare: (And see above.) If the Obama administration needs more funds to implement the health care law, it isn't going to get them from Congress. The bill doesn't add any funding and also blocks the administration from dipping into a prevention fund as a backup pool of money.

Generals and admirals: Flag and general officers in the military would see a cut in their staff expense budgets under this plan.

The president of Afghanistan: The bill specifically prohibits any of its funds from going to "the direct personal benefit of the president of Afghanistan."

Portrait artists: The bill bans government officials from spending money to have a portrait made.

Jerry Brown: No funds for you. The California governor hoped to get some federal funds for his dream of a $60 billion high-speed rail line between L.A. and San Francisco. But Republicans successfully blocked the idea in this deal.

Now jumping to  Jerry Brown’s 2014-15 budget last week was a cause for celebration in Sacramento. In news conferences all over the state, Brown triumphantly announced that his budget would invest in California’s schools, expand health-care coverage for millions and continue work on the state’s troubled high-speed rail project. All of this while Brown and his allies have been touting what they call California’s comeback as an example for other states to follow. Missing in the budget and in Brown’s public pronouncements is any serious mention that California still faces a jobs crisis, and has an economy that, while recovering, is doing so at an anemically slow pace. His only policy prescription for jobs and growth seems to be the high-speed rail project, which is already over budget and may never really get going because of legal challenges. Absent from the governor’s budget are proposals to encourage sustained job creation or long-term economic growth, despite being chock-full of new spending in almost every area of state government. California has persistently high unemployment, and its 8.5 percent unemployment rate is sixth highest in the nation. Almost 18 percent of the state’s residents are unemployed, have stopped looking for work, or have part-time jobs but want full-time employment. Of the 10 metropolitan areas with the highest unemployment rates in the country, seven are in California. I would rather discuss later about Brown's intentions to run for Governor again , mean while the bucks are rolling in .

A Bridge to Dennis Rodman .

A Bridge over water....water.......

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has a new word to pass around , if  "Bridgegate" has blown onto the national political stage he has himself to blame . I sure that "he" never knew that  back in September, two months before his own  re-election, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey closed two of the three lanes that lead to the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, across the Hudson from Manhattan. That caused days of massive traffic jams in Fort Lee, where the Democratic mayor had declined to endorse Christie.The closures were ordered by David Wildstein, a Christie confidante and the governor's appointee to the Port Authority, which operates the nation's busiest bridge. They immediately sparked speculation by Democrats that the action amounted to political retaliation against Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich. That led to hearings in New Jersey's state legislature and the December resignations of Wildstein -- who had said the closures were part of a traffic study -- and Bill Baroni, New Jersey's top Port Authority official. Is this what we would call malfeasance? Gov. Christie is in damage control now . The stunt is far worse than wire tapping your opponent , nor near close to "Watergate " . This whole act is so criminal in nature that a whole city of people was effected . The recently released  E-mails released Wednesday from a senior aide to Chris Christie and some of his appointees reveal that the blockage occurred in response to an e-mail from his deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Anne Kelly, writing, “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee.” “Got it,” replied Port Authority official David Wildstein.  The voting must have been pretty slow that day , if you were to figure out the reason to create such a traffic jam . And that leads us to the other side of this scandal: the sheer stupidity of the conspiracy. Let’s block traffic, piss off thousands of people and create a public safety hazard! That’ll show the, you know, mayor of, um, Fort Lee?” How the hell would the closure of bridge lanes and the subsequent traffic negatively impact Sokolich, politically or otherwise? The excuse from David Wildstein, Bridget Anne Kelly and other Christie cronies was that the lane closures were due to a Port Authority “traffic study.” Total fabrication of course, but had it been true, wouldn’t that negatively impact the Port Authority and Christie’s hand-picked man at the Port Authority, his high school buddy David Wildstein? Seriously, why would Christie’s people intentionally harm fellow New Jerseyans to retaliate against a mayor? These aren’t very nice — or particularly smart people.

 Dennis Rodman's a Communist .

The Thug is in ......

This week other than the Bridgegate affair I have to "thank" Dennis Rodman  who on Wednesday led a singalong of "Happy Birthday" to the leader of North Korea, a man he calls a friend and a "very good guy," but considered by many a brutal dictator who recently lauded the execution of his own uncle. In my psychological study Rodman is nuts . He's acting as if he's  on a diplomatic mission from Pres. Obama.No kidding.     Rodman is an idiot full of bluster without substance or merit. 
I sincerely hope he receives the anger and abuse he speaks about when he returns home and it will be well deserved.  The cigar and sunglasses along with a moderate to serious drunk did lend to his overall WWE stage presence. Too bad all he has is propaganda for his beloved leader to barf up on our televisions. 

Maybe instead of coddling a dictator he should go read a book to a kid or something though I do not advocate letting him around children.  Yet, whatever the criticism, Rodman has succeeded in getting Kim's focused and ongoing attention. This follows more than two decades of complete bi-partisan failure in dealing with North Korea in any meaningful way -- a period during which large portions of North Korea's population have starved, tens of thousands (if not more) were exiled and perished in camps, and the West has watched from afar as the country acquired nuclear weapons. We can certainly criticize Rodman's "friendship" in light of the miserable state of the country, the growing North Korean gulag, as well as speculation about  why  The White House on Tuesday dismissed former National Basketball Association player Dennis Rodman's latest trip to North Korea for an exhibition game. “Mr. Rodman is on a private trip,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said. “Our views about North Korea and its failure to meet its obligations have not changed.”Most striking were his comments on Bae, a Korean-American who was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor last year on charges that he planned an operation to topple North Korea's government through religious activities. The regime accused Bae of urging people to carry out "hostile acts" against the state. It convinces me that Dennis Rodman is a communist .   ANYHOW. North Korea on the other hand is attracting American business . Gangster rappers are flocking to their Hermit Kingdom to further their careers. Two Washington, D.C. rappers are readying themselves for a trip to North Korea in the hopes of becoming famous.Rappers Pacman and Peso, whose real names are Anthony Bobb and Dontray Ennis, first made headlines back in September, when the Washington Post got hold of theirplan to go to North Korea and film a music video with the help of a Kickstarter fund. Pacman and Peso had teamed up with Ramsey Aburdene, a commercial lending professional and aspiring producer. They then met Michael Bassett, a veteran once stationed in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. Bassett studies the region in grad school and helps plan cultural exchange tours.Then, the idea was hatched to go to the Hermit Kingdom, film the video, have it go viral and become superstars.“This is my only option now,” Peso, who said he could be "doing wrong in the streets or get locked up," told the Washington Post of the North Korea trip. “If it was to work.” . Soon after their arrival they will be carted off to some labor camp where they can rap to the thousands of poor folks there. “I’m excited – the only thing I’m not excited about is the plane," Peso said, as neither of the two rappers has ever been on a plane. “We’re changing the game. Nobody has shot a video in North Korea like we’re about to do.” Later adding, "If we don't die, it will probably be a big life-changer."

My 2014 thought's about ............Mid-East Peace.

 Real Peace ? It's just a gimmick.

For almost two decades, the seemingly perpetual Middle East “peace process” has been like a hamster-wheel for Palestinians and a merry-go-round for Israelis All the movement has been a form of running or turning in place. Nothing ever really changes.An agreement has been reached that "establishes a basis for  resuming direct final status negotiations between" Palestinians and Israel, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said in  Amman, Jordan."This is a significant and welcome step forward," Kerry said. Next we have Extremist Jewish settlers on early Tuesday torched three Palestinian cars near the West Bank city of Ramallah in what Israeli police are calling a “Price tag” attack related to the release of 26 Palestinian prisoners and ongoing peace talks. Palestinian sources said the settlers sprayed on the wall of a house in the neighborhood a message to the US Secretary of State John Kerry, saying “Regards Kerry, keep coming back.” The reality factor ,The Palestinians get what they have right now. The entire city of Jerusalem remains the Jewish capitol ( I prefer it as nutral territory adminstered by the UN ), it was never the capitol of any other people in history. Israel annexes the settlements and the Palestinians get the rest of the West Bank. That’s it. The Palestinians get a small country, more than they deserve, but a country they can build and nurture and develop- like the Jews did with their small country. It’s not fair for either side, but it’s better for Israel. Why shouldn’t it be? The combined remnants of the old colonial Arab Empire attacked the tiny Jewish state in 1948, 1967, and 1972 and lost. The world, which has never been very nice to the Jews, demands Israel, the victor, give land to the imperialist losers. Did Germany get to keep some of Poland? Did Italy get to keep some of Ethiopia? Did the Turks get to keep part of Egypt? In the interest of peace, both sides should accept this plan.Throughout this “peace process”, all deadlines, starting with the five-year deadline for achieving a permanent peace agreement set in the “Oslo” Declaration of Principles signed almost 20 years ago, have been consistently and predictably missed. Such failures have been guaranteed by the practical reality that, for Israel, “failure” has had no consequences other than a continuation of the status quo, which, for all Israeli governments, has been not only tolerable but preferable to any realistically realizable alternative. For Israel, “failure” has always constituted “success”, permitting it to continue confiscating Palestinian land,expanding its West Bank colonies, building more Jews-only bypass roads and generally making the occupation even more permanent and irreversible. However, the focus on settlement building, both by the Palestinians and the Americans, is a clear sign of how removed the peace processers are from the reality of the conflict. If there was any chance at all that the Palestinians were actually willing to sign a peace deal that would recognize the legitimacy of a Jewish state no matter where its borders would be drawn or to end the conflict, the building of a few apartments in parts of Jerusalem that are not going to change hands wouldn’t be worth a mention. But since PA leader Mahmoud Abbas knows there’s no way he could take such a step, he and his followers must continue to try to turn settlements into an issue that will, after a decent interval, give him an excuse for weaseling his way out of the talks. Just consider it a fake controversy to go along with a peace process that is, at its core, just as fake.

My 2014 thought's about............... Jahi.

Waiting for  a "miracle" may have undermined
legal action against  the hospital. ( Photo of Jahi McMath)

I  have a few  bones to pick for the new year , I wanted to start off with a few of the stories that are on  the news ,and one has  made it on the national headlines . There can be no worse  a story this year than the  Jahi McMath case . This is making me angry no much less that it is tragedy , but I am beginning to feel that that the parents of Jahi hoping for a miracle may have been "duped" on a medical misdiagnosis . I have to ask a question that NO BODY has asked . Why are't the parents  into litigation against the hospital for "wrongful death". Why for God's sake are they wasting public time , and why did this girl need to have her tonsils removed ? When more medical professionals are getting  away from the practice , it's like male circumcision , many in the medical field  are asking why do males really need to have their foreskin removed? Like our tonsils?   Many other body parts as well. I remembered what President Obama said way back a few years ago .  ##I don't  want to politicize Jahi McMath  story as much as it has been , but there is a boiling point connection to this . . Do Americans want a federal board deciding if their kids need surgery? Those greedy doctors. “You come in and you’ve got a bad sore throat, or your child has a bad sore throat or has repeated sore throats,” President Obama explained at  one time  press conference. “The doctor may look at the reimbursement system and say to himself, ‘You know what? I make a lot more money if I take this kid’s tonsils out.’” So the story goes have the McMath's been duped ? Why don't they sue the hospital  (  ***as I repeat it ) Now the story is getting a bit mixed . The Family of Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman who died in 2005 after almost 15 years in a vegetative state, has urged continued life support for a California teenager left brain dead after a tonsillectomy. --- I ponder what is the difference between a "Brain damaged"  and "brain dead ."  Jahi medically is not a legal definition of being in a coma . For me the McMath family are seriously making fools of themselves . I also do sympathize with them that they do need a miracle , but also they must face the facts.

Common Dangers Ignored .

A hundred press accounts have described the procedure McMath underwent as a “routine tonsillectomy.” Not so, according to Brandon Peters, M.D. at About.com:

There is a paucity of known facts in this situation. The family and their lawyer have released few specific details. Oakland Children’s Hospital, bound by the privacy restrictions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), has offered even less. Jahi underwent three surgical procedures for the treatment of her sleep apnea. This included a tonsillectomy, uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), and removal of nasal turbinates. Though initially described as a “routine tonsillectomy,” this degree of surgery in children is not routine. It is extensive. When performed on a child, the risk is high.

NOTES AND COMMENTS:

***There have been  some questions about what "religious faith" the McMaths have . I have known Christian Scientists who have avoided certain medical procedures based on Faith. I was hoping my self for a REAL MIRACLE for this girl , just to see her "wake up" and prove some of the medical professionals idiots, but it's getting granny here . The devastated family should sue the hospital on wrongful death , that should have been investigated as a court order from the "judge" . So far nothing was ever said of that from the family's own attorney .... In the end we are going to be all devastated because no real miracle came , worse off is that the hospital  got away from its responsibility of making sure Jahi was alive.

## President Obama politicized the Trayvon Martin case  as much , ye this might get an Obama response ?