Amazing Place

 

What Does the Federal Government Do?

Only the federal government can regulate interstate and foreign commerce, declare war and set taxing, spending and other national policies.

These actions often start with legislation from Congress, made up of the 435-member House of Representatives and the 100-member U.S. Senate. Each of the 50 states receives two senators regardless of its population size. The number of representatives each state receives depends on the state’s population. Bills that Congress approves then go to the president to sign into law or reject with a veto.

The executive branch is responsible for enforcing the laws Congress makes. It is made up of the president and his or her advisers, as well as multiple departments and agencies. The departments are each headed by a secretary, whom the president appoints with the advice and consent of the Senate. The U.S. has more than a dozen departments, and they each take on a specific set of duties. The Treasury Department’s duties, for example, include printing and regulating money.

The president also serves as commander­-in-­chief of the United States Armed Forces. That means the president directs how military weapons will be used, where to deploy troops and where ships are sent. The military’s generals and admirals take their direction from the president.

This graphic summarizes the kinds of entities in each branch of government.(State Dept./ J. Maruszewski)

The Supreme Court is the highest federal court in the U.S. and assures the American people of equal justice under law. The court’s nine justices — one chief judge and eight associate judges — interpret the law, in a fair and impartial manner, when disagreements arise on the legality of a law that Congress approves, a regulation that a federal agency implements or other matters.

The Constitution empowers the president, who is elected by the entire nation, to nominate justices. These justices require Senate confirmation to uphold the checks and balances among the branches of government.

“The Founders separated power because they knew it was the best way to protect our citizens and keep our Constitution secure,” President Trump said at the 2017 swearing-in of Justice Neil Gorsuch, whom the president nominated to the Supreme Court.

Landmark decisions from the Supreme Court shape American life, and their ramifications are still felt today. They include the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case, which outlawed racial segregation in public schools.

The three branches of the federal government get together at the U.S. Capitol when the president delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress. That speech represents an opportunity for the president to lay out an agenda for the coming year. These addresses are traditionally held in January or February after the new session of Congress convenes. President Trump’s third State of the Union address took place on February 4.

Who Created God?

 

NOT WHAT THEY IMAGINED

NEW YORK — For one 29-year-old Venezuelan woman, who left her two children and partner behind in her home country to embark on a six-month journey to New York City, America represented hope. 

There, she thought, she would find safety and the opportunity to make a living. But four months after arriving in the U.S., she says it’s nothing like she had imagined.

“It’s too difficult to come to a place where you don’t know the language,” the woman, who agreed to speak anonymously to protect her safety, told Yahoo News.

Speaking in Spanish, the woman had been standing along the granite wall of a bustling midtown Manhattan restaurant attached to the Roosevelt Hotel, which in recent months has been transformed into the city’s migrant intake center.

Like many Venezuelans who’ve come to the U.S. in recent years, the woman explained that Venezuela’s corrupt and repressive government had left her with few options at home. 

She embarked on the dangerous journey to the U.S. by herself, traveling through the perilous Darién Gap that connects Colombia to Panama, then multiple countries including Nicaragua and Honduras, by foot and public transportation. 

She stopped for weeks at a time to work only long enough to make enough money for the next leg of her trip. Since arriving in New York, she’s struggled to make money and obtain basic necessities while navigating the city’s shelter system. 

Eventually, she says, she hopes to bring her family to America, but she’s unsure how she will make that happen.  READ MORE...

Classic Sunday Morning Newspaper Cartoons

 

Abortion and Demographics

 Current composition of USA population:

334 million plus people

Asians have the highest birth rate

1. Non Hispanic Whites 60%
2. Hispanics/Latino 19%
3. Blacks 12.5%
4. Asians 6%
5. Other 2.5%

Note:  Other includes Native Americans, Alaskans, Hawaiians

PEW Research Center 2022 data

1. Black females have abortions at a rate of 24/1,000
2. Hispanic females have abortions at a rate of 11/1,000
3. White females have abortions at a rate of 6/1,000
4. Hispanics have twice as many abortions as whites
5. Blacks have 4 times as many abortions as whites

Why am I sharing this data?

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER...

Right now, the blacks are getting what they want because they are bitching and threatening to use their vote against the politician that goes against them.

That little trick only goes so far.  The real power is in numbers and the black population is not going to increase if they keep having abortions...

Like it or not...  THAT'S A FACT OF LIFE...

What causes black females to have abortions?

• Lack of education
• Lack of parental support
• Lack of family support
• Lack of money
• Geographical location
• Not being married
• Baby Daddy refuses to support
• Politics

For those of you that are not aware, our southern border with Mexico is wide open and illegal immigrants are coming into the USA by the thousands daily.  Most of those illegal immigrants are HISPANICS.

At the rate the Hispanics are coming into the USA, it will not take them long to increase their population size from 19% of the total US population to over 20% of the US population and there is a good possibility that Hispanics could increase to 24/25% of the overall US population.

If that happens, they will be twice as large as blacks.

With those numbers, it will be Hispanics, not blacks that go to CONGRESS and will have an opportunity to change laws or write new ones.

The black community and its leaders need to think long and hard about all these Hispanic illegal immigrants...

Somewhat Political

 

Rich Men North of Richmond

The viral country anthem "Rich Men North of Richmond" has struck a chord with many Americans who have celebrated it as an anguished outcry for a forgotten working class. On the other hand, the song has touched a nerve with many media liberals, who have lambasted it as misguided, conspiratorial and attracting the wrong fans.

Anthony (Above) covers a lot of ground in the song, lamenting high taxation, the declining value of the dollar, working "overtime hours for bulls--t pay," Washingotn political greed, the suicide epidemic, substance abuse, welfare cheats and a seeming reference to Jeffrey Epstein ("I wish politicians would look out for miners / And not just minors on an island somewhere"), among other woes.

His acoustic rendition of "Rich Men North of Richmond" on his Virginia farm has attracted an astonishing 21 million views and counting on YouTube, surged to the top of iTunes and is even competing with Taylor Swift's hit "Cruel Summer" on Spotify streams, according to Variety.

But with all that attention has come sharp scrutiny of Anthony's message, and many progressives don't like what they heard.

Writing for MSNBC, Paul Waldman said Anthony did not "adequately call out the powerful," blasting him for instead going after the "powerless."

"Anthony sings, ‘Well, God, if you’re 5-foot-3 and you’re 300 pounds / Taxes ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds,'" Waldman wrote. "Working-class people have a lot of problems in America today, but the use of taxes for safety net programs is not one of them, and nothing about the narrator’s quality of life would improve if the U.S. began conditioning food stamp eligibility on a low body-mass index."

The Washington Post's Greg Sargent wrote the song had appeal with Republicans like Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Arizona Republican Kari Lake because it didn't directly target the right enemies.

"Naturally, no one should expect serious policy analysis from a song," he wrote. "Nonetheless, its message is that the overworked and underpaid should blame their plight largely on high taxes, welfare cheats and cultural elites monitoring their thoughts for any departure from woke orthodoxy.

"Business lobbyists and right-wing politicians have told versions of this distorted story for decades. It seeks to turn people against taxing the rich, social spending and government regulations designed to protect the public and mitigate inequality."  READ MORE...

Speaking Out

 

We Are the Slaves of Billionaires

I don't belong to any political party.  I used to vote Democratic, now I vote Republican.  I suppose you would refer to me as a LIBERAL CONSERVATIVE because of the variety of beliefs that I have that are found in both parties.  I support the Bill of Rights even though I do not believe in all 10 amendments.  I support the US Constitution even though it was written by slave holders.  

Slavery is no longer part of USA culture although some believe that the average American is still a slave to the wealthy.  While I don't see myself as a slave to the wealthy, I understand and support the concept.

We could say that the wealthy are a necessary evil and that societies cannot do without them.  Back in ancient times, the religious leaders were the ones who were wealthy.

Today, wealth is relative, depending in part upon where one lives.  If you live in East TN, earning $150,000/year might be seen as being wealthy...  but, in NYC or LA, it would be seen as being poor.

We have thousands of millionaires who have their wealthy tied up in homes, yachts, and jet aircraft and quite possibly gold, silver, and some stocks.  These are the stars of Hollywood and the professional athletes who make their money off the poor people who buy tickets to their events and movies.

But, the real wealth lies in the hands of the BILLIONAIRES who will never spend all of their money no matter how hard they try to spend it...  Of course, gambling is a sure way to loose a fortune, but I doubt the billionaires gamble.

It is these billionaires who influence politicians in Congress and Presidents by contributing to their campaigns.  These billionaires influence direction and the vote by having voting districts rezoned so that a majority changes from conservative to liberal.

These billionaires influence the media as well especially if they own a majority of the stock.

These billionaires want to destroy the American Middle Class for some reason...  not sure why, but we are heading in that direction.  These billionaires know that the USA is not ready for 100% EV on our roads and highways.

These billionaires know that destroying our dependence on petroleum crude oil will SEVERELY DAMAGE our economy, but like shingles, they don't care.

These billionaires know that the global economy is shifting to ASIA, mainly because of the populations in that area.  India will soon surpass China in having the largest population.  Both China and India are ANTI-USA.

These billionaires also know that AI/Robots will replace humans in jobs...  and that 80-90% of all jobs will go to robots in the next 3-5 years maybe 2-3 years.  Why are they allowing this to happen?

Getting Old in the US of A

 Getting old in inevitable.  Youth does not seem to last very long.  As soon as females get married and have children their figures are all but destroyed.  As soon as males get married, they have a tendency to eat and drink more than they should, and before long they are walking around with a nice beer belly twice their size.

The US of A is not the place in which you want to grow older because you are exposed to more temptations than you would find in most other countries.

Our fast foods are the worst enemy of the aging process, but our grocery stores and restaurants are all full of FAT BUILDING foods.  Many of our restaurants have ALL YOU CAN EAT menus and without thinking about the per person prices, these restaurants are always full.

Now I am sure these foods in some shape or form are available also throughout Europe, but the people who live in those European countries seem to be more active than the people who live in the US of A.

What amazes me is that when I am watching television, one commercial talks about how much you can eat but not how unhealthy the food is, and the next commercial talks about what you can do to lose weight.   Both sides of the fence are multi-million-dollar industries.

Most of the time when I join my wife on shopping trips to the mall, I usually find a seat or bench in the middle of the mall and sit there after getting a Starbuck's Vanilla Cappuccino and watch the people while she shops.  I am always amazed when I do this because more obese people pass by me than slim people.

And, the obesity is not limited to males or females, it applies to both and the age does not seem to make any difference...  although, you would not expect to see so many fat young people because they should be active outside playing.

The other issue I have discovered is that fat people try to wear the same clothes that are designed for thin people and the results are sometimes hilarious, and I know I should not laugh because I am a few pounds overweight as well...  but I am 75 years old. I am 212 and I should be 200 I believe.  But, I did not have any fat on me until age 60 when I began treatments for cancer and was given steroids.

ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN, the US of A is the preferred place to grow old because of all the accommodations made for old people.  The same accommodations that have been made for the handicapped, benefit old people as well, even though they are not in wheelchairs.

I also believe that healthcare is better in the US of A than elsewhere in the world, even though it may cost a little more.

However, I cannot imagine getting old and still living inside a large city with all the traffic, crime and violence taking place there.  Instead of driving places, people who live in the city, take taxis.  In the long run, spending money on taxis is cheaper that buying and maintaining a motor vehicle.

Where we are living, if I cannot rely on myself or my wife, then I must rely on the kindness of a neighbor.  We have no problems with neighbors where we live.  While we help each other out, we don't necessarily invite neighbors to share a meal with us.

The best way to avoid old age is not to get old.

Social Truth

 

Made In America

The last thing that I want to do is buy something because it is MADE IN AMERICA...

There are two reasons for this being my choice:   PRICE AND QUALITY

For some reason, American manufacturing has lost sight of quality in favor of higher production, higher sales, and higher revenue streams.

American manufacturing CEOs believe that 99.7% accuracy is the best that they can do...  If a company is 99.7% accurate, it is still producing 2600 out of spec parts per million.  It is highly likely that one of those out of spec parts is going to be sold to a customer.

When something is manufactured in JAPAN, it is 99.999997% accurate which means their manufacturing process is producing 1-3 out of spec parts per million and none of them will be sold to the customer.

The other issue with American manufacturing is the constant battle or hatred between management and labor.  Part of that hatred comes from the different wages that are paid to each group.  Part of that hatred comes from the fact that management perceives labor as basically being stupid, therefore they are treated like expendable raw materials.

If you don't like it... then quit...

That is the quality side of the equation.  The other side is price.

An HR Director once told me (years ago) that if they paid a salary of $50,000/year it would actually cost the company another $100,000/year in benefits.  In other words, benefits are twice as much as wages.  Benefits include:  annual leave, sick leave, holidays, maternity leave, health insurance, and contributions to retirement.

If an hourly worker makes $15/hour...  that is $600/week or $31,200/year.  If benefits are twice wages, the that worker costs the company $93,600.  That total cost of each worker, including management is calculated into the selling price of each item sold.

Wages are so low for the worker, that they find themselves coming into work when they are sick.  That decision causes other workers to get sick.  Also, if a person is sick at work, they are not going to work 100%...  so, output is reduced.

Oftentimes, the wages are so low compared to the cost of living that the worker must work a second job which also causes them to be tired at work.

Cost of living varies depending upon one's geographic location.

Now, let's look at it from another vantage point...

Wages in the USA are higher that any other country in the world because of the cost of living and because of benefits.

THEREFORE, tennis shoes made by Americans will cost more than tennis shoes made by Indonesians.

Because of our high cost of living, American Companies are FORCED to have their manufacturing done overseas where the costs are much lower.

As far as Americans are concerned, we would be paying at least TWICE what we are paying now if everything was MADE IN AMERICA...

When politicians tell you that they are going to bring jobs back to the USA, they are either lying or letting you know that your cost of living is going to increase substantially.

IF you want to keep YOUR cost of living LOW, then don't try to get manufacturing job to come back to this country...  it will mean jobs, but it will also mean HIGHER PRICES...

 

Still Feeling

AI Is Eliminating Jobs

A tidal wave is about to crash into the global economy.

The rise of artificial intelligence has captured our imagination for decades, in whimsical movies and sober academic texts. Despite this speculation, the emergence of public, easy-to-use AI tools over the past year has been a jolt, like the future arrived years ahead of schedule. Now this long-expected, all-too-sudden technological revolution is ready to upend the economy.

A March Goldman Sachs report found over 300 million jobs around the world could be disrupted by AI, and the global consulting firm McKinsey estimated at least 12 million Americans would change to another field of work by 2030. A "gale of creative destruction," as economist Joseph Schumpeter once described it, will blow away countless firms and breathe life into new industries.

It won't be all bleak: Over the coming decades, nongenerative and generative AI are estimated to add between $17 trillion and $26 trillion to the global economy. And crucially, many of the jobs that will be lost will be replaced by new ones.

The crescendo for this technological wave is surging, and we are at just the beginning of this upheaval that will ripple through the labor market and global economy. It's likely to be a transformation as influential as the industrial revolution and the rise of the internet. 

The changes could boost living standards, improve productivity, and accelerate economic opportunities, but this rosy future is not guaranteed. Unless governments, CEOs, and workers properly prepare for the upsurge with urgency, the AI revolution could be painful.  READ MORE...

Artificial Intelligence

 

The Purpose of it All...

Throughout my entire life so far of 75 years, I have mostly seen and become aware of corruption, lying, and behavior that revolves around what's in it for me.

Selfish and self-centered are the people I have meet or grown up with, even though on the surface they give the impression they care about others.

It is sad to be around so many dishonest people...

It leaves me wondering as to the purpose of this life we have been given and why so many people display such a disrespectful behavior towards others.  It is a psychological issue of which I know nothing other than the basics, and this is far beyond the basics.

I have written this before that all societies revolve around:  Greed  -  Power  -  Control...  and that economic growth is predicated upon GREED in order for it to grow and be beneficial to everyone.

BUT...  this cannot be the sole reason for our existence...  if in fact, this is real existence and not something like the Matrix.

If there is a God and this God created us, then why did HE give most everyone the personality of WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME???

It seems somewhat counterproductive...

We live on a planet called earth in a solar system of numerous planets that is in the Milky Way Galaxy that is in a Universe of millions and millions of Galaxies.  It will be hundreds of years before we are in a position to fully explore our solar system, let alone our galaxy...

SO...  WHY HUMANS ON A PLANET IN SUCH A LARGE UNIVERSE...  AND WHY DO WE LIVE 80-100 YEARS...  WHEN AVERAGE LIFE SPAN IN THE USA IS ONLY 75 YEARS +/-???

Once we see and understand all of that...  we then must try to ascertain our purpose here...

Given the age of the universe and our own planet, it seems a bit ridiculous to say our purpose is to make money and/or leave legacies behind with the family name on them.

YET... most of our billionaires think that this is exactly their purpose...

The same holds true for those who believe there is a spiritual connection to life and that we are going to live in Heaven with God and all our relatives who were born again before they died...

I believe there is a God but this God is an extraterrestrial around which a religion was created...  I also believe this extraterrestrial experimented with our DNA to create the type of human being that we are today...

Not sure why this was done...  but, I feel confident that it was done...  our species evolved too quickly to be a natural byproduct of evolution.  And, why is our DNA so closely related to CHIMPS?

What happens after death will always be a mystery until we, ourselves, die.  Once dead, do our souls or spirits comprehend what's next?

REGARDLESS of what may or may not happen, our purpose on earth as a living human being is to prepare us for what's next, even though we have no idea as to what's next...

Seems like a logical contradiction...  perhaps it is but its the only concept we have.

If money and legacy are out

If spirituality and religion are out

Then, what's left?

Knowledge gained from experience and learning...  which is going to be different for each person, especially when considering geographical locations.

But there must common experiences of learning like:

• love
• compassion
• acceptance
• loyalty
• empathy
• trust
• nature  --  animals/plants/trees/fish/fowl
• peace of mind/contentment
• harmony
• forgiveness or revenge

Using our minds simply to make money just might be perverting the purpose of our mental capacities...

On the other side of the coin, our egos keep us from living like animals...  it seems like animals live a PURE LIFE...  only doing what they have to do to survive.

Is survival our purpose?

Living With Cancer

 As you already know, I have been battling two cancers simultaneously: lymphoma for 15 years and melanoma for 10 years.

About 2 months ago, an quarterly CT scan revealed that my cancer was growing...  but which one?  A biopsy subsequently revealed it was my lymphoma not my melanoma which was good.  However, the lymphoma growth was so large that my Oncologist suspected it had changed from small cell to large cell which meant more aggressive and a stronger set of drugs to fight it.

This wicked chemo had set me on my butt about 10 years ago and I ended up in the ER numerous times during the 6-month treatment protocols.  I was not looking forward to that at all.

A more robust lab analysis was ordered, gene sequencing, and the fact that the test was ordered indicated that something major was suspected.

Yesterday, I met with my Oncologist after about a month of worrying and was told that all results indicated that the lymphoma was metabolically active BUT NOT GROWING and not changing or transforming into something else.

My Oncologist was relieved and could not understand why I was worried especially since in my mind, he had previously been worried.  I was not sure whether to be happy or sad because of my emotions.

My Oncologist had shared what he should never have shared with me until after the fact and while he had not actually seen me for several weeks, it was more the NPs that did the sharing...

STAY THE CURRENT COURSE OF ACTION...  he said, and I will see you again in a month when you come back for treatment.  Previously, it was every other month that he saw me...  so, he is obviously worried about something that he is not sharing.

I am 75 years old and realize that if I live another twenty years which is my goal that I will be lucky...  I am confident that I will live to 80 but after that, I am not sure...  AGE is a solemn awareness of eventualities, especially when cancer is involved.

For 15 years, I had remained positive, and I need to continue that positive attitude for another 15 years.

Undersea Tunnel

 

Extreme Heat Not Causing Blackouts

Florida is set to experience heat index values of up to 115 degrees this week. Persistent, scorching temperatures covered much of the Southwest, expanding into the Midwest and Northeast in July. Record after record was broken.

And yes so far, the nation's electric grid has held firm. No blackouts, as happened in California in 2022. No brownouts as the Electric Reliability Council of Texas warned could happen this summer. No rolling power outages as the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) alerted might be an issue in the hottest summer months.

Instead, several things are going right.

Energy experts say four things have come together to make this summer, while hot, nowhere near as dangerous as it might have been had power systems failed leaving thousands without the air conditioning that's now a matter of survival during heat waves.

1. More diversification of energy sources, including increasing amounts of wind and solar
2. Better planning and preparedness
3. Higher levels of hydroelectric power due to heavy winter rain and snow in the West
4. Demand response programs offer consumers rebates to ease up on energy use in the hottest parts of the day.

"It's kind of sad that we expect the grid to fail," said Kyri Baker, a professor of engineering at the University of Boulder, Colorado who studies power systems. While the energy grid as a whole is getting creaky, the energy sources are diversifying and making it more flexible.  READ MORE...