Category Archives: Political Science

Racism in America 2020 Facts: Resourced by Michael Hawke

14 Sunday Jun 2020

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Published: July 22, 2019
THE TRUTH BEHIND RACIAL DISPARITIES IN FATAL POLICE SHOOTINGS
Contact(s): Caroline Brooks, Joseph Cesario
Reports of racially motivated, fatal shootings by police officers have garnered extensive public attention and sparked activism across the nation. New research from Michigan State University and University of Maryland reveals findings that flip many of these reports on their heads – white police officers are not more likely to have shot minority citizens than non-white officers.
“Until now, there’s never been a systematic, nationwide study to determine the characteristics of police involved in fatal officer-involved shootings,” said Joseph Cesario, co-author and professor of psychology at MSU. “There are so many examples of people saying that when black citizens are shot by police, it’s white officers shooting them. In fact, our findings show no support that black citizens are more likely to be shot by white officers.”
The findings – published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, or PNAS – are based on an independent database Cesario and his team created that catalogued each police shooting from 2015. The team – led also by co-author David Johnson from University of Maryland – contacted every police department that had a fatal police shooting to get the race, sex and years of experience for every officer involved in each incident. The team also leveraged data from police shooting databases by The Washington Post and The Guardian.
“We found that the race of the officer doesn’t matter when it comes to predicting whether black or white citizens are shot,” Cesario said. “If anything, black citizens are more likely to have been shot by black officers, but this is because black officers are drawn from the same population that they police. So, the more black citizens there are in a community, the more black police officers there are.”
The data show that it’s not racial bias on behalf of white officers relative to black officers when it comes to fatal shootings, and that’s good news. The bad news, Cesario said, is that internal policy changes, such as diversifying police forces, may not reduce shootings of minority citizens.
Beyond officer race, the team drew other conclusions about details related to racial disparities in fatal officer shootings.
“Many people ask whether black or white citizens are more likely to be shot and why. We found that violent crime rates are the driving force behind fatal shootings,” Cesario said. “Our data show that the rate of crime by each racial group correlates with the likelihood of citizens from that racial group being shot. If you live in a county that has a lot of white people committing crimes, white people are more likely to be shot. If you live in a county that has a lot of black people committing crimes, black people are more likely to be shot. It is the best predictor we have of fatal police shootings.”
By connecting the findings of police officer race, victim race and crime rates, the research suggests that the best way to understand police shootings isn’t racial bias of the police officer; rather, by the exposure to police officers through crime.
The vast majority – between 90% and 95% – of the civilians shot by officers were actively attacking police or other citizens when they were shot. Ninety percent also were armed with a weapon when they were shot. The horrific cases of accidental shootings, like mistaking a cell phone for a gun, are rare, Cesario said.
“We hear about the really horrendous and tragic cases of police shootings for a reason: they’re awful cases, they have major implications for police-community relations and so they should get attention,” Cesario said. “But, this ends up skewing perceptions about police shootings and leads people to believe that all fatal shootings are similar to the ones we hear about. That’s just not the case.”
One thing that was surprising to the researchers, Cesario said, were the number of mental health cases that resulted in fatal officer shootings.
“It was truly striking and we didn’t recognize just how many there were,” he said. “This shows how underappreciated mental health is in the national discussion of fatal officer shootings.”
Nearly 50% of all fatal shootings involving white civilians were because of mental health; it also accounted for nearly 20% of black civilians and 30% of Hispanics. These included two types of mental health cases: the first was “suicide by cop,” in which civilians intentionally antagonize the police because they want an officer to kill themselves; the second was a result of mental disorders, such as when a civilian is suffering from schizophrenia and poses a threat to officers.
Although white officers are not more likely than black officers to shoot black citizens when looking at all fatal shootings, the data are too uncertain to draw firm conclusions once different subtypes of shootings, such as shootings of unarmed citizens, are examined. This is because these types of shootings are too rare for strong conclusions to be drawn.
Cesario said that better record keeping – such as the FBI’s National Use-of-Force Data Collection, which launched in 2019 – will enable researchers to understand police shootings in finer detail.
Hear more from Cesario on the Manifold podcast.
(Note for media: Please include a link to the original paper in online coverage: https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2019/07/16/1903856116)

The Daily Mix……by, Michael Hawke

24 Sunday Feb 2019

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Padres Sign Manny Machado:  Free agent, Manny Machado signed a ten-year, $300,000,000 million dollar, contract with the San Diego Padres. Seems like the Padres ownership has finally stepped up to the plate!  This is now the highest paid contract in Major League sports. Manny Machado is one happy baseball player and is really excited to be joining the San Diego Padres!

Hayden Williams….Newest Member of “The Sucker Punched Club”: Welcome to the club Hayden. I myself am a member as are many famous, and not so famous, people. Remember Geno Smith, NFL quarterback? He joined the club last year after getting sucker punched by a teammate.  You are in good company young man. I find it interesting that most people who are sucker punched are hit by a person who is both bigger and stronger. These “sucker punchers” are so frustrated by their inability to verbalize their thoughts and ideas once they realize they have nothing to say they revert to verbal abuse and physical violence. Their use of the sucker punch is pretty safe for them and they almost always flee after punching their victims.

Hayden there are no membership card privileges but if you want to pay a membership fee just send it to me. As a matter of observation I thought you handled the punch with grace and dignity. You can definitely take a hit! Keep up the conservative fight.

I graduated from U.C. Berkeley in 1980 with a degree in Political Science. Back then, post Vietnam War, Cal was moderating a bit. The past thirty years or so has led to the total liberalization of the Berkeley faculty, pretty much from top to bottom. The cost of this intellectual imbalance has been great on the students who have attended and graduated from Cal. Brainwashed is almost too mild a term to describe their inability to think critically about political and social matters.

Anyway kid….welcome to the club. The focus for most of us in the Sucker Punched Club is to never let it happen again. No need for more pain and humiliation as one punch is all that is needed to become a lifetime member.

Jussie Smollett: I suggest you read or listen to Geraldo Rivera who was on Fox News Friday. He summed up this incident and spared no words on Smollett’s self promoting racist scam. I find it interesting how the left news media outlets expressed shock and condemnation blaming President Trump when the now out of work actor initially reported the fake attacks. The Chicago Police Chief, an African-American, laid out the charges against him and labeled him a despicable human being on Friday. The liberal media were mum. There was little to no coverage of this new development and their focus quickly shifted to the crazy Coast Guard Lt who had plans to kill democrats and media persons.

As for Jussie Smollett’s premeditated plans to “attack himself” and then report it as a hate crime I remind the readers there is no connection whatsoever between acting skills and intelligence.  Jussie Smollett made a really dumb move which will follow him for the rest of his life, a punishment worse than prison time and fines, which he will also have to suffer.

An upside for him is that he may be eligible for admission into the Sucker Punched Club due to sucker punching himself. To date no one has been admitted under this status but there is a first time for everything.

A Dumb Joke:  A penguin walked into a pub.  He went up to the bar and asked the bartender…. “have you seen my brother” ? The bartender paused, then looked around the bar, and said…. “I don’t know…what does he look like”?

The Daily Mix……by, Michael Hawke

06 Wednesday Feb 2019

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A Tribute To Kimberley R…. : Kimberley died in a tragic car accident 10 years ago today. Kim was a very young 50 years old. She had a heart of gold and gave so much to help others. Her passion for animals, and especially her pet cats, touched all who knew her. Kim you are sorely missed. We know you are with the Lord and we will see you again. Thank you for your sweetness and easy laugh.

Kim was killed instantly while sitting in her stalled car at a red light. She was on the way to work and was the first car at the light on the road leading into town. Her car suddenly died and she could not re-start it. She made a fatal mistake by not getting out of her car and off to the sidewalk, while calling for a tow truck. She was struck in the rear of her car by a speeding driver going 55 mph who only saw the red light change to green….he failed to see Kim sitting there stalled. The driver of the car that hit her was unhurt.

I know Kim would want to send this lesson to all of us…..if your car stalls and you can get out and safely, off to the sidewalk or shoulder, do so. Sitting in a stalled or disabled car on the road or shoulder is dangerous.  Kimberley, we will never forget you…we love you Sis!

The State of the Union Speech: Predident Trump delivered and outstanding speech thorougly covering all of his administration’s major accomplishments as well as the very important ongoing issues like ISIS, Syria, Iran, Russia, China, Trade, the new Mexico-Canada-US Trade deal, and the border wall.

There were so many positives in his message that it is hard for me to see how any American, no matter their political views, could not get behind most of his goals and accomplishments, and especially border security.  The President showed his human side too…. He said, for example… “legal immingrants are welcome here in America. We ust want you to come here legally”….”America will never be a socialist country”….”we need to pass a joint Medical Reform bill that will provide health care for all, cover pre-existing conditions, and reducre drug costs”.  The WWII and Holocost survivors presence was special.

The President is a hands on leader. Rather than speak with eloquent platitudes, President Trump speaks the laguage of the common man or woman. We understand him and he makes no bones about laying out his goals with specifics. His first two years has shown he is not a calculating politician, reading the polls, like tea leaves before speaking or laying out plans and goals. He will never be called an incrimentalist, a label that fits so many in politics and government.

The Border Mess Numbers Growing:  Like everyone in America I am watching the evolving crisis at our Southern border crossing in San Diego. The caravan asylum seekers in Tijuana now number around 6,000. By the end of the month, if the additional caravans continue north, there could be as many as 10,000 Central American asylum seekers in Mexico. The people of Tiuana also are in crisis over this growing number of Central American refugees with daily protests.

Geraldo Rivera’s Border Solution: I am not generally a Geraldo fan however, he recently, on Fox News, offered what I consider a logical, practical, approach to not just the current crisis, but to fixing our inefficient and outdated immigration policies. He suggested a multi-faceted approach with a focus on complete immigration reform to include a viable work visa program. He also called for the DACA fix.

 

 

President Trump’s “Promises Made- Promises Kept”…..by, Michael Hawke

04 Friday Jan 2019

Posted by in Character, Political Science

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Happy New Year:  Did you notice 2018 went by really fast? The older I get the more clear to me is Einstein’s theory of relativity. I also notice daily the novel 1984 is playing out right before our eyes and no one seems to see it, or care. Big Brother is in charge. I give thanks that I had the opportunity to live one more year on planet earth. I pray a healthy and prosperous New Year for all… “Be Good and Do Good”!

To General Mattis: Dear Sir, thank you for your long and faithful service to our nation. I hold you in high esteem. That being said you disappointed me with your exit criticisms, and negative remarks, regarding your disagreement with the President. I heard you speak of allies, loyalty, and other things. I remind you Sir that Donald Trump got elected because he promised to work for the American people, first and foremost. From my perspective I see him doing just that. I will save the run down on all of his completed promises so far but lets remember one he kept….that none of his predicessors did….he moved our embassy in Israel to Jerusalem!

In the United States Military the buck is supposed to stop at the top. Sir, I do not recall you making any open critiques of General Flynn turning lobbyist, and of all the countries he chose to work for, and profit from….Turkey. Turkey may be an ally but they are no friend. We never got a thing from the Turks that we did not have to pay for in blood and or money. The Turkish government is a dictatorship and repressive toward their own people. They are also genocidal toward minority groups like the Kurds and Armenians.

General do you support the system that has been in place for years where by our senior military leaders retire and then go to work for companies as lobbyist to the Pentagon? Do you not see the corrupt nature of this practice? Do you think it is right, say for a Navy Captain who is in charge of buying certain items for the fleet to retire and then two years later he or she is representing the same company, selling items to the military and making a high six figure salary. No, it is not right, moral, or particularly sophisticated….and it flys in the face of core millitary values. It is simiply a corrupt system. It is the ” Fat Leonard” scandal multiplied by a million. General Flynn should be prosecuted not for his lying to the FBI, but rather for representing a foreign nation as a lobbyist.

Speakling of the Fat Leonard Scandal: I do not recall you making an open comment about the Fat Leonard scandal. I do recall many junior and mid level leaders getting prison time and more. I do not recall one senior Admiral getting anything more than a kiss on the cheek. No Admirals lost their retirements, their rank, or had any financial fines that cost them more than mere annoyance. The junior guys got slammed. Kind of lacking moral justice here don’t you think? And really General, is not the whole lobby system as applied to the Departmet of Defense just as corrupt as what went on in the Phillipines with Fat Leonard?

General Petraeus Also Got a Kiss on the Cheek: I also do not recall any open comment on the good General Petraeus who took full advantage of his rank and power to have a mistress in theatre….and there was the whole thing about classified documents being breached. I never heard anything but what a great leader he was….but what about this moral breakdown?  What about Core Army Values? What about all those soldiers he led who did not have time with their families while in theater? A kiss on the cheek. He should have gone to jail. Moral judgement you might think….yeah that is what it is.

Speaking of Loyalty to Allies: General you implied President Trump was too cozy toward Putin, Chi, and Kim, all dictators and tyrants, and too harsh with our allies.  A famous Chinese General, Sun-tzu, is often credited with the saying….“keep your friends close and your enemies closer”.  Michael Corleone, in “Godfather II”, is also credited with this saying, as is Machiavelli, in “The Prince”. I believe it’s true origin can be found in the military plans of King David of Israel. It is, after all, a sound strategy to apply when dealing with dangerous threats. Regardless of it’s origin it should be obvioius that President Trump has adopted this approach in dealing with our enemies, and it is proving to be quite effective.

Trump’s Actions Toward Our Enemies: President Trump showers compliments on all three of these bad guys, yet his actions speak loud and clear. He has placed, justifiably so, tarrifs on China, he has put sactions on Russia, and he is close to putting bombs on Kim’s rocket bases. President Trump is shrewd and realistic….he is also tough. He keeps his friends close…and his enemies closer.

Trump’s Actions Toward Our Friends:General Matis you spoke of the need to stand strong with our allies. I think President Trump is doing just this. The best way to keep NATO strong and our allies close is to have honest, trust based, relations. All of the previous Presidents, going  back to Jimmy Carter, just looked the other way regarding the lack of monetary support for the defense of NATO by our friends. For the last 70 years the United States tax payer has been footing the bill for the defense of Europe, Japan, and much of the free the world. I do not need to tell you Sir the high costs of these military actions and the huge impact on our national debt. Donald Trump spoke directly, and correctly, calling for these very prospereous European countries, as well as Japan, to start paying up for our millitary support. This was a needed action and it was not impulsive. President Trump promised to put the American worker and American families first. It is about time the American tax payers have a President who means what he says and does what he promises!

General Matis thank you for your dedication to our country and may you have health and prosperity in your coming retirement.

Michael Hawke

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Many Doors Of The Immigration Mess…..by, Michael Hawke

22 Friday Jun 2018

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Publish “The Immigration Manual” For All Americans To Read: They can put it out in an “Immigration For Dummies” format since that is what most members of Congress think the American people are….dummies. The average American Citizen does not know what the rules are for a foreign person wanting to immigrate legally to our country. Publish them.

The Student Visa Door: How does a student from China, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India or elsewhere end up in our community college, living in a condo paid by their government…..then they  transfer to a four year school….. later they get an internship from an American based company….. then a work visa….. and then what do you know…a green card???

I want to know the rules here. Millions of kids from wealthy families of other nations are entering our country on student visas and they never leave. Many end up in the tech industry and what do you know….we have had major stealing of our technology and intellectual property.

President Trump says…. “China has been stealing our intellectual property and it must stop”! Really? We are letting these foreign students walk right in to our higher education institutions and companies and essentially handing the intellectual property over to many of them. There are so many student visas issued for all kinds of schools in our country that the numbers of annual immigrants is in the millions.  Do these student visas, when tranferred to work visas, count in our nations numbers on immigration? So many unknowns here.  What are the rules? Most Americans want to know!

The Buy A Real Estate Property Door: Most Americans do not know a rich foreigner can buy a house for over $500,000.00 and get a visa which usually ends up in a green card. And not just green cards for the buyer…. but for his family and relatives who may come to live in the house. These rich foreign buyers are inflating our real estate markets in the major cities, and gaining back door immigration status. President Trump says….“I am for merit based immigraton”.  Really? What are the rules here. Most Americans want to know!

The Start A Business And Employ 14 Workers Door:  Have you wondered why there are so many massage parlors everywhere? This door is the reason. Start up a buisness, employ 14 workers, and you get a free pass to a visa. Then bring in your relatives…14 at least….to run the business and you get more visas. Merit based immigration all the way Mr. President. What are the rules?  Most Americans want to know!

The Foreign Tech Worker “H1-B Visa” Door:  This door is related to the education door but it involves a foreign tech worker getting a special visa to come to America and work because supposedly our education system is not producing eneough computer and engineer related graduates. This door is based on a lie…but the door is there and used by companies, many of them foreign based, who want to being their own workers in to keep the wages lower. This door is complex and mysterioius and no one knows how it really works. What are the rules? Most Americans want to know!

The Sneak Across The Back Fence Door:  This door has been used for over 100 years. Yes, it is the illegal immigrant crossings of our Southern border. The politicans like to focus on this door. It is the ….. “look over here….. why we let in all numbers of people, under all kinds of special rules….. over there”.

This door can be fixed this year. Yes, President Trump’s wall is needed. It is needed not just so we can own our back fence and prevent all kinds of untold crossings into the country…drugs, coyotess, child sex trade, terrorist, and just half of the population of Mexico and Central American wanting an opportunity to be free and safe. We know the rules for this door but the politicans like to move it around, play with it, and pretend they too want the door locked. This problem has been highlighted by the recent family separation law that resulted in a recent Executive order by President Trump. No need to get into the weeds on this. The American people want his door controlled. We are compassionate, graciouis, and kind…but this door has been free wheeling way to long.

Build the wall, start a work visa program at the border like we do with the rich kids we let in to attend our schools colleges, and universites. Call it an “M1-B worker visa program”. I think we know how to do it.  Most Americans want this mess fixed. And yes, the democrats are obstrucing for political gain…so much compassion! “bah hum bug”!

The Amnesty Door:  This door has been around since President Carter’s time in the White House.  Presidents Carter, Reagan, Bush the First, Clinton, Bush the Second, and Obama all allowed this door to work for immigrants. It is realted to the Back Fence door above….sneak in, work, raise a family, be a good citizen (although illegal) and the compassion of the American people will give you a free pass and a green card. Kind of earned in a way, but still illegal. President Trump wants to grant amnesty to over 1.6 milliion Daca illegals and others if the Democrats will support his building a wall and enhancing security on the southern border. Presidnet Trump shows his reasoable side as well as his compassion toward these illegal immigrants. The democrats play politics and obstruct, and….. once again show their compassion. So bad….so bad. The American people get this one. Lets fix the border and write a better law.

“Everybody Knows….”  Leonard Cohen’s famous song… “everybody knows”….applies to the  border immigration mess. Everybody knows the border immigration mess could be fixed this year if the democrats would work with President Trump….everybody knows!

The Philadelphia Eagles Fumbled The NFL Ratings Ball….by, Michael Hawke

05 Tuesday Jun 2018

Posted by in Political Science, Sports

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President Trump often says….”we will see what happens”… when asked about how things will work out on any particular issue. We now know what will happen regarding the NFL ratings. They will continue to plumet to the point that they will lose many fans for good. I, for one, am gone this season. I watched college football last season and will do the same this year. The NFL’s rich spoiled players killed it for me.

The Philadelphia Eagles informed the White House they will not be bringing the entire team to the traditional White House Recognition of the Super Bowl Champions. Then they requested the event be rescheduled during the week that President Trump will be out of the country attending the Korean Peace Summit in Singapore. The Eagles stated over 1000 fans have already planned to attend the coming Friday event, but while most of the players would be in Washington that weekend, only a handful of would come to the White House celebration honoring them as Super Bowl victors. President Trump decided since the majority of the players would not be coming they would hold a Patriotic performance for the fans and those in attendance. The Marine Band and others groups would perform, honoring our military and our country.

Facts on team victory visits missing… The champions of the World Series, the Super Bowl, and the NBA have traditionaly been honored by Presidents at the White House for many years. It is a tradition that says we are one, we celebrate our best atheletes and their great accomplishment. It has always been a postive event.

Players standing for the National Anthem to start the game also has always symolized a unity of our best and the tremendous positive impact sports has on our nation and on our youth in particular. It brings us together no matter our pollitical, economic, or social differences. Taking a knee during the anthem distracts from this positive and unifying moment prior to the start of the game.

The NFL players fail to understand they are not in sync with most of the fans… The players are now running things in the NFL. It is clear that a small number of players and owners are thumbing their very rich noses at the facts about the knee taking and stepping up the ante. Lets be perfectly honest… the fans, who are offended by these so called ” it’s not about the anthem” knee takers, do not buy these acts of kneeling are about respect for free speach and protection of those abused by police.

To the players I say get your heads on straight. The common fan knows an idiotic statement when they hear it….and your free speech claims are pure idiocy. Fans know players can stand for the anthem at the start of the game and do their issue statements in other venues. Otherwise, the knee taking is about the anthem and only about the anthem. It offends those who respect and love our country with all of its great strengths and….yes flaws. People are not dumb, fans are not dumb, but you players, who are mostly all college educated and making millions…must certainly be dumb!

Recent NFL rules changes are too little too late: Would “pathetic” be the correct descriptive word for the NFL trying to stop the ratings cliff fall….well, there are better words but not suitable for print here in this piece…so yes,“pathetic” ! The NFL has stated their new rules will require players who wish to kneel during the anthem to remain in the locker room until after the playing of it. If players who choose to be on the field kneel there will be punishments and fines to both the players and the teams.

Several owners have already declared they will not fine players for exercising “free speech” and they will also pay any NFL fines the players incur. Well it sounds like the NFL fixed this problem, eh? Idiots all. Free speech is not the issue here. Last I checked…if a company has a training event the sales staff must attend and some decide to take a knee about the police shooting issue during the training, they suffer consequences….likely they get the boot.  This is about rules, following rules, doing what your boss or company tells you and being part of the big picture…so simple. If a player kneels during the anthem before the game and tells me he was praying to the Blessed Virgin Mary and not protesting the flag and all it represents, all I think is he thinks I am a dummy. Fans are not dummies…they get it.

The NFL’s last chance….and best move: When it comes to representing a team, and a so called non-profit (a topic for a later piece) like the National Football League, players are a mere cog in the wheel. They do not have free speech rights when it comes to doing what they are paid to do for their employer on game day. The NFL players make up less than 10% of the college players who finish college each year desperatly hoping for an NFL chance. The NFL choice to save their product and their billions of profits is to fire the players who do not follow the rules. There are 100 guys waiting in line for that knee taker’s job and given the chance many would end up being better than the guy they fired. Fans do not revere these players, they used to, but they don’t any more.  The average fan attends games or watches on TV to support his or her team. It is a recreation thing, an escape from the every day grind of work. There are other things these fans can do on game day….and most take way less time and money than watching an NFL game.

To the Commissoner and the very rich owners… May I remind you it is not 1980, 1990, or even 2010? Times have changed and people have many choices to spend both their time and money on when it comes to recreation. The major league sports teams no longer have a corner on the fan’s money and time. Play it smart boys, start acting like the businessmen and women you are. No player should be permitted to hijack your profits and success over a personal protest during the National Anthem on game day, especially when it attacks the values and traditions most all of us treasure and love.  The fans simply won’t “buy” it. 

 

 

Senators Are Self Serving Liars! ……by, Michael Hawke

23 Tuesday Jan 2018

Posted by in News, Political Science

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Liars: The Senate is made up of many liars. There are, according to Mark Twain, three kinds of liars…there are “Liars”, there are “Damned Liars”, and there are “Politicians”. Our Senators shut down the government this past week over bull dung arguments and political gamesmanship for the sake of each side trying to gain public approval at the expense of the other. The lies both sides spouted regarding the shut down were pathetic. I can tell a more believable lie with half my brain tied behind my back and both my eyes closed. Such childish actions were an embarrassment to the dignity of the Senate as an institution. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Damned Liars: Not all the Senators are simply“liars”….many of them are “damned liars”, which, according to Mark Twain, is the second worst kind of liar one can be. The democrats voted in block for the shutdown and yet they continued to say the lack of votes to keep the government open was due to the Republicans, who hold a majority in the House of Representative as well as the Senate.  They knew the Republican majority in the Senate is very slim (51), and in order for the government to be kept open 60 votes were needed. This means several Democrat Senators votes were needed for the bill to pass. Yet the Democrats, who voted against the bill in mass, kept saying it was the Republicans. This lie was obvious to all, and yet, and they continued spouting it over and over. Please note the shutdown of the government was not due to, nor was it caused by, the Republican Senators. Many Republican Senators are still “liars”….but all of the Democrat Senators are “damned liars”. The “damned liars” looked like “stupid damned liars” to me, since their lie was so obvious.  I could have told a better lie standing on my head, with half my brain tied behind my back, and both of my eyes closed. They are an embarrassment to the dignity of the Senate to which they have been sent to serve, not themselves…..but the citizens of our great nation. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Politicians: According to Mark Twain this is the worst kind of liar. In this government shutdown debacle there is one Senator who deserves this “worst kind of liar label”, Senator Chuck Schumer.  Chuck Schumer, as the minority leader in the Senate, set up this shut down, secured an en mass Democrat vote for it, and then had the audacity to call it the “Trump Shutdown”! He used the Daca /Dreamer issue as the reason they would not cooperate to keep the government open. This lie was not just a disgrace it was an insult to any thinking person. The Daca/Dreamer matter has bi-partisan support. The President also has promised to sign the bill to grant them the right to stay here. Chuck Schumer made this issue his line in the sand. He also knew that during the Obama administration both Democrats and Republicans in the Senate agreed for better border security, and end to chain migration and the lottery system, and support for the children’s health care bill. The entire issue Chuck Schumer was about was to try to create an outrage against the Republicans by labeling them anti Daca/Dreamer. Chuck Schumer, is the worst kind of liar…he epitomizes what Mark Twain meant when he called the worst kind of liar a “Politician”.  He should be ashamed of himself for disgracing the dignity of the Senate and insulting the American people.

Republican Mid-Term Goals-60 Seats! by, Michael Hawke

20 Saturday Jan 2018

Posted by in Political Science

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The Government Just Shut Down: I listened to Chuck Schumer and Mitch Mc Connell blame each other over the shut down. There is no reason for this to have happened. The shut down was because the Democrats insisted that DACA needed to be voted for if they were to vote to keep the government open. They also insisted they would not vote for keeping the government open if the Republicans included the wall funding. So essentially they are unable to flex in any way.

The 60 Seat Goal: It should be clear to all Americans that these two groups of our political leaders are polarized. To take advantage of President Trump’s economic growth successes it is imperative the Republicans pick up enough seats at the Mid Term to give them the 60 votes. They will be pushing very hard to get the mid term races going after this debacle.

Senators Should Be Fired: Those Senators who let the government shut down should be targeted for defeat in their next election. It is clear the political bull dung these people are spewing is shameful. I for one will be supporting every Republican candidate running in November. These guys are worried about illegal immigrants, the DACA people, and forgetting about our citizens, our military, our veterans. How in the world can they be so openly dishonest.

The Daca / Dreamer Win ….. by, Michael Hawke

19 Friday Jan 2018

Posted by in Political Science, U.S. Economy

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DACA/ DREAMERS Background Information: …..Reported numbers of DACA immigrants is somewhere around 500,000. The DREAMER numbers are higher and are said to be around 3.5 million. The DACA issue that we hear being negotiated has to do with a set of immigrants brought here as children and registered as DACA immigrants. They were granted temporary waivers to stay under the Obama administration until the deadline which is this March. The larger group, the DREAMERS, are also undocumented immigrants brought here as children but tend to be older and also are not registered in the DACA program.

The Innocent Immigrants: The issue of passing legislation to legalize the DACA group, and then also the DREAMER  group is going to happen. We will pass a law or laws to take care of these people who were largely brought here as children but who are now almost all adults. Through no fault of their own they were illegally brought here by their parents and or families and grew up knowing only America as their home. No groups of illegal immigrants has a better right to an amnesty then do these two groups.

The Problem: The snag here is that we now have a Republican President, Donald Trump, who ran a campaign that included the promise to make America safer by securing our borders through the building of a wall, increase in border patrol agents, and improved security throughout. He also promised to fix our immigration system by ending chain immigration and the lottery as well as selecting immigrants based on merit….what skills and talents will they bring to America to make our country a better nation. For some reason the Democrats insist on having DACA passed without letting the President include the changes he requires to achieve his security goals. The logic of these two things being linked is undeniable. Failure to fix the system of immigration will only lead to more DACA kids and future amnesties needed as well a continued lack of focus on controlling who is allowed to immigrate into America. The politics of polarization is at work here as the Democrats are eying the coming mid-term elections where they hope tp regain a majority in either the House or the Senate.

The Right Thing To Do: The right thing to do is for the Democrats to give the President what he needs to fix the immigration system as well as the money to build the wall and greater security system. The Democrats must know that failure to do this will lead to another disaster in the mid-term elections. The reality is building a wall, controlling our border, and standardizing our immigration system is good for everyone, both citizens and immigrants.

The Lie: The picture painted by the Democrats opposing the wall and the other issues is that we will close off Mexico. Anyone who lives in a border region knows this is both wrong and ridiculous. San Diego’s, San Ysidro border crossing is the busiest border crossing in the world. Thousands of people commute and travel back and forth every day. Many Mexicans living in Mexico have visas and work permits and come over to work in the U.S., preferring to live in their own country Mexico. We also have many Americans living across the border as well who commute daily to work.

San Diego Has a Fence (a wall really): and it is very effective in helping control the illegal, and criminal, elements from easily crossing into the United Sates. I do not think improving the wall along other parts of the border, where the Cartels clearly cross drugs and people freely, is anything other than a necessary and smart thing to do. I would also be remiss if I did not mention that last year in Tijuana, Mexico, minutes from San Diego, there were over 1700 murders….most of which were Cartel related. Do you think the citizens of San Diego want the current wall removed? Not in their lifetimes!

The Money For The Wall: President Trump promised during the campaign that Mexico will pay for the wall. He refers to the $71 billion dollar trade deficit with Mexico, and NAFTA on the table for renegotiation, as the means to ultimately have Mexico foot the bill, either directly or indirectly.

After watching the economy and stock market reach record highs this past year and companies like Apple bringing back off shore money and opening new plants here in America, as well as the tax cuts for all Americans….why should we doubt the Presidents claim. Regarding the amount of money he is requesting, it is not a lot when you start looking at how many projects spend billions and billions in the government sphere.

10 Billion People: By mid 2030 or so the planet’s population will have grown from the current 7.5 billion people to a profound 10 billion people, all trying to live, work, and prosper. There is no question by that time America better be strong, prosperous, and have solid control of her borders. The suggestion President Trump’s goals are anything but that of a forward thinking, practical, business minded visionary is denying the reality of what he has already accomplished. The problem for the Democrats and the Liberal Media is that the President is not a politician. He is a builder….. and for him the only measure of success will be in his Making America Great and Safe again!

Do The Right Thing: I urge our politicians, on both sides of the aisle, to simply quit the lies, get back to work, and simply “do the right thing”.  This  is a win win for both sides…. and most importantly, for these DACA and DREAMER immigrants.

 

 

 

The Daily Mix……….by, Michael Hawke

31 Sunday Dec 2017

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Puerto Rico Disaster Recovery Neglected: One half of Puerto Rico’s 3.3 million people are without power still. That is 100 days since Hurricane Maria hit and destroyed much of the island. President Woodrow Wilson signed the Jones-Shafroth Act 100 years ago granting U.S. citizenship to the residents of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory seized from Spain during the Spanish-American War in 1898. There is plenty of blame to point at the Puerto Rican politicians who have let the island’s infrastructure fall into neglect to the point much of it needs to be totally rebuilt. Regardless of this mismanagement and corruption in Puerto Rico the President and Congress needs to step up and provide the means and money to the Puerto Rican people, fellow American citizens, to rebuild. Shameful describes their efforts so far.

San Diego Auto Show: The worst auto show I have attended in years. They closed the food counters one hour before closing, there were many cars with no brochures and many with kiosks said…”brochure not uploaded”. There were some areas with great customer support, Subaru for example, but others were empty. I got the feeling half the cars were just parked there by the dealers….an auto show it was not. (In 2013 I attended the Detroit Auto Show….now that was a show to see.) I paid for two senior tickets, $12.00 each and $20.00 to park. For the $44.00 dollars I got less info and selection than what I could have seen by visiting the dealers lot. You could get a better selection of cars to view by attending the zoo and walking through the parking lot.

Liberal Media More Fake News: It will take another surprise election upset of democrat candidates for the liberal media to understand most Americans know their game, and are no longer buying it. The liberal media is both the marketing and the propaganda department for the left. They have no journalistic integrity left; none, nada, zip…gone!

The First Lady 200 Year Old Tree Story: The story was put out in almost every liberal news source; the New York Times, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, and of course in click bate form on Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo, and most all of the web site sources.

The story was that Melania Trump ordered the cutting down of a 200 year old Magnolia Tree on the White House Grounds. They described this as the First Lady’s doing. She was painted in a very negative way, in spite of their knowing full well their story was not true. These stories were repeated for about one week.

The Arbor Society recommended the tree be taken down. There is a four point scale starting with the danger of a tree falling and causing human injury or death. This tree met this standard for being a danger and the grounds people at the White House came to Melania requesting her to sign off on the cutting down of the tree.

It had been a hazard for many years. The Press often stood under, or near the tree, during Press conferences and other gatherings. As it turned out they were able to do only a partial cut down.  The First Lady is in charge of all grounds matters at the White House and she was acting in her official capacity. She did not initiate the action and did nothing wrong. She was not out looking to ruin history by chopping down old trees.

Not one of these stories was corrected, edited, or redacted. The news organizations responsible for distributing this negative story showed their true colors….. they are liars. They are going all out to slander and lie about the President and his administration hoping to swing votes in 2018. When the President calls them  “FAKE NEWS” organizations, they have justly earned the title.