DRACULA IN THE OPERATING ROOM

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Dracula in the operating room.

Dracula is the United States government. The operating room is the college student loan program.

A college education today is a costly thing. It has been for the last 30 years. Becoming increasingly more expensive each year. There was a time a young person eager for a college degree could work his/her way through school. A decent summer job and two to four part time jobs while in school. One or two small scholarships along the way helped.

I know. I and many like me did it. Of course back in 1953-57 when I was in college, the cost of room, board and tuition was $2,400 a year. A lot of money at the time. However, no where near the dollars involved today. A gallon of gasoline was 17 cents and a loaf of bread 10 cents.

The cost today of a higher education degree has gone through the roof. The cost of one year at a private college is $50,000 to $60,000 for room, board and tuition. The cost at a public university between $20,000 and $35,000 for room, board and tuition.

Public institutions of higher learning are obviously cheaper. Eighty percent of all American students attend publicly funded universities and colleges. The reason being that such schools are cheaper to attend.

As States have become squeezed economically, public assistance budgets have been cut dramatically. State schools receive less and less assistance each year. Public institutions have had no choice but to raise room, board and tuition charges. Administrators compelled to order increases across the board.

The federal government came to the rescue. A college student loan program. Every one could then afford to go to college. Borrow now and pay later.

Later became a problem. An unforeseeable one initially. A well known one today. Young people cannot afford to pay back the loans. The job market is down. Salaries for those college grads working much lower than anticipated. The where with all to pay non-existent.

The college student loan debt today is $1.1 trillion. Impressive. Any thing with a trillion dollars at the end is. Note that the U.S. debt to China is $1.3 trillion. The comparison made to show how extremely large the student loan debt has become. I read some where that it is even larger than all the credit card debt in the United States.

It has been recently discovered that the government gets a piece of the pay back dollars. A fee of some kind. There is a new statute in the works to help the student debtors. However, it will not eliminate the government receiving a piece of the action.

The government profited in 2012 $44 billion. In 2013, a bit of a slide. Only $41.3 billion.

Two corporations world wide made more profit in recent years. In 2012, Exxon Mobile profited $44.9 billion and Apple $41.7 billion.

If the government’s profit in either of the two years mentioned were to be paid out in Pell grants, maximum level payments of $5,645 would be paid to 7.3 million college students.

The government denies a profit is involved. It claims the accounting makes it appear to be a profit. I do not buy it, nor do many others. The $40 billion plus profit goes from a federal college loan fund account into the general fund. From the general fund, it is used to pay all sort of government bills. The government is running a for profit business which subsidizes other government activities.

It gets worse.

Federal legislation prevents a college student loan debt from being discharged in bankruptcy. A tough situation for the college graduate who cannot find a decent paying job in today’s society.

The government hires bill collectors. The government is under the impression that 76 to 84 cents will be recovered by pursuing those who have not or are not any longer paying. Good luck! The government will be lucky to recover 25 cents on the dollar.

The government has retained collection firms to pursue college loan debtors. They are referred to as collection specialists. One is NCO Group Inc. NCO is owned by JP Morgan. The same JP Morgan who helped give us the 2008 mortgage debacle and recession for several years.

The college student loan program is another example of how government takes care of its people when the weight of the economy causes them to  bend over.

 

 

BOUDICCA, WARRIOR QUEEN

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Women have moved to the front lines of every endeavor. Politics, business, finance, religion, etc.

It was not always so. It has been a struggle. Isolated incidents of female leadership. Gender discrimination common place. Woman treated as second class citizens. When conquered, subject to beatings, rapes, torture and death. Suicides prevalent.

Hillary Clinton is recognized by many as the outstanding feminist of the day. There are others. Through the ages. Women like Carly Fiorina, Angela Merkel, Condoleeza Rice, Oprah Winfrey, Indra Gandhi, Rosa Parks, Margaret Thatcher, Eleanor Roosevelt, Eva Peron, Catherine the Great, Elizabeth I, Joan of Arc, Catherine de Medici, and Cleopatra.

In their own way, each lead. Each stood up for what she considered correct. No vacillating. They took the ball and ran with it. Proving in many instances women can be from Mars as well as Venus.

Going way back in history, it is difficult to identify female leaders. Before the birth of Christ, at the time, and in the immediate years following His death. The reason was chronicles were not kept by most peoples. A written history does not exist.

Which means the lady who is the subject matter of this column might have remained unknown. Even though she was wildly known throughout Britain and the Roman Empire during her time. What is recorded of her exploits is found in Roman writings.

Her name Boudicca. She and her husband Prasutagus were King and Queen of a Celtic tribe in Britain known as Iceni. They governed Iceni for many years. Lived lavishly and spent money like there was no tomorrow. Governed well. Shared the wealth. Kept everyone happy.

Rome was the power at the time and for several hundred years thereafter. Rome was a force in Britain. They had conquered certain areas and effectively controlled other areas.

Where a tribe or group was conquered, Rome had the legions govern. Where a tribe for example never fought Rome and was happy to live peacefully with Rome, Rome left that tribe alone to govern itself.

Prasutagus and Boudicca were King and Queen from the mid 30s AD to 60 or 61 AD.

Prasutagus died. He left a will. The will gave Iceni to Rome and his wife Boudicca and their two daughters. All as joint heirs. This did not set well with Rome. The arrangement Rome had with Prasutagus was that at the time of his death, everything became Rome’s. Nothing to the wife or daughters. Such was by agreement and custom. The custom phase was women could not hold title to property. The second class citizen thing.

Rome immediately sent legions to Iceni to put down what they considered a revolt. Which it technically was not. The Romans wasted no time. They killed the Iceni nobles. Flogged Boudicca and raped her two daughters in front of her. Additionally, the Romans arranged for the bankers to call in all loans the people of Iceni, including Boudicca, had outstanding.

The time was 60 or 61 AD. Historians are not certain as to the specific year.

Boudicca was not a happy woman. A strong willed individual. She led a revolt against Rome. Her army consisted of Icenians and some other tribes. Her army immediately grew to 100,000. She destroyed the Roman colony of Colchester. Colchester was a settlement for discharged Roman soldiers and also the site of a temple to Emperor Claudius.

Boudicca destroyed everything and everyone. Killed the Romans and burned areas to the ground. A Roman legion of 1,500 hurried to save Colchester. She ambushed and annihilated all 1,500 of Rome’s finest warriors.

Then Boudicca moved onto London. The Roman leader had nowhere the 100,000 fighting men Boudicca had. He left town with his soldiers before she arrived. Boudicca burned London to the ground and slaughtered any persons left in London. No mercy shown once again.

Boudicca then proceeded to St. Albans. Destroyed it in the same manner as Colchester and London.

In the three communities, she cut throats, hanged, burned and crucified. Soldiers and citizens. The tables turned. The Romans became terrified of her.

Nero was Emperor. He had no taste for this crazy woman. He considered withdrawing all Roman legions from Britain. The Battle of Watling Street, which the Romans won, changed his mind.

Rome sent a force to deal with her. Though Boudicca had many more troops, the Romans were better trained. The Roman soldiers slaughtered tens of thousands of Boudicca’s troops.

Boudicca had no desire to fall into the hands of the Romans. She took poison rather than be captured. Somewhat in the same vein as Cleopatra and the asp.

Gender discrimination was prevalent during these times. It is reflected in the words of the historian Dio Cassius who said Boudicca was “possessed of greater intelligence than often belonged to women.”

It must be noted that pain and suffering were inflicted by both sides. Some historians believe Boudicca was a bit harsher. She had no interest in taking prisoners. She slaughtered them by gibbet, fire or cross.

A gibbet was any instrument of public execution. Boudicca had two favorites. One was  hanging a person on a gallows type structure till dead. The other placing a condemned person in a metal cage and leaving the person to die of thirst.

Boudicca was less than pleasant to captured noble women. She impaled them on spikes, had their breasts cut off, and then sewed to their lips.

As indicated, the Romans were only slightly less severe than Boudicca in killing prisoners. Neither side wanted prisoners. They had to be killed. Both sides engaged in rapes, killings, torture, beheadings, cutting throats, hanging, burning alive, and crucifixions.

Makes one wonder if man has learned anything over the centuries. Al Qaeda and ISIS perpetrate similar acts today. An example that history repeats itself.

Boudicca used women and children as a last line of defense.  She would ring the battlefield with them so the Romans might be dissuaded to kill such innocents. The Romans were not dissuaded.

Boudicca became known as the Warrior Queen.

Who can know if she was right in killing and destroying as she did. The opposition was committing similar atrocities. She gave what she got. Sort of a what is good for the goose is good for the gander thing.

Additionally, Boudicca saw her daughters raped. Heavy. In such a situation, vengeance for some is no longer in the hands of God. It becomes man’s right.

Rome continued to control Britain for three more centuries. There were no more Boudiccas during that time.

LINCOLN THE MAN

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Abraham Lincoln is considered one of our greatest Presidents. Perhaps the greatest.

We know he was born in a log cabin, became a Republican, was elected the sixteenth President of the United States, saved the Union, freed the slaves, delivered the Gettysburg Address, and was assassinated.

There is a personal part of Lincoln not well known. Such is the thrust of this article. To share the less well known with you.

Lincoln at age 22 was a bartender. Purportedly a licensed bartender.

Lncoln returned from the Black Hawk War and ran for the Illinois State Legislature. He lost. He was living in New Salem, Illinois at the time. He and a William Berry decided to open a general store and drinking establishment. The store to sell lard, bacon, firearms, beeswax and honey. The tavern portion alcoholic beverages.

Illinois law provided that if alcohol was sold for consumption on the premises, a license was required. Another requirement was that if even taken off premises for consumption, if less than a quart, a license was required.

William Berry obtained the license. All bartenders had to sign. It appears Berry forged Lincoln’s signature.

The business opened in January 1833. Lincoln had Berry buy him out three months later. The business was not making money. Debts were increasing rapidly. Berry was an alcoholic. He was drinking up the profits. Lincoln contributed to the failure of the business, also. He was lazy. Spent his time reading and chatting with customers rather than working.

Two years later, Berry died. The business debts were even more than when Lincoln had withdrawn. Berry left an estate of $60. The business debts exceeded $1,100. A lot of money at the time.

Lincoln had no legal responsibility for the debts. However, he felt a moral obligation to pay them. He went to each creditor and advised he would see that they were paid. However he could promise no time frame. It took 13 years for all the debts to be paid. Till 1848.

Interestingly, Lincoln was not a drinker. He abstained from alcohol. Whether a drinker was no big deal in the 1820s and 1830s. Illinois was a frontier state. Drinking was part of frontier society life. The backwoodsmen were all heavy boozers. No one thought anything less of those who enjoyed their drinks.

Things changed as time ran on. A temperance league was formed. It gained power and popularity. By the Senate race in 1858 and the Presidential race in 1860, drinking was a major national issue.

Lincoln’s short lived partnership with Berry many years earlier in 1822 became an issue. Lincoln’s purported signature on the license evidenced that he sold the dirty brew. Lincoln refused to acknowledge the license, saying Berry had forged his name. He further stated he worked only the store portion of the business and had nothing to do with the tavern. He also relied on the fact he was known not to be a drinker.

It did not bother Lincoln that others drank. As General Ulysses Grant’s Civil War successes became evident, Lincoln told one of his aides to “…..find out what Grant is drinking and send a case of it to all my generals.” Grant was a known heavy drinker. Considered by some to be an alcoholic.

Earlier, I mentioned Lincoln was a bit lazy. He was of the opinion that at least for himself, physical labor was to be avoided. His step brother once said to Lincoln, “I doubt whether since I saw you, you have done a good whole day’s work in any one day.”

Tobacco was big at all times during Lincoln’s life. He did not partake of tobacco, either smoking or chewing.

Other than his brief time in the Black Hawk War when he was in his very early 20s, Lincoln never carried nor used a gun. Even for hunting.

He advocated the vote for women. Hard to believe that someone that far back was promoting the cause for women.

Lincoln was a sloppy dresser. Even when President. Clothes were of no importance to him. Even his hair. He rarely combed his hair.

Lincoln avoided profanity. At all times. “By Jingo!” was the strongest expletive used by him in the White House.

Ann Rutledge was Lincoln’s first love.

Ann’s father was a founder of New Salem. Ann was engaged to a John Mac Namar. Described as a dubious character. The engagement took place before Ann and Lincoln met. Mac Namar left for New York City after the engagement. He forgot to return.

Ann and Lincoln fell in love during Mac Namar’s absence. Things were different back then. She did not feel she could marry Lincoln until Mac Namar released her from her promise to marry. She wrote him many times. Mac Namar ignored her letters. Ann and Lincoln were anxious for Mac Namar’s return so they could have a sit down and obtain the release.

Mac Namar returned to New Salem after Ann’s death. Typhoid intervened in 1835. Ann died from the typhoid.  She was only 22 years old. Lincoln went into severe depression.

Historians are mixed as to whether Lincoln loved Ann. After his election as President, Lincoln is reported to have told his old friend Issac Cogdal, “I loved the woman dearly and soundly…..I did honestly and truly love the girl and think often-often of her now.”

Ann was buried locally in the New Salem area. A small cheap marker for a stone.

In 1890, an undertaker became financially interested in the cemetery. For other than burial purposes. Ann was exhumed and reburied in Oakland Cemetery in Petersburg, Illinois.

A new stone marked her grave. A large granite one. Part of the inscription on the new stone read as follows: “I am Ann Rutledge who sleeps beneath these weeds, Beloved in life of Abraham Lincoln, wedded to him though not through union, But through separation. Bloom forever, O Republic, from the dust of my bosom.”

Thus are some of the personal parts of Lincoln’s life. As great as his public figure, it is good to be reminded his life prior to the Presidency was that of a common man. He enjoyed and suffered life in the same fashion as the people he ultimately represented.

Such contributed to his being a great President.

Most Presidential candidates today are not of Lincoln’s ilk. The group consists of millionaires, children of millionaires, corporate leaders, and the like. No wonder we are screwed up.

Most do not know or understand America.

WORSE EVER CONGRESS

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It was 1948. Harry Truman was running for reelection. The major thrust of his campaign was the Congress that had been in office the previous two years was the worst ever. He referred to Congress as …..The do nothing Congress!

Truman was not the favorite in the race. Republican Tom Dewey was the anticipated winner. However, Truman spoke the truth re the Congress and won reelection.

Truth has a way of winning.

Today, we are confronted with a similar type Congress. A House of Representatives that has accomplished nothing.  They have not governed the nation. They do not seem to be able to govern themselves. The present Speaker fiasco being proof thereof.

In November 2013, I wrote a column entitled U.S. House of Representatives Works Too Hard. Title written with tongue in cheek.The contents reveal one of the reasons Congressional government has not worked in recent years. Congress fails to spend sufficient time in Washington to get anything done.

Eric Cantor was majority leader and a right winger. A favorite of the Tea Party. He said Congress should spend more time in their home districts rather than Washington. It was more important to be back home with constituents. The people who elected them and paid their salaries.

You saw how it worked for Cantor. He was defeated in a primary in his home district. His constituents could not be fooled. He came out smelling like a rose, however.  Within weeks, he had a job with a Washington power house lobbying group. His salary, $3.4 million a year.

I share the November 2013 article with you again as part of this column. It is worth repeating.  It says a lot about a present day Republican Party incapable of governing.

THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WORKS TOO HARD

The U.S. House of Representatives works too hard.

A blatant misstatement. A lie. A joke. The American people would be lucky if the House of Representatives merely worked. Not even hard.

I was watching television last week and there was a news report that the House of Representatives were going home for several days. The comment further was that the House would not be working more than eight days each month in November or December. They would return sometime during the first week in January.

The video accompanying the story showed Majority Leader Eric Cantor and Speaker John Boehner leading some Republican members out of the House.

The smile on Cantor’s face bothered me. Pompous and disconcerting. Like look at the sweet deal we have and screw you.

What disturbed me even further is that shutdown time and the debt ceiling await us again in mid December and early January. The obvious thrust of the story was such did not seem to concern Cantor and Boehner or their followers.

My curiosity was tickled. How can these people take so much time off? I dug a bit. This is the story.

Cantor is in charge of the work day schedule. He published the 2014 one on Twitter last week. He also published one the year before for 2013.

In 2013, the House worked a total of 124 days. In 2014, they are scheduled to work even less. One hundred thirteen days. This abbreviated working schedule began with the Republicans elected to the House in 2010. That is when they regained the majority.

By the way, House members are paid at least $174,000 a year regardless of how many days they work.

Cantor claims House members require extensive time off. They need to be back in their home districts. It is necessary for them to keep in touch with the people who pay them. Their constituents.

Cantor says a short House work schedule is required “…..to ensure that we never lose touch with the constituents we each represent while completing our work in Washington.”

Bullshit! How stupid he and his cronies must think the American people are.

Keep in mind that Cantor and his buddies are the same House members who gave us the recent government shutdown.

The numbers are telling.

2013 saw the House working 126 days. The base salary per member is $174,000 a year. Plus all kinds of benefits and perks. However, I am only concerned with direct  salary. One hundred twenty six working days amounts to $1,380 per day. In 2014, the House will work fewer days. It appears they needed two weeks more off. One hundred thirteen working days amounts to $1,540 per day.

Lets view the time worked and dollars paid from another perspective.

The average American works 2,080 hours per year. Average pay $29,000. $111 dollars per day. A far cry from what House members make. I refuse to use the term earn. A House member makes in effect 13 times the salary of the average American.

Tea Party success returned control of the House to the Republicans in 2010. The years since are the poorest production wise in modern times. The 112th House passed 283 bills that went to the President for his consideration. The present 113th House only 46 bills. Prior to the 112th and 113th Houses, the range of bills going to the President per session was 300 plus to 700 plus.

I have some observations.

If the House wants to work part time, the members should be paid part time. If the 425 members work only one third the year, they should receive one third pay. If House members need more time off, I suggest 20 years to life in a federal maximum security facility.

Let’s continue with the numbers.

The House only works one week on and two off. I believe it shows a contempt for the American people.

I have been harping on governmental waste in recent weeks. Brought on by Republican sought cuts in food stamps, Social Security and Medicare. The House’s working schedule is a perfect example of government waste and one where a $50 million per year savings could be accomplished.

Again, the basic salary of a House member is $174,000 a year. If they only work 126 days a year, they should be paid for 126 days. That would drop their salary to $60,065 per year. An annual savings of $113,935 per member. Multiplying the 425 members by that number evidences a savings of almost $50 million a year. That is, If House members were paid only for days worked. Like everyone else.

Perhaps politicians are all cut from the same cloth. Perhaps not. The Senate works significantly more days per year than the House.

You would assume there is much written on the issue. There is not. My research discovered only two articles of any substance. Both excellent. If you are further interested, I suggest you read them.

One is Congress Announces It Will Be In Session Fewer Days In 2014. Written by Mike Krumbotz, October 31, 2013 for the Yahoo News Sideshow.

The other is House To Be In Session Only 126 Days In 2013. Written by Robert Longley, December 12, 2012 for About.com/USGovernmentInfo.

The House of Representatives is a national disgrace. They must be voted out. It will not be easy. Americans have to get so mad at being fleeced so that they will not take it anymore. Otherwise, the status quo will prevail.

HE IS GOD LIKE

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Jorge Mario Bergoglio was born December 17, 1936. Seventy seven years later on February 28, 2013, he was elected Pope of the Catholic Church. Pope Francis.

 

Pope Frances touched many during his recent visit to the United States. Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Exhibited unique qualities. He was God like, human, sensitive, interested in people and their problems, etc.

 

These qualities are not imbued in a man the day he becomes Pope. They have to be intrinsic in him. A result of his experiences in life. Good and bad.

 

Pope Frances traveled an interesting road from his teen years to his days as Pope. All molded him to be who he is. The man a work in progress.

 

I share some of what I discovered with you.

 

Pope Francis had three girl friends. His first was the girl next door. Amalia. Amalia and his second love were during his teenage years. The third occurred while he was in the seminary. The Pope was attending a family wedding and met a young woman. They fell in love. A choice had to be made. The Pope opted for the priesthood.

 

He became seriously ill as a teenager. A lung infection. Part of one lung had to be removed.

 

During his university years, the Pope was in need of money. He had several jobs. While studying for a graduate degree in chemistry, he worked as a bouncer in an Argentine night club. Would you believe! He also worked as a janitor sweeping floors and testing chemicals in a laboratory.

 

He earned a graduate degree in chemistry.

 

The Pope’s mother did not support his decision to become a priest. She was adamantly opposed. Never the less, he entered the seminary at 21. His mother at first refused to visit him.

 

Basketball was and is his sport love of choice. He enjoys shooting hoops. One of the Pope’s most prized possessions is a personalized jersey from the Boston Celtics.

 

The spirit of a rebel was within him. While a priest, Argentina was ruled by a dictatorship. Not a friendly group. The Pope hid people in his church who were being sought by the authorities.

 

As the Auxiliary Bishop of Buenos Aires, he was known as the Slum Bishop. His concern for the poor obvious. He increased dramatically the number of priests assigned to the slum areas of the city.

 

When he moved up a step and became the Bishop of Buenos Aires, he further exhibited his humility and love for the poor. He washed the feet of people in jails, hospitals, old age homes, and the slums on Holy Thursday each year. He continues that practice as Pope.

 

As a priest, bishop and to this day as Pope, he is a big soccer fan. His team is the San Lorenzo Football Club.

 

The Pope loves talking with his friends. On the phone. Not a mobile one. He uses a land line. He telephones his friends on impulse and at random times to chat. As friends do.

 

The Pope tangos. He has enjoyed doing so for years.

 

The Pope sometimes falls asleep while praying. He says “…..it is good to fall asleep in God’s presence.”

 

He has a sweet tooth. He enjoys alfajores. An Argentine cookie filled with dulce de leche covered with chocolate.

 

A pleasure for the Pope is watching moves. Loves them! His favorite is Fellinini’s 1954 La Strada.

 

The Pope has an interest in art. His favorite painting is a Chagall. The White Crucifixion.

 

The Pope speaks seven languages. His has a problem with English, however. Pronunciation. He claims it is the result of being very tone deaf.

 

His favorite language and the one he is most comfortable with is Spanish. Argentina is a Spanish speaking nation. During his recent United States visit, 14 of his 18 speeches were spoken in Spanish.

 

A U.S. President has Air Force One. The Pope, Shepherd One.

 

The Pope has a Twitter account. Six million followers. @Pontifex.

 

Pope Francis touches people because he has touched and been touched by life. He does human things. There is no fanfare about him. His humility obvious.

 

He is God like.

U.S. WAR READY?

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It recently was mentioned that United States ground forces will be the smallest since the end of World War II. Four hundred twenty thousand. Strange. At a time when the U.S. is confronted with hostile forces and hostility in many places, ground troops may not be sufficient in the event of a major conflict. Some experts say two conflicts in different places definitely will create a situation the U.S. cannot handle.

 

How did all this come about?

 

The U.S. is a war weary nation. Seventeen years of fighting somewhere. Often more than one place. Troops are tired. The American people sick of war. Sequestration cutting heavily and disproportionately into the military budget.

 

ISIS is with us everywhere. Americans have to be vigilant militarily and personally. ISIS is not the major concern, however. The concern is with Russia and China. Who is not war weary. While the U.S. has been fighting here and there for 17 years, Russia and China have not.

 

There are trouble spots in the world today. Hot spots. Tinderboxes. A spark which can ignite world conflict. Even a World War III.

 

The four sensitive areas are the South and East China Seas, the Ukraine, the Middle East, and the Arctic.

 

China has decided to flex its muscle. Primarily, in the last five years.

 

China is making claim to significant portions of the South and East China Seas. Areas that historically and by treaty have generally belonged to Japan.

 

China is building islands where no land previously existed in these areas. Similar to erecting an oil rig in ocean waters. However, a bit larger. Airfields are being constructed on these manmade islands. China wants the capacity to project its power beyond the borders of its homeland.

 

There are a series of islands in the South and East China Seas. China now claims title. Japan says no, they are ours by treaty and historically. China ignores Japan’s claims. The situation is becoming heated. The islands are valuable because of the gas and oil reserves in their off shore waters.

 

By several treaties, the U.S. is duty bound to defend Japan in case of conflict with another nation. Would the U.S. meet its obligation? Many think not. If the U.S. did, a confrontation would be triggered between world powers.

 

Russia is in the China game. Russia and China have become bedfellows the past several years. While the U.S. and other nations have been sanctioning Russia heavily, Russia and China have become closer. They have entered into agreements regarding oil, gas and railroads spreading across two continents.

 

If the U.S. were at war with China, the U.S. could be at war with Russia also.

 

Until five years ago, China’s navy was insignificant. In the past five years, it has grown monumentally. China’s navy today may very well be more sophisticated than that of the U.S.

 

Today, China has 300 surface ships. Constructing more rapidly. The ships have high speed anti-ship cruise missiles. An expanding armada of guided missile warships, submarines and vessels. They are building carriers at a faster rate than the U.S.

 

China is building new naval vessels at the rate of 60 a year. The U.S. nowhere near that number. U.S. naval strength is numbered at 430 ships. Older and behind the times. Nowhere as up to date as China’s. The 430 number includes reserve vessels. Those not in use, sitting somewhere for the day they may be needed again. China’s 300 are active, not on a reserve list.

 

Some experts believe that the new missiles would be hard for the U.S. to guard against. The U.S. has yet to come up with a plan to answer China’s new found naval strength.

 

There is another reason why the U.S. has fallen behind China in addition to the reasons set forth earlier. U.S. intelligence. It appears to be the type of intelligence that got Bush 2 into Iraq.

 

It is said the U.S. does not understand. Perhaps so. Fifteen years of intelligence continues to suggest China’s military is merely for defensive purposes and focused mainly on the conflict with Taiwan. U.S. intelligence apparently never saw China’s new navy coming. China’s naval development in the last five years and the sophistication of its equipment.

 

China appears to be building its naval forces for eventual global power projection. Only the U.S. has been able to do it thus far. If China continues as it has the past five years, it will have to be feared.

 

Let’s look at Russia for a moment.

 

Russia is the thorn in the Ukraine and the Middle East. Russia generally takes a position in opposition to that of the U.S. and supports anyone whose interests are opposed to that of the U.S.

 

Russia is a half million military personnel behind the U.S. That is counting active military. If active military, reserve military and paramilitary are combined, Russia is 700,000 persons ahead of the U.S.

 

The Russian navy is no competition for the U.S. Its big ships are aged. Russia cannot afford to replace them. The Russian fleet has been described as a geriatric maritime giant. Old and unreliable.

 

Whereas the U.S. spends $600 billion a year on its military, Russia only $60 billion.

 

Russia does not seem to worry about the numbers or overall condition of its forces. Not if it can depend on China.

 

In July, Russia did come out with a new vessel. One that exceeds anything the U.S. has. A ship designed to conduct electronic warfare.

 

Russia recently spread its wings into Arctic waters. This past July, Putin announced Russia was claiming over a half million square miles of the Arctic Sea. Arctic waters have acquired a value of their own. Global warming has a part in it.

 

The Arctic Sea contains untapped gas and oil reserves. Also important, new shipping lanes are opening as Arctic ice melts.

 

Readiness is involved. Russia has 40 icebreakers operating in the Arctic Sea. The U.S. only 2.

 

The solution to the U.S. problems as described must start with Congress allocating more monies to the military budget. If conflict comes. it will be on our shores this time. An expanded 9/11. It will not be as with Pearl Harbor where the U.S. was able to convert its peacetime plants to the production of war equipment.

 

Another concern is the type of military. The U.S. has a volunteer military. It has worked well. However in any major conflict, more military personnel will be required. It will not come in the numbers needed voluntarily. The U.S. should start thinking draft again. Everyone for two years  out of high school. Unpopular. However better than living under Russian and/or Chinese domination.

 

The U.S. must not be caught with its pants down. Too many lives, too much of everything at stake.

GERTRUDE BELL…..DESERT QUEEN

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She was born Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell. Acquired fame as Gertrude Bell.

 

She was the daughter of one of Britain’s wealthiest families. Shunned the life of a debutante. Such had nothing to do with her appearance. She was the loveliest of women. Slim. Luxuriant hair. Sultry in appearance. Always the lady, however.

 

Gertrude was Victorian era upper class. She became an upper class adventurer.

 

She never married. Enjoyed several painful love affairs.

 

One of Oxford’s most brilliant graduates, she distinguished herself over the years as a great mountaineer, an archaeologist, traveler, political officer, administrator, spy and mapper.

 

Prior to World War I, Gertrude traveled throughout the Middle East. She especially enjoyed the Syrian and Arabian deserts. Personally knew and became friends with many chieftains and sheiks, as well as tribe members.

 

Her first known relationship was with a British diplomat. Her father did not like him. That was the end of the acquaintance. During her pre-World War I Middle Eastern travels, she had an affair with a British officer. He was married. The affair did not last. She formed passionate attachments with chieftains, sheiks and certain Bedouin leaders over the years.

 

She was always the lady. She kept all romantic involvements under rigid formal restraint. She never forgot she was a member of the British upper class.

 

By the time World War I started, Gertrude was working with the British government. She was close to the highest ranking British official in the area. A gentleman named Cox. He became her benefactor in a sense.

 

At the same time, T. E. Lawrence, aka Lawrence of Arabia, was working for the British government in the Middle East. The world is familiar with Lawrence of Arabia because of the books he wrote re his exploits and the movie Lawrence of Arabia. Gertrude wrote no such books and the one movie concerning her exploits did not garner the attention the Lawrence of Arabia movie did.

 

Few know Gertrude Bell. Her renown is substantially less than that of Lawrence.

 

Their aims were united. An independent Arab state dependant on no one. In this regard, both Gertrude and Lawrence were deceived by British intelligence. The Brits wanted the Middle East for Great Britain. These still were the days of Britain’s desire to colonize the world.

 

The Ottomans controlled the area up to World War I. The Ottomans sided with Germany in the war. It was Bell and Lawrence who worked to turn the Arab tribes into friends of Britain and to fight for Britain. The problem was the Arabs thought they were fighting for their independence. In reality, they were unknowingly fighting for a deceptive Britain.

 

Gertrude was able to move freely between British occupied and German occupied areas. Each side loved her. She had friends among the Arabs tribes fighting against each other, also. All contributed to her success as a British spy.

 

It is said Gertrude was the brains behind Lawrence. The intimation being that Lawrence did not have the ability to plan and arrange for the Arab activity and cooperation required.

 

While Lawrence was prancing about in white flowing Arab attire, Gertrude dressed neatly in billowing muslin’s and the pencil cloche hats of jazz age Baghdad. Both used camels as the primary mode of travel during these times.

 

The military did not like her. She was a woman. She was sitting with the leadership and making decisions that they believed only men could make. She was the only woman in the leadership.

 

In reality, Gertrude was a man cloaked as a woman. She was making her way in a man’s world.

 

Several years after World War I, she was settled in Baghdad. The Arab women did not like her because she refused to wear a veil. The Arab men did not like her because she was a woman.

 

Winston Churchill was impressed with Gertrude’s abilities. He was British Colonial Secretary at the time. He gave her the responsibility to create borders for a modern Iraq. A gigantic task. No different than it is today.

 

Gertrude drew the required lines in the sand.

 

The Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds hated each other. Had for thousands of years. During the most recent 300 years, the Sunni had been placed in the leadership role. The Shiites were considerably more in number. However, they were made subservient to the Sunni.

 

Gertrude made the mistake of following a similar plan in creating a new Iraq in 1920-21.

 

Iraqis did not get along then. They do not get along today in 2015. Iraq obviously not an easy society to successfully mold. There was an international consensus at the time that it was impossible to do. The same consensus exists today.

 

Never the less, Gertrude was praised and acclaimed for the modern Iraq she created. All kinds of awards were hers.

 

World War I was over. Her benefactor Cox was out of power in 1923. His loss of power meant that Gertrude was without power.

 

Gertrude took a new path in life. She opened a museum in Baghdad. The Baghdad Archaeological Museum. Also periodically made speeches in the Baghdad area.

 

She carried on a life in Baghdad consistent with that of her class. Did things she was unable to do while running around the desert on a camel for years. She played tennis, enjoyed afternoon teas and spent weekends in the country hunting partridge.

 

Over the years, she had received great acclaim. Besides awards, she was referred to as the Desert Queen, the uncrowned Queen of Iraq, a shaper of nations, and the female Lawrence of Arabia.

 

From 1923 to the time of her death on July 7, 1926, it was downhill for Gertrude. Illness and depression hit her hard. She died from an overdose of sleeping pills. Whether accidental or intentional has never been established.

TENNESSEE WILLIAMS…..A LOVE

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Tennessee Williams was gay. A well known fact.

 

During his life, he had two great loves. One short lived. The other, 14 years. It is the longer of the two I am writing about. The reason is that during the 14 year relationship, Williams did his best work.

 

Frank Merlo was Williams’ lover and partner. They met and fell in love the spring of 1949. Merlo was younger. Good looking. Of Sicilian heritage. An occasional actor. A U.S. Navy World War II veteran.

 

Williams first visited Key West in 1941. His regard for Key West was instant. He loved Key West.

 

Along the way, he purchased a home at 1431 Duncan Street. It was his permanent residence from 1948 to 1983.

 

Merlo lived with Williams in the house from 1949 to 1963. The house still stands. The home has been owned by a couple from the Midwest for many years. It is well kept and without question the show piece of the neighborhood. During the Williams/Merlo years, the house was not the show piece it is today. The two men lived modestly and had little concern with tidiness.

 

Williams had a sister. Rose. She was mentally challenged. She lived in Key West for a while on Von Phister Street. She spent many years in mental institutions.

 

Rose’s mental condition affected Williams badly throughout his life.

 

Williams and Merlo had an apartment in New York City. However, Key West was home and they spent considerable time in the house on Duncan Street.

 

Merlo acted as Williams’s personal secretary. He assumed responsibility for domestic housekeeping tasks. He provided happiness and stability which balanced out Williams’ frequent bouts with depression.

 

Merlo was a constant comfort to Williams. Something he needed. Williams was a schizophrenic. His constant fear was that he would fall into insanity. As his sister Rose had.

 

Merlo was Williams’ crutch.

 

The 14 years the two lived together were the happiest and most productive of Williams’ career.

 

Williams introduced a new style writing. His works portrayed life as it was. In all its rawness. He introduced sex into writing more than had been done in the past. Not the Fifty Shades of Gray type. There was a sense of the sexual involved in the relationships. That sense was more than previous writers of consequence had portrayed.

 

Williams was also a swift writer. His talent amazing. From mind to pen to paper. Almost instantaneously.

 

During the Williams/Merlo years together, Williams writings were the best produced during his lifetime. Many plays. Some made into movies for which he wrote the scripts. He also wrote scripts solely for movies. A slew of short stories. One major novel.

 

Major works included The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Rose Tattoo, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Orpheus Descending, Suddenly Last Summer, Sweet Bird of Youth, Period of Adjustment, and The Night of the Iguana.

 

Familiar to all of us. Turned out by Williams at the rate generally of one per year.

 

The novel was The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone.

 

Williams would not have produced so much and of such quality were it not for the relationship which existed between Williams and Merlo.

 

The relationship became unsteady in 1962 and 1963. Both were guilty of increasing infidelities and drug use. Williams and Merlo parted in 1963.

 

Soon thereafter, Merlo was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. Some say Williams personally took care of Merlo till he died. Others that said he took care of Merlo till he could take it no more and left Merlo in other responsible hands.

 

Although Williams’ life became increasingly difficult towards the end of his relationship with Merlo, it skyrocketed downward after his death. Williams suffered catatonic depression, used drugs increasingly, and was committed on occasion to mental health facilities.

 

Williams became dependent on prescription drugs. He received Dr. Freegood injections to overcome his depression and relieve his insomnia. The injections were sort of one shot takes care of multiple problems.

 

The downhill slide was mental and physical. He appeared on talk shows till his responses frequently became incoherent. His public personality suffered.

 

Williams died February 25, 1983.

 

It is obvious Merlo was good for Williams. The two appear to have been good for each other. They were given significant time together. They made the best of that time.

 

It would be remiss not to mention Williams’ impact on Key West itself. By 1979, he was one of Key West’s most famous faces.

 

He was open about his homosexuality. A fact which encouraged other gays to come to Key West to live and work. Key West progressed with their influx. Williams became known as the Gay Grandfather of Key West. A fitting title.

PRIVATE PRISONS

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Federal and state governments have and still are strapped for cash. The cry the past thirty years has been PRIVATIZE! Farm out certain services to the private sector. Supposedly the job will be done better and cheaper.

 

The package sold with regard to prisons. Privatized prisons came into being.

 

A private prison is defined as a facility/place in which individuals are physically confined or incarcerated by a third party that is contracted by a government agency.

 

How did private prisons come about?

 

Start first with the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Amendment that freed the slaves. Contrary to popular belief, the Thirteenth Amendment did not free all persons from slavery.

 

The pertinent section of the Thirteenth Amendment is as follows. “1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, EXCEPT AS PUNISHMENT FOR CRIME WHEREOF THE PARTY SHALL HAVE BEEN DULY CONVICTED, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” (emphasis added) The emphasized portion is referred to as the Punishment Clause.

 

Businessmen and plantation owners knew at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation that all men free was around the corner. Who was going to work the factories and fields cheaply? Such persons were instrumental in having the punishment clause included in the free the slaves amendment.

 

Slavery therefore is still legal as punishment for a crime.

 

The Thirteenth Amendment was ratified at the end of the Civil War. Beginning in 1868, convict leases were issued to private parties to supplement their work forces. The convicts were referred to as a chain gang. Chain gangs remained in place in decreasing numbers into the early 1950s.

 

The 1980s brought with it congested prisons. New jails and increased staff were required to support the war on drugs.

 

Private prisons have grown and multiplied since that time. With little oversight/scrutiny by any government. The federal and state frame of mind was we are paying you to take this headache off our hands…..do it and do not bother us.

 

The first modern private prison company was the Correction Corp. of America for Hamilton County, Tennessee. Within a few years, the State of Tennessee turned all its jails over to Corrections Corp. of America to operate.

 

Corrections Corp. of America is the largest or one of the largest such companies in the United States. Within two decades, the Correction Corp. increased its profits by 500 percent. In 2011, it took in $5 billion in revenue.

 

Wall Street became aware in 2009 of the profitability of private prisons. Millions of dollars were invested and continue to be invested. Wells Fargo alone has $106 million invested in two jail companies.

 

Today, 20 percent of federal prisoners and 7 percent of state prisoners are confined in private prisons.

 

Private jail companies are no different than any other major corporation. With the big dollars, comes big lobbying with Congress and in state capitals. Also national and regional meetings in exotic locations where legislators and other influential government persons are entertained.

 

Four types of legislation sought to be influenced on a consistent basis include longer sentencing bills, later parole legislation, three strikes and you’re out which leads to lifetime incarceration, and the lengthening of infraction sentences. While today’s mood is to decriminalize and lower/eliminate prison confinement, the jail companies are working in the other direction. With success.

 

Private prisons on the surface appear to be cost effective for cash strapped states. The private industry sold the states a bill of goods. We can do it better and cheaper.

 

Their track record stinks.

 

Poor training of personnel has led to violence and escapes. Food not the best nor the most recent. Proper medical care lacking. Female prisoners raped. Paroles granted later than the normal time. Prisoners charged for their upkeep. Failure to pay results in time being added on to a sentence.

 

Private prisons are increasingly being used as immigration detention centers.

 

Private prisons are selective as to which prisoners they will take. They are not interested in high coast inmates. The disabled, elderly and HIV-positive for example. The private prison companies only want the healthiest and youngest prisoners.

 

State and county governments are not happy with private prisons after having lived with them for several years. Private prison companies require the governmental agency to guarantee a certain number of occupied beds. If at any given time the occupancy rate falls below the contracted number, the private prison company charges for the empty beds. With crime down and fewer persons being sentenced to jail, such is putting a strain on state and county monies.

 

There is another problem. Brings back into play the slavery issue.

 

Private jail prisoners work like employees in a factory. Except they either do not get paid or get pennies in effect. The prison companies have contracted with outside corporations to produce certain goods. They cannot meet required deliveries. The reason again less crime and fewer people going to jail.

 

Certain private prisoner companies make uniforms for popular restaurants like McDonald’s and Applebee’s.

 

As a result, private prison companies are threatening to sue states and other governmental agencies for lost profits. Another way of saying they will sue unless they get more inmates. To be used as free labor.

 

An interesting observation. The Civil War and the Thirteenth Amendment were to have freed the slaves. Blacks were the slaves at the time. Today, there are more blacks in jail. Blacks still persecuted. Blacks still not free. Blacks slaves of the Thirteenth Amendment which was adopted to free them.

 

Finally, corruption. On a scale guaranteed to astound you.

 

Mark Ciavarella, Jr. was a Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Judge. He recently was sentenced to 28 years in jail.

 

From 2003 to 2008, he took close to $1 million in bribes from a private prison company to send 4,000 children to juvenile detention centers. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court threw the convictions out. However such did little good as a practical matter. The 4,000 had already served time in situations where they normally would not have. Like talking back to a teacher.

 

Another Lucerne County Judge, Michael Conahan, was also sentenced to a lesser term for basically the same crimes.

 

Ciavarella is referred to in Luzerne County as the “Kids for Cash Judge.”

Whether judges or government officials, bribery corruption as committed by the two judges has to be merely the tip of the iceberg.

 

My advice to all. Do not be in a hurry to privatize anything. Tell your elected officials so. Whether private prisons, Social Security, pension funds, or what have you. Man has a darker side. It occasionally surfaces where big dollars are involved.