tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16427986249949414592024-03-20T03:07:15.622-07:00Peace Corps HondurasReach author at barbaraj100@yahoo.comBarbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.comBlogger682125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-62923891421976091842019-09-27T07:09:00.000-07:002019-09-27T07:23:53.602-07:00 Summer Lingers On, UN, Statehood, Immigration Decline, Colt Steps Forward, Africa, Goodbye Bolton, Storm Impacts, South Sudan, Cuba, Central America, Express, 9/11, Dreams<span style="background: rgb(251 , 251 , 251); color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><b> </b> </span><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">In </span><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">late September, though
fall has officially arrived, summer seems never </span><span style="background-color: #fbfbfb; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"> to have left DC, with temperatures again soaring past 90 F. Summer flowers are still</span><span style="background-color: #fbfbfb; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px;"> </span><span style="background-color: #fbfbfb; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">blooming. [Please excuse all quirky spacing--cannot correct it.]</span><br />
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px;"><b><br /></b></span></span><span style="background: #fbfbfb; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><b></b></span>
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<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAbr4rUjyYcWAdWrR1HkylmU2x5JKaMn107vWhZbj67bjCuY5Z83ZqmD2HIeUwwQduElcoZm7ZotHxaam3-kxYp43qKwaeewIDu5fKy8zKoHb_z0xaYpLxk1U28D7tDle_uPMU2rXt9qtR/s1600/summer+flowers%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAbr4rUjyYcWAdWrR1HkylmU2x5JKaMn107vWhZbj67bjCuY5Z83ZqmD2HIeUwwQduElcoZm7ZotHxaam3-kxYp43qKwaeewIDu5fKy8zKoHb_z0xaYpLxk1U28D7tDle_uPMU2rXt9qtR/s320/summer+flowers%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></b></div>
<b> </b><br />
<span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251);"><b> </b></span><br />
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;">The </span><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">UN General Assembly</span><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"> has been meeting in NYC 17-30 September 2019</span>. <span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Climate change was
a major focus, but Donald Trump only stuck his head in at that meeting. He gave
a speech urging every nation to go its own independent way, then, taking a different
tone, he asked for other countries to join in on his pressure on</span> <span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Iran.</span><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><span style="background: rgb(251, 251, 251); color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">I happened to tune into
his rambling, boastful press conference on Sept. 25, after his UN meetings, seemingly
not scripted, where he expressed grievances at not getting credit for all his wonderful
accomplishments, bemoaning relentless attacks by Democrats and the mainstream “fake-news”
press. Why is he always under attack? Is it because others are envious of his unprecedented
success? </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
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<span style="background: #fbfbfb; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"></span></h1>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background: #fbfbfb; color: #222222; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"></span><br /></span>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: #fbfbfb; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;">Incidentally, Republicans like
to slyly refer to the “Democrat” Party, so I think Democrats should start referring
to the Republic Party.</span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Finally, a Democratic House held a hearing on
DC statehood </span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">HR 51, which would make the District of
Columbia the 51st state in the nation! </span><strong><span style="background: white; color: #39364f; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.4pt;">The Oversight + Reform Committee hearing
on the Washington DC Admission Act H.R. 51 Sept. 19</span></strong><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Because fewer immigrants and refugees are being
allowed into our country, our largest cities, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">New York, Los Angeles, and
Chicago</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">, are experiencing modest population decline
for the first time in history, just one of many Trump administration policies having
adverse effects. Many jobs are in agriculture, construction, and elder and
child care are also going unfilled. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">One reason that </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">California</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> has so many homeless, as the Trump administration has so gleefully
pointed out, is because of its year-round mild climate. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Bravo to </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Colt </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">for suspending civilian manufacture of </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">AR-15
assault rifles</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">. May other gun manufacturers follow suit. The
problem with guns is not only that can kill or main, fulfilling their main
purpose, but that they are so subject to accident or impulse. How many kids
have been killed accidentally? How many people have killed themselves in a moment
of despair? What about the woman who entered the wrong apartment and killed a
man inside his own? If she had not had a gun, might she have asked, “What are
you doing here?” and found she was in the wrong place? <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Congress is now discovering what I said years
ago in my Honduras book, that Americans pay more for the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">same
drugs</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> being sold for less in other countries. Drug
manufacturers charge what they think the market will bear. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">The US is missing a bet as China and now
Russia, invest heavily in </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Africa</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">, the emerging
continent. The US has always given massive aid to Israel and, to an extent, to Egypt,
and that continues under Trump. But his administration has largely within drawn
from what he calls “shit-hole” countries. Nonetheless, in an act of independence
or defiance, Melania made an Africa visit. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">I am not sorry to see </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">John
Bolton </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">gone, but his replacement is not likely to be better.
Also, I do agree with Bolton that inviting the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Taliban</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> to </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Camp David</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> was inappropriate. This administration and
others imitating it around the world show once again that “progress” can regress
rather quickly. It’s not enough to fight the good flight to finally achieve
something, then celebrate and simply rest on our laurels. Efforts must continue
to keep the forward momentum going, whether those efforts involve attention to
a marriage and raising children, or to protecting hard-won benefits like Obamacare
and DACA, or to keeping international commitments on climate change and nuclear
weapons. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">American voters and policymakers had let down
their guard, many feeling lukewarm toward </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Hillary Clinton</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> and not appreciating the threat posed by </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Donald
Trump</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">, imagining that he was simply too ridiculous
to win the presidency (very nearly the case). That’s why next time, voters must
support his Democratic opponent, no matter who. I’m not crazy about </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Joe
Biden,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> but if he is the candidate opposing Trump, I
will certainly vote for him and so should you. Oddly, Trump and his main
opponents--</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Biden, Sanders,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> and </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Warren</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">--are all in their 70’s, a victory of sorts against ageism.
Unfortunately, we here in DC have little say in choosing the eventual
Democratic candidate. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Hardcore Trump supporters, like members of a
cult, will remain loyal, though a few have been peeling off. New loyalists don’t
seem to be joining Trump’s camp. Meanwhile, he continues to make himself the
center of the news cycle, for which the media are grateful. After denials, now fearing
release of the transcript of his phone call, he admits talking to Ukraine’s president
about investigating Biden’s son Hunter. And to deflect attention, he is speculating
on winning the Nobel Peace Prize (why not?) and attacking teenage climate
activist Greta, a far more articulate speaker than he will ever be. Now, with
impeachment looming, will he decide to quit and then embark on a paid lecture series
to tap the dedication of his hard core? (Or might he simply keel over and leave
this mortal coil?)<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">In a radio interview, an author of a book about
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">VP Mike Pence</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> described him as a more
conventional politician than Trump, albeit with rightwing views. He was
described as being in the mold of George W. Bush, though a bit more conservative.
His wife certainly seems uncomfortable being allied with Trump. Reportedly, Ivanka
and Jerod would like to get Pence off the 2020 ticket because Trump already has
evangelical support locked in, so they might prefer a woman to reach out to a
demographic Trump lacks.<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">As communities struggle in the aftermath of fierce
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">hurricanes</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> and storms that have decimated electricity and
other resources, I cannot help thinking about rural villages I’ve been in, in
Mexico, Central and South America, and South Sudan, where there never is any
electricity, running water, or utilities of any kind. Folks live there without light
bulbs, TV, or internet, but may take advantage of passing fuel-powered vehicles
to hitch a ride to bigger towns to sell crops and firewood and buy oil for
their homemade lamps, like those used in days of old. They may also buy bottled
drinking water. However, if a hurricane swept through their village, though it
might damage crops planted laboriously by hand and tumble makeshift dwellings,
its effects would not be felt as acutely as in a more “developed” location.
These remote villages, in hidden pockets all over the world, are often protected
from the inroads of “civilization” by mountains or jungles. Their inhabitants have
already adapted to living without amenities. Their carbon footprint is negligible.<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Below are several brief descriptions with links
to more information. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">I continue to follow the fortunes of </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">South
Sudan</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> after my humanitarian visit there in 2006,
before independence. Hope this time the peace agreement between the president
and vice president holds. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/sudan-rivals-keep-deadline-unity-government-132109642.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/sudan-rivals-keep-deadline-unity-government-132109642.html</span></a></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">South Sudan launches mobile money to boost recovery from
war, <i>AP</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/south-sudan-launches-mobile-money-070402457.html">https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/south-sudan-launches-mobile-money-070402457.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On
<b>Sept. 26,</b> I attended a talk given by</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <b>Vicente </b></span><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Morin Aguado,</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> a Cuban independent journalist who
lives with his family in Havana. He came to the US to attend a journalism
conference and, until now, has not been very outspoken. But in his talk, he was
frank about the repression against journalists in Cuba and the surveillance of
the population as whole. The next day, he gave congressional testimony on Cuba.
He came to US to attend a journalism conference and does not know what awaits
him on his return to Cuba early next year.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The highlight </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">of his talk </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">was
about <b>Obama’s visit to Havana,</b> which, for the first time, gave the Cuban
people hope. Obama’s speech, which was broadcast live only once and never
rendered in print—also denounced by<b> Fidel</b>—made a strong </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">and lasting impression, giving Cubans
new hope, a hope that has been replaced by despair. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Here is an article about the arrest of one of 6
new </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Cuban prisoners of conscience</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> named by </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Amnesty International,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> where I serve as volunteer USA coordinator for the Caribbean:
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Rights groups denounce Cuba's arrest of independent journalist, [</span><em><span style="background: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-style: normal;">Roberto Quiñones]</span></em><em><span style="background: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"> </span></em><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">activists
denounce harassment, <i>Reuters,</i> 9/14/2019 <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/rights-groups-denounce-cubas-arrest-231128826.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/rights-groups-denounce-cubas-arrest-231128826.html</a></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">We
at Amnesty International have issued an Urgent Action for </span><em><b><span style="background: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: normal;">Roberto Quiñones</span></b></em><em><span style="background: white; color: #6a6a6a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-style: normal;"> </span></em><b><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr25/1047/2019/en/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr25/1047/2019/en/</span></a></span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">And
here is the action for five other newly named prisoners of conscience. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr25/0936/2019/en/">https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr25/0936/2019/en/</a></span></b></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">For years now, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Cuban rafters</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> landing on Honduran shores have sought asylum there; I
have seen and heard about some of them.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> U.S. seeking to make Cubans seek
asylum in Honduras: minister <span style="background: white; letter-spacing: .25pt;">TEGUCIGALPA
(Reuters) </span></span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Honduran
Foreign Minister Lisandro Rosales said on Tuesday that negotiations with the
United States could make Cuban migrants passing through the Central American
country seek refuge there.</span> <span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/u-seeking-cuban-asylum-seekers-000741781.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/u-seeking-cuban-asylum-seekers-000741781.html</a></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cuba </span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">becomes the latest country to use bitcoin to
subvert US sanctions </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/cuba-becomes-latest-country-bitcoin-164410414.html">https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/cuba-becomes-latest-country-bitcoin-164410414.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: #3f3f40; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">U.S. expels two
members of Cuba's U.N. delegation, citing 'influence operations' </span></b><span style="color: #3f3f40; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">(9-19-2019)
</span><u><span style="color: #2f5597; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-style-textfill-fill-alpha: 100.0%; mso-style-textfill-fill-color: #2F5597; mso-style-textfill-fill-colortransforms: lumm=75000; mso-style-textfill-fill-themecolor: accent1; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">reuters.com/article/us-usa-cuba-un/u-s-expels-two-members-of-cubas-u-n-delegation-citing-influence-operations</span></u><span style="color: #2f5597; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-style-textfill-fill-alpha: 100.0%; mso-style-textfill-fill-color: #2F5597; mso-style-textfill-fill-colortransforms: lumm=75000; mso-style-textfill-fill-themecolor: accent1; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Honduras, Cuba to sign deal on deporting some Cuban migrants:
Honduran president <i><span id="yui_3_18_0_3_1569250148294_2493">(<span class="provider"><span style="letter-spacing: .4pt;">Reuters</span>)</span></span></i><span class="provider"><span style="letter-spacing: .4pt;"> </span></span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduras-cuba-sign-deal-deporting-055334802.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduras-cuba-sign-deal-deporting-055334802.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Apparently,
the Trump administration considers <b>Honduras,</b> as well as El Salvador and
Guatemala, “safe” countries for asylum seekers when people are fleeing from those
countries for their safety. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Honduras to accept more asylum seekers under latest US
immigration deal,</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <span class="provider"><i><span style="color: black; letter-spacing: 0.4pt;">Reuters</span></i></span></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduras-accept-morasylum-seekers-201244507.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduras-accept-morasylum-seekers-201244507.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Hondurans feel fate of their unpopular president lies in US, Sept.
9, 2019<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/hondurans-feel-fate-unpopular-president-040041966.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/hondurans-feel-fate-unpopular-president-040041966.html</span></a></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Clashes
in Honduras on Independence Day<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/clashes-honduras-independence-day-093418389.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/clashes-honduras-independence-day-093418389.html</a>
While I am certainly no fan of the current Honduran president, <b>Juan Orlando
Hernandez,</b> neither do I support <b>Manuel Zelaya,</b> an opposition legislator
and his fierce opponent, who apparently organized the riots against him. A pox
on both their houses! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">Another family drowns in the Rio Grande (actually
called Rio Bravo in Spanish).</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> Drowning of U.S.-bound Honduran mother and
son underscores plight of migrants <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/drowning-u-bound-honduran-mother-015333225.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/drowning-u-bound-honduran-mother-015333225.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">I did get malaria when I was in the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Peace
Corps</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> in Honduras, but fortunately never dengue, of
which there is more than one strain. Both are mosquito-transmitted. These days,
I travel to Honduras only in the dry season, when mosquitos are fewer.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> Central
America's dengue epidemic deadly in Honduras <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/central-americas-dengue-epidemic-deadly-040633256.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/central-americas-dengue-epidemic-deadly-040633256.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk19433449"><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">[Nicaragua</span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk19433449;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> has been of special
interest since my visits there, starting in the 1980’s.]</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk19433449;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Nicaragua guilty of 'gross'
rights violations: UN <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/nicaragua-guilty-gross-rights-violations-un-145854509.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/nicaragua-guilty-gross-rights-violations-un-145854509.html</a></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Nicaragua bans 7 OAS officials from entering country, <span class="provider"><span style="letter-spacing: .4pt;">Associated Press </span></span><span style="letter-spacing: .25pt;">MANAGUA, Nicaragua (AP) 9-14-2019— </span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Nicaragua's government has banned seven
officials from the Organization of American States who were scheduled to arrive
in the capital of Managua, opposition leaders said Saturday.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/nicaragua-bans-7-oas-officials-213751324.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/nicaragua-bans-7-oas-officials-213751324.html</a></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pistol-packing senators confront Haiti's angry opposition<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span class="provider"><i><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.4pt;">Reuters</span></i></span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/pistol-packing-senators-confront-haitis-201825303.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/pistol-packing-senators-confront-haitis-201825303.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">When I used to do phone interpretation,
sometimes I had to convey very technical remedial blackout information to experts
in Latin America to get their systems up and running again. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Blackout
hits 4 nations in Central America, affects millions. AP [mainly Honduras] <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/blackout-hits-4-nations-central-223353218.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/blackout-hits-4-nations-central-223353218.html</a></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">I do miss reading the free</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> <i>Washington Post Express,</i> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">especially while on the metro. It’s
nice to hold a physical newspaper in your hand instead of reading it on line, especially
someone like me who has no cell phone.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">To get a different</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">perspective,
I also pick up the right-leaning</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> <i>Washington
Examiner,</i> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">which has floated the warning
that Trump might lose reelection. Some of its cartoons are clever, but mainly I
find it, like others in the Republican camp, snide, sarcastic, and pseudo-intellectual.
</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">On </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">September 11, 2001,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> I was at the </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Peace Corps</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"> office in </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Tegucigalpa,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">
Honduras, having joined the corps as a health volunteer in May 2000. Like many
folks stateside, we were watching CNN live news in the office lounge when we
saw the first plane hjt one of the twin towers, indicating it might have been
an accident. Then another plane crashed into the other tower clearly no
accident. Our director ordered us not to travel, to remain in place. Hondurans
were shocked, believing the US to be invulnerable. When I made a holiday visit
to Washington, DC, later that year, I saw the wreckage at the Pentagon. It
seemed surreal then and still does. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">To the extent we are able to recall our </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">dreams </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">(usually right after waking), they are an amazing and ever shifting
kaleidoscope of past and imaginary experiences, of real people and composites undergoing
a series of adventures that often even surprise the dreamer. I would imagine
that the dreams of a child or young person might be less complex than those of
an older person like me, who has undergone so many varied experiences all over
the world. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<b></b>Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-82060434534219683132019-09-08T09:04:00.001-07:002019-09-08T09:10:03.092-07:00Hurricane Dorian, Downturn Looming? Waffling on Gun Control, Central America, South Sudan, Cuba, Me-too in Transition, Late-Term Abortion, Random Calls, Household Laments, Late Son Andrew’s Birthday<div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 6.0pt 0in;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mr.
Trump said he needed to stay in the US because of Hurricane Dorian, so he sent <b>Mike
Pence</b> to <b>Poland</b> instead, while he stayed home and played golf all
weekend. Trump probably was glad for the excuse and with Pence, the Poles got a
more coherent visitor. So much for my friend living in <b>Nassau</b> in the <b>Bahamas
</b>sent me a message that where he lives did not take a direct hit, though it
had lots of wind, rain, and heavy flooding. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Discussions
of a possible future <b>economic downturn</b> may help make that prognostication
to actually come true. However, if it has to happen soon anyway, let’s hope it
happens <i>before</i> the next election, as Donald Trump and company would have
no plan to deal with it, except to increase the already humongous federal
budget deficit, just as they have no real plan for anything else beyond the
immediate horizon, only for mouthing off empty slogans. </span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump’s most
significant economic threat to our nation and to the world is the trade war
that he launched without consulting with allies, but if it brings about a world
recession, everyone will be affected. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Xi </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">has
the upper hand in the trade war that the Donald started because Xi doesn’t face
election soon or ever. Furthermore, Trump’s negotiating style, marked by
frequent changes of position, lacks the trust that a final “deal” requires. A <b>“win-win”
solution</b> is not something Trump can ever imagine. Instead, he thinks he
needs to vanquish trading partners to show that he is <b>top dog.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After
Trump’s attacks on <b>Rep. Omar, it</b> was amazing to hear a radio interview
with some of her constituents, <b>Somali refugees </b>in Minnesota, some of
whom had first learned English at ages 10, 12, or later, and are so much more
coherent and articulate than the president who has dissed them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Should
<b>Justice Ginsberg</b> be flattered when Trump wishes her a speedy recovery
when he would love nothing better than to replace her with another conservative
on the Supreme Court, giving him something to brag about later? And calling
Democratic Jews “disloyal” is not the greatest way to turn them into
Republicans. Nor is cancelling his trip to Denmark because that nation won’t
sell him Greenland likely to win him European allies. It’s like one of the
temper tantrums he might have thrown when trying to bully his way into a real
estate deal. No wonder Melania seems to have given up her anti-bullying
campaign since the irony simply has become too great. Trump is just a big fat baby
in an old man’s form, but not as cute, affectionate, or lovable.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yet Trump
himself yields to bullying from the right sources. A single warning call from
NRA CEO <b>Wayne LaPierre</b> was enough for Trump to back off his promise of
universal background checks, at least for assault weapons, and to reverse his
initial agreement about <b>red-flag laws</b>, falling back instead on the tired
“mental health” excuse for gun violence. If every shooter is labeled “mentally
ill” after-the-fact, then that’s a handy retroactive excuse. It’s true that few
guns go off by themselves, except when a child drops one, as happened to my son
at age 11, injured in the foot, an injury that still plagues him, though he
thankfully survived. However, even pulling a trigger intending to kill would
not occur so often if there were fewer guns in circulation, as the experience
of other countries with stricter gun laws and fewer guns has shown overwhelmingly.
Your right to bear arms should not supersede my right to life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Then again,
Trump may support background checks after all. It’s uncertain. as he has
waffled on this and many other issues, probably driving his staff crazy. He
also has a very short attention span. The man is getting more erratic. Would he
be labeled “mentally ill”? His Greenland caper and “King of Israel” remarks are
just some of the latest. He does manage to make himself the center of attention
during every news cycle. Trending now: <b>Denmark Offered to Buy the Senate
from the NRA.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile, a
second mass shooting occurred in August in <b>Texas (an open-carry state).</b>
Where again was the NRA’s “good guy with a gun” taking down the shooter? Not
only are people being killed at random, but many others are being injured for
life. I know a young man here in DC who was shot at age 17 and has been
quadriplegic ever since, needing constant help with feeding, bathing, dressing,
and other routine activities. We are all at risk. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A woman who got
out on the wrong floor of an apartment building and killed a man she thought
was in her apartment, when he was really in his own, shows the folly of having
a gun always at the ready. How many road rage killings, accidents, mistaken
shootings of family members sneaking into a house a night, impulsive suicides, and
children’s accidents are due to the instant ease of pulling a trigger? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While Mr. Trump
continues to have his fervid supporters among both ordinary people and
Republican operatives, it’s hard to imagine a human being so devoid of the qualities
that most people in our country and around the world would associate with
leadership. He is physically unattractive, impolite, arrogant, mentally
challenged, inarticulate, mean, greedy, a compulsive liar, and a sexual
predator. Did an unfortunate combination of nature and nurture end up producing
him? If he weren’t so widely destructive, it would not matter so much. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now,
under Trump, we Americans get an idea of what it feels like to be governed,
thwarted, harassed, bullied, embarrassed, exploited for personal gain, and
deliberately attacked by the leader of our own government, much as happens to
people living under dictatorships around the world. Mr. Trump bad-mouths other
countries, then wonders why they pay him no respect. He has aroused the heads of
once-friendly nations to turn against him and our country, and has attacked US states,
the media, and Democrats, acting affronted whenever they oppose or criticize him.
He seems offended when allies try to stick with the original Iran deal. He’s
super sensitive to criticism, reacting defensively, doubling down on his
offensive behavior. The Alabama hurricane <i>Sharpie-gate</i> caper is a case
in point, where others rushed in to take the rap. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
<b>“capitalism with a human face” </b>being advocated by some enterprises is a
refreshing notion that challenges Trump and company’s “us-first” and maximum
greed scenario. Let’s hope there is a public opinion shift toward more
equitable sharing of the wealth that we all help produce. Some companies are
aiming for a combination of shareholder, employee, and social benefit As
someone taking IRA distributions from stock market investments, I’m willing to
receive reduced benefits if I know that is benefiting others. We are all in
this life together. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I
especially like presidential candidate <b>Andrew Young’s guaranteed income</b>
proposal. As Mr. Young points, a guaranteed income doesn’t seem to have sapped
the energy and drive of <b>red-state Alaskans.</b> It’s not outright socialism
or communism to combine capitalist production with a more equitable
distribution of the wealth that we all create together. Some European countries
are already doing that successfully. The uber rich cannot even spend or account
for their all money. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thanks
to Trump’s lack of world leadership, the <b>American dollar</b> is starting to
lose credibility, because a currency has value based only on trust and that is
ebbing in the age of Trump. (Low interest rates now may be a warning sign.) For
one thing, the Trump administration has allowed the US to accumulate too much
debt. This may spur movement into <b>digital or crypto</b> <b>currencies</b>
and lead to the dollar’s decline as the world’s currency. China, whose leaders
have a longer-term vision, are launching a crypto currency. However, crypto
currency may also be subject to manipulation, sabotage, and invasion of
privacy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">TEGUCIGALPA
(Reuters) - A <b>Honduran court</b> convicted the wife of former President
Porfirio Lobo on graft charges, including siphoning funds from programs
designed to help poor children, a judicial official said on Tuesday.</span></i><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/wife-ex-president-honduras-convicted-013800534.html"><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/wife-ex-president-honduras-convicted-013800534.html</span></b></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here
she is reported convicted and sentenced. She was first lady during my volunteer
trips to Honduras. I recall hearing her on the radio. </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/former-first-lady-honduras-sentenced-001727098.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/former-first-lady-honduras-sentenced-001727098.html</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Nicaragua</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"> is another country dlose to my heart, where I’ve
visited often and where still have friends.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Nicaragua guilty of 'gross'
rights violations: UN </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/nicaragua-guilty-gross-rights-violations-un-145854509.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/nicaragua-guilty-gross-rights-violations-un-145854509.html</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here’s
a warning to first-world do-gooders to make sure their interventions in
developing countries do more good than harm. Beware of unintended consequences!
Such a warning should also be applied to the Peace Corps, where, at least,
volunteers are not salaried, spend 2+ years actually living in a country at a
very modest level, and regard their stay as a 2-way exchange, not first-world
largess. </span><a href="https://brightthemag.com/the-reductive-seduction-of-other-people-s-problems-3c07b307732d"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://brightthemag.com/the-reductive-seduction-of-other-people-s-problems-3c07b307732d</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Haiti</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
is another country where I’ve gone to try to make a difference<b>. <u>Haitian president </u></b><u>[Jovenel
Moise]<b> pledges to outlast troubles<o:p></o:p></b></u></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/ap-interview-haitian-president-pledges-041109112.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/ap-interview-haitian-president-pledges-041109112.html</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I’ve
also been following the fate of Sudan’s former strongman <b>Omar al-Bashir</b> ever
since I was in<b> South Sudan </b>in 2006<b>,</b> before it became an
independent nation, back when he was a boogeyman for everyone in the south.
There must some satisfaction in the south that he is gone now, even as South
Sudan struggles with its own political divisions. Here is the article I wrote
about my south Sudan visit: </span><a href="file:///C:/Users/melan/OneDrive/Desktop/Barbara%20Backup/Downloads/Sudan%20article.pdf"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">file:///C:/Users/melan/OneDrive/Desktop/Barbara%20Backup/Downloads/Sudan%20article.pdf</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We
who championed South Sudan’s independence from the north in 2011 have been sorely
disappointed regarding the many human rights violations occurring in the south
and the continued friction between the country’s president and vice president
and their tribal followers. However, I would like to highlight one Amnesty International
(AI) case, that of 17-year-old <b>Magal Matioy Ngong,</b> who is scheduled for
execution om South Sudan. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When on 19
April 2018, <b>Miguel Díaz Canel</b> became the new president of <b>Cuba, </b>the
change of leadership was seen as an opportunity to promote human rights changes
in the country. Unfortunately, the first year of the Díaz Canel administration
has not confirmed such expectations, as still today, in Cuba, freely expressing
opinions and beliefs can put one’s freedom at risk. Freedom of assembly and
expression has not improved much since my regular visits to Cuba, chronicled in
my book <b><i>Confessions of a Secret Latina: How I fell Out of Love with
Castro & In Love with the Cuban People</i></b>. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As of mid-2019,
Cuban Prisoners Defenders, a coalition of dissident political activists, claim
that at least 87 people are being detained on politically motivated grounds.
Having reviewed a selection of those cases at AI, where I serve as volunteer
Caribbean Coordinator, we have been able to name five new prisoners of conscience
(POCs). This list of prisoners of conscience includes members of political and
pro-democracy groups not recognized by the state, all of whom have been
imprisoned for crimes that are either inconsistent with international law or
used for decades in Cuba to silence critical voices. It is incredibly hard for
us to verify information without being able to go to Cuba. As per my book, I am
now persona non grata there. </span><a href="https://amnesty.app.box.com/s/bmmmcm839hafbn7qmrd8ctcudnpm9wgj"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://amnesty.app.box.com/s/bmmmcm839hafbn7qmrd8ctcudnpm9wgj</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">[From
a Canadian newspaper]</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/politics-news-pmn/amnesty-international-names-five-new-political-prisoners-in-cuba/"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/politics-news-pmn/amnesty-international-names-five-new-political-prisoners-in-cuba/</span></b></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></b></span><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">[Same from Yahoo News]</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/amnesty-international-names-five-political-002717482.html"><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/amnesty-international-names-five-political-002717482.html</span></b></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here below is an introduction to the Cuban Amnesty prisoners in both
English and Spanish. </span></span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AMR2509362019ENGLISH.pdf"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AMR2509362019ENGLISH.pdf</span></b></a><b><u><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
<br />
</span></u></b><a href="https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AMR2509362019SPANISH.pdf"><b><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AMR2509362019SPANISH.pdf</span></b></a><b><u><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">More Cuba news below. </span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">How Cuba Taught Venezuela How to Quash Military Dissent<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
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<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-cuba-military-specialreport/special-report-how-cuba-taught-venezuela-to-quash-military-dissent-idUSKCN1VC1BX"><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-cuba-military-specialreport/special-report-how-cuba-taught-venezuela-to-quash-military-dissent-idUSKCN1VC1BX</span></b></a><b><u><span style="color: #4472c4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1;"> <o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">More Cubans seek asylum in Mexico amid clampdown on legal path to
US. <i>The Guardian,</i> <span class="author">Sept. 3. 2019 </span></span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/more-cubans-seek-asylum-mexico-080049975.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/more-cubans-seek-asylum-mexico-080049975.html</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As
has been mentioned before, the <b>Me-Too era</b> has left some men of a certain
age, including politicians, retroactively being held accountable for what was
considered acceptable behavior in the past. And the rules of flirting, the
delicate back-and-forth of romance, still are evolving, but unless there is
some acceptable and generally accepted method of getting to know each other,
romantic partners will never get together. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">An
article in the <b>Aug, 14 edition of the <i>Economist</i> discusses the US
abortion</b> issue at length. Reportedly, American abortion laws are the least
restrictive on the planet. Many countries do not allow abortions at all and
most completely restrict 3<sup>rd</sup> trimester abortions, which are approved
by only 13% of Americans as well and make up only a little more than 1% of all
US abortions. Before extraction, the late-term fetus is euthanized with an
injection, so feels no pain thereafter. I had been concerned about pain at that
late stage of development. Certainly, in the 3<sup>rd</sup> trimester, the
expectant mother feels the movements of the unborn and knows that an
independent “someone” is in there, as I can attest. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Without
a cell phone and with an unlisted landline number, I still get my share of
random-dialed calls warning me that my social security number or bank account
have been compromised, but if I ask for identification of either, that is not
forthcoming. However, I was recently non-plussed when a woman identifying
herself as a real estate consultant, addressed me very familiarly as “Barbara.”
How did she know to connect my private number to my first name? Probably nothing is private in the digital
age. In all cases, when I realize the nature of a call I never asked for, I
simply say, “No thanks” and hang up. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Household troubles afflict
us all, especially in a 124-year-old house. I found the first-floor half-bath
toilet running, the same toilet that was there when we moved into the house 50
years ago. Then a courtesy call came in from the water company about excessive
water usage. While trying to stop the flow, I noticed the tank had cracked
around the handle </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9yEfYEafVv2_T-GIMz400zr4wfmLryTEeBM7ihK4ltQ-mGNvComBskJk3PcWzdnWWnpWl02n1LlP3dJ12k9yL9X3qUXaItsB3jyPaGm-wcDTDQPubpDcHfLPGklzpvVmRlod0SBTmRA3/s1600/DSCF3853.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9yEfYEafVv2_T-GIMz400zr4wfmLryTEeBM7ihK4ltQ-mGNvComBskJk3PcWzdnWWnpWl02n1LlP3dJ12k9yL9X3qUXaItsB3jyPaGm-wcDTDQPubpDcHfLPGklzpvVmRlod0SBTmRA3/s320/DSCF3853.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> and a piece was dangling. </span><br />
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Had
I somehow banged the handle or the tank? I did manage to stop most of </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> the flow
with a combination of foil, rubber, and a stone. My repairman said he thought we should replace the entire toilet and he had a
spare toilet that he had been saving for just such an occasion. But loading it onto
his truck, his helper dropped the toilet and it broke. Talk about adding insult
to injury! So, a brand- new toilet had to be purchased. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Meanwhile, further calamity on top of calamity, hundreds
of dollars’ worth of tools were taken from my workman’s open pickup. Here is
the new toilet after his all-day work: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> When
the toilet problem first surfaced, a woman from Eritrea had come to my place for
a temporary stay. I’d vowed to host no more visitors, but this young lady was highly
recommended by a former housemate. In the kitchen, she immediately smelled gas.
It was not so noticeable to me, as perhaps I’d gotten used to it. When she
pointed it out, I did smell it, but only faintly. I called the gas company,
which promised to send someone out. However, we somehow missed connections and
he ended up disconnecting the gas into the whole house. It took 4 days over the
long weekend for another gas company rep to come back and turn it on and find
the leak. But then he turned </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> it off again, until I could get the pipe fixed on
my own. Meanwhile, no gas stove, cold showers, and no gas clothes dryer.
Finally, someone came to turn the gas back on and re-light all the pilots, but
we missed the oven pilot the first time around. Finally, all that has been
fixed. One of the agents also changed out my old gas meter, which seemed to be
giving us very low gas bills. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> September 4 was the
birthday of my dearly departed son Andrew</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;">, who would have been 52. We still miss him, but
no longer with our initial raw grief. Still, his death was a reminder that that
the problems of robberies, gas leaks, and broken toilets can be fixed. </span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-43385344033905286402019-08-18T08:46:00.000-07:002019-08-18T08:49:05.913-07:00Gun Violence, ICE Raids, Central America, Pelosi, Biden, Cuba, China/Hong Kong, Israel, Sister Helen, Internet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL1LF2ZIEPcbp3CAhBuKaHdQ0PtBrB9ed0Eie1SzTf5TsX41X01IHDMhiJ0GBe0CoQ-uxA20g0agvL-eFasUUbGdZ0oULoBjnKmFCeu0UovrUWzRGFx9ZzEz0h6spXpTnoA-J1nJBLBE7r/s1600/flowers%252C+2016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL1LF2ZIEPcbp3CAhBuKaHdQ0PtBrB9ed0Eie1SzTf5TsX41X01IHDMhiJ0GBe0CoQ-uxA20g0agvL-eFasUUbGdZ0oULoBjnKmFCeu0UovrUWzRGFx9ZzEz0h6spXpTnoA-J1nJBLBE7r/s400/flowers%252C+2016.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> August flowers</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump
and his henchmen tried to link the <b>Ohio shooter</b> to the <b>Democratic</b>
<b>Party,</b> but the shooter was hardly a hardcore Democrat. He attended a KKK
rally, for one thing. And can Democrats be accused of goading supporters to
attack others? There is no moral equivalency. Republicans just make themselves
look foolish. Trump claimed that local people in Dayton and El Paso “loved”
him, so what’s the complaint? Republican office holders and spokespersons seem
to be running scared and acting overly defensive. While many Trumpers still remain
in love with him, his support had never reached a majority level. If the
economy starts slowing down, in part because of Trump’s trade war with China,
can the guy survive that? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It
looks like mass shootings may finally have turned more voters against the <b>NRA.</b>
And certainly Trump and his wall and his constant talk about an <b>invasion</b>
from south of the border conveniently forgets that much of Texas and the
southwest was once Mexican territory. Who invaded whom? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Mental illness”</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
now seems the scapegoat favored by Republicans for mass shootings. Guns don’t
kill people, mental illness does. If mass shooters are being defined as mentally
ill, then, of course, mental illness is the culprit—anything to avoid blaming
gun proliferation. And what is the remedy? Mental illness treatment is not
being expanded and is not necessarily effective. Is a white supremacist going
to submit to mental health treatment and become less dangerous as a result? But
if you curb his (or her) access to firearms, it may have a practical effect. Was
the recent killing of motorists after an accident on a Texas highway a case of
“mental Illness” or the result of the killer becoming upset and having an
assault rifle at his disposal? The <b>NRA </b>and gun advocates fear the
“slippery slope” of allowing even completely obvious common-sense firearms
restrictions. You’d better believe it; those of us who want to see fewer guns
in circulation will keep pressing on, especially until, empirically, gun deaths
are reduced. And as for Trump’s idea of bringing back <b>insane asylums,</b>
again, his thinking is mired in the 1960’s and ‘70’s when he was launching his casino,
hotel, and golf course empire. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Those
who facilitate gun violence short of pulling the trigger also need to be held
responsible for not reporting the danger. The Ohio shooter’s friend, who had
obtained high powered weapons and body armor for him so his parents wouldn’t
notice, has culpability. And now those parents have lost two of their children
(the shooter and his sister) in a crime that might have been prevented. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump’s
teleprompter words about “white supremacy” having no place in our country were counteracted
by the most massive immigration raid ever conducted. The <b>ICE raids in
Mississippi</b> have devastated communities and made some Trump supporters
there rethink their allegiance. The governor has declared that people should always
enter the country “legally,” but I can say from long experience that none of
those picked up in that raid would ever have been granted a US visa. “Legal” is
a flexible concept, dependent on citizen consensus. Laws can be changed; they
are not the Ten Commandments handed down from on high, as I have argued in my
books. Unfortunately, as much as he can by presidential fiat, bypassing
Congress, Trump and his staff are attacking immigrants, even legal ones.
Non-citizen parents or even foreign-born citizens may hesitate to seek legally
authorized benefits for themselves and their citizen children because of the
administration’s stance. When immigrants first arrive, they may need help temporarily
until they get on their feet. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Nancy Pelosi led a Congressional delegation to the Central
American triangle countries. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Honduras (Aug. 10, 2019 </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-house-speaker-nancy-pelosi-1938498"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-house-speaker-nancy-pelosi-1938498</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Pelosi </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;">is trying to keep Democrats on track while
presidential wannabes vie for public attention, banking that a majority of
voters will support <i>any</i></span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Democrat </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;">over Trump. But front-runner</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Joe Biden, </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;">who might appeal to independents and middle-of-the-roaders,</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> has been
screwing up, making Trump-like gaffes. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;">Is he up to
the task?</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;">But Democrats are worried about choosing a
female candidate after Hillary’s failure and fear of turning off white male
voters. <o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Washington Post</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> on-line for Sunday, Aug. 11, showed a graphic, changing
display of photos of <b>Guatemalan deportees</b> before, during, and after their
flight “home.” Guatemala is hardly a safe country for these deportees or for
other asylum seekers, but is the US a safe country either?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">How
many times have I seen similarly dejected deportees disembarking from such
flights at the airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, though not last Feb. as I was
told that such flights now arrive at San Pedro Sula, to the north. I always
chat with Honduran taxi drivers and find that most have enjoyed a few years
working in the US until they were deported, some still nostalgic about those
years until it all came to an abrupt end. And many American born children were
deported with their parents.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Amnesty
International issues travel warning for U.S. visitors over “high levels of gun
violence,” </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On 7
August 2019, AI issued a global travel warning for the USA because of rampant
gun violence. This announcement comes on the heels of a series of deadly mass
shootings in several parts of the USA. Over one hundred people die every day in
the USA because of gun violence, and the situation has amounted to a human
rights crisis. Check AI websites for the travel advisory, sample press releases
and tweets. A report by AI, <i>“</i></span><a href="https://www.amnestyusa.org/reports/in-the-line-of-fire-human-rights-and-the-u-s-gun-violence-crisis/"><i><span style="color: #4472c4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the Line of Fire: Human Rights and the U.S. Gun Violence
Crisis</span></i></a><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">”</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> examined how all aspects of American life have been
compromised in some way by the unfettered access to guns, with no attempts at
meaningful national regulation. Last month, AI </span><a href="https://www.amnestyusa.org/reports/scars-of-survival-gun-violence-and-barriers-to-reparation-in-the-usa/"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">published a repor</span><span style="color: #4472c4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">t</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> examining how survivors of gun
violence in the United States suffer years of trauma and pain due to a
destructive combination of government policies which ignore their needs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump
has threatened unspecified retaliation against nations and organizations that
have issued travel advisories against the US because of gun violence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In
<b>Cuba,</b> <i>Granma,</i> the official newspaper, has chided comics for
making fun of public servants. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile,
the <b>trade war with China</b> unleashed by Mr. Trump is threatening to devastate
the national and world economy. The stock market has been jumping up and down,
according to Trump’s whims. Will Trump, the self-described great deal-maker,
try to make a deal in time? Any final agreement will be touted by him as “a
great deal.” Or is China’s leadership simply waiting for Trump to be gone from
office? (Iran maybe doing the same.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hong Kong</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
citizens have been fighting valiantly for their political life, because they
know what’s at stake. But it’s hard to see how they can prevail against overwhelming
Chinese government might. Their only weapon is world public opinion and the
Chinese government’s desire not to threaten the economic engine of Hong Kong. But
now China seems to be getting tired of the protests and the example they are
setting for the mainland, so is bringing on the heavy equipment in echoes of </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tiananmen</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">.
Why did Britain ever agree to return the territory to China? The Trump
administration seems more than ready to challenge China’s growing economic
power, but has few comments about its encroachments on land and sea beyond its
traditional borders and no comment at all on its human rights record toward its
citizens, including those in Hong Kong. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It
looks like Trump’s intervention into <b>Israeli affairs</b> has blown up in his
face and that of his pal <b>Netanyahu</b> as well. At least, that’s how I see it. Both
look weak attacking Muslim American Congresswomen. Of course, Netanyahu dare
not go against the advice of his big supporter and great financial benefactor
Donald Trump, who is also playing to his evangelical base which supports
Israel, right or wrong. The formation of Israel grew out of understandable
sympathy for the terrible horrors of the Holocaust and in support of Zionists
who had been pressing for a mid-east Jewish homeland for several decades before
World War II. While anti-Semitism still exists, many, if not most, Jews now to
choose to live outside Israel. Israel, enjoying unusually high economic and
political support from the US, now finds itself in a paradoxical situation as a
self-declared democracy that also appears to discriminate against non-Jews,
especially Palestinians, who are still aggrieved over being ejected from their
ancestral lands. Is it anti-Semitic to advocate for Palestinians and to urge a
boycott of Israel? Trump and Netanyahu make that case. Will the Israeli action
against the Congresswomen reduce the boycott pressures or increase them? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On
<b><i>NPR</i></b><i>,</i> I just heard an interview with <b>Sister Helen
Prejean</b>, a woman about my age, whom I met in 1993 when her book <i>Dead Man
Walking</i> came out. I have a signed copy somewhere in my vast library. She
told me to simply call her “Helen.” Since then, after all the revelations of
child sex abuse by priests, I have cooled on the Catholic church and certainly
agree with Helen that women need a stronger voice there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As
a young girl, I had considered becoming a nun myself, but my desire to be a
mother was stronger. Motherhood won out in spades. Not only have I been a
mother and foster mother, but have hosted and mentored many young people in my
home, in Honduras, through Amnesty International and other organizations, and
via my interpretation work. So, I’m glad to have chosen that path, just as
Sister Helen is satisfied with the path she has chosen. However, right now, I am feeling a bout of <b>compassion
fatigue,</b> so am taking a time out on hosting and mentoring, though still
continuing with interpretation, human rights volunteer work, and plans for
Honduras next Feb. Some neighbors have expressed concern that I am living
“alone.” Would they be as concerned if I were younger or a man? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mr.
Trump is an accidental president, a cruel, impulsive liar, in office only due
to the freak alignment of rare forces, as per chaos theory. Let’s make sure
that the same accident doesn’t happen again. The plethora of Democratic
wannabes surfacing now is a little disconcerting. While it allows an airing of
policy options, it also risks sharpening divisions and possibly allowing
another minority win for Trump. Whoever his opponent may be, Democrats and
independents must vote for that person and not opt for a third candidate or sit
out the vote as some did in 2016 because they did particularly like Hillary. Do
they like Trump any better? Our election system offers only a binary choice. Trump
is a real-life </span><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Forrest Gump</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">, but
lacking the film character’s charm and humility. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For
his part, if he loses reelection, Trump can always blame “fake news” and the
deep state. He could still hold rallies when his ego needs stoking. I feel
sorry for a guy so lacking in self-awareness, likability, intelligence, and
basic humanity, but he seems unable to change, so may he live out his life
where he can do minimal damage, no longer in the American presidency. And if he
loses, may the Republican Party see the light and return to sanity. Won’t it be
nice when we don’t have to worry about what that man will do next? If his plan
for the US to buy <b>Greenland </b>should pan out, maybe he anticipates building
a hotel there? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I
do have a personal issue that Mr. Trump might correctly be inclined to cite as
a case of regulation overreach. Any adult working in <b>DC schools,</b>
including <b>interpreters like me,</b> must have a current TB test and
fingerprint clearance, fair enough. Usually fingerprints take 10 days to clear.
I had mine taken on July 11, more than a month ago, but they were blurry, so
needed additional vetting. Some teachers in daily contact with kids were given
extra time to renew their clearances, so I asked for the same consideration,
especially since I am usually working with Spanish-speaking parents, not
directly with their kids. No other duly vetted interpreter was available
recently. But my agency and I did not want to give the service if we would not
get paid. Finally, after much pressure, I was re-approved. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Congressman
King</b> is probably right that millennia ago, our ancient ancestors produced some
offspring via rape and incest, even as some still do today. It’s possible to imagine
a caveman dragging a woman off by her hair before assaulting her, not to
mention ancient peoples killing each other with clubs and rocks, even as today,
they use bombs and guns. Some living people may have snips of DNA passed down from
cave people, but does that mean they still have to act like cave people? Apart from inheritance, there is also
evolution, socialization, and change. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
world has not yet adjusted to the <b>internet,</b> its promise and its perils,
a technological revolution that’s still evolving. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span> Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-25528541547712447262019-08-06T10:03:00.000-07:002019-08-06T10:03:18.866-07:00Overdue Gun Control, Boris Johnson, Interest Rates, Hot Car deaths, Honduran President<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKNpk01mfoY8bFvtFXT-Zc0v5cA_ehyphenhyphenUiTQm_3IyOTy-_nPp_ra86UYEYCXEmnjvoBaFUL1kP6AfOwUXfjYYUqj0SuZpUOjSuqHg8g-Cj_3qm4kwlhRCKwmfM8LuPeEd8YXp0BWkVNoMX/s1600/El+Paso.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="1200" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKNpk01mfoY8bFvtFXT-Zc0v5cA_ehyphenhyphenUiTQm_3IyOTy-_nPp_ra86UYEYCXEmnjvoBaFUL1kP6AfOwUXfjYYUqj0SuZpUOjSuqHg8g-Cj_3qm4kwlhRCKwmfM8LuPeEd8YXp0BWkVNoMX/s320/El+Paso.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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El Paso church</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Gilroy, El Paso, Dayton</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">—three US mass shootings in a single week, not to mention
accidental shootings, suicides, and homicides in that same week and during this
yea do farr. In a gun-loving, open-carry state like Texas, pray tell, where was
the NRA’s vaunted “good guy with a gun” ready to take down the shooter? Many mass
shootings are copy-cat crimes or bids for glory based on Trumpian sentiments.
It’s therefore good that the names of shooters are barely mentioned. How many more
people have to be killed before collective action is taken? We are all sitting
ducks. (I’ve lived in El Paso myself.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Any
American president is a role model. Mr. Trump is certainly complicit both in his
use of racist rhetoric and his support for “gun rights.” It’s high time to
offer a nationwide gun buy-out and to override the NRA and gun manufacturers and
follow the lead of Australia and New Zealand in curbing individual gun ownership
to cut down on gun deaths and massacres which are a risk to us all. As for the <b>Second
Amendment,</b> let’s go back to the Founders’ original call for “a well-regulated
militia” and ditch the only recently revised, painful, and deadly experiment in
personal arms’ possession and proliferation. The Founders would never have
sanctioned “rights” to carry assault weapons. Don’t the rights to “life, liberty,
and the pursuit of happiness” trump the right to ”bear arms”? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Nor
is the “mental illness” excuse being pinned on mass shooters by Trump actually very
credible, unless he is referring to his own mental health. Is he proposing a full-court
press against mental illness, about which there is little consensus and often
no good treatment? Mental health practitioners would first advise presidents
not to fan the flames with pejorative rhetoric. Experts are debunking the mental
illness narrative touted by the president, Again, the man first blamed “fake
news,” then he and his mealy-mouthed enablers tried to make the case for the
lone wolf, as if every shooter acts in a total vacuum, completely free of any social
influences. Anyway, what does Mr. Trump propose to make that sure that those suffering
from “mental illness” don’t have access to firearms? It does seem that now
public opinion is surging against the Republican Party, Donald Trump, and “gun
rights,” causing them all to be running scared. Most Republicans and Mr. Trump,
to the extent they have commented at all, have been extremely scripted and defensive.
And his advisers have propelled Trump to make an obligatory condolence trip to
El Paso, a city where he is not welcome. Let’s see if he sends out a dog whistle
there to his hard core to indicate that this is just for show. His true
believers realize that he is forced by political necessity to read words on the
teleprompter, so they will pay more attention to his tweets and ad-libs. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Trump’s
Chief of Staff <b>Mick Mulvaney</b> was quick to come out absolving the
president of any blame, while the man himself, at first, remained silent and stayed
out golfing. Republicans and, later Trump himself, honed in on the fact that
Obama was not blamed for shootings occurring during his presidency. Did Obama
ever support the NRA and ”gun rights”? Did Obama ever question Trump’s birthplace?
Did Obama ever disparage people of different races and ethnicities? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Ivanka Trump</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">
sent out condolences via Titter, but many were not buying it. <b>Melania,</b>
who has been MIA for months now, said nothing. She must be waiting impatiently for
her husband’s term to be over so she and her son can leave.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #626b78; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">A report in the<b> <i>New
England Journal of Medicine</i></b> analyzed fatalities among children and young
people in 2016. <b>After motor vehicle accidents, the most frequent cause of
death among the young was firearms</b>.</span><span style="background: white; color: #626b78; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="background: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Firearm deaths claimed the lives of more than 3,140 children
and teens in 2016, according to research compiled by a team from the University
of Michigan. That equates to approximately eight children dying per day due to
preventable deaths related to firearms. <i>The rate of firearm-related death
for those aged 1 to 19 years has stayed around the same for nearly the past two
decades, the analysis said, although that rate is still more than <b>36 times</b>
as high as the average rate across 12 other high-income countries</i></span><i>.</i> <span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/here-are-the-major-causes-">https://www.marketwatch.com/story/here-are-the-major-causes-</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Much
has been made of the similarities between <b>Boris Johnson</b> and <b>Donald
Trump:</b> the yellowish hair, quirky rhetoric, brash predictions. But Johnson
is rather more erudite and literate than Trump, though possibly equally destructive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">How
to prevent children’s<b> hot car deaths</b>? Couldn’t working parents have an
app on their phone or have their spouse call to remind them when they have <b>small
children in the car</b>, lest they forget they are there? This seems a problem
that is solvable. Maybe just leaving a
permanent reminder at their desk or on their work computer or phone would be
sufficient. “Did you lock your car? Are your kids still inside?” If parents can remember to go to work on time
and where to park each day, surely. they can find a way to remember that their
kids in the back seat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">With
<b>interest rates</b> now reduced to 2 or 2.25%, I am reminded of paying <b>8%</b>
on my own home loan back in the day. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I’’ve
asked Honduran friends to comment on the following and will report back on what
they say. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<h1 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 9.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">US prosecutors accuse Honduran president of drug conspiracy<o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
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<a href="http://www.ap.org/"><span style="color: #324fe1; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-decoration-line: none;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t75"
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3. 2019</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduran-president-accused-ny-dr" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduran-president-accused-ny-dr</a></div>
Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-33420874852724067612019-08-03T10:49:00.002-07:002019-08-03T10:49:36.113-07:00Moon Landings, Al Franken, Mueller Testimony, Florida Republican Scott Attacks Peace Corps Independence, Food Stamps, Immigration Detention, Guatemala, ASAP Rocky, Baltimore, RIP Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega. Future Meat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV7KuLAIXVZ-MxeCFncMrh0X0lcTqcTvF_a_3ybBb0FlMHbcSl-yzwZAWnyxNl4pRW9ctTvNK0tqU8iLWh1DOKRaBRpLJFOnT0SfUVfHW_Q44X2e_FBBEsH41cuwbZrj2ugyrSRYdNpOU6/s1600/moon+landing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV7KuLAIXVZ-MxeCFncMrh0X0lcTqcTvF_a_3ybBb0FlMHbcSl-yzwZAWnyxNl4pRW9ctTvNK0tqU8iLWh1DOKRaBRpLJFOnT0SfUVfHW_Q44X2e_FBBEsH41cuwbZrj2ugyrSRYdNpOU6/s320/moon+landing.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
</h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">While the first human landing on the moon occurred in 1969,
sometimes we forget there was a total of </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">six moon
landings</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"> by astronauts between
1989 and 1972. The first was not the last. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">[Excuse big spaces between paragraphs and font changes, but they're proving too hard to fix.]</span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"> An article in the July 29 </span><i><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">New
Yorker</span></i><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">“The Case of Al Franken</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">,” argues that the accusations against him fell into a sort
of ambiguous zone and that he may actually have been a victim of a rush to
judgement by Democrats eager to show themselves being even handed. Certainly,
Franken’s transgressions, to the extent they even existed, were fairly minor
and were expressions of clumsiness, and not predation. They also occurred as
part of comic shows for troops stationed overseas, well before his Senate bid.
They seem to have been on the level of Biden’s often overly affectionate greetings
of women. Franken seemed to be doing a good job in the Senate and I sometimes
saw him eating at local Capitol Hill restaurants. Too bad he u=is no longer
here. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The biggest takeaway from Mueller’s live testimony is that </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Trump was not exonerated of obstruction and could be
prosecuted after he leaves office</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">. This may have been stated in the report, but how many
people have actually read all of its hundreds of pages? While the written
report may</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">have said these things already,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"> most Americans—and even most lawmakers—have not read
the report in its entirety. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Even
Robert Mueller himself has not committed the entire report to memory. So, the Congressional
hearings have exposed that essential conclusion to the public (to those
disposed to believe it) that Trump was <i>not</i> exonerated. And while Trump
runs consistently below 50% in polls, we need to remember that he won with less
than 50% last time, so it matters how his voters are distributed and his hard
core seems pretty hard. The more outrageous his actions, the better they like
it, deriving vicarious pleasure from his ability to flaunt norms and behave impulsively.
But Trump’s constantly shifting positions and his propensity to pull the rug
out from under established agreements, a pattern he used in business to keep
others off guard, is making him untrustworthy in the extreme, not a pattern
that endears him to staff or much of the voting public. “What will he do next?”
is the question asked by both adversaries and supporters. And while the hard
core may still stick with him, perhaps even they are tiring of non-stop
surprises.</span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A very bad idea:</span> Senator Rick Scott<span style="font-weight: normal;"> wants to withdraw the
Peace Corps from “hostile” countries such as China, the Florida
Republican said Tuesday, in introducing legislation that would strip the
program of its relative autonomy and put it under the State Department. Scott’s
“</span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Peace-Corps.pdf"><span style="border: 1pt none windowtext; padding: 0in;">Peace Corps Mission
Accountability Act</span></a></span><span style="color: #444444; font-weight: normal;">” would put the Peace Corps under the umbrella of the State
Department instead of its current position as an independent agency under the
executive branch. </span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/senator-wants-peace-corps-out-of-china-other-hostile-nations/">https://www.courthousenews.com/senator-wants-peace-corps-out-of-china-other-hostile-nations/</a></span></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Here’s a statement from the National Peace
Corp Association:</span> <i style="color: #202020; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: medium; font-weight: normal;">Join the Peace Corps community in protecting the
independent, non-political nature of the Peace Corps by opposing legislation
(S.2320) introduced by Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) that would make Peace
Corps subordinate to the Department of State under the direction of the
Secretary of State.</i></h1>
<div style="background: white; margin-bottom: 11.25pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><i><span style="color: #202020;">
<span style="background: white;">By safeguarding Peace Corps' status as an
independent agency, we can help to ensure that it will not be used to promote
short-term goals of the Secretary of State or whichever administration is
occupying the White House. The international perception of the Peace Corps'
independence is imperative for its continued success, which is based on mutual
respect and trust of the host countries,</span></span></i><i><span style="color: #444444;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></div>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-weight: normal;">The Trump administration’s efforts to cut </span><span style="color: black;">Food Stamps</span><span style="color: black; font-weight: normal;"> would only increase income</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;">
inequality. To decrease the enormous and growing federal budget deficit, how
about increasing taxes on high earning corporations and individuals? Trump gave
relief to them on the unfilled promise of creating more and better jobs, which
have bit materialized. Unfortunately, with automation growing, it will be
possible to maintain or increase production with fewer workers, but everyone
could and should benefit, just as all red-state Alaskans benefit from oil
revenues, whether they are working in oil or working at all. Work may become a future
luxury, fulfilling the universal need identified by the occupational therapists
with whom I once worked regarding every person’s search for </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;">“purposeful
activity.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;">If mothers
or fathers requesting asylum were allowed to be with their</span><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
children in</span> immigration detention </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;">or were
simply released to await legal procedures with their kids, perhaps wearing an ankle
monitor, it would be much safer, more humane, and less burdensome for staff, as
well as much cheaper for the government, so why isn’t that done any more?</span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228;">With the plunging US birthrate,
we should welcome more migrants with young families. </span><span style="color: #1d2228;">It’s a no-brainer.</span><span style="color: #1d2228;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228;">The idea
that </span><span style="color: #1d2228;">Guatemala </span><span style="color: #1d2228;">and </span><span style="color: #1d2228;">Mexico</span><span style="color: #1d2228;">, for that matter, are safe places for migrants and asylum
seekers as Trump advocates is absurd</span><span style="color: #1d2228;">. Trump bullied </span><span style="color: #1d2228;">the president of that small country into compliance and
Guatemalans</span><span style="color: #1d2228;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228;">are protesting.</span><span style="color: #1d2228;"> </span><i><span style="color: black;">Guatemala is anything but a safe place for asylum
applicants to wait</span></i><span style="color: black;"> - Los Angeles Times </span><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2019-07-24/trump-guatemala-asylum-safety">https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2019-07-24/trump-guatemala-asylum-safety</a></span><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<h1 style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; font-weight: normal;">After threats from</span><span style="color: black; font-weight: normal;"> Trump, </span><span style="color: black;">Guatemala<span style="font-weight: normal;"> caved. </span></span><span style="color: black; font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-threat-guatemala-signs-immigration-200616426.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-threat-guatemala-signs-immigration-200616426.html</a></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></h1>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Mr. Trump demanded that
Sweden release </span>ASAP Rocky,<span style="font-weight: normal;"> ASAP, not because he necessarily considers
him innocent but because he likes to boss other nations around and thinks
his demands will win over black voters. Can you imagine how he would react if a
Swedish official tried to intervene in the US justice system? <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Speaking of </span>black
voters,<span style="font-weight: normal;"> Mr. Trump did not endear himself to them by his repeated Twitter
attacks, not only on the four Congresswomen of “The Squad,” but on Congressman Elijah
Cummings and on the majority African American city of Baltimore, DC’s
sister city. Baltimore is the home of Johns Hopkins, also of the University
of Md. Hospital, a sprawling complex where I once worked as an interpreter,
going in daily on the first Marc train, often for 12-hour shifts where I earned
a lot of money. I was impressed by the care given and also exhausted by the
long hours with very sick patients and by the train commute. But my work there
was short-lived because the hospital system decided it would be more
cost-effective to hire in-house interpreters<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #1d2228; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I
met with </span>Cardinal Ortega<span style="font-weight: normal;"> in Havana, a controversial figure, shown with
me in a photo in my </span><i style="font-weight: normal;">Confessions</i><span style="font-weight: normal;"> book, where I describe our discussions. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega Alamino dies in
Havana</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba">https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba</a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I
don’t have TV, but often listen to public radio, where a frequent ad for financial
services agency </span>Raymond James<span style="font-weight: normal;"> reminds me that my late son Andrew
once worked at the reception desk in their Ft. Lauderdale office. But, for some
reason, he quit and went to work for the company that changed truck tires out
on the highway. That new job resulted in a serious back injury for which he
took Oxycontin/ Oxycodone while awaiting surgery, which led to his death during
sleep. </span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I
could easily become a </span>vegetarian,<span style="font-weight: normal;"> but of the ovo-lactose variety.
In fact, I’m almost there already, except when invited out to eat. Becoming a vegan,
like my grandniece who stayed with me last fall, or my younger daughter
Stephanie before her marriage, would require more imagination and inventive
cooking smarts than I can muster. While most Americans would recoil at eating
dogs, as is done in Asia, or horses, as we did during World War II, or even guinea
pigs, as I saw being done in Peru, how is eating a cow, pig, or sheep
substantially different, except for habit or tradition? I look forward to the
development of artificial meat when humans won’t be consuming other animals,
except maybe</span> insects,<span style="font-weight: normal;"> which I have tried and found them crunchy and tasty in
the right sauce. </span></span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-weight: normal; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-80214593312407546762019-07-22T06:34:00.001-07:002019-07-22T06:34:52.418-07:00Baby It’s Been Hot, Lunar Landing, No Statehood, Socialism, Racism, Planned Parenthood <br />
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Apologies
last time for words extending out of line; I tried to correct those flukes without
success. Also, I don’t know what the last item on that last posting means. I
did not put it there and was unable to eradicate it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Yes,
I have been sitting in front of fans with a wet wash cloth on my head as my
central A/C is not working. I am used to 100 F temperatures in southern Honduras,
but there it is dry hear and here in DC it’s 100 F and humid! Below is a
headline from the <i>Washington Post </i>(July 16)<i> </i>showing
that our recent heat wave here in DC was not just a figment of our imagination,
it has been real and is still continuing. <b><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/07/15/earth-just-had-its-hottest-june-record-track-warmest-july/" title="Earth just had its hottest June on record, on track for warmest July">Earth
just had its hottest June on record, on track for warmest July</a> <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">With
the<b> lunar landing </b>anniversary in the news, I am taken back to that time,
when as a young mother of 2 small kids who had just moved to my current home in
Washington, DC. I looked out at the moon, hoping to see a dot signaling the lunar
landing, but, of course, it was too small and too far away. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Sorry
to hear that polls show that <b>most Americans do not support statehood</b> <b>for
DC,</b> even though we have more population than Vermont and Wyoming. Why not? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do they even understand the issue? Many
friends in other states are surprised to learn that we are disenfranchised in
DC. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Anything
to make a dime, <b>Trump campaign begins selling plastic straws</b>, found to
me harmful to sea turtles and other sea creatures, contending that “liberal” paper
straws are no good. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Meanwhile,
Trump operatives have come up with a clever strategy that he didn’t come up on
his own, which involves moving federal agencies from DC to Midwest Trump
strongholds <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Just
because Venezuela’s <b>Nicolas Maduro</b> calls himself “socialist” is no
reason for a socialist-leaning former president of Chile, <span style="background: white; color: black; letter-spacing: .25pt;">Michelle Bachelet, now
U.N. high commissioner for human rights,</span> to give him a pass. </span>And she
did not. <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/united-nations-report-socialist-details-103013098.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/united-nations-report-socialist-details-103013098.html</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
<b>“socialism”</b> that Trump accuses Democratic lawmakers of fomenting is nothing
like governance in Stalin’s USSR or in present-day Venezuela or Cuba, or even
in China and Vietnam. Rather, it is more akin to that of Canada, France, and
the UK, with national health services, and of the Nordic countries, with special
provisions for parents, children, the disabled, and older people. Taxes there may
be higher, but so are benefits, which are provided more equitably and
economically than in our own country. The word <i>socialism </i>should not be used
as a political boogeyman. Sen. Graham, who has become a lock-step Trump advocate
has even equated socialism with communism. (Does Trump have some secret information
about Graham that could harm his reelection chances?) Graham does deserve
credit for calling out Trump for blatantly racist comments about several Democratic
Congresswomen. Maybe he will have more influence on Trump by usually being such
a slavish apologist? A president shouldn’t have to rely on “minders” to keep
him in line, like some great big baby. Wash his mouth out with soap! And I like
a new chant being taken up by Democrats, “Send him back!” (Presumably, send
Trump back into retirement and to his residence in NYC, a city where he is mostly
reviled.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
worst if it is that <b>most Republican voters support Trump</b>, whatever he
says or does, so Republican lawmakers don’t dare criticize him. It’s a cult that
would drink the Kool-Aid if Trump ordered it. They want people like the 4
targeted Congresswomen to leave the country and they love it that the president
gives license and voice to their most racist and base desires. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trump is every-man or woman as president. Trump
wants to make sure they turn out to vote for him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Although
there are too many Democratic wannabes, all of them are giving voice to
important issues. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I
suspect that physician, <b><span style="background: white; color: black; letter-spacing: .25pt;">Dr. Leana Wen</span></b></span><span style="background: white; color: black; letter-spacing: .25pt;">, was removed as head of <b>Planned Parenthood
</b>as she was trying to take a broader public health stance in which abortion was
just one option among a range of services, including contraception, STD treatment
and prevention, and cancer screenings, among others. The board may have wanted
a more militant pro-abortion focus, emphasizing a “right” now under attack. I
believe that the American public, while a slight majority supports abortion in
the first trimester, is more nuanced in its beliefs and Wen’s tactic would have
garnered more support for all the services of Planned Parenthood. But evidently
the board preferred a more confrontational and focused approach. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-6894555928733670922019-07-14T08:56:00.001-07:002019-07-14T08:56:38.034-07:00 The Graduate, Hurricane Barbara, Maui Fires, Trump Fails to Eliminate Peace Corps, Children & Families, King of Chaos, Latin America, Asia, South Sudan, Me-Too’s Evolution, Beating Trump<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><b>Bikram</b>, my GAO fellow from Bhutan graduated from the program and now you
might say I have an empty nest, which is fine for now. I enjoy knowing folks
from all over the world and offering them temporary shelter, but it’s hard on
the facilities and puts me in a constant mama/nagging mode. Again, to quote<b>
Greta Garbo, “I want to be alone!” </b></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPwx_dstpWZeYZMUyzlfJQA7pBtySYx98C2AXBRfXC3VE-iswGjGSkKM4OEbInFGmErSn5gKWM4b-NYqHfvUigMn7mdm60bSuIExAWMFBfcK5yYUpovbcwgfiuL4BHV6_OkFIFdUBnhflI/s1600/Bikram+and+Barbara%252C+GAO+graduation%252C+july+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPwx_dstpWZeYZMUyzlfJQA7pBtySYx98C2AXBRfXC3VE-iswGjGSkKM4OEbInFGmErSn5gKWM4b-NYqHfvUigMn7mdm60bSuIExAWMFBfcK5yYUpovbcwgfiuL4BHV6_OkFIFdUBnhflI/s400/Bikram+and+Barbara%252C+GAO+graduation%252C+july+2019.jpg" width="300" /></a></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Hurricane Barbara, </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">my namesake,</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; font-weight: normal;">became the 1st major hurricane of 2019, to be followed by
many more</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; font-weight: normal;">.<o:p></o:p></span></h1>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
Trump administration tried to scrap the <b>Peace Corps</b> in the next federal
budget. But <span style="background: white; color: #202020;">by a vote of 110 – 315,
the House of Representatives soundly defeated Trump’s effort to eliminate all Peace
Corps funding in the federal fiscal year that begins next October. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Fires on the Hawaiian island of <b>Maui</b> threaten
the native <b>Silversword </b>plant discovered and named by my biologist
son-in-law, who works often on that island. My younger daughter, his wife, is
also a biologist. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">As emotionally
wrenching as that photo is of the young father and toddler daughter drowned in
the Rio Grande (aptly called <b>R</b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">í</span></b><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">o Bravo</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">—Angry River—in
Spanish), last Feb. when I was in Honduras, the rumor was that crossing the US
border with a child meant you would be freed sooner to return to court later
and would also have a better chance of obtaining asylum, <b>one reason so many
are now traveling with young children. </b>Maybe the publicity around the
death of the Salvadoran father and his child will discourage them now? Other
migrant families have drowned without being photographed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Because of <b>longer life expectancy and lower
birthrates</b> in our country, our population is aging, so we do need much more
immigration by younger people. The Trump should welcome more of the families
with children arriving at the southern border. Increased immigration alone cannot
make up the demographic shortfall, though it would help. Certainly, any mass
deportation of undocumented residents would be devastating economically and
socially. Even Mr. Trump’s enterprises rely on undocumented workers, who have
appealed to him to protect them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The <b>census citizenship question</b> was
designed to disadvantage states with lots of non-citizens, whether documented
or otherwise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But apparently Trump wasn’t
willing to let the matter go. Though he did not win the day on including the
question on the census, he can still use it as a rallying point for his
anti-immigrant presidential reelection campaign. However, because he is so
unpopular, so reviled in many areas of the country, his raids have less local
cooperation than has been the case for other presidents, including Obama, who
was given the dubious title of “deporter-in-chief.” Trump announced his raids
in advance to make sure his loyal base knew he was getting tough on immigrants,
while at the same time, arousing his many opponents, further dividing the nation.
He makes no effort to expand his base or to bridge the political divide, quite
the contrary. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">With <b>El Paso</b> at the border-crossing’s
epicenter, I am reminded of my childhood days in El Paso, when my Dad was a US
Army officer at El Paso’s Fort Bliss, then was sent over to Europe during World
War II. I remember attending kindergarten and first grade in local schools and
singing daily, “The eyes of Texas are upon you, all the live-long day; the eyes
of Texas are upon you, you cannot get away.” I really thought some giant unseen
eyes were looking down on us. I recall movie theaters being divided into white
and “colored” sections, or sometimes films being shown to each racial group on
alternate days. We used to walk easily across the bridge to Juarez to shop or
eat Mexican food on that side. It was a fun excursion to easily enter an
alternative world where another language was spoken and to become immersed in different
sights, scents, and music. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Leaked information indicates that <b>Trump’s
efforts to scrap the Iran deal and probably his push against Obamacare are
fueled by his resentment of the greater popularity and obvious ability of his
predecessor</b> rather than by any concern for the good of our nation or the
world. He is a petty, childish guy, deeply insecure, fueled by resentments based
on real and imagined attacks on his feelings of self-worth. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Chaos theory</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> seeks
to explain what is not obviously predictable. It deals with chance, surprise,
randomness. Most of the time, when we go out walking in our neighborhood or get
into a car, we get where we intend to go. Rarely, there is an accident and we
don’t arrive. Some “accidents” or surprises are lucky ones, others, not so much.
Often, these “chance” events have started with a small deviation from the norm,
like the example from my last blog of a driver who suddenly switched from
turning off a highway to veering back onto it and caused a 5-car pile-up behind
when all slammed on their brakes, including the car my daughter was driving and
I was riding in. Chaos theory cites the theoretical example of the butterfly
that flaps its wings and starts a reaction that ends up as a hurricane
elsewhere. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Donald Trump’s elevation to the US presidency
is an example of <b>chaos theory</b> in action. Russian election interference,
coupled with the skewed Electoral College system, along with big money
donations to the Republican Party, allowed Trump to win the presidency even
though he fell 3 million votes short. Since then, he has deliberately fostered
more chaos and uncertainty by his impulsive and unpredictable actions, engaged
in partly because he has no actual plans, but also to deliberately keep both
allies and adversaries off-guard, allowing him to imagine that he alone is in
control. He might be called the king of chaos, but the American people and
other political leaders, as well as citizens and leaders of the world, are
getting pretty tired of it all. There is enough that is unpredictable and
uncontrollable in life without having Trump deliberately making it worse. His
tactics end up achieving little or nothing because he acts alone, makes no
plans, and brings no one else on board. Twitter is the perfect medium for him
to express his unfiltered and impulsive thoughts. Any of the current Democratic
hopefuls would be better than Trump, but will they screw up again by fighting
among themselves and not being prepared against interference? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Trump highjacked <b>July 4,</b> making it a
campaign rally and his own vanity project to try to appear presidential. The
guy, after phony draft deferments, is tying himself to the military in a
pathetic effort to bolster his own image and self-esteem. If he were an
ordinary citizen, we would just feel sorry for him, but because of his
authority and the slavish deference of Republican lawmakers and appointees, his
whims are causing a lot of grief and damage, not only in the US, but worldwide.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Efforts to fly the <b>Baby Trump</b> blimp at July
4<sup>th</sup> events ran into some obstacles. The blimp inflated with air was seen
at ground level, but not allowed to be floating above the crowd. In a brilliant
move to counter MAGA hats worn by Trump supporters, his opponents can carry
around Baby Trump balloons. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I avoided July 4<sup>th</sup> events, but because
I live on Capitol Hill, I did hear the flyovers and fireworks. Apparently,
Trump got mixed up giving his speech, forgetting that there were <b>no airports
back in revolutionary days</b>. But that he did not even notice and correct his
own gaffe again reveals his mental failings. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Yes, <span style="background: white; color: black;">Trump
flubbed his big moment speaking from the Lincoln Memorial when he referred to
the revolutionary forces securing the airports. Any normal person, after making
such an error, would have joked about it and corrected himself immediately, but
Trump didn't respond until the next day, saying that raindrops had fallen on
his teleprompter. His staff must have endured a heart-stopping moment when he
misspoke, but the fanatically loyal base and most Republican lawmakers acted
like it didn't even happen. </span><span style="background: white; color: #202020;">The most merciful out for Trump himself and for the nation would be an
illness that prevents him from running for a second term. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The <b>Trump/Kim
handshake photo-op, </b>something that may have popped into Trump's</span><span style="background: white; color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">mind just at the last minute (leaving
everybody scrambling to please him, as usual), was probably a good move after
Trump had walked off from the last talks. Trump knows how to keep himself in
the spotlight and remain the center of attention. Daughter Ivanka took
advantage of the occasion to appear there too. Shaking hands is fine, but North
Korea is not halting, much less ending its nuclear pram, its only source of
strength. Kim must be delighted to be playing Trump so easily. Just give the
guy a photo-op and continue whatever you were doing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>
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<span style="color: #1f3864; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 128;">Here are a few news
items f interest to me as volunteer Caribbean coordinator for Amnesty Int;l USA<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="color: #1f3864; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 128;">Raped,
widowed, homeless: Haiti's slum women abandoned to gangs<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
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<span class="author"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Amelie
BARON, </span></span><span class="provider"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; letter-spacing: .4pt;">AFP, July 12</span></span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/raped-widowed-homeless-haitis-slum-women-abandoned-gangs-015604374.html"><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/raped-widowed-homeless-haitis-slum-women-abandoned-gangs-015604374.html</span></b></a><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><u><span style="color: #1f3864; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 128;">Pompeo
Highlights the Importance of Democracy in the Dominican Republic <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></u></b><b><span style="color: #1f4e79; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent5; mso-themeshade: 128;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/pompeo-highlights-importance-democracy-dominican-021801854.html<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Global
Voices advox*, July 5, 2019<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Censorship<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Is Cuba trying to outlaw independent media?
A new decree will prohibit foreign web hosting<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">It
is also illegal to host "news media" sites locally.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">By
Ellery Roberts Biddle<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/cubans-are-using-social-media-to-air-their-grievances--and-the-government-is-responding-sometimes/2019/07/07/01b3cba2-912e-11e9-956a-88c291ab5c38_story.html"><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With 3G and Twitter,
Cubans unafraid to complain</span></b></a></span><b><u><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
spread of wireless service has given rise to a new class of netizens, who are
organizing in a manner not seen since the Cuban revolution. And the government
is responding, sometimes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #5a5a5a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">By </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/anthony-faiola/"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">Anthony Faiola</span></a><span class="author"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">, <i>Washington
Post</i>, July 8. 2019<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="author"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">In my Amnesty volunteer role, I
met at the AI USA office with <b>Sirley Avila</b>, a Cuban woman whom I have been
assisting and about whom I wrote an on-line article, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><cite><span style="background: white; color: #006621; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-style: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barbara-e-joe/a-revolution-with-promise_b_9801712.html%0d">www.huffingtonpost.com/barbara-e-joe/a-revolution-with-promise_b_9801712.html<o:p></o:p></a></span></cite></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAsgCdJCQMFRP0ewE_YQiG5YAeyhD2aGSuTb1RyjoXMG9A0BC16QDriAsOBdNFJTvlrAtD03pR1Eh60pwN4FkDQATHQcp582lDSUy2lq455iqJ-Z9VisHw0SjxmZfub22W4Jlyu93VO2yq/s1600/Sirley+July+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAsgCdJCQMFRP0ewE_YQiG5YAeyhD2aGSuTb1RyjoXMG9A0BC16QDriAsOBdNFJTvlrAtD03pR1Eh60pwN4FkDQATHQcp582lDSUy2lq455iqJ-Z9VisHw0SjxmZfub22W4Jlyu93VO2yq/s400/Sirley+July+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Chinese authorities must be anxious to prevent
the idea of mass protests spreading from <b>Hong Kong</b> to the mainland,
confronting them with a Tiananmen</span><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">-type </span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">situation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Family
separations</span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> are not only happening at our own
southern border but also among <b>China’s western Muslim Uighurs</b> in a
system similar to the residential schools for indigenous children of decades
past in the US and Canada, schools designed to teach the children English and
assimilate them into the mainstream. I have had the good fortune through my
volunteer work with Amnesty International to meet Uighur activists here in the
US, where their plight is not well-known. </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/bbcnews"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">https://www.youtube.com/user/bbcnews</span></a><span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Pregnant Women and Children Massacred in Papua New
Guinea, Police Say</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> <i>NY
Times</i>, 7-10-2019<span style="background: white; color: #202020;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">This
headline caught my eye because, about 20 years ago, a visitor from Papua New
Guinea stayed at my house. He told me that tribally based revenge killings were
common in his country (at least at that time) and he hinted that he had engaged
in helping carry some of them out. However, he assured me that my family and I
were safe, as we were not members of a rival tribe. Such killings were initiated
by men and usually focused only on males
of rival tribes, he said, but apparently men were not the only victims in the
recent case reported by the <i>Times.</i> Apparently, revenge killings are
still occurring there, though perhaps international attention will help them
die out. </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/10/world/asia/papua-new-guinea-massacre.html?action=click&module=Latest&pgtype=Homepage"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/10/world/asia/papua-new-guinea-massacre.html?action=click&module=Latest&pgtype=Homepage</span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">American Samoa</span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> is a
tiny island country in the south Pacific where apparently most inhabitants do
not want full citizenship because of fear of an assault on their native customs
and language. However, other regional islands, like Guam and Micronesia, are territories
whose inhabitants are full American citizens, able to travel freely anywhere in
the USA and to vote in national elections. What American Samoans may need to
join them is a guarantee of some indigenous protections like those afforded to
Native American tribes on the mainland, which could give them the best if both
worlds. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
fate of <b>South Sudan</b> has been of special interest to me ever since my
mission there in 2006. So sorry that tribal rivalries have now replaced the
unity that led to independence in 2011. An additional comment is that most
people in South Sudan are close to being truly black, unlike so-called “black”
folks here in the US, including members of my own family, who are more
“blackish” than “black.” Here is lady I met in South Sudan. [Orange lady]<span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.amnesty.ca/news/open-letter-urges-federal-government-investigat"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">ht</span><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration-line: none;"> <u><span style="color: blue;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/south-sudans-machar-says-ready-talks-rival-kiir-094404551.html</span></u></span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">tps://www.amnesty.ca/news/open-letter-urges-federal-government-investigat</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Heard a radio documentary offering a rather <b>nuanced
take on the Me-Too movement</b>, a situation where a college-age young man and
a young woman seemed to have different views of whether their sexual encounter
was consensual or not. The man thought it was; the woman said it was not. Some
such situations are ambiguous and do not fit a pattern of outright rape
involving force or threats of bodily harm, but, rather, involve steps toward
intercourse that may be hard to turn off once underway. If alcohol is involved
that’s a further complication, though it was not a factor in this case.
Likewise, there was no prosecution or other penalty for the man, except for his
apology and trying to try to make amends. Seduction and foreplay may involve
persuasion, but when does that move over into unfair pressure? </span><span style="background: white; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Cultural differences</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> also
come into play. Muslim women cover their hair and don’t touch unrelated men.
Male Buddhist monks in Thailand cannot even take something from or directly converse
with women; I have communicated with them by writing notes that each party lays
down to be picked up and read by the other. But in Latin America, men typically
greet women with an embrace and kisses on both cheeks. Is that a Me-Too
violation? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Of course, when I was young eons ago, the
Me-too movement did not exist and women tried to avoid even getting into
compromising situations. There was no on-line dating. Homosexuality was
illegal. College women like me lived in all-female dorms with restricted access
and curfews. Rape and even consensual sex by unmarried people were largely
hidden and there was no easily available or effective birth control and
certainly no legal abortion. Young women went to Mexico to get abortions and
babies were given up for adoption in secret to couples like me and my late ex-husband,
though I subsequentially had a biological child. We sometimes forget that mores
were different then and that not all long-ago actions can be strictly judged by
today’s standards. The same may be true regarding race relations and other
matters and is certainly true of many cultural differences in the present day,
though because of the internet and mass media, practices are moving more quickly
toward greater universality. Unfortunately, because of his age and long life, <b>Joe
Biden</b> is getting caught in this bind. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">When men in this situation have been defended,
particularly by women, critics who still hold them to today’s standards have
coined a pejorative term for the attitude of such apologists <b>“himpathy.”</b>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Time to get into gear for 2020, become totally partisan, and
prepare to vote a straight Democratic ticket. Right-minded, genuinely patriotic
Americans must work together to make sure Trump doesn't get a second term, Each
of us needs to talk about, contribute, and campaign for<b> Democrats</b>
running not only for the presidency, but for the Senate, the House, and state
offices, all down the line. We need to especially support <b>Mitch McConnell’s Democratic
opponent,</b></span><b><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> Amy McGrath, </span></b><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">an outspoken former fighter pilot</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> whom the senator is already trying
to tarnish. He is such a sly, unprincipled guy, we need to throw the book at
him, though he will probably survive ine ruby red state of Kentucky. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And though we don't always like voting for the lesser of evils
or for candidates whose views we don't totally espouse, <b>we currently have a
binary system</b> where usually there are only 2 viable candidates for each
office. It would be better if we had a system whereby a voter could also
indicate a second choice with lesser weight, as exists in a few places
elsewhere, but we don’t have anything close to that here as yet. Too many
voters last time failed to vote because they didn’t like something about
Hillary Clinton, partly because of false narratives about her health or
personality, or they just didn’t like her voice or her appearance in a pants’
suit. If Joe Biden should be the Democratic candidate this time, objections to
his age, changing stances, attitude toward minorities and women, personality,
etc. will arise. Too bad, folks, if Trump is his opponent, vote for Biden
anyway and don’t sit out the vote just because you don’t particularly care for
him. If the alternative is 4 more years of Trump, that is much, much worse, We
do not live in the best possible of all worlds. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It would be great to get rid of the <b>Electoral College</b> and
Republican <b>gerrymandering</b>--issues to work on, but not achievable by the
next election. Nor can we soon breech the bitter partisan divide to reach
“common ground.” So we just have to soundly beat Trump and overcome his voters
at the polls, despite their hurt feelings about being ignored by the “coastal
elites.” Beat them soundly in the voting booth and let them lick their wounds
and continue to wear their MAGA hats and look back nostalgically to the glory
days when their hero Donald Trump was in office, but is there no more. Four
more years of Trump and his gang is simply unthinkable. The world cannot
tolerate it. Then we have to work to undo much of the damage that has been
done. I hope to live long enough to see that happen. </span><span style="background: white; color: #202020; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-14146213894934847342019-06-27T13:22:00.001-07:002019-06-27T13:22:54.909-07:00Democratic Debates, Carrot or Stick? Trump, the Great Decider, Migrant Bodies, Honduras, Venezuela, Granddaughter’s Visit, Peppers, Right to Life/to Choose (Again)<div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 6.0pt 0in;">
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Because
I don’t have TV (no patience to sit to watch it), I missed the Democratic presidential
candidate debates, as I could not find them on radio. Perhaps it would have
been too cumbersome to try to broadcast them on radio. Instead, I heard
excerpts, including of <b>Beto O’Rourke</b> speaking accented, but intelligible
Spanish. I’ve already said I would vote for any one of them, but maybe
front-runner <b>Joe Biden</b> as a centrist has the best chance of appealing to
disillusioned Trump supporters. I would love to see him with a female VP, if
that can happen, and also to win in a landslide against Trump, despite the
quirks of the Electoral College that cheated us so disastrously last time. This
time voters cannot afford to be so quite picky, as some were about Hillary. For
better or worse, it’s a binary contest, so never mind about 3<sup>rd</sup> party
choices this time. It’s either the Democrat or Trump. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">President Obama </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">offered more
of a carrot than a stick to adversaries </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Iran and Cuba. Trump </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">prefers
threats and confrontation, inflicting economic pain and risking violence and
war. There is no guaranteed method of influencing the actions of other nations
and their leaders, who are simply other people, after all. Trump’s tactics are
scary and have not proved successful so far, increasing not reducing tensions. If
other leaders feel under attack, they will fight back and resist. Trump never
gave Obama’s approach to making a deal a chance to increase mutual trust and
reduce the likelihood of conflict with political adversaries, whether in other
countries or here in the US. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The standoff with </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Iran </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">is entirely
of Trump’s making. He has goaded the Iran regime into resistance and
self-defense. He came perilously close to starting a war there, perhaps pushed by
his advisers, but reportedly pulling back at the last minute after perhaps realizing
it would hurt his reelection chances, which it would. If it was an impulsive decision
to go ahead and then equally impulsive to pull back, we dodged a bullet that
time. Shooting down an unmanned drone, however costly the device, doesn’t merit
all-out war. Meanwhile, Trump has reportedly lost interest in Venezuela, where
the US could have some influence if it played its cards right, which is
unlikely. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Trump’s approach to
trade is similarly heavy handed and mercurial.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> Don’t try
talking first, just slap some tariffs on products from another country and
then, as he likes to say, “Let’s see what happens.” The man has no imagination,
no foresight, no ability to put himself in another person’s shoes. His taunts of
other lawmakers are worthy of a third-grade playground bully, hence meaningless.
When poll numbers from his own pollsters were leaked, showing him falling
behind major Democratic presidential hopefuls, he fired the pollsters. Don’t give
that guy any bad news! Of course, even if he falls far behind in the popular
vote in 2020, we now know that may not be definitive. Depending on how
Electoral College votes fall, he could still pull it off again. Can lightning
strike twice in the same place? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">If Trump loses reelection, which I fervently expect
and hope he will, he and his supporters will certainly cry foul. Some of them
have even expressed the wish that he might have a 3<sup>rd</sup> term. Would
the man even live that long? Will I survive that long? The fact that Trump is
still in office now is certainly eroding my mental health. Or how about “President-for-Life”
like former Haitian dictator Baby Doc? It’s hard to imagine why so many
Republican lawmakers and fellow Americans continue to slavishly support the
guy. Maybe it’s due to a cult-like psychology
that drinks the Kool Aid even though it results in certain death. In traveling
abroad, I’m pretty understanding and accepting of cultural differences and
clashes, but seeing such a sharp divide within our own country and being part
of it is proving very unnerving. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">As for the </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">migrant crisis,</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> it’s easy
for Trump to try to demonize the so-called hordes of criminals trying to crash
the border to invade our country. But, as always, an individual case is easier
to understand and pulls more on the heart-strings. A little refugee boy’s body
washed up in Greece caused more outrage than the sinking of a boatload of refugees.
Likewise, there is less sympathy here for crowds waiting at the border gates
and much more for the man and little girl whose bodies were found drowned on
the shores of the Rio Grande. In both cases, the bodies being shown face-down
seems to have increased their poignancy. A single human photographic example
makes it easier for the viewer to identify with the victim than the sight of a
crowd. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">However, I must observe, based on my own recent conversations
in Honduras, that the rumor there is that getting into the US is easier with a</span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">
child</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> in tow, one reason so many adult migrants are traveling with children.</span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">
Push</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">factors </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">include lack of work, crop failures, and rampant crime
in their own countries, while </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">pull factors</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> are the demand
for workers in the US, especially in agriculture, hospitality, and construction
which depend most on foreign workers (even Trump properties have relied on undocumented
workers). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It is noteworthy that Trump has been traveling abroad,
both to the UK and now to Japan, without </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Melania </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">in tow. Nor has
she been visible here in the US. Perhaps she’s just fed up and awaiting her welcome
release in 2020. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Meanwhile,
<b><span style="color: #1e1e1e;">Honduras protests: Military deployed after
violence</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #5a5a5a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"> 21 June 2019 </span><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48712001" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48712001</a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #404040; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Anger has been building in recent weeks over proposals to
restructure the ministries of education and health. Opponents say that the
changes are the first step towards the privatization of education and health
services. Two people were killed recently. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">On our <b>Amnesty Int’l USA Facebook
page for Latin America</b>, a couple of guys posted there that <b>Venezuelans</b>
are making up stories against the Maduro government just to gain asylum here
and that the whole Venezuelan problem was made in Washington. I have helped
some of those Venezuelan asylum applicants and assured them their stories were
credible. I asked if the millions of Venezuelans fleeing to other South
American countries have been merely trying to get asylum in the US? Really,
some AI members are as boneheaded as Trump supporters, lots of conspiracy
theories floating around, amplified by the internet</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Jared Kushner’s plan for
the Palestinians</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> (put together without their input) takes a page
from communist China and Viet Nam, namely emphasizing economic development without
parallel political development. Most people anywhere would accept that as a cup
half full, as it allows them some freedom and agency in their daily life while giving
them no role in choosing their leadership or governing laws. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">granddaughter</span></b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> was up from
Florida, visiting us and her 11-year-old son, who is staying here for the summer.
She was also taking care of a local friend’s 8-month-old baby, a very precocious
child, not only showing teeth in a broad smile, but who can stand and walk a
few steps alone, pick up tiny snips of food to eat, and even bring a spoon to
his mouth, in stark contrast to most children I’ve seen when working as an interpreter
in home therapy. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifi9ABol438cFvGSc3ef98GAOd1xQcuzTHspp-Bi2b6l8VMYOALmM105xKDfWF7CkIrVVmcwpD3zj8DvTwrMsYC7Ap_FpfkYJDGAgvW6r_roiGwFVXmDNSbsrZOm2lqJNtg9OiEoEhKRK0/s1600/Natasha%2527s+visit%252C+June+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifi9ABol438cFvGSc3ef98GAOd1xQcuzTHspp-Bi2b6l8VMYOALmM105xKDfWF7CkIrVVmcwpD3zj8DvTwrMsYC7Ap_FpfkYJDGAgvW6r_roiGwFVXmDNSbsrZOm2lqJNtg9OiEoEhKRK0/s320/Natasha%2527s+visit%252C+June+2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Riding with my daughter to go meet my granddaughter,
we were involved in a fairly minor <b>5-car chain accident</b>. The driver
of a car ahead had apparently changed his/her mind about turning off, veering
back onto the highway, then speeding off, causing 5 cars behind to slam on
their brakes, crashing slightly into each other. The back of my daughter’s car
was hit pretty hard and we were jolted, but not injured. The driver of the car ahead of us, who at first had been walking around, decided that a previous back
injury had been aggravated and left in an ambulance. My daughter laments that
her insurance will rise. The car that hit us from behind has the same insurance
and faces the same fate. But the errant driver who had caused all this chaos had
gone ahead scot-free.</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">While
I am not fond of </span><b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">hot peppers</span></b><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> myself,
the potted plant grown from seeds by previous Bhutanese visitors, continues to
bear fruit. I can only give them away. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt;">While many Catholics adhere to a </span><b style="font-size: 11pt;">seamless
support of life</b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> from prenatal through natural death and in
opposition to capital punishment, it is also true that some advocates for the
unborn still support executions for those who have committed capital crimes. At
the other end of the political spectrum, many vociferous opponents of capital
punishment are equally adamant in supporting a woman’s “right to choose.” There
is often little middle ground, at least among activists for both sides. Yet a
growing number of people are voluntary vegetarians because they oppose killing
animals for food. And a woman stomping on a turtle-egg nest was arrested, apparently
for endangering unborn turtles. What does the “right to life” encompass? It
seems to depend on the consensus of the tribe you consider that you belong to. I
have no problem with voluntary euthanasia by someone with a terminal illness
who is cognitively and emotionally sound. Where does that put me on the political
spectrum if I am also not so supportive of 2nd trimester abortions? I do think
the 2<sup>nd</sup> and 3<sup>rd</sup> trimesters are where “pro-life” folks
should put their efforts and where the Supreme Court might rule to further
parse the broad and somewhat vague outlines afforded by Roe. But the subject of
abortion has grown so contentious and partisan that it is not an issue the
politicians on either side should be willing to tackle in any depth or nuance
right now. </span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-28591521349081385432019-06-15T08:19:00.002-07:002019-06-15T08:21:11.261-07:00Surprise Phone Call, D-Day, Local Events, Compassion Fatigue, July 4, Cuba Travel Ban, Sex Abuse in Baptists churches and elsewhere, Abortion/Miscarriage<div style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border: none; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; mso-element: para-border-div; padding: 0in 0in 6.0pt 0in;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
man who had been visiting me from <b>Nigeria</b>
a couple of years ago called on Eid, quite a nice surprise I usually don’t
answer unfamiliar numbers, but this time, glad I did. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My late father, US Army
Col.</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b>Leonard Currie</b>, though born in Alberta,
Canada, had become a US citizen and was in <b>Normandy
on D-Day.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My
11-year-old </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">great-grandson De’Andre </b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">is </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> visiting the DC
area </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> from Florida for the summer. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My visitor from Bhutan and
his colleague, who is staying with a friend nearby, participated in a
Cultural Day at GAO, where they are taking a course. GAO fellows from
various countries participated which showcased scenes, food, and artifacts from
each home country. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Waiting in line at
the Post Office, I talked with a young mother who looked Hispanic and admired
her new baby girl. But like too many mothers in Honduras, her <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">baby's hands were covered by mittens.</b> I
didn’t know such baby mittens were still being made and were available in the
US, ostensibly used to keep newborns from scratching their faces. (It <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i> sometimes hard to trim tiny
fingernails.) I used to try to dissuade Honduran mothers from using them; they
considered babies sucking on their fingers unsanitary and bad for their future teeth.
Sucking fingers is normal and instinctive for babies! But I hesitated to offer
advice there in PO as the poor child sucked on one of the mittens. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Working recently as
an interpreter at a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DC public school</b>
that shall remain nameless, I saw a hall bulletin board featuring photos of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">prominent people, including the Obamas and
Hillary Clinton, but not Donald J. Trump! </b>At that same school, I learned
that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">cursive</b> writing is no longer
taught. Why bother when communication is electronic and letters appear only in
print? Some folks may remember, as I do, practicing writing each cursive letter,
upper and lower case. And will our grandchildren be able to read letters,
documents, and diaries that we and historical figures have written in cursive? Signatures
are usually done in cursive, though many people now just scribble something unintelligible.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Previously
on these pages, I questioned whether overwork was really responsible for the 2018
suicide, at age 65, of Amnesty International’s West Africa Researcher, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Gaëtan Mootoo,</b> as per his suicide note,
prompting a large financial settlement for his family? I speculated that there
may have been other factors, maybe health, relationship, or personal problems, since
he could have simply resigned or retired, or insisted on getting more help.
However, a Mexican lawyer involved in human rights work made a convincing case
that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">compassion fatigue </b>is real and<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>can actually drive someone over the
edge. Dealing with human problems and suffering day after day can become
overwhelming and seriously depressing because of inability to make any major inroads.
She considered the Mootoo suicide quite understandable in light of the
pressures of human rights work and the settlement, fully justified.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There
is a rather scathing article in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Economist</i> (June 8, 2019), about AI’s toxic work environment. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/melan/OneDrive/Documents/%0dhttps:/www.economist.com/business/2019/06/06/charity-begins-at-work%0d"><o:p></o:p></a></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/melan/OneDrive/Documents/%0dhttps:/www.economist.com/business/2019/06/06/charity-begins-at-work%0d">https://www.economist.com/business/2019/06/06/charity-begins-at-work<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #222222;">I
still think that staff suicides at AI are not fully attributable to the work
culture, but am willing to acknowledge that the sheer pressure of human rights work
and the constant exposure to human traumas and suffering <i>could</i> push a
sensitive person over the edge. So now I must admit that the work could actually
be a major factor in suicides, with that work being even more thankless for
unpaid volunteers like me who get little acknowledgement.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I do appreciate <i>The Economist’s</i> frank discussion of
compassion fatigue at AI, but must express my annoyance that an otherwise
impeccable publication, insists on changing US book titles and formal
institutional names to British spelling, as in the case in the reference in the
AI article to a Harvard-published book, rendered as "The Fearless Organi<b>s</b>ation."
I looked up that book on Amazon, and the title is shown with a<b> z.</b> I've
even seen<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> The</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Economist</i> do that in letters-to-the-editor from the US. But
American publications don't change the spelling of British book titles or
institutions; we don’t write about the “Labor Party.” I wonder if each issue of
the magazine is subjected to spell-check before it goes to print, which
automatically converts American spellings? </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It looks like Mr.
Trump is hell-bent on ruining the usual non-political, nationally unifying <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">July 4<sup>th</sup></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">celebration</b> by changing its location
and featuring himself as the main speaker, positioning himself at the Lincoln
Memorial, perhaps hoping that Lincoln’s reputation will rub off on him. The
optics may play well with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Fox News</i>
and its viewers, but I predict that attendance will be smaller than normal and
marred by demonstrations. The Trump Baby blimp is already being readied. I certainly
do not plan to attend the fireworks this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p><img alt="Image result for trump baby blimp gif" src="data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAANwAAADcCAMAAAAshD+zAAAAYFBMVEX+/v7xewDvdwDWagD1pQD8+/nEXwDufAb6zH61VgDQagS1WgXm5OWxsrPlrVajUQXNyMWqUADIbxLDg0H67tfUrXzupxaSURPk0bZDDAaINACSRAaYbUaBeHWUXy0AAAAe6KxNAAAPuUlEQVR4nO2dDZequg6GR5nSARSkBUFBzv//lzdJW2j5UMd9lc5avGed2bOdrfKYJk3TlPn62rRp06ZNmzZt2rRp06ZNmzZt2uSpGGPwZe2reItYUbZlwYjwbwkuuSiKWgu+ZSMKVtTp+SzS+s+xwZWXUrYiURJCSpmWZd1zAHp6/kad02LNK/2VGF53LQUpRqmvYaggy5psWPyA2b4VnazXvugnhdddyh4sCGJbaMkK+cBshg0kf/6G8RSathfvpdCECIUept+OxJ8YmowG5JnEbWkLAl4SjtFA/A/QAZtMQT+gNHUADV0IBj1P4L659JyOsVIqMKPUwgtUWImDKRmNTL/pGKvL8mckxPvu/S4MBZ9n850OYsmEDWVGJ7CROy7Aca+jCivn4bT74fSQpotsSFeujbAoHJSlGYrns+t8CJjeRUM44a3pbMOlajJwANN0eUgquDiBNHptjHmBx9nDkjJHC5Aiy102zkVb+JlFw6hMJ/MAWaqf0u+yfeNkUdWYmq6NMhXMcRJjocNnDUQXbjJCKZ6KrPRz8cokpcqcu3x9DNFw2hl/0rH74VyRZBLJ/KNjbRLHOlk+T4YnjUsVY+hn08gCbCLJWgLzjg7gFN0MnpkJhuAyNRt4XA/nHR1rswQTfsM3xsNYmpbOSHWDCa72yOfwxTyjYzLLaKmm6WJxtqJnaZSaXNqKIyaphoWsqUP4BldXGeGFaD5aiQviU0IsFIQd7kot1gVWITJvc+eiyzKFR8OTKg3wn+z5UimlLj8ESqb4QGTA1lgFpDVRJmJMVlk28JEFhSkvkFSBQThFFRGGVDpK6JnSW7i6qggvJ7JYmKoXlb2Su8KnNfChdLVfUEaMFRLhcgTDMcf5nlyKa5sNGL36vzUo/HfS08yZsUPXZBFYCtH2g1Rm5WINqkhNQ2EWTedpdZ2VFcLFDtsOBF8UYKJgsqaydb1WiVqrg+m8hSuqPBobbteL+GiMunAd1R40XFdoOL8IYbHyk0XRjOFcPsrOzkInmpR4mvk8iClH8YuLxL4KOR6Vu5GGdGuHKUpqp5k6vZRe5igwF3RJGDuGm0dDkh3SuUsfMy71y61LMxYrs0QET7HtNNzZXrRS9a9PLz2Dg3AiBA6uWTZ3GUAO+O2uyLXTSS+jZVklKiueslkVhnNPx4e/2XCmSOQVIi7oCA4cigCnJlP58xnXOyPkAY4mA3q9tYFsFRWmxRAHVcAwcIPJ+uVrCv9ITQxjuiAOMx/XdJA3J0LKs7riCZxToT3POyLBeblgxViJu/pSZxsqrTRjj8j6mm06H2Y0XOkfXNHmANe2sDhFMiyiwDfofvBdWZbV5XLpWlD5B+FgVALa5dK26RnYlIOl6Fw8lWVxvKDKseW4w4bz3ADnkWoclQB3K9sU4LSDYVSEMUnYAD4ZlnNwN//gSg0H45K7cOdUjrezZmdAb+GYjicQUKZwQKPKRCVmyphP/jU4qeCA7Qz511nbSPkcIkmjVHnilG4C5wukghPUqIG5ZWrDjfcOuA23+wNwaibAscdtuG+9QLWmcJog5ujUei6pvKs0sKLLIzScXhOYHQ9KkPt5j9j50oKB+h2SJJElNr+h3TxhJLhIiDhw4bSN+jLY7FLPgcshQ+WxpOzZK7goDEZwCmM/p3FMUZ0qeRTjz3hKu5C+wFW5YnPg+O/hwoB+xmt/9lgHOLrwIFbZV3AHbqCjVZLayEoieoHdnv/4s6hz4IJ9nkMA4Ty5RnvL55bowBs1XBjFOt4AnD+mcywXXK/4Jw8bgtvfh9vrijuuwyNta6/gYKlqW24cDxe9bm9FUpzCI/2DvYbzQgCHwTLs4Xa7h3A7Gw7pYFSG5ofCK7hGwe0dOH4Pj0/h8riH86hRipWNmuZ6OK5MEfMlvJ1ruTgO4miAU7O4Jz5XVi5cEERXpf1gQBfMeZA2yKOoL+imvsGFsb62YB9fe+VumjyWYQvCENITA4fxxAswFKMNnn4OJ6vJrq0l/Pk0XJRHJvmUPrkcay04Dmy3omCHAytm4PiUDUdlGEV5SPkaBBef2p2ZbTkurteT/uDZI8sZu6HhDBzfc6+2elhnweXX/tjYL+GEnhRSr/YLWJX0cMG1Y0bFheC+79MZtlzQspaLmvkTK1248HLpbrdjd2sv3eUC0ZLfsd3egaO8mfPSK8P1cHip+cXWNXxmWIYYK/Msy2OOhyeYt5a7unDBMy6nDJc1TZ5E0pwA9WWq6ztQ0OV+C7fXcNQnleEGHbVx+0H2hf2Ii3CTfo0J255GJcFhX1zTFn71qLO2h9s3Ltz9aEJVF8pOcvS5jL62hV9wZT/PBXlXdgPbE3CBgSMBX+NT9oUNNgNcdG3r+tZ2oFt5N28e4Hq2CCuEmVd7dDBb62ZEdCDISlp1Yrpo780EewtO00UJsIH3VV6dNmPSOF0QqKVO1UrZwajkSxFlP4GD5BKX8/7R4VJctciS6R6v5mw2lZ4QWBh6SEeTQayD37Nsmo5wiE3BYXxpqtKfZQ8rm2E2CELlQcFSWrm32QguUnBGSOfPKQM8NGFMN1cqmWVz4BRVrOFgnPpEJxvdvb1/QLcfsQWWxeDjQbJQxczWFzoqOocj283x7WfhtMXooIiyZI50vtxwg7wuGjfe3689B5YUmf4+SXByyJrOEzqYsrNpd/peF17p/2nd2YJT84h51CyCPKHDAy95rj9/femKare8S2ebLsCn8uHxMCE6L/yOFSXARQNdMItzFw+eZ5UycYu8USugldFYLTN0lP68S/AcnEVJ/w+uqTLqrFk9ZoLZ8OxVlDm2e0V25KFaLa4RVrUdq/GwMVwLLMeiQIe9f4PbqU7pOE6GzuA1yNBsuvQV0XQwOvPiiFpunoLDwjs+AsZb795n4G2JYYmbjBKpYN7l+sf4It/OpduR62UrHaxjDMzWn5QAuDyaTnazJnzCdJzaBWDSS9o17uyGQzLGC1UxIG6aZ+FslkU6eoDmvK7+eNBEu8Vqf5suMWweOp0NM4TGnfsP3GxN0X18+Wqz4aXk9+B2Y0vN552O11l02YczMVYKxwBBtgxH2/sDxW5GE7r+yZivRN1HK36sTqymE77jSWPBLS19FsimePZHQ7b7ZMxkhcDeir6UwDmMymyAW0BbJBvRuYZHus/N5ngyPHYunMdZMzsVPEvmRJqxx8IrJp8rPEAwCVzvT5pMJZczcA+5XLq9Xi84fw+zT5lOGc6Bo12ayMA9qjc84JsmqOB1n6qzszIcGS5GuCia1Il+ATbA0XpuBBcn3Sfg4D0KEYwMl9CgnIzK36EZviAMQxtuh3Bh9/Z4qToVyniUS/DIsDlwL7CpZCeKLNPRg59wOiCrf1IZjK4myHXB35kIXmKjlxvgzINvh2PmxrFi1E2JNXRdOL5zEv5XcKaDc3iL7L0RBc0mORfXS2O3Gga0PxBNRuXLhgM4WtSrFzHh8u1wP2cuqsvtdunMYoBKObSh3Y/Kf7Kb/rhUPaZ/EVq1vhmukFy0t+Px9t9VcLX1GyZ51snm/xZODFzmwOFn+G6fK4Voj6jbRZgCVSfromxUcuLmla/B6e1yrGAHesLhHMYoZJfvRDvdUBruindPqjq1AS4zy3AW3GuAVG8Jm5xMR2wiD3j8Tjh2uygw0uUi6V7hqlFLZtY8EFhsr8Nx3HDF1+JCyqoKYvHO8jPrDNxNyu6iKm66xa6dg3ttaPbPRDocmFLeblUei/fGk6OCu0kB48SwKbgqmxmVr9HpwK8SA6AT4AltFovuvXs+h8sF4SSeZERPG9qYWJVPspNXY4r15Bi7g8Futy6DQNa+N/lCp4OPUf7Ubuc/ncOa21r9Rzicy5MW4Komibvje+EOl/8ut1PRl2p6ONw1zl+w3LThoQ9Ehq4BuLZp8vjtu1mn28l+h/77uhrW4PYi/BWPc6wXBEnV3rqmyeJPtzfYcHPx5IkBOIfm9jzAXFoBXCjW2u55BPdcoXL4lxYbbrE2AJeIn5XhFot6cx1udOn28dWZQ1uYL4dJ1jRJvtaN8fWN9u5VLB8My1GL/ghO3fpzpT5MfSRX5yd26eMBnmXaCbYFh3RButbeP6Vf4aTw9ZwBF2zasxFcvt75JTa02Mwnlr9jtNhU8zpYTqRr7Y0PPYlPlCzvn6lbgIvL1fq6NdykO+pFTeDyThbrnRGp3wUXE1zWHlY8/6JOhfyf4GzDEVzelWvCqQb1X6Rf9xxvMiozeVzz4BIdhP/tJP6s4aK2PK2H9mWOYo1M9zzO8O24dz3EVobjYd0GsDZ7HW7GbBZcJ4/Hdc8uqZPwk9LeP7LhqMwkGG5lOCte/oPppmwRsB3XPpeFB80mIeXf4RJkO6x9uyV9y5cnU7Cn2BAO2Y6r/zYiVshmumv8O7wJG9kNR+Xq45Ju//UP5b1RMAE4IevT8di26+WVfX1vNmA+Q6dW4fsxXCxKZCuxjr625VSCObMef5CG0f2VJr1ewCbL0wkL3CJqPYBjNS1Zp3TKMIt243zmIIxI6xPCSU5bqqutVPtvCpkNk92k3rDsauOmYECTP4qtFJ/pQHkIB6br8jt0s4jTQz40IhGN2Dg1D611Atmpr9ddthBUlg24YDXNRuXNcK1DPc5nyuo2m+0nfVLka/XhoNmkCjXYX7MOnCugq+b3e56RkIQ2sOmzE0G0zvnjsTMwuKYuuet2C0ZDsqI4aLaTspuGC+UaaJMYzQ74kUuR/Mp4QFb+KDJjOGQzszvArRBRZuYfpDvWJf1q8afoAp6WteHSbGpMqtxlPbjZBzHZPZ3qukzp97LNEqrbWqYptXu4ZEMs2WnTrQK3kDgwggMdDkVd0y99pJuPa53Vb4Csa2pjsckGNuFsaHlkOew1UnTmkosZ6U6Pw4SNfNbdrINouXpyOYgc72TzodhEU6upXHnvbKIEQdSuW/8aaUrHxnyu0cyIPB5vVThsuVLICaMVfmXPvffDoanwekD8TjPNkhHa8VBXUWzHIGALo88fXr0LR0PzeOudT/X83U6HqWw0bA/PbLoA728QRR9fGdyF055nrEeXjx1IpymWhfallk4m9Q7UrQ3wLPOnc+eHnyU7HW1Ru+bpPtoXNYlnGf5WtJhqzrpY5B+ctt7IgjhOR2DAbD0N8NoKf69pligbxpHwDu6LfO80Q+eSuTsdamzC/A+S+v7Q0efv/vKkj/d8I0pjs4VEB1ULla2tkKM8/4ZowJPrgRrsXoiH8anhYp/hzBMwjAwJy+MnFFLn2R8fli99mL+bjFlKbMHnu/Y+8HYKDlazH2+P+gRciWyx+PztJz7xZj9kt3L9W9q8Q4UU6Rr31fjIO7K6XmUL6zNwv42vmzZt2rRp06ZNmzZt2rRp06ZNmzZt2rRp06ZNvf4Hip9uwbYtHKcAAAAASUVORK5CYII=" 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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If Trump got 5% of the DC vote, that's an overestimate. He is
totally reviled by DC citizens, so security for his July 4<sup>th</sup> appearance,
if goes ahead (plans have yet to be presented), will be a nightmare. </span><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of
course, Trump will say he got the biggest crowd ever to hear his speech, just like
the crowd that attended his inauguration. He claims to be "your favorite
president." When he loses in 2020 (we simply cannot have another fluke
like 2016!), he can always say it's fraud, fake news, illegals voting, or
whatever. "This too shall pass" does give some comfort, but is harder
to invoke when our life horizon as seniors is somewhat limited. We'd like to
survive long enough to see it actually happen! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This is my reply to a friend favoring a
Biden/Booker Democratic ticket: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I'm not
crazy about Biden. He was not helpful on our Amnesty Caribbean issues when he
was veep and we’d asked him when he visited certain countries to put in a word--at
least, he did not do so publicly and never got back to us. But I would
certainly vote for him over Trump and he would probably have the best chance to
appeal to moderate voters, so, yes, I’d vote for him, but would like him to have
a female running mate. Booker is a very smart guy--if Biden gets the nomination
and chooses him, that would fine. Of course, there are many like me who would
vote for <u><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">anyone</span></u> over
Trump, which is one reason so many people are running, hoping to be "the one."
But Biden, for all his missteps, probably still has the best chance of both
getting the nomination and winning the presidency, Electoral College or no.
Several states are making sure <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">all </span>their
Electoral College votes go the winning candidate--they have learned a lesson
from 2016!</i></span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump’s travel ban
affects Cubans trying to make it in the private sector and also is annoying to cruise
ship passengers rerouted to other destinations:<b> Cubans Pay for Trump’s Travel Ban</b>, <i>Wall St. Journal,</i> June 7, 2019<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/cubans-pay-for-trumps-travel-ban-11559943888"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.wsj.com/articles/cubans-pay-for-trumps-travel-ban-11559943888</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Would-be American visitors to Cuba should complain to Trump and to
the White House, not that Trump would care, except maybe if they say they won't
vote for him in 2020. It's a mistake to cut off American visitors to Cuba,
because now, after the death of Fidel and the reduction in Venezuelan oil
shipments, ordinary citizens’ support for the government is shakier than ever. Being
able to meet and serve even non-Spanish speaking tourists would help undermine
the regime, especially if such services are offered by folks in the small, struggling
private sector.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It has become apparent that sex abuse is not confined to the
Catholic church, as Baptists are now grappling with the same issue. And so are
sports, colleges, Hollywood, government at all levels, international bodies,
other countries, in short, it seems it be a worldwide problem. Why is it so
widespread, universal really? It’s due, I believe, to a combination of culture,
testosterone effects, power dynamics, physical strength and force, and economics—exacerbated
by sheer inertia, shame, and fear on the part of victims. Women sexual predators
are much rarer, often teachers of young male students or another woman in a
position of authority. Now the Me-Too movement is confronting sex abuse and we’ll
see where that leads. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As for the abortion
debate, especially regarding early abortions, which admittedly are the majority,
I think pro-life folks should largely give up the fight, since medication
abortions cannot be controlled as a practical matter. Instead, they would do well
to focus instead on second and third trimester abortions, where Roe was more equivocal
and where public opinion might favor their arguments. I’ve already mentioned
having seen children born after 25 and 26 weeks gestation who are functioning
and personable, perhaps with some delays. A baby born after 23 weeks just went
home, admittedly after much special treatment. I do think abortions in the 2<sup>nd</sup>
and 3<sup>rd</sup> trimesters should be quite limited and perhaps be called euthanasia
if deemed necessary because of a serious fetal defect. They should not be
performed then just because a woman had failed to notice she was pregnant and doesn’t
want a child. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It also must be acknowledged
that there may be as many or more early miscarriages at the same stage of
gestation as an early abortion, a loss certainly, but not regarded as such a
terrible loss, especially if the woman gets pregnant again, although that will produce
a new and completely different individual. (We are getting into philosophical
weeds here.) Some women who have lost a pregnancy through either miscarriage or
abortion, go on to have subsequent children who might not have been born if the
earlier pregnancy had resulted in a birth. Each of us owes our existence to the
unique and chance uniting of a particular sperm and ovum. It’s the same ovum
(or sometimes ova) throughout a female cycle, but sperm comes in multiples and
if a different sperm had united with the ovum, a different individual, maybe of
the other gender, would have been produced, not me or thee. And feelings about
miscarriage in early pregnancy do vary widely. A woman at a session of a
bereavement support group I attended after my son had died lamented the death,
by name, of her 4-month-old son. We all sympathized, as she was very outspoken about
grieving the loss of her only child. Only later did I learn that her “son” was
a 4-month fetus and she had had no other children. So, different strokes for
different folks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-8991704877623699212019-06-03T15:12:00.000-07:002019-06-03T15:23:24.948-07:00New Citizen, Bambi, A Death, School Interpretation, Impeachment? Migrants, Latin America, Andrew Yang, Child Support, Abortion Again, Oxycodone, Bedbugs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCIKQNjVf8XDMYKc0WFzgohDerAqHM6WmVkbpwhsVyMN56efGyknS_WrJYjLkIosIkKLkCsVBiFW6f731yNBf6A8ptLeu1KJ4dkH2Ox3B7OaN_TWDpq20oOiWy1b39LI3RfwWEr2xe6K7f/s1600/Santiago+citizenship.+May+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCIKQNjVf8XDMYKc0WFzgohDerAqHM6WmVkbpwhsVyMN56efGyknS_WrJYjLkIosIkKLkCsVBiFW6f731yNBf6A8ptLeu1KJ4dkH2Ox3B7OaN_TWDpq20oOiWy1b39LI3RfwWEr2xe6K7f/s400/Santiago+citizenship.+May+2019.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
man who has done house repairs for me over the years finally became a </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">US citizen.</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> (Sorry for odd spacing and </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">for some places where larger type appears. Hard to remedy.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My
lone visitor now from <b>Bhutan</b> had
visitors of his own who are living now in NY State. They drove to our place all
the way from Rochester to pick him up and take him there. Their preschool
boy did some minor damage in my house which is not organized for active kids,
though I once had them myself. Bhutan, as I have mentioned before, is a tiny,
mountainous Buddhist country with only 800,000 people, just a little more than in
Washington, DC. It has a king, a queen, and a little prince. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here’s
something about the <b>young dragon prince
of Bhutan</b>: </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bhutans-dragon-prince-growing-see-140751138.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bhutans-dragon-prince-growing-see-140751138.html</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My
visitor’s nephews, including boy playing the piano at my house. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxr8ZQXLvZAzXOOdbtKQ6iOehyphenhyphenr8xoKp5QeLqyK2bqjitRCAlcmkN_OQo87Q4kkCtH-MFGehIZpiyocrZClnzSn14I3lqr_eVk3HR8ZEyiscQVTIjIeRch6izghiwpEhyphenhyphenOsgO7nXhZc0gU/s1600/Bikram%252C+Rochester+NY%252C+May+2019.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxr8ZQXLvZAzXOOdbtKQ6iOehyphenhyphenr8xoKp5QeLqyK2bqjitRCAlcmkN_OQo87Q4kkCtH-MFGehIZpiyocrZClnzSn14I3lqr_eVk3HR8ZEyiscQVTIjIeRch6izghiwpEhyphenhyphenOsgO7nXhZc0gU/s320/Bikram%252C+Rochester+NY%252C+May+2019.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Here is my visitor near Niagara Falls on his trip to Rochester. </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">My son</span></b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b>Jonathan </b>discovered a tiny <b>fawn
</b>when he was helping a neighbor with landscaping. He found its mother in the
roadway with a broken leg after being hit by a car. After checking
with wildlife services, who said nothing could be done to help the mother and
to get out of the way so she could retrieve her offspring, he did just
that and she limped off with the baby into the woods. (As I've mentioned
before, Jon had his left index finger amputated after an erroneous diagnosis, hence
his missing finger in one photo.) He sent the photos to his kids still
living in Hawaii, who are familiar with the tale of <b>Bambi.</b> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBR3ol9lnq51Anh61d1TrNypzRMjkJzOUqEyD0K3tuA3IvXaiJnwGAGMT79LxyBrCxjDfYnVqogFu9Sq21hihblGV2jXP8Ee-rozOKzL1MuyAri4ArdVJ9hrAMFkI1Fn0jx-YULg3ziP9J/s320/fawn+Jon+found%252C+May+2019.jpg" /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5I7gxylvlyySzrO72vu-8ywdo9P0GM49MBYFZ4qiVROOzSHyTKQmP1Mv0hJVwYsIVjK0Y8AHYgG8yzqHGQf5B2_LFnpYHQN59P5fBwRIQ6IUc20p-BM2Pz8ZbpBr1b5WdrOCRAaCOxf9x/s1600/Fawn+Jon+May+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5I7gxylvlyySzrO72vu-8ywdo9P0GM49MBYFZ4qiVROOzSHyTKQmP1Mv0hJVwYsIVjK0Y8AHYgG8yzqHGQf5B2_LFnpYHQN59P5fBwRIQ6IUc20p-BM2Pz8ZbpBr1b5WdrOCRAaCOxf9x/s320/Fawn+Jon+May+2019.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Just found out when I took an empty egg carton over for a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">farmer/vendor at Eastern Market</b> that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">he had died suddenly</b> of a heart attack,
so won't be coming back, such a nice, friendly guy. But when any of us dies, as
we all will, going quickly like that is preferable to suffering a long illness.
From now on, in our household, we will have to put our empty egg cartons into
the recycling bin. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At
a recent <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">school interpretation</b>
taking place on a rare Saturday near the end of the semester, I was fortunate
to be assigned to a group of mostly Spanish-speaking high school students, with
a few English speakers included who needed interpretation. There were emotional
discussions of fear of deportation, about what they could do as mainly under 18
non-citizens for self-protection, and how to get the most out of their
educational experience. Washington, DC, is a sanctuary city, but also the
current residence of Donald J. Trump, which has increased the fear level. Schools
were thought to also be sanctuaries, like churches, where ICE could not detain
them, but there was uncertainty about that. They discussed the status of a fellow
student, who as soon as she turned 18 was, then targeted by ICE, but, so far,
has not been arrested and deported. Is the Trump administration starting to
realize that for reelection, Mr. Trump needs to appeal beyond his base and that
not all Americans support his tough anti-immigrant policies? For now, at least,
most of the ill-considered “wall” plan seems to have been abandoned, although <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Steve Bannon</b> cleverly managed to have a
mile-long token section built with donated funds. Now a local mayor is
challenging the effort because the group lacked the proper permits and many <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>folks are opposed. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Japan’s Prime Minister <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Shinzo Abe</b> was wise to give Trump
a royal welcome that flattered and catered to him like the one he had received
in Saudi Arabia, unlike how he was received in London with protesters and a
baby Trump blimp overhead. And apparently the White Housed asked that name of
the docked Navy ship named for the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">late
Senator John McCain</b> be obscured, lest it upset the prickly Commander-in-Chief.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">No such thing as climate change? Trump supporters in
the heartland</span></b><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> are feeling the brunt of it
right now, as well as more tariffs, this time on Mexico. He thinks that by threatening
and punishing other nations—Iran, China, Mexico—he will get his way. Doesn’t he
know that may just harden their resistance? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump
keeps ranting against the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“fake news, corrupt press”</b> without giving any specific examples. He lies so much if he actually
told the truth, we wouldn’t believe him. Likewise, he likes to label political
rivals “low IQ,” engaging in schoolboy-type name-calling. Look who’s talking! That
<span style="background: white; color: black; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">White House
Press Secretary <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sarah Sanders</b> could
support Trump’s allegations of Biden’s (or Bid<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">a</b>n’s, as Trump misspelled his name) “low IQ” by saying that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">North Korean Chairman Kim</b> agrees with
him on that point is pretty ludicrous. (Kim’s a guy we should trust after he reportedly
executed members of his summit staff after Trump walked out on their most
recent talks?) How can Sanders and other Trump spokespeople keep a straight
face? Is toadying up to Trump worth it just to keep their jobs? And Trump
managed to work mention of Biden’s supposed low IQ into his press conference in
Japan probably to his hosts’ surprise. This comedy of errors might be
entertaining if its consequences weren’t so serious. Joe Biden is not a
brilliant orator like Obama or even a thoughtful policy wonk like Hillary
Clinton, and he is not politically correct (which might actually endear him to
Trump supporters), but he’s several notches above Donald Trump on the IQ scale.
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If
Trump were not occupying such an influential office right now inflicting major damage
around the world, we would want to show compassion toward someone so obviously
mentally and emotionally challenged, someone who apparently struggled through
higher education bolstered by his father’s influence and a fake draft deferment,
a guy who now knows he’s in way over his head. If Republicans did not support
him so mindlessly, he might be gone by now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I
agree with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nancy Pelosi</b> (a much
savvier politician than Donald Trump will ever be) that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Donald</b> seems to be begging for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">impeachment. </b>He’s not quite sure what it means, but he knows it’s something
bad. Actually, impeachment doesn’t mean the end of a presidency, at least it
didn’t for<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Bill Clinton. </b>Does Trump<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>think it would raise his profile as a
tough guy and arouse his base and fellow Republicans in his defense? Or is he
even thinking that far ahead? Trump has speculated about Pelosi’s mental
fitness too when she is a way sharper and better politician than he will ever
be. And she is right, why invoke impeachment? When Bill Clinton was impeached,
it only increased his popularity. Trump supporters would rally in his
defense—better to keep investigating and reveal his lies and coverups. Defeat
him at the ballot box and then let him rant about election fraud. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">With his usual lack of
modesty, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trump</b> did not credit Russia
or even his faithful voters for helping him get elected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“No, Russia did not get me elected,” Trump
said. “You know who got me elected? You know who got me elected? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I </i>got
me elected.” </b>If he were a normal guy, a savvy politician and head of state,
he would find a way to make a joke about the<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> baby Trump blimp </b>if it shows up again in London. But no, his hosts
will have to try to shield him from it because of his very thin skin, just as
efforts were made to prevent him from seeing<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> John McCain’s name </b>on a ship. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Rep. Lauren Underwood</span></b><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">, a nurse
and first-term Democratic congresswoman from Illinois, has accused the head of
the Department of Homeland Security of implementing policies that have
directly resulted in the </span><a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/border-issues/2019/05/20/migrant-child-dies-cbp-custody-border-patrol-texas-customs-protection-carlos-gregario-hernandez-vasq/3744554002/" target="_blank"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt; text-decoration: none;">deaths of five migrant children</span></b></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> in U.S. Border Patrol
custody</span></b><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">. Another relatively new Congressperson,
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Rep. Nanette Barragán,</b> D-Calif.,
agreed that the migrant deaths were "intentional" based on actions
taken by the Trump administration to halt or limit Central American migrants
from seeking asylum in the U.S. Specifically referred to were policies
separating parents from children and keeping minors in detention in sometimes
inadequate and overcrowded circumstances where contagion can spread. The deaths
were probably not intentional, though the policies that may have contributed to
those deaths <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">were</i> intentional and
designed to inflict discomfort. On the other hand, the kids who died had
probably originally come from very impoverished circumstances and had arrived
at the border malnourished after an arduous and exhausting journey, so may have
been especially vulnerable. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You
probably know about the case of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Scott
Warren,</b> an Arizona doctor who was arrested helping migrants. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">“Providing
humanitarian aid is never a crime. “If Dr. Warren were convicted and imprisoned
on these absurd charges, he would be a prisoner of conscience, detained for his
volunteer activities motivated by humanitarian principles and his religious
beliefs,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
<a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/05/usa-authorities-must-stop-criminalizing-humanitarian-aid/">https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/05/usa-authorities-must-stop-criminalizing-humanitarian-aid/</a><span style="background: white; color: black; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In Mexico, which at first had welcomed
migrants, most headed to the US, is finding patience now wearing thin and some migrants
are being deported by Mexico.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Mexican
President Lopez Obrador</b> seems to want to maintain good relations with the
Cuban leadership by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">making a special
effort to deport Cuban migrants</b> (who have struggled mightily to get as far
as Mexic</span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 13.5pt;">o), while Cubans who make it across the US border are not
treated any better than any other migrants. A Mexican priest helping
all migrants and running a migrant shelter, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Father </b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Alejandro
Solalinde,</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> has called upon the Mexican president to treat all migrants
equally and with compassion and not to selectively deport Cubans, implying that
the consequences for a Cuban deportee are more dire than for a Guatemalan
deportee. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Specific examples of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Cuba’s export of medical services</b> for direct payment to the Cuban
government with only a small stipend to the doctors themselves is described in
both my books. And the food shortage in Cuba and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">exemption of food from the US</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">embargo</b>
is treated in my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Confessions</i> book. In
both cases, I don’t cite statistics, but use the experiences of actual people
to demonstrate. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="color: #4472c4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1;">The hidden world of the doctors Cuba sends overseas</span></u></b><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48214513"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-48214513</span></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk9350820"><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></a></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="color: #2f5496; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">Shortages plague Cuba as U.S. sanctions sharpen economic woes</span></u></b></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="color: #2f5496; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />
<u><span style="background: white; color: #7030a0;">https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cuba-economy/shortages-plague-cuba-as-us-sanctions-sharpen-economic-woes-idUSKCN1SX1P1</span></u></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><u><span style="color: #002060; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">[Here’s an
alternative view.]<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="color: #2e74b5; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent5; mso-themeshade: 191;">The U.S. Bears No
Blame as Cuba Starves on Its Policies </span></u></b></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: -0.1pt;">Today, less than 25% of Cuba’s arable land
is in cultivation. </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "exchange" , serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">Wall St, Journal,</span></i></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="font-family: "exchange" , serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"> May
20, 2019</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "exchange" , serif; font-size: 13.0pt;">Regarding “Cuba to Ration Sales of Basic Food
Items” <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(World News</i>, May 13), Cuba’s
Commerce Minister Betsy Diaz asserts that the U.S. embargo forces the island to
buy food from distant markets, which raises prices. The “distant markets” for
about 75% of Cuba’s food imports are actually in the U.S. </span></span><a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-u-s-bears-no-blame-as-cuba-starves-on-its-policies-11558374532"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-u-s-bears-no-blame-as-cuba-starves-on-its-policies-11558374532</span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk9350820;"></span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Former Honduran
President</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Porfirio Lobo </b>(2010-2014)<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>is being investigated by an OAS body on
money laundering and drug charges.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/honduran-anti-graft-mission-investigates-ex-president-over-drug-money/ar-AABSvpB?ocid=spartandhp<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">According
to folks in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduras</b>,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> the current president, Juan Orlando
Hernandez, </b>may be involved as well as the former president. President
Hernandez’s brother is being investigated by US authorities for money
laundering and drug trafficking. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Now, the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">US
Embassy,</b> a place I know well, was attacked in protests over decrees by
Hernandez that his critics argue will lead to the privatization of public
services. The demonstrators were pushed toward the embassy after being
dispersed from a nearby commercial zone by police, though it was not immediately
clear why they attacked the building. They set fire to embassy gate. </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/protesters-set-fire-u-embassy-224748763.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/protesters-set-fire-u-embassy-224748763.html</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase;">TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO</span></b><span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase;">: OPEN LETTER TO CHRISTOPHER
ROWLEY PRIME MINISTER OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO </span><a href="https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AMR4904482019ENGLISH.pdf"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AMR4904482019ENGLISH.pdf</span></a><span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Amnesty International writes to the
government of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trinidad and Tobago</b> [within
my responsibility as Amnesty International USA’s volunteer Caribbean
coordinator] to welcome the recent announcement that a registration process
will be opened for Venezuelan migrants and refugees in the country and to
request further information on the proposal. </span><a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr49/0448/2019/en/"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr49/0448/2019/en/</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
TO KEITH CHRISTOPHER ROWLEY PRIME MINISTER OF TRINIDAD AND
TOBAGO Dear Prime Minister, I am writing on behalf of Amnesty International to
welcome your government’s recent announcement that a registration process will
be opened for Venezuelan migrants and refugees in Trinidad and Tobago and to
request further information on the proposal. The human rights situation in
Venezuela As you may have seen, just this month Amnesty International issued
its most recent in a series of reports on Venezuela, Hunger for justice: Crimes
against humanity in Venezuela.1 It details how selective extrajudicial
executions, arbitrary detentions, and deaths and injuries caused by the
excessive use of force by the Venezuelan authorities or by persons or groups of
persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the Venezuelan
authorities, may constitute crimes against humanity and require an urgent
response from the international community. This situation, as well as the
serious deterioration in living conditions and the systematic violation of
economic, social and cultural rights, have forced more than 3.7 million people
to flee Venezuela, and at least 3 million are in other Latin American or
Caribbean countries and in need international protection. Venezuelans need
international protection In September 2018, in our letter2 to Presidents across
the Latin America and Caribbean region, in the face of mass human rights
violations in Venezuela we called on regional states to provide unrestricted
access to international systems of protection such as refugee status and other
complementary mechanisms, to expedite access for Venezuelans to legal residency
with appropriate safeguards, and to strictly adhere to and respect the
principle of non-refoulement. (The whole document on line.)<o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Among the
lesser known Democratic presidential hopefuls is 44-year-old <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Andrew Yang,</b> the only one of total Asian
descent so far. On-line, </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Yang is described as
a wealthy philanthropist and the founder of Venture for America. He apparently
has never held public office. However, he has an intriguing idea, namely to
give each American <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">$1,000 a month as a
basic</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">income.</b> He points that in
red-state Alaska, the annual oil stipend for all residents helps lift up
everyone there and bolsters the whole economy. Since jobs are being automated
at a fast clip, such a provision would keep people and the economy going. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="pg-5fc2"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If
men are so concerned about women getting abortions</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">, it might help if more men were
willing to provide <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">child support</b> and
if legal and societal pressure obligated them to do so. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Restrictive state laws
on abortion have reignited the abortion debate decades after Roe, </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">while in that same period,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>other mores have shifted rapidly and
substantially, such as for couples living together out-of-wedlock, single
motherhood, gay marriage and gay relationships, and even assisted suicide. All
those involve consenting adults. But abortion may or may not involve another
individual, that is the crucial question. Abortion is not so easy to support,
despite prominent women who have worn the abortion label as a badge of honor and
the “women’s rights” rhetoric used, along with efforts to categorize it as
“medical care” and apply the tortuous label of “anti-abortion-rights advocates”
to opponents. What about just calling them “anti-abortion”? Such opponents are simply
against regarding abortion as a “right.” And some women have publicly bragged about
achievements attributable to their abortion. But many mothers have accomplished
as much or more. Abortion is not a sacrament; it deserves a more nuanced and
reasonable discussion than that occurring right now, but most political issues
are now suffering the same polarized treatment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pope Francis </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">has come out forcefully against<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> abortion, </b>having been somewhat muted
before and sympathetic to women who have sought one. I admit to having always
been very invested in my kids, whether they came to me by birth, adoption, or foster
care (Cuban foster son). And having tragically lost both my older son and
foster son, I am still protective of my surviving kids, even now, when all are
age 45 and older. So I may be more maternally oriented than some other women,
but I can still sympathize with the panic felt by those who find themselves unexpectedly
pregnant and be concerned about the harmful lengths they might try to go to
avoid giving birth. But the whole discussion of the pre-Roe use of coat hangers
and of maternal deaths, though some did occur, has been greatly exaggerated,
especially now when safer and easier options like the morning-after pill exist
and are unlikely to be outlawed. Some initially panicked women have gone on to
give birth and to bond with their children, grateful to have them. The stigma
against unwed motherhood has greatly diminished so now now about 40% of all US
births are to single women. But the overall US birthrate is below replacement,
which is concerning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In
my opinion, use of the morning-after-pill and first-trimester abortions should not,<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>and, as a practical matter<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">,</i> cannot be easily and legally prevented
and most Americans would agree. But, after that, support for abortion falls off
and I’ve expressed my own concern especially about abortions occurring later in
the second trimester when some fetuses could survive outside the womb and when they
can feel pain, so the method used, if considered necessary, must still be
humane. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Of
course, children become adults and adults come in all configurations. Some
become Mother Teresa while others may end up as Donald Trump or even Joseph
Stalin. And the so-called Universal Declaration of Human Rights, though I am a
long-time member of Amnesty International, is hardly universal or unchanging.
Families, groups, communities, and nations develop their own mores, which are
not static. In the stone age, males may have killed each other with rocks and
clubs and raped females after dragging them off by their hair. We are all
descended from them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As a frequent listener to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">NPR,</b>
I often hear ads for Raymond James, a financial advisory firm that my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">late son Andrew</b> worked for at the
reception desk in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, for several years. After that, he
left to work for a company changing truck tires going flat out on the highway,
a physically demanding job that resulted in a serious back injury which
eventually led to his death. He was awaiting back surgery and taking <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">oxycodone</b> when he died in his sleep.
Now, I am wondering if we should enter a class action lawsuit against the drug?
Although he was not addicted as he had been taking it only a short time, his
doctor may have been unaware then, 25 years ago, of its dangers. But the
statute of limitations may have run out and who knows where his doctor might be
now? I’m not sure I want to revisit the matter and money alone could never
compensate for his death. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Some
things never change, such as the lowly bedbug. Since even dinosaurs were
plagued by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">bedbugs</b>, it’s no wonder
those darn critters are so hard to eliminate. They will probably even survive when
humans are long gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-77898608210171926382019-05-22T08:02:00.000-07:002019-05-22T08:46:56.283-07:00Mother’s Day, Graduates, Statehood, Carter’s Accident, Trump to Host Migrants? Businessman Trump. McConnell, Latin America, Since Parkland, Property Tax Proposal, Sex Boycott, Abortion Rights & Wrongs, Socialism, Beliefs & Reality, Royal Birth, Churches, Testosterone<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqPm3g7RQZv5Xcel8oEXmlI_6Gx3M1aN1LF_66Xj-KsRqJ3bHKpyFgLMdSVVI1Wmu2OddE06kmUyUlSND7W1FL35jRKhvlPxGLy4RcFLgszDpsxoOV4qayHOqlg2gwMGdN9_MpHBAsN-4/s1600/Mother%2527s+Day%252C+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="778" data-original-width="1600" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqPm3g7RQZv5Xcel8oEXmlI_6Gx3M1aN1LF_66Xj-KsRqJ3bHKpyFgLMdSVVI1Wmu2OddE06kmUyUlSND7W1FL35jRKhvlPxGLy4RcFLgszDpsxoOV4qayHOqlg2gwMGdN9_MpHBAsN-4/s320/Mother%2527s+Day%252C+2019.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Above, Mother's Day in W Va. where son Jonathan lives,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> myself here with </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">him and daughter Melanie. Daughter Stephanie</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> in Hawaii sent a package that included a live orchid. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">[Apologies for any odd spacing, cannot seem to fix it.]</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b> My visitors from Bhutan
and Nepal </b>have </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">graduated
from a certificate program
at <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">George Washington U. law school. </b>The</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> y</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">oung man from Bhutan appears with me here. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Not having a TV set or ever having watched TV,</span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> I’ve been completely out of the cultural loop on “Game of Thrones.”</b></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b> </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">May
more billionaires follow the lead of</span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
Morehouse College commencement speaker
Robert Smith </b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">in paying off </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">student
loans</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> (hint here to Donald Trump).</span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #252525; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Southland
College Prep Charter High School is sending all its seniors to college in the
fall.</span></b><span style="color: #252525; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
It’s rare for a school to do that, especially one where almost all the students
are African American. But the south suburban Richton Park, Illinois, charter
school is doing it again for the sixth year in a row. Southland’s student body
is more than 90% African American. All 116 students in the senior class are
graduating this month. The students have collectively earned more than $50
million in scholarships, according to school officials.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hooray!</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> The U.S. House of Representatives
will take up a vote on <b>D.C. statehood </b>next
week – the first time the chamber has
voted on the issue in more than 25 years.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ninety-four-year-old
former President Jimmy Carter, </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">the
longest-lived former president, fell and broke his hip when he was getting
ready to go out hunting wild turkeys. Carter, as I have said before in these
pages and in my books, was someone I have known and talked with on several
occasions, but not lately. I do wish him a speedy recovery. Hip fractures are
not uncommon among older folks and often are a death knell, but Carter has
excellent care and, like <b>Ronald Reagan</b>,
who also broke a hip in his 90’s, I would expect him to recover. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Good idea for migrants being
sent to Florida<b>: Broward County
Mayor </b></span><a href="http://webapps.broward.org/newsrelease/View.aspx?intMessageId=11647" target="_blank"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Mark Bogen </span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">said</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">, “I would suggest that we bring them to the <b>Trump hotels</b> and ask the president to
open his heart and home.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">News headline: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">KARMA ALERT: Trump Appeal
Now Goes To Court Headed By Merrick Garland.<span style="background: white; letter-spacing: .25pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Savvy businessman?</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Trump fired back at the <i>New York</i> <i>Times</i> after the newspaper obtained his state tax returns from 1985
to 1994, showing that his businesses lost more than $1 billion during that period. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">According to the <i>Times,</i><span style="background: white; letter-spacing: .25pt;"> Trump lost more money than nearly any other taxpayer in the
country. Trump lost so much during those years, the paper added, “he was able
to avoid paying income taxes for eight of the 10 years</span></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 11.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">.” </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">(Ordinary taxpayers like you
and me cannot say the same.)</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "helvetica neue"; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">So, Trump’s wealth and business savvy are fake news. No
wonder he wanted his tax returns kept secret! He is a <b>fake billionaire</b> and probably a tax cheat like Nixon as well, but
on a much grander scale. No wonder he has been trying to keep his tax returns
and financial records secret! The emperor has no clothes and he may yet run our
economy into the ground as well.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "helvetica neue"; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Will his base still support him, simply dismissing his new tax
information more “fake news”? He is the true king of fake news, taking
advantage of his bully pulpit to spread it. He deflects attention from himself
by accusing his opponents of doing precisely what he is doing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Trump voters and supporters
have made the point that Democrats have acted arrogantly toward them,
disparaging their intelligence (“deplorables”) and acting like superior
know-it-alls. But read any Republican oriented on-line or print publication to
see very snarky disparaging labels put on Democrats and the “Democrat” Party,
accusing them of “socialism” and of wanting a police state like that of Stalin,
Castro, and Mao. But usually Democrats don’t express hurt feelings as
Republicans do. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rather,
to the extent that Democratic lawmakers might be considered socialists, they
envision socialism along Scandinavian lines, that is, with private profitmaking
enterprises existing alongside generous social and governmental benefits (and
high taxes).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With
Trump in the presidency, our country has let the fox into the henhouse or else
we (some of us anyway) have clutched the viper to our bosom. With one hand, he
gave a big tax cut to the wealthy who contributed to his candidacy while
recouping some of those losses through tariffs being paid by American
consumers. Meanwhile, the national debt has soared and there is talk of cutting
Medicaid, food stamps, and social security. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Being a <b>leader</b> means
being able to make decisions for a group, organization, nation, or the world that
others have confidence in and will follow. With Trump in charge, his orders are
not always carried out because it often becomes evident to his immediate
subordinates that his decisions are dangerous, blatantly misguided, or wrong.
The problem with Trump being thrust into a leadership role is not only that he
is breathtakingly ignorant on very simple matters, large and small, but he seems
to believe that he knows more than the experts in any field. Then when his
decisions go array, he blames others, or else the media for distortion. He tries
to act presidential, but ends up as a parody. Comics have quite a challenge
making fun of him, since he is already doing a pretty good job himself. Most of
us could better in the presidency than he has done. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In contrast, <b>Nancy
Pelosi</b> seems to be an effective and thoughtful political leader with a
long-term perspective. She wants to avoid or stall talk of impeachment or
censure to avoid riling up Trump supporters. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump is such an impulsive and thoughtless decision maker
that when the totally foreseeable bad outcomes of his decisions come to pass,
as with the China trade war, he now proposes subsidies for farmers predictably
impacted by his hasty decision, as he is starting to worry about losing their
votes in 2020. But <b>farmers are saying,
“We want trade, not aid.”</b> And what about helping not only farmers but consumers
too? What about the growing national debt? Even white men without a college
education might now start questioning their knee-jerk support. And once the
tide begins to turn against Mr. Trump and his base starts losing faith, it
could become an avalanche. He seems to be aware of that and looking toward
2020, has reversed his steel and aluminum tariffs and made a clumsy stab at
immigration reform in a plan crafted by his son-in-law. After being such an
unpopular president and having lost the popular vote by such a wide margin, he
would have to do a lot to gain the trust of the majority. Now, his off-the-cuff
and hollow efforts are probably too little and too late, despite the still
strong economy. The tariff war with China has already cost consumers more than
the relief afforded by tax reform. Trump’s base has grown very little since
he’s been in office. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As the field of Democratic presidential contenders continue
to grow, we are losing count. How many are there now? It seems to be 24 or 25 at
the moment. Each probably feels he or she would be a slam dunk over Trump.
Meanwhile, they can raise their own political profile and the issues they care
about and henceforth put “2020 presidential candidate” on their resume.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Four American tourists
and their Canadian pilot died in a small plane crash </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">off the northern Caribbean islands of <b>Honduras. </b></span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/4-americans-1-canadian-die-small-plane-crash-184408245.html"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.yahoo.com/news/4-americans-1-canadian-die-small-plane-crash-184408245.html</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now,
even <b>Mexico’s</b> initial welcome to
migrants seems to be wearing thin. </span><a href="https://nypost.com/2019/05/06/guatemalan-migrants-have-mexico-facing-a-border-crisis-of-its-own/"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://nypost.com/2019/05/06/guatemalan-migrants-have-mexico-facing-a-border-crisis-of-its-own/</span></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="pg-5fc2"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In<b>
Nicaragua, a jailed American protester<span style="color: blue;"> </span>has been
killed</b> in a scuffle with guards.<u><span style="background: white; color: blue;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When it comes to changing governance in <b>Venezuela</b> and<b> Cuba </b>(and <b>Nicaragua</b>), I
am closer to this administration’s goals there than on anything else, but not
necessarily on the tactics being used. The current leadership of those
countries is overdue to be replaced according to my considerable personal and
human rights experience. However, the lukewarm support on US Venezuela policy from
traditional allies probably stems from negativity around the world toward Trump
and anything his administration is trying to do, regardless of its possible
merit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now,
instead of the <b>“special period”</b> of
scarcity experienced in the 1990’s during my <b>Cuba</b> visits, it’s being called the <b>“exceptional period.”<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On a Spanish language on-line news service <i>(CubaNet),</i> accusations (speculations?)
have appeared that the Cuban regime, instead of helping Venezuelan leader <b>Hugo Chavez</b> with his health problems,
actually made them worse. When he went to Havana for treatment, it is alleged
that his condition was deliberately aggravated so that the more malleable <b>Nicolas Maduro</b> could be brought on
board, a man who would then be totally beholden to the Cubans. Chavez was not a
good guy and was ruthlessly repressive—I have known credible victims of his
government’s tactics—but Maduro has been even worse and has never enjoyed as
much popular support. However, it would be an almost fatal blow to the <b>Cuban regime,</b> now in power for more
than 60 years, and also to <b>Ortega in
Nicaragua</b>, if Maduro should fall and </span><b><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Guaid</span></b><b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">ó</span></b><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> took
over. And, yes, it would be a feather in Trump’s cap if that should happen, and
then I could finally give his administration credit for achieving something
positive. </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">We should hope that the Maduro regime will not last
as long as the Castros in Cuba</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">During the Venezuelan political standoff, water
and electricity had been turned off at the <b>embassy
in Washington</b>, while 4 American Maduro supporters remained holed up inside.
<b>Jesse Jackson</b> brought them food. Outside,
Venezuelan exiles, </span><b><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Guaid</span></b><b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">ó supporters, </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">created a protective ring around the embassy. Finally, the saga
ended with the arrest of the “trespassers.” </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Since Parkland</span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><b><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">#sinceparkland</span></b></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">, nearly 1,200
American kids and teens have been killed by guns with all their names listed by
the <i>Miami Herald,</i> </span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><b><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">miamiherald.com/sinceparkland<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another was just killed.</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Six early teen boys were at a sleepover in Illinois when one
shot and killed another, he said by accident. I imagine it was like with my
younger son, that the boy hosting the others found his father's gun and, while
playing around, shot and killed his friend. It could have happened to my son,
who was 11 at the time, but he was only shot in the foot. I would like to see a
comparison of accidental or malicious gun killings put side-by-side with a list
of people whose lives were saved by “a good guy with a gun.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">There
have been far too many school shootings in the US and too many shootings
overall, accidental or otherwise. Fatal shootings have become an epidemic. If a
distraught or disturbed 9-year-old can get access to a gun and kill his mother,
as happened in Michigan, then there are too many guns in circulation. The tide
of public opinion seems to be turning against the <b>NRA</b> and its relentless parroting of the <b>“Second Amendment right to bear arms.” </b>Death threats made by self-declared
NRA members against gun control advocates<b>
</b>have<b> </b>called into question<b> the NRA’s tax-exempt status. </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">DC Councilmember Grasso</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> proposed an extra property tax for
“mansions,” houses assessed at over $1 million. That would put a crimp in sales
of DC properties, I would imagine. And what about old timers like myself, with
50 years on Capitol Hill? Does he want us to be displaced? Our property taxes
are already very high. </span><a href="https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dc-councilmember-grosso-proposing-a-mansion-tax/15375"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dc-councilmember-grosso-proposing-a-mansion-tax/15375</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
call for <b>a sex boycott</b> (of whom by
whom?) if <b>Georgia</b> doesn’t change its
new abortion proposal is a little puzzling, since a sex boycott would
effectively limit demand for abortions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If
even evangelical leader <b>Pat Robertson</b>
says <b>Alabama’</b>s anti-abortion bill
goes too far, that’s saying something. (No one has promoted sanctioning a woman
who seeks an abortion, only the doctor who performs one.) Maybe the Alabama bill
was enacted as a test case to see how far curbs might be able to go. But with
abortion inducing pills available in the early stages, probably even in
Alabama, there is little risk of a return to coat hangers. Of course, as I’ve
said before, as both an adoptive and a birth mother, with my American adopted
children born <i>before</i> Roe, I am well aware
that they probably would not have been born if that decision had been in effect
then. So I am more ambivalent about abortion rights than many women. When Roe
was enacted, the matter may not have been totally thought-out or knowledge may
have been incomplete then, with more about fetal development known now. There
seems to be majority support for first trimester abortions, so there is little
argument about that part of Roe (except maybe in Alabama), but it may be time
to rethink practices after that. In addition to having known functioning
second-trimester-born children and having felt second-trimester movements
myself, I heard an interview with a woman working at Planned Parenthood who quit
after she saw on an ultrasound the fetus seemingly trying to evade the extricating
tool during an abortion. And 2<sup>nd</sup> or even 3<sup>rd</sup> trimester
abortions deemed necessary because of severe fetal abnormalities, that is, any
abortion when the fetus has sensation, should be done humanely, in the form of
euthanasia, perhaps with a lethal dose of a sedative or anesthetic. I’ve seen
many discussions of situations justifying a late-term abortion, but never any
mention of the means. There have been perhaps erroneous reports of crushing the
skull and extracting the organs and tissues for transplantation or
experimentation, or is that just anti-abortion propaganda? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At
the same time, a <b>fertilized ovum prior
to implantation</b> is just a potential life, not an actual one. It might be
held in frozen limbo for years; it might not implant; and it might even divide
into 2 or 3. As I’ve said, most Americans would probably approve allowing first
trimester abortions, that is, up to 12 weeks or approximately 3 months. The “abortion
rights” issue has not “flipped” as quickly as gay marriage perhaps because of
its moral ambiguity. “Death with dignity” or medical suicide in the face of
terminal illness is less controversial because it involves a decision by a
consenting adult, while an unborn child has no voice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As
mentioned before, I’ve seen very functional and lovable kids through my interpretation
work, born at only 25 or 26 weeks. The 2<sup>nd</sup> trimester is defined as 13-28
weeks, so I would hesitate to see approval of abortions then, especially at
that later end except for very drastic reasons. And if the fetus is born alive
after being taken from the womb, every effort should be made to maintain
viability. In the 3<sup>rd</sup> trimester, any abortion deemed necessary
should be in the form of euthanasia, perhaps with a lethal dose of a sedative
or anesthetic. I’ve seen many discussions of cases justifying a 3<sup>rd</sup>
trimester abortion, but never any mention of the means. So maybe in light of
new medical knowledge, revising Roe is justifiable, but with this court, who
knows? The issue is sure to sharpen the political divide. Of course, pregnancy,
like any aspect of life, is a continuum, not discreet trimester categories. As
mores have changed, most unmarried women who give birth keep their babies, so
very few give them up for adoption. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Any
student of history and comparative culture knows that questions around abortion
or any other issue can never be settled once and for all by the Supreme Court
or any other human entity. Right and wrong are not written in stone like the 10
Commandments handed down from on high, although some US lawmakers have tried to
erect stone facsimiles. Mores do change, as is happening now with the Me-Too
movement to the chagrin of men operating under the old rules. And the abortion issue
is currently caught up in a fierce debate. Roe was not the final word. I once
knew a man from Papua New Guinea who told me that in his country, it was a rite
of passage for a young man to murder at least one member of a rival tribe. (He
hinted that he done so himself.) Moral relativity is the rule not the exception
in all human development. And while many of us in the human rights movement
tout the <b>Universal Declaration of Human
Rights,</b> such rights are hardly universal or static. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From
the distance of time, I’ve been musing about my <b>naïve beliefs as a young woman,</b> beliefs fostered by American and
world culture about the light at the end of the tunnel, the treasure at the end
of the rainbow, and living happily ever after. “Follow your dreams;” “Don’t
‘settle’ for less;” “Keep on working toward your goals,” these hopes and admonitions
are still popular among young people (and those of all ages), fostered by motivational
speakers, books, TV shows, social media. and films. When I left home at age 16
to attend college (my parents were living in Colombia then), I felt emancipated
and finally in charge of my own destiny. I envisioned a life of smooth sailing after
graduation, following a very traditional trajectory: a job, marriage, a house, then
kids. I did manage to achieve most of it. Of course, I soon found out that the
sailing is never smooth for very long and that new challenges and obstacles
always arise. We can never rest on our laurels. Finally, in old age, I am no
longer surprised by unexpected consequences. And a life of unbroken ease would actually be
rather boring and make us feel pretty useless. I remember the occupational therapy
adage of the need for <b>”purposeful
activity”</b> (which applies even to pets and zoo animals). Perhaps that’s why
folks decide to run marathons and why celebrities end up with so many drug
problems, rivalries, and divorces. It’s fun to go on vacation or out for an
evening, but not all the time. I suspect that those who retire to Disneyfied
senior gated communities promising non-stop access to golf, movies, and dances
soon find out that life there is not all fun and games after all. Having lived
to retirement age, how can they have been so easily duped? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Speaking
of dreams and reality, it’s not very surprising that <b>Meghan Markle</b> did not give birth at home, as per her publicly
announced plan, but was transferred to a hospital. First-time mothers may think
they<i> </i>are fully prepared physically
and psychologically for “natural childbirth.” After all, birth has been a normal,
universal human experience occurring over the eons. So, before-the-fact, they imagine
that<i> they</i> won’t need any intervention
for delay, complications, or pain, probably considering the prospect of future
pain in the abstract before any reality actually hits them. Most births the
world over do involve substantial pain with nothing done to alleviate it, but since
a royal has a choice, then, if and when the going gets rough, it’s no surprise
that she would take it. Of course, just speculating here as childbirth
experiences do vary. If an infant is small or the mother has given birth
before, the newborn may just slip out, surprising the mother, who may not have even
realized she was pregnant. But that is rare. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On
the subject of the new royal baby, much has been made about his mixed racial
heritage. Already, his mother’s barely evident African American ethnicity has
been exaggerated and highlighted by her in her wedding ceremony. Her own mother
is also quite light-skinned. If Markle never mentioned her racial background,
she could easily “pass.” Her child’s ethnicity will be even more diluted. My
granddaughter, with an African American father, looks far more “black” than Meghan
Markle, and my great-grandson more so still, but they don’t go around touting it;
it’s just a fact. Maybe Markle wants to stand out more within the royal family?
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I
mentioned last time that I had attended an Amnesty International volunteer
colleague’s memorial service. It was held in a local <b>Episcopal church</b> whose stained-glass windows, music, vestments, and
rituals are very like those in a Catholic church. In fact, they are so similar
that a Catholic visitor from Nigeria thought he was attending a Catholic
church, when it was actually a local Episcopal church. I salute the Episcopal
church for its married and women priests, something which we Catholics
certainly should emulate. I say “we Catholics” with some hesitation, as the
pedophile scandal within the church has been very alienating and I’m not quite sure
I still want to remain within the fold. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sexuality </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">seems to be running amok not only with
scandals being revealed within the Catholic and other churches, most recently,
in the Church of England, but also among the Boy Scouts, Olympic sports,
Hollywood, radio and TV, physicians’ practices, universities, schools, and
elective offices. Is this explosion of awareness merely a recognition of “human
nature,” or perhaps a result of the effects of male testosterone boosted by a
culture of sexual entitlement? Based my own and friends’ experiences that it
has been going on for decades, probably much longer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Speaking of <b>testosterone,</b> female athletes who have enhanced
their performance by taking it have been disqualified. How <span style="color: #222222;">South African runner <b>Caster
Semenya</b> would be classified along a gender continuum is unknown, but she
is speculated to be intersex or to have a rare combination of X and Y chromosomes.
In any case, her testosterone levels are very high for a female and outwardly
she looks like a man with a flat chest, square jaw, broad shoulders, and,
perhaps, facial hair. In recorded interviews, her voice sounds masculine. So,
where is the gender divide? And what about males who transition to female?
Certainly, testosterone provides an advantage in both men’s and women’s sports
and so taking extra testosterone is forbidden. But here is the case of Semenya,
identified as female at birth, who apparently is not taking anything. Is she
just a lucky natural athlete? What if she were 6-foot-6 and played basketball? Would
that be unfair? Female competitors, no matter how hard they train, cannot seem
to catch up to her. The jury is still out about what to do about Semenya, but
requiring suppression of natural testosterone seems rather drastic</span></span></span></div>
Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-52592372300979846222019-05-06T07:49:00.000-07:002019-05-06T08:02:27.609-07:00Amnesty Int’l May 7 Cuba Tweetstorm, Bill Jones, Cinco de Mayo, Unrest in Honduras, Japan’s Emperor. Don McGahn, Trump Town, Saudi Justice, Border Insecurity, Cuban Justice, Biden’s Bid, Youth Threats, Indigenous Peoples Day, Medicare-for-All? Bauhaus, Losses, Mother’s Day<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 27.1pt; margin-top: 15.35pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">As volunteer Caribbean coordinator
for Amnesty International USA, I am asking everyone to join our worldwide tweet
action on May 7 on behalf of the rights of Cuban artists. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">ALERT!</span></b><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> Worldwide twitter action in
support of Cuban artists is scheduled for <b>Tues</b>.
<b><u>May 7th, 2019,</u></b> the anniversary
of the signature of Decree 349—our objective is to create a tweet storm with <b>250,000 tweets worldwide</b> on that date. So,
try to tweet to artists who have multiple twitter followers and ask them to
retweet and please keep on retweeting yourself on that date.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Cuba – AI
Twitter Hackathon Tuesday 7</span></b><b><sup><span style="font-size: 8.5pt; line-height: 107%;">th</span></sup></b><b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;"> May 2019 <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTbF_gXaO4Pc4qsBMWNIi6zk9bszWenaYj_rKx8t8QaH70SX5_s2wg9MGxfSaeHDm4mTSUEXSAKq4g85pFXMkGR-QgaAvt0rOJZUS-tPAJyZhy2R3OTBFVpD5hOpTYyNLQIiBaBHKA8HiW/s1600/Cuba+twitter+campaign+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTbF_gXaO4Pc4qsBMWNIi6zk9bszWenaYj_rKx8t8QaH70SX5_s2wg9MGxfSaeHDm4mTSUEXSAKq4g85pFXMkGR-QgaAvt0rOJZUS-tPAJyZhy2R3OTBFVpD5hOpTYyNLQIiBaBHKA8HiW/s200/Cuba+twitter+campaign+2019.jpg" width="150" /></a><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here are some images you may use or put yourself or a friend into the picture.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7jt6SeRU8vM6Di6uIHdpFxmbHFSlJmum-2s2_VOiJ51rfDQiorFTfqECx2N57pQZAZZXlVO3b2ablae8NOyDGyfiGif9HOQDtJ8y2Q3_u3PTfHGg55aZR8P-Ct_OJ_b8vlUHHfcCVG2H/s1600/ENG+quote+-IRISRUIZ-CubanArtist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7jt6SeRU8vM6Di6uIHdpFxmbHFSlJmum-2s2_VOiJ51rfDQiorFTfqECx2N57pQZAZZXlVO3b2ablae8NOyDGyfiGif9HOQDtJ8y2Q3_u3PTfHGg55aZR8P-Ct_OJ_b8vlUHHfcCVG2H/s320/ENG+quote+-IRISRUIZ-CubanArtist.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7SAtttY1bFvlCdGToxqfAqw1CmwmCQ-w4v1kVSdjRosFi9QLeG8penhy_4aygg8ojlWi63jvH3MH1fZXCV3LxWExhyphenhyphennGGp4rwJj6YvGPKulZgaKjuYIQFIJbThkrJiO2DsMeyJJjsLrGc/s1600/ENG+quote+-LuisManuel-CubanArtists.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7SAtttY1bFvlCdGToxqfAqw1CmwmCQ-w4v1kVSdjRosFi9QLeG8penhy_4aygg8ojlWi63jvH3MH1fZXCV3LxWExhyphenhyphennGGp4rwJj6YvGPKulZgaKjuYIQFIJbThkrJiO2DsMeyJJjsLrGc/s320/ENG+quote+-LuisManuel-CubanArtists.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What the Twitter Hackathon is all about<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">On
Tuesday, <b>7</b></span><b><sup><span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: 107%;">th</span></sup></b><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> May
2019,</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> during the Havana Biennale Art
Festival, we are asking you to take part in a <b>Twitter Hackathon</b>, to
raise awareness of a new law in Cuba which stands to censor artistic freedom. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Decree
349</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> was one of the first laws signed by
the new President, Miguel Díaz-Canel. It prohibits artistic expression which
the state decides is “obscene”, “vulgar”, or “harmful to ethical and cultural
values”. It forces artists, musicians, and performers to have prior approval
from the Ministry of Culture, and those working without it can have their
materials confiscated or suffer heavy fines. The Cuban authorities have argued
that Decree 349 aims to protect Cuban society from “mediocrity” and “banality”
in art. In reality, it aims to bring artistic expression in line with the
“cultural policy of the state”.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: yellow; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">WHY A TWITTER HACKATHON?</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">In
2018, president Díaz-Canel and other high-ranking government officers launched
Twitter accounts and created the hashtag <b>#SomosContinuidad</b> (“We are
continuity”). Using a storm of tweets on May 7th, we expect to “hack” the
official hashtag by highlighting what that “continuity” really implies for
artists in terms of restrictions on freedom of expression and censorship. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: yellow; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">WHAT IS OUR GOAL WITH THIS ACTION?</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
goal is to achieve trending levels on Twitter using the official hashtag to
communicate our messages. Therefore, all our posts must have the
#SomosContinuidad hashtag. We aim to have <b>at least 2,500 tweets </b>from our
entire movement and allies on the day of the hackathon.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: yellow; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">HOW TO TAKE PART IN THE HACKATHON</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">1. On 7</span></b><b><sup><span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: 107%;">th</span></sup></b><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> May please tweet the suggested
messages which target the President and the Vice-Minister of Culture, Rafael
Fernando Rojas G. You can also include the images supplied, of Cuban artists
who are speaking out against the decree.</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">2. Upload
a photo of you and/or your colleagues or friends holding a sign with the
#SomosContinuidad and #NoToDecree349 hashtags, and use one of the suggested
messages in the tweet as well. </span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 107%;">Suggested
messages:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
leadership of #Cuba might have changed, but censorship of artists and
restrictions on artistic expression are still the norm. Is this what the
government of @DiazCanelB means by ‘continuity’? <b>#SomosContinuidad
#NotoDecree349 #NoAlDecreto349</b></span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">We show
our solidarity with all independent artists in #Cuba standing up for a space in
which they can work freely and without fear of reprisals! @DiazCanelB
@fernandorojas_6 <b>#SomosContinuidad #NoToDecree349 #NoAlDecreto349</b> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">@DiazCanelB @fernandorojas_6 Artists
in #Cuba do not need to be protected from “mediocrity” and “banality”.
“Continuity” must not = censorship. They need free space to express themselves
without fear of reprisals! <b>#SomosContinuidad #NoToDecree</b></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Remembering Bill Jones</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For those who couldn't make it, numerous Amnesty International USA current and former staff and volunteers attended a May 4 memorial service for our long-time intrepid and fiercely devoted Turkey co-group chair and all-around activist Bill Jones. The event was marked by unexpected drama when a guest fell ill and was escorted from the scene by emergency personnel.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bill and I were age contemporaries who joined AI USA about the same time, though he may have joined a little before I did in 1981. He lived not far from my own Capitol Hill home and often generously offered to drive me to conferences after my own car had given out before I joined the Peace Corps in Honduras in 2000. On these road trips, we would compare notes of where we had both traveled, such as to Kenya or to the former Yugoslavia under Tito. I’ve lived in or visited over 45 countries and for Bill, it was about the same, but not always the same ones. I don’t recall him mentioning that he had been to Latin America, my own focus, and I have never visited Turkey, which, he lamented, was moving steadily away from democracy and human rights. Though we certainly will miss him, we were fortunate to have had his many years of service.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">Last Saturday was<b> </b></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><b>Cinco de Mayo., celebrated with friends with Mexico ties. </b></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Many apologies for odd spacing and jagged margins, very hard to correct.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><b>Also, this is a very long blog posting, so please keep going to the end--lots has been happening. </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Rioting
has broken out in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduras</b> over
plans to privatize portions of health and education services. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48103857">https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48103857</a></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> In
light of the news out of Honduras, I’m repeating the link to my recent article
on Honduran migration and my February visit there. </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk7881878"></a><a href="https://democraciaparticipativa.net/forum/estados-unidos-y-canada-united-states-canada/10186-from-the-other-side-of-the-wall.html#10933"><span style="background: white; color: #2f5496; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://democraciaparticipativa.net/forum/estados- unidos-y-canada-united-states-canada/10186-from-the-other- side-of-the-wall.html#10933</span></a><u><span style="color: #1f3864; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 128;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Japan’s
<b>Emperor Akihito</b> has abdicated. Years
ago, when I was a writer and editor for an occupational therapy magazine, <i>OT Week,</i> I covered a health-related
event which the Emperor and Empress attended. They were dressed in Western
clothes, not ceremonial robes. I remember wondering how I should greet them and
ended up making by an awkward bow. I exchanged a few words with them and, as I
recall, they understood and spoke some English. In any case, they seemed very
relaxed, acting like just plain folks mixing among ordinary people at that
gathering. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Former White House counsel <b>Don McGahn</b> comes off as an unsung hero
in the <b>Mueller report</b>, saving Donald
Trump from himself and saving the whole country and wider world from some of
Trump’s worst impulses. Fortunately for McGahn, he left the Trump
administration before the report came out. I wonder if Trump can block McGahn’s
testimony to Congress if he is no longer a White House employee? There seems to
be some hairsplitting in the analysis of the Mueller report, that Trump was not
actually exonerated, but was not proven to have committed a crime using the
usual standard of “beyond a reasonable doubt.” It’s not news when Trump tells a
bald-faced lie or contradicts himself. If he told the truth, we simply wouldn’t
believe it. (If he is really as blameless as he proclaims, he should welcome testimony
by his associates and employees.) Attorney General <b>William Barr</b> seems the perfect guy to defend Trump, someone willing
to manipulate and slant Mueller’s information without outright lying. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Since Trump is so outrageous and
unpredictable, he can actually be somewhat entertaining and he always keeps
himself in the news. But we need to put the well-being of the American people
and the world back on the agenda and stop the effects of the Trump administration’s
cruel and obstructionist and often impulsive actions. Trump allows himself to
be manipulated by those who flatter him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If
this is a joke, it's not funny: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Reuters</span></i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <span style="letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">added that, after the Jewish Passover festival, <b>Netanyahu</b> would ‘bring to the
government a resolution calling for a new community on the <b>Golan Heights</b> named after President Donald J. Trump.’" Was a
cartoon in the international edition of the <i>NY
Times</i> that resulted in firings really anti-Semitic? It reportedly showed
Trump being led by a leashed little dog called Netanyahu. </span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">It’s hard to imagine how Trump
could finagle a second presidential term, but, of course, we never imagined even
his first term. Could lightning strike twice in the same place? Trump
supporters insist that he cannot possibly lose with the economy still heating
up, but do most would-be voters feel the burn? It’s amusing to see how on-line
requests for money from both parties and ads from all candidates have metastasized
using similar exaggerated emergency language. <b>Mitch McConnell</b> in his appeals warns that Democrats are out to get
him in his upcoming election. You’d better believe it! He has been Donald
Trump’s most effective and deviously evil henchman. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Around the world, voters seem to
want new faces, supporting even untried and quirky candidates. That was Donald
Trump’s appeal in 2016, but in 2020, he will be a really old face. Some folks
thrust into office with little or no prior experience prove able to rise to the
task, but Trump, after more than two years, is not among them. Some
commentators have speculated that Trump was constantly belittled by his
overbearing father, which warped his personality. If so, sorry for him and for
us. We are all paying the price. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Trump’s hardcore voters feel he
is still really one of them, someone who contradicts all those highfaluting
experts, a leader who loudly supports the simplistic notions that many of them
hold dear, such as that batting down the hatches, barricading against
outsiders, and putting up walls while arming themselves against the wider world
will make them safer. They seem relish his ability to lie without suffering any
consequences. These are the folks whom Hillary Clinton all-too-frankly
characterized as <b>“deplorables</b>.” Fortunately
for Trump, the economy and the stock market continue to hum along and to
survive any monkey wrenches he throws their way, such as tariffs and trade
wars. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump’s pals in <b>Saudi Arabia</b> executed <b>37</b> people in a single day, mostly Shia,
by beheading and one was crucified. No comment from Trump. The Saudis are also
continuing the carnage in Yemen. Mr. Trump vetoed a measure supported by both
parties to end US involvement in that conflict and has denied the role of the
crown prince in the Khashoggi murder. The Saudis were smart to have given Trump
an elaborate royal welcome early in his presidency, something which apparently
made a lasting impression on him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">There was a recent confrontation
between armed Mexican and American soldiers at the border, showing that <b>Trump’s order to send troops to the border
may actually be increasing insecurity.</b> Likewise, Trump’s messages about
criminals and drug dealers have emboldened an armed civilian militia in New
Mexico wearing fake badges to round up women and children crossing the border to
ask for asylum. Glad their leader has been arrested as an ex-felon not allowed
to have a firearm. (He was later attacked in jail: </span><a href="https://thehill.com/latino/440424-leader-of-militia-that-detained-migrants-attacked-in-jail-report" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://thehill.com/latino/440424-leader-of-militia-that-detained-migrants-attacked-in-jail-report</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump’s
threats on a border shutdown and cutting off aid seem only be spurring migrants
to move more quickly to cross the border. Demand for workers in the US is also
contributing. But even Mexico seems to be getting tired of the flow, beginning
with deporting Cubans and now starting to deport Hondurans. <b>“<span style="background: white; color: #1d2228;">Mexico deports Hondurans amid pressure to reduce migration”</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #1d2228;"> </span></span><a href="https://abcn.ws/2XPgu07" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://abcn.ws/2XPgu07</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
few<b> Republican</b> lawmakers are pushing
back against Trump’s plan to cut aid to Central America. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Riding atop <b>freight trains</b> to speed up the journey
has apparently begun again, a very dangerous strategey </span></span><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/hundreds-of-migrants-board-train-mexico-risky-us-border"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.foxnews.com/world/</span></a></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/hundreds-of-migrants-board-train-mexico-risky-us-border">hundreds-of-migrants-board-train-mexico-risky-us-border</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">As mentioned in my
books, I’ve helped folks in Honduras get prosthetic limbs after falling off Mexican trains. Here is a young Honduran who lost both his right arm </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGlOhR8Aud_sVrJt_YIkAOpRLv-1nB6fEgZywHNQrVlUHxiXTmH3093HjpTIaxAa28DXKPm3pUSmeVmjfrebilZrcF21sTzAXzhjYOiVs_-KT9OitbAJ3H0RD3qfyxDg1hAvnVU2pzkBj2/s1600/Honduran+double+amputee.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGlOhR8Aud_sVrJt_YIkAOpRLv-1nB6fEgZywHNQrVlUHxiXTmH3093HjpTIaxAa28DXKPm3pUSmeVmjfrebilZrcF21sTzAXzhjYOiVs_-KT9OitbAJ3H0RD3qfyxDg1hAvnVU2pzkBj2/s320/Honduran+double+amputee.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> and leg falling off a Mexican freight train. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Beside the risks of falling off Mexican trains, many migrants
get lost in southern US deserts where their bodies may be consumed by
scavenging animals and vultures and never found.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cubans</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> who somehow make it to Mexico,
probably with help from US relatives to get to a South American country first,
are finding a mixed welcome in Mexico and are often put into immigration detention
if they make it to the US, judging from the pleas for assistance I’ve received
in my volunteer role as Cuba coordinator for Amnesty Int’L USA. And because it
is apparently easier for Mexico to deport Cubans than other migrants, Cubans
seem to be disproportionately deported from Mexico. <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/05/04/thousands-of-cubans-are-risking-their-lives-to-flee-to-paradise-mexico/">https://nypost.com/2019/05/04/thousands-of-cubans-are-risking-their-lives-to-flee-to-paradise-mexico/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile,
government and business spokespersons in <b>Vermont</b>
have countered Trump’s claim that the US is “full” by saying <b><i>“We</i>
are <u>not</u> full.”</b> So how about <i>increasing</i>
the number of visas allowing for <b><i>legal</i> entry</b> instead of cutting them
back? Infrastructure spending, if it goes forward, will require more immigrant
labor. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #293340; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">According to Trump,
“The biggest loophole drawing illegal aliens to our borders is the use of
fraudulent or meritless asylum claims to gain entry into our great country.”</span><b><span style="background: white; color: #293340; font-size: 22.5pt;"> </span></b><span style="background: white; color: #293340; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This looks like <b>Stephen Miller’s</b> handiwork.</span><b><span style="background: white; color: #293340; font-size: 22.5pt;"> </span></b><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-working-stop-abuse-asylum-system-address-root-causes-border-crisis/"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-working-stop-abuse-asylum-system-address-root-causes-border-crisis/</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Probably
a bigger driver of the Central American exodus is something Trump denies,
namely climate change. </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 10.0pt;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/30/migrant-caravan-causes-climate-change-central-america" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4; font-size: 10.0pt;">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/30/migrant-caravan-causes-climate-change-central-america</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pope
Francis</span></b><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">
is taking an opposing stance toward migrants, donating $500,000 for those stranded
in Mexico -<i> BBC News </i></span><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48081483"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-48081483</span></a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After my return from the
Peace Corps, I used to interpret telephonically for <b>asylum seekers at the border</b> but never found out about their final
rulings. I gave up telephonic interpreting (as well as written translation)
because I found it unsatisfying and now limit myself to in-person
interpretation. I can only imagine that telephonic interpreters approved for
asylum interviews (US citizens who must go through a thorough background check)
are pretty swamped these days. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Recently, serving as
interpreter for a family receiving therapy for a premie-born infant, I was
amused to see the 2-year-old mimicking the therapist’s moves with her baby
brother with her own doll, perhaps a future therapist? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Talk about adding insult
to injury, in <b>Cuba,</b> </span><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Aymara
Nieto,</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <span style="color: #1d2228;">one of the <b>Ladies
in White</b> who file out of mass every Sunday carrying white lilies, has been
arrested and sentenced to 4 years in prison, with an added fine for damaging
the uniform of an arresting officer. Four other members of the group were
arrested along with her. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Though the effort may
have stalled let’s hope that <b>Maduro </b>gets
toppled in <b>Venezuela.</b> His regime has
lasted way too long. He is as ruthless as <b>Chavez,</b>
but not as smart or as lucky with the price of oil. I’ve helped Venezuelan
asylum seekers here, going back to Chavez’s time. It would also be a big help
to the people of <b>Cuba</b> if Maduro were
gone. He is now being guided by Cuban agents and military advisers, as well as
by Russians, while the Chinese seem to be offering Maduro less vigorous support
and to be ready to work with either side. Venezuela is one place where I don’t
oppose the Trump administration’s tactics so far, supporting <b>Guaid</b></span><b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">ó</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "segoe ui" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">but no direct US military intervention. It may not be enough, as
Venezuelans are weary and hungry and not energized and most of the military, so
far, is hanging tight. It would a huge relief for the Venezuelan people, as
well as for their neighbors swamped with refugees, to have Maduro gone and
would also give new hope to the Cuban people, who have suffered under a much
longer and harsher dictatorship in an island nation from which escape is much
more difficult. Maduro and the Cuban regime are fighting for their lives,
taking out all the stops, but the only way the tide will turn is if the
Venezuela military does so. So far, Maduro’s tactics of impeding communication
among Venezuelan military commanders have prevented most of them from acting
together to go over to Guaido’s side. That <b>John
Bolton,</b> former Reagan and G W Bush advisor is guiding US policy regarding
Venezuela does not provide much confidence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After
my mission to <b>South Sudan</b> in 2006 please
share my disappointment after so many decades of civil war between north and south
at seeing that only a fragile and imperfect peace prevails in the newly independent
south. Reports to Amnesty International are that it is likely that in Jan. 2017,
South Sudan’s security forces executed human rights and opposition activists <b>Doug Samuel Luak</b> and <b>Aggrey Idri.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Though
I am not particularly thrilled with <b>Joe
Biden’s</b> presidential bid for a variety
of reasons, he might actually be the most effective candidate against Trump
because of his cross-over appeal. Maybe he can actually pull it off by winning
over some Trump voters. He seems to have eclipsed <b>Bernie Sanders</b> so far. He has also wasted no time in joining all
the other would-be presidential candidates in asking for money on-line, a
common, very cost-effective means of appeal that may yield some return. Many of
us, myself included, will vote for Biden if he runs against Trump. We would
vote for almost anyone running against him. The Donald calling Joe Biden’s
intelligence into question is pretty ironic. Look who’s talking! And if Biden
manages to get <b>Stacey Abrams</b> on his
ticket (so far, she has denied any such intention), then he would have a
winning combination.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Now it looks like <b>school threats</b> are expanding to those
made by<b> girls</b> as well as boys,
potentially doubling the potential danger, since many are copycat plots
dispersed by the web. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">And more <b>young kids age 12 and under are getting ahold of parents’ firearms</b>
and deliberately murdering a sibling or someone they don’t like. Do parents
really think having guns in their homes makes their families safer? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Good that six states have <b>converted Columbus Day into Indigenous
Peoples Day,</b> so far, Alaska, Maine, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota,
and Vermont. DC needs to follow suit. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Medicare-for-All</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";"> would
bring our health care system more in line with that of other developed nations
and help control costs, but the beneficiaries of the current system would all
unite against it. Not only would insurers and drug companies lose out, but
every profession has its lobbyists who work relentlessly to keep reimbursement
high for their own members, considerably higher than in other countries. During
my 16 years at the occupational therapy association, I saw those efforts play
out there and witnessed Canadian OTs coming across the border to earn much
higher salaries here. Most health professions have somewhat reluctantly agreed
to Medicare for seniors because they can still get higher reimbursement for
other patients or from seniors’ supplemental plans. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">I’ve chosen a <b>Kaiser health plan</b> myself to reduce
incentives to provide more care than is actually needed. Kaiser also has
instituted other cost-saving measures, some appearing overly impersonal, like
communicating mainly via e-mail and ordering Rx renewals on-line. But most of
us don’t need to have doctors holding our hands. If office encounters are
needed, Kaiser will provide them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">On the subject of health, folks of a certain age like me did not
have childhood inoculations. Instead, we actually contracted <b>measles,</b> chickenpox, and mumps, and my
younger sister who had whooping cough as a baby was held up-side-down by our
mother to drain as she coughed. I remember quarantine notices being put up on
our windows warning others to stay away while we were sick. </span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Amid the measles outbreak,
adults who may have been vaccinated as children may need to be revaccinated.
But folks like me who actually came down with measles should be immune. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">On the 100<sup>th</sup> anniversary
of the <b>Bauhaus,</b> a new book has come
out, <i>The Man Who Built the Bauhaus,</i> by Fiona MacCarthy. This
book describes the Lincoln, Mass. house where my family often visited Bauhaus
founder <b>Walter Gropius</b> and his
second wife<b> Ise</b> when we were kids. We
enjoyed running around outside in the woods overlooked by the home’s large
windows. It was a pioneering modern house built in the 1930’s after the couple
had fled from Nazi Germany. MacCarthy’s book also talks about the Architects
Collaborative in Cambridge, Mass., where our Dad and my architect brother worked
and the Six Moon Hill community in Lexington, where we spent several carefree childhood
years. In my own <i>Confessions </i>book, I mention having known
Gropius and having greeted his widow Ise in a chance encounter at a DC
restaurant after his death. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Even if <b>Boeing</b> fixes problems with the <b>737
Max</b>, passengers may reject flying on it. Cutting corners on safety and
testing may eventually prove catastrophic for the company, one of Trump’s
favorites. And government oversight is not mere “red tape.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Life continues to be a
series of wins and losses. Great wealth and privilege cannot protect against
even some fatal risks. A spokesman <b>for Anders
Holch Povlsen</b>, a Danish billionaire, confirmed that three of his four
children were among the hundreds killed in horrendous apparent terrorist explosions
in <b>Sri Lanka</b>, an island nation that
had remained fairly peaceful for the last decade. Who would have expected
terrorism to erupt there now?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Supporters of the Sri Lankan
bombers say it was revenge against Christians for the mosque bombings in New
Zealand. Now there has been another synagogue shooting near <b>San Diego</b>; is that copycat or revenge? Also,
that same suspect is suspected of setting a fire at a mosque. We are losing
track of possible connections and motivations here, but it does seem that
violence inspires more violence and that having more guns available is not
protective. In <b>Tennessee,</b> a suspect
was recently caught after he had killed 7 people, not all by gunshot. Then
there was a fatal college shooting in <b>North
Carolina.</b> We are getting numb and fatalistic about such common events. The
leadership shake-up and other problems of the <b>NRA</b> can only benefit the rest of us. Is it irony or bias that one
of the first times a <b>police officer is
found guilty</b> of shooting and killing a civilian that the officer is a black
man and the victim a white woman? </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Those terrible evens have also caused
me to reflect once again that celebrity, federal protection, and upright
behavior provided no guarantees against family tragedy for former <b>President Jimmy Carter</b>. Even as I have continued
to mourn the deaths of my older son<b> Andrew</b>
and Cuban foster son <b>Alex,</b> I’ve noted
previously that Carter shares a similar loss, namely that of his 28-year-old
grandson <b>Jeremy</b> in 2015. (My Andrew died
at age 27 in 1994; Alex<b> </b>at 31 in
1995.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">As a former president, Carter had
lifelong Secret Service protection and enjoyed much admiration around the world
for his selfless post-presidential humanitarian efforts. But he was unable to save
his own grandson. I therefore have felt a certain affinity with Carter, especially
after having met and spoken with him on occasion (even in Spanish, which he
speaks with a Georgia twang), someone who’d probably still remember me and who
has a copy of my <b>Honduras</b> book in
his foundation’s library. He appears in a photo with my family in both my books
and also with me in my <i>Confessions </i>book,
when we were election observers together in <b>Nicaragua in 1990</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Most of us try to protect the
lives of our children, grandchildren, and families at all costs and we should
continue to take all necessary precautions. Yet, we may still fall short. No
doubt Carter, having miraculously survived an aggressive form of cancer when he
was already past 90, would gladly have traded places with his grandson, as I
certainly would have with my son, whose gravestone is visible from my back
porch, not that I need any reminder of losing him. I pray that in my lifetime,
I will never again lose a younger family member—I’ve already paid my dues in
that regard. The death of my son and, the following year, of my foster son, as
recounted in my books, have been the worst losses of my long life. “Well,” as a
friend once observed, “That’s not all. You’ve also been divorced by your
husband after 24 years of marriage.” Yes, that was pretty hard, but nothing
compared to a child’s death, even if that child had become an adult. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">My young family member losses
are never far from the surface and something I would not wish on my worst
enemy. The potency of such deaths derives from an instinctual faith that
younger people will carry on when we ourselves are gone. When I hear of other people
losing their offspring, as just now in Sri Lanka, I do grieve for them. My own losses
have made me more appreciative and protective of my kids and grandkids, while realizing
that I have no supernatural powers to guarantee their safety from harm or even
death. Nevertheless, such tragedies have given me an appreciation of daily life
and inoculated me against more ordinary concerns related to money, appearance, my
own health, speaking in public or on the radio, lost friendships and lovers,
and the risks of traveling alone around Honduras or even walking alone from the
metro at night in my Capitol Hill neighborhood, not that all normal prudence
should be thrown to the winds. And I am also again reminded that Jimmy Carter,
the only US president that I’ve had the privilege of knowing personally, has shared
a similar loss of a younger family member, something that he was unable to
prevent with all the options and advantages at his disposal. The same has now
happened to star-crossed </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;">Danish billionaire Anders
Holch Povlsen.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 11.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.25pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">There are simply some obstacles and calamities that cannot be
overcome. Death is an equal opportunity affliction. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Here below is a photo of my son
Andrew, taken only days before his injury and death, squatting down to tend a
bar-b-que grill, and one of Alex, who died of AIDs, shown here after dressing up
our dog Claire, and also a photo of my family with President Carter in 1979 during
his presidency. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwbDYcE66e4AlKIEZc_E0oYZcVQVBw0V8h9iJRJ9CaObIXDRICo4gOfCihZEIQ41atQre_AMvtpBH0u_BBUO5OaghQwBCu4o7S1UfR3L6HKT4cTgMkrdUt4bbeTkZ5UafhL55wk0y9-cuV/s1600/carter+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="446" data-original-width="576" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwbDYcE66e4AlKIEZc_E0oYZcVQVBw0V8h9iJRJ9CaObIXDRICo4gOfCihZEIQ41atQre_AMvtpBH0u_BBUO5OaghQwBCu4o7S1UfR3L6HKT4cTgMkrdUt4bbeTkZ5UafhL55wk0y9-cuV/s320/carter+4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hWQTFXwMMUKynMRxHHTKREBlt6ojWzicIfx1lueoGGi7LpQy_tfTagROuCkf3g39hYnzSlMLmlr09dK6H7GN-FOPDI9qN1B7M0h1u6fTrrLTeK_rvJfYLvzQ6RLgS67QMnMrbAE5J8SM/s1600/Alex+with+our+dog+Claire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="702" data-original-width="987" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hWQTFXwMMUKynMRxHHTKREBlt6ojWzicIfx1lueoGGi7LpQy_tfTagROuCkf3g39hYnzSlMLmlr09dK6H7GN-FOPDI9qN1B7M0h1u6fTrrLTeK_rvJfYLvzQ6RLgS67QMnMrbAE5J8SM/s320/Alex+with+our+dog+Claire.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Segoe UI";">Best Mother’s Day wishes on May 12. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-6720408549038316072019-04-20T15:04:00.001-07:002019-04-20T15:07:34.121-07:00 Easter Greetings, Notre Dame, Rep. Omar Threatened, Mueller Report, Human Regression, IRV, 737 Max, Migration Tactics, Premature Births, Dreams<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8gTYtXxjzwk7v-SVOTdU-kVfp725tixnZtvTQE-r7srdjcQP7rMwFDZxLIq7KF-egpw2iR1a2D9QFYI-IiFXQYM87-uaenpyjVExfFWW0vj9EBEBzwjNU3eGntP_mnDJNDpT5iZMaFOlE/s1600/lanterns%252C+Aug.+2014+001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8gTYtXxjzwk7v-SVOTdU-kVfp725tixnZtvTQE-r7srdjcQP7rMwFDZxLIq7KF-egpw2iR1a2D9QFYI-IiFXQYM87-uaenpyjVExfFWW0vj9EBEBzwjNU3eGntP_mnDJNDpT5iZMaFOlE/s320/lanterns%252C+Aug.+2014+001.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Best
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Easter</b> wishes now with spring looking
like it’s finally here. Out and about on this sunny Saturday, the morning before
Easter, I was cheered by seeing a man wearing a t-shirt embossed with something
like a Fox News logo, except its inscription was <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Faux News.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For
those of us with the good fortune to have been inside the magnificent <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Notre Dame</b> cathedral, it’s a terrible
shock and tragedy to have seen images of it burning. Just because it had endured
for centuries, we’d simply expected it to always be there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump
has certainly gone over the line in directly and continually attacking <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Rep. Ilhan Omar, </b>including by falsely<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>linking her to the attack on the twin
towers and endangering her life. But few Democratic office-holders dare go boldly
to her defense for fear of alienating Jewish and pro-Israel voters. Many of us,
myself included, are not fans of Trump’s pal <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Netanyahu</b> and his policies toward Palestinians. Is that expressing anti-Semitism?
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While
many Americans had been hoping that the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mueller
report</b> would definitively nail Donald Trump, allowing us to finally get rid
of him once and for all, it now looks like we’ll have endure and just muddle
along until the end of his term. While he is not revealed in very flattering terms
in the report, his actions apparently could not be proven to have been criminal
beyond a reasonable doubt. We already knew what kind of guy he is, so nothing was
surprising there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">From
the Mueller report, it looks like <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trump
had<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> wanted</i> to obstruct justice</b>, he
certainly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tried,</i> but was saved from a
Nixonian fate by his own staff, who failed to carry out some of his orders<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">. I agree with Pelosi’s strategy of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> perusing impeachment</b>, as it would
only fire up Trump’s base and energize Senate Republicans, exacerbating the
political clashes of the last two years. Better to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">let the Trump administration die of natural causes. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile,
as I work side-by-side, as an interpreter, with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">therapists treating children for impulsivity and lack of consideration
for others</b>, I can only wish that Donald Trump had been subjected to such
interventions as a child. The role of a president should be to calm the flames
of controversy, not stoke them, and to bring about cooperation, not conflict,
but Trump goes deliberately in the opposite direction and seems to enjoy insulting
and riling people up. It’s too late now for him to learn more socially acceptable
behavior and he does get positive feedback for his tactics from the one-third
of the electorate who seem to vicariously revel in his freedom to lie, denigrate,
cheat, and exhibit cruelty to others without any apparent consequences. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Former
Florida Republican Governor and now Senator <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Rick Scott</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">is right, that
Trump “is trying to make everybody crazy.”</b> Trump has been doing that for too
long now. He wants a bigger military budget, as he believes that gives him more
control, allowing him to send more troops to the border without interference. Are
rag-tag Central American migrant families the greatest military threat our
country now faces? Unless more Republican office holders dare to step up, some
of them are in danger of losing their seats in 2020 because the nation cannot
continue on this self-destructive path. It’s disheartening that Donald Trump already
has such a huge war chest, mostly from big donors, which he began soliciting the
day he took office, and while he may be stingy about sharing it with other Republican
lawmakers, he needs some of them at his side for his own protection. It’s good
to see at least one declared Republican presidential candidate, former Mass. Governor
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">William Weld.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Besides
Trump himself, the major obstacle to political reform and renewal right now is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mitch McConnell,</b> a shrewd, relentless,
and villainous Trump partner. He has blocked Senate votes on Democratic measures
and on a Supreme Court candidate and he himself is likely to be reelected in
2020. Because Senate turnover is only 1/3 every 2 years, it will be hard to get
a Democratic majority in the Senate, as happened in the more representative House.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We’d
like see progress in human development--that humankind, as a whole, can learn
from past mistakes. But now, we are experiencing a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">regression,</b> not only in our own country, but to an extent around
the world. That’s very disheartening for someone like me who has lived so long with
only a few years left, hoping for a better future for all our children and
grandchildren. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
voting system called <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">IRV (Instant Runoff
Voting),</b> which allows voters to designate a second choice if their
preferred candidate does not get enough votes to win, would have spared us the
debacle of Donald Trump (and perhaps, previously, the presidency of GW Bush) by
allowing those who voted for third-party candidates or who were lukewarm on
Hillary Clinton to designate her as a second choice. </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">IRV is used now in Australia, Ireland, Papua New Guinea, and Maine's
Congressional delegation. Other states could adopt it. It was also used in
parts of North Carolina until 2013, so, it sounds like a workable idea, though
campaigning, vote casting and counting, and announcing final results might be a
bit more complicated and certainly different. There would be resistance, of course,
but I wonder if any organization or political group or candidate is actually promoting
it</span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">? And, while we are at it, let’s give full voting rights to us long-suffering
citizens of the District of Columbia</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It’s
best that Boeing is delaying the return of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">737 Max,</b> not only to protect the flying public but also for its own
survival, since another crash would be nearly fatal for Boeing and a big blow to
air travel overall. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Since the rumor in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduras</b>,
just now when I was there, was that going to the US with a child increases the
odds of getting in, it's no surprise that many <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">men</i> are traveling with just one child, though Hispanic fathers ordinarily
don't have major child-care responsibilities. They may believe that their child
will be their ticket to working in the US, where many employers are eager to
hire them for construction and farm work. In fact, arriving with a minor child
does seem to limit detention for both parent and child. The middle of the US,
Trump country, is certainly not "full," as Trump alleges, and has a
short supply of such workers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Yet deportations continue, including raids on industries that
employ mostly immigrant workers. I happened to tune into a segment of NPR’s “This
American Life,” where an <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">ICE raid</b> on
a small -town meatpacking plant both devastated and rallied the local residents,
most of whom had voted for Trump. Later, in interviews, they said that they had
voted for him because of his promises to get rid of rapists, criminals, and drug
dealers, not local working family men. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Now, on the 20<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Columbine</b> school shooting, it is past
time to reconsider US gun laws, and the quirky and relatively recent Supreme
Court decision enshrining the Second Amendment almost as the 11<sup>th</sup>
Commandment. The Founding Fathers actually never envisioned an armed citizenry
attacking each other or impulsively committing suicide, or, as happened
recently, a 4-year-old firing off a gun and killing his sister. Australia is a case
example of how killings and suicides have plunged since the enactment of
stricter gun laws after a 1996 gun massacre. New Zealand took only 6 days to
enact stricter gun laws after its recent massacre. But now with a Trump and
Republican top-heavy Supreme Court, any modification of US gun laws will be an
uphill battle. No wonder there has been talk by Democrats of expanding Supreme
Court ranks or even of limiting terms. (McConnell’s underhanded tactics to pack
the Court may end up backfiring.) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course,
with so many guns already in circulation in the US, it would take time for gun culture
and ownership to dissipate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After a <b>Honduran friend</b> just reported that her <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">car had been stolen</b>, I recalled many
such thefts there. One woman I know had it hijacked by armed men in Teguc, but
she wasn't physically harmed. Another woman had it disappear out of a church
parking lot where armed guards were supposedly on duty. A couple I met had had
their car hijacked in a rural area and had to walk to the nearest town. In all
cases, the car was uninsured, so the owner simply lost it--a big loss because
duties on imported cars are so high. Honduran car owners rarely insure their cars,
because insurance is simply too costly, instead just taking their chances. In
Honduras, you would never leave a car parked out on the street overnight. One
man with a newish car was filling up in daylight at a gas station in the
capital when armed men demanded his car and also asked for a specified amount
of cash. They were not very smart, because when he said he needed to get the
money at a bank, they stayed outside in the car while he went into the bank and
asked employees there to summon the police, who captured the robbers. After
that, he moved out of Tegucigalpa, where he worked, to Santa Lucia, about 25
miles away, and commuted daily to his job where he parked his car in a guarded
lot, left work early, and never filled up again at a city gas station. (Honduras
is also a living laboratory for the <b>NRA </b>contention that widespread firearm ownership
among the citizenry is protective, as the gun death and injury rate there are
through the roof despite widespread gun ownership.}<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I’ve previously mentioned that a child I see as
an interpreter was born after 26 weeks of pregnancy and is making good progress
in therapy. Now I’ve seen one born after only <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">25 weeks</b> who is doing even better and doesn’t even need any more intervention.
So contact with these children, who may have been born with initial delays or minor
deficits due to their very premature births, has made me less willing to
support late-term abortion and to be concerned about how, exactly, an abortion
at that stage would be carried out. Would it use a type of painless euthanasia?
A woman recently revealed on-line that she had decided to have an abortion at
36 weeks because the unborn had an anomaly incompatible with life, but she did
not mention how an abortion is actually done at that late stage, I hope
humanely. Obviously, I am struggling with this issue as both an adoptive and a birth parent, because if abortion had been more readily available to their birth
mothers, my adoptive kids might have never been born. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">To the extent I can recall <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">dreams
</b>right after awakening,<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>I am puzzled
by remembering my surprise, while still back in the dream, at something another
person in the dream had said or done, or by my having been tricked or misled by
someone else in dreamland when, actually, after awakening, I realize that I,
and I alone, am the only source of all the drama and of everything that every
character in the dream has said or done—that at all times, I have been the
puppet master. So why, in my dream, did another personage (an alter ego?) say
and do things that seemed to surprise or shock the “me” of the dream? Maybe a
psychologist could explain that. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-1110194156372289032019-04-14T06:15:00.002-07:002019-04-14T06:15:45.761-07:00 My Article on the Honduras Migrant Crisis, Authors’ Laments, Trump’s Appeal, Biden’s “Me-too Light,” Aid and Visa Cuts, Former Peace Corps Volunteers to the Border, Remembering Rwanda, Sudan, Cuban Baseball Agreement, Assange Arrest, New Catholic Archbishop, Abortion Again, Falling Out of Love with IT, Hindsight<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Here
is my recent article on the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduras
migrant</b> situation. <a href="https://democraciaparticipativa.net/forum/estados-unidos-y-canada-united-states-canada/10186-from-the-other-side-of-the-wall.html#10933">https://democraciaparticipativa.net/forum/estados-unidos-y-canada-united-states-canada/10186-from-the-other-side-of-the-wall.html#10933</a>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Recently,
I met with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">a group of a dozen other local
authors</b>, most self-published, a few not (but the latter, mostly published some
years ago). In either case, since none of us had a known name before writing our
books, it was not surprising that most authors have had to work hard to promote
sales with only limited success. The advantage of commercially published authors
was that libraries would accept their books, whereas that was rare with
self-published works. Probably no more than 15 libraries carry my books, which,
in some cases I have gifted them, often after a talk at their library. I once
heard of an author whose one-line sales took off after a celebrity happened by chance
to pass by the table where she was speaking and was photographed with her book
in hand. I also know of people who have ghosted books for physicians and other credentialed
authors that they could never have published under their own name. I have done
my share of radio talk shows and other promotions, but after talking at the Chappaqua
public library (in Hillary’s home town) the day after the 2016 election and two
days later in New York City, I really have not had the spirit to promote my books
or their arguments; Why promote Peace Corps service for older folks when the
Peace Corps budget keeps getting cut? Why talk about US-Cuba relations when American
foreign policy is so messed up? But if misery loves company, we non-fiction authors
without any prior name recognition found out in our gathering that we are certainly
not alone. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Much
of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trump’s appeal to his hardcore base</b>
may be due to a vicarious enjoyment of his complete freedom and the lack of
restraints on his behavior. He is able to brazenly lie, cheat, threaten, enrich
himself, mock and insult others, and change his mind without suffering any
apparent consequences. He reminds me of some of the kids whose impulsive
behavior the therapists and parents I work with as an interpreter are trying to
curb. Too late now for Mr. Trump to grow up or to learn more socially
acceptable behavior. He has been trying to run the country like he impulsively
ran his own business, relying on tricks and using Fox News as he used his TV
show, ”The Apprentice,” to boost business. If he runs and loses in 2020, he can
always blame “fake news,” the Deep State, and the “witch hunt.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Historians
will try to figure out what happened to make Trump’s presidency possible. It
was an accident, a mistake, a rare confluence of unusual factors. Yet enough
voters supported him to make it possible. While I don’t know many of them, I’ve
spoken to at least one, a man from the Midwest, who expressed a feeling common
among Trump supporters that “Now, it’s our turn after being dominated by the
coastal elites.” Is there any common ground to be found between them and us? I
keep looking for it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">From
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Yahoo News,</i> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; letter-spacing: .25pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Speaking
to a group of Jewish Republicans Las Vegas over the weekend, President Trump
referred to Israeli leader <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Benjamin
Netanyahu</b> as ‘your prime minister.’ The audience consisted of Americans.”
Is it an expression of antisemitism to be critical of Israeli policies or,
especially, of the those of Mr. Netanyahu? Can no Israeli or Jew ever be
criticized? Unfortunately, it looks like Netanyahu has (barely) won reelection
again. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">For
the public, whether friend or foe, Trump has been a subject of fascination, certainly
providing fodder for journalists of all stripes, as well as for the sale of
many knock-off products, such as a bona fide Trump mug for only $15! He is
guarding his tax returns partly to keep up the suspense, but also so as not to
reveal the questionable tricks he has used and also that his actual income is
probably considerably less than his boasts. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">So
far, a reported <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">20 (and counting) potential
Democratic presidential candidates</b> have thrown their hat into the ring.
Probably each believes that beating Trump is a slam-dunk, so why shouldn’t he
or she be the lucky winner? (Hillary probably thought the same.) Many voters would
support any Democrat who opposes Trump, myself included. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">With
more “uncomfortable” women coming forward to report overly-affectionate
greetings, in a sort of “Me-Too light,” by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Joe
Biden,</b> his candidacy may be over before it officially has begun. Because of
his age, he was already in trouble, even though he would appeal to Trump’s
constituency of working-class white men. A man who feels entitled to greet
women with overt affection is not only being overly friendly and familiar, but
expressing a subtle sexism or condescension, since he is probably less
affectionate with men, though apparently even there, Biden is a hugger. It’s
also an expression of a generational divide, from a time when women were
thought to need male protection. After <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nancy
Pelosi</b> advised Biden to change his tactics, he announced a change, but it may
be too late. There is also the unfortunate history of his aggressive role in
the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Anita Hill-Clarence Thomas hearings</b>.
Of course, Trump himself has received much more serious accusations regarding
women, but that is hardly the standard for the Democratic Party. Too bad, since
Biden would be a centrist candidate with appeal to voters of both parties,
including to some of Trump’s own supporters. <span style="background: white; color: black;">Or maybe Biden can still pull it off by appealing to the
wavering middle of the electorate, those who might otherwise vote for Trump if
a more progressive Democrat were on the ballot. At the moment, before he
is even an official candidate, Biden is polling better than the others.</span> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">If
the US government has <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">separated parents
and children</b> arriving at the border, it has a responsibility now to reunite
them, which has not happened in many cases. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">“Come here legally, with
a visa,”</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> the Trump administration
advises, but try now to get a visa! One of my visitors from Bhutan had invited
his sister to visit, but her visa was just denied. Last year, another Bhutan
visitor had no apparent trouble inviting her boyfriend to come, so apparently
the Trump administration is now cracking down even on visitors’ visas. After
all, as Mr. Trump has said, our country is full. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Cutting
aid to Central America seems pretty counterproductive if we really want to keep
other folks out (although US construction and agriculture could certainly use
their services right now). <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">More than 30
Senate Dems ask Trump to reconsider Central American aid cuts</b> | <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">TheHill</i><br />
</span><a href="https://thehill.com/policy/international/americas/437463-more-than-30-dem-sens-ask-trump-to-reconsider-cutting-foreign"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">https://thehill.com/policy/international/americas/437463-more-than-30-dem-sens-ask-trump-to-reconsider-cutting-foreign</span></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> National Peace Corps Association</b> has
asked Spanish-speaking former volunteers to go to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">El Paso</b> to help process asylum seekers. I wish I could go to help now
to El Paso, a town where I once lived as a child, but prior commitments prevent
me. </span><a href="https://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/articles/the-reality-in-el-paso-and-what-you-can-do?utm_source=National+Peace+Corps+Association+E-Newsletter&utm_campaign=6bdbc9bec8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_12_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_be0534d">https://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/articles/the-reality-in-el-paso-and-what-you-can-do?utm_source=National+Peace+Corps+Association+E-Newsletter&utm_campaign=6bdbc9bec8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_12_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_be0534d</a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">While
I am no fan of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">current Cuban
government</b>, as is obvious from my book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Confessions
</i>and my Amnesty International volunteer position for the Caribbean,<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>nonetheless, as I expressed in that
book and repeat here, I do support non-politicized educational, cultural, and
sports’ exchanges and so <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">would oppose
the Trump administration’s abrogation of the baseball agreement brokered by the
Obama administration. </b>Why make Cuban players take risks to defect and heat
up hostilities, thereby reducing the chances of Cuba’s evolution toward a more
democratic government? Dictatorships, like Mary Poppins’ young charges, respond
better to honey than to gall.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2f5496; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">Meanwhile, Cubans keep
on coming here.<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u> Inspired by migrant
caravans, new wave of Cubans seek U.S. asylum</u></b></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Reuters</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Tuesday, 9 April 2019<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://news.trust.org/item/20190408225447-thm9n"><span style="background: white; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">http://news.trust.org/item/20190408225447-thm9n</span></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Many Cubans are also fleeing to South American
countries, which is easier. With the low Cuban birthrate and so many leaving,
the Cuban population is shrinking fast. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">25<sup>th</sup>
anniversary of the Rwandan genocide</b> takes me back to the days when I was a
board member of the Rwanda Children’s Fund. We held public information
sessions, sold Rwandan artifacts, and also sold RCF t-shirts (I still have one)
to support teenage orphans in residential schools that became their only homes.
One of our members is now an official in the Rwandan government. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">In <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sudan,</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Bashir</b> is finally out, very good news. As
for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">South Sudan,</b> where I went on a
mission in 2006, before independence, it’s good to hear about a truce in the
civil war in that nascent, very undeveloped country. Formerly warring President
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Salva Kiir</b> and vice presidents </span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Riek Machar</span></b><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Rebecca Nyandeng de
Mabior</b></span><span style="color: #262626; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">all went to the
Vatican to participate in a retreat and to meet <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Pope Francis,</b> whereupon, he knelt down (hard at his age of 83) and
kissed their feet<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">. </b></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2019/04/12/europe/vatican-pope-francis-kisses-feet-south-sudan-leaders-scli-intl/index.html">https://edition.cnn.com/2019/04/12/europe/vatican-pope-francis-kisses-feet-south-sudan-leaders-scli-intl/index.html</a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></span></b><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Here is my own article on my visit to
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">South Sudan: </b></span></span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #2f5597; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-style-textfill-fill-alpha: 100.0%; mso-style-textfill-fill-color: #2F5597; mso-style-textfill-fill-colortransforms: lumm=75000; mso-style-textfill-fill-themecolor: accent1; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"><span style="color: windowtext;">file:///C:/Users/melan/OneDrive/Desktop/Barbara%20Backup/Downloads/Sudan%20article.pdf<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Julian Assange’s arrest</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> seems overdue to me. While some hail
him as a hero of secret information disclosure, I think he disclosed too much
information and perhaps did so selectively in an effort to damage one side and without
regard to the consequences. Thanks partly to him and to former Sgt. Manning, we
now have Donald Trump in the presidency<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Good
to hear that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Archbishop Wilton Gregory</b>
is taking over the helm of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Catholic
church here in DC</b>. He has not only been at the forefront of the effort to
tackle child sexual abuse, but he is also African American in a city where at
least half of Catholics are black. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">As
both a birth and an adoptive mother myself, as well as someone fairly liberal
on most issues, including gay marriage, I’ve struggled to understand the case
for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">abortion</b>, especially after the
first trimester. Therefore, I was interested to hear about Barbara Bush’s
notion that a baby’s soul doesn’t enter the body until he or she is actually
born, therefore doing away with the unborn at any stage is not the killing of a
human person. That’s an argument perhaps appealing to some evangelicals, but not
one I would subscribe to myself, though, up until an exit from the womb and the
severance of the umbilical cord, the unborn could be considered a dependent parasite
of sorts. Yet some that exit early turn out to be viable, including a child I
see in my interpretation work who was born after 26 weeks of gestation. He has some
behavioral issues that a therapist is working on with the mother, but is
certainly a fully functioning human being. Yet some abortions take place after
that time, including one recently reported at 36 weeks because of serious detectable
anomalies. One of my concerns, and something rarely if ever discussed, is how a
late term abortion is actually carried out when the fetus is able to move
independently, has sensation, and is able to feel pain. Some gruesome stories
have circulated, but I’m not sure what is true. From surveys, it appears that
while probably a majority of Americans support the right to a first-trimester
abortion, support reverses after that. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">In
lab experiments, a fertilized ovum is destroyed after 14 days, presumably because
then individual characteristics begin to develop. Of course, countless fertilized
ova are kept on ice for years. The new anti-abortion fetal heartbeat bills
would make most abortions illegal, since a heartbeat can first be detected at only
6 weeks. A fetal heartbeat heard by an expectant woman would make a powerful
impression. Technological and medical advances in the last century in contraception,
pregnancy detection, and neonatal survival have changed and expanded the boundaries
of pregnancy knowledge and opinion. In times gone by, pregnancy was often only
acknowledged and protected after “quickening,” that is, when fetal movements
began being felt. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
world, including me, is now experiencing the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">downsides of IT</b> after so enthusiastically embracing it. It seemed
like magic! It’s rare or perhaps impossible to identify any development that is
100% beneficial to humankind, however those benefits are defined. Both my
sister and a long-time friend, as well as a few other folks I’ve met, refuse to
engage whatsoever with the internet and e-mail, preferring to make all
interactions in person, by phone, and by snail mail. Of course, phone and snail
mail were once innovations and viewed with suspicion by some. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Back
when I was in my early 40's, as a rejected former wife with 4 kids and a Cuban
foster son, I was not only economically challenged, but also devastated emotionally
after being divorced by my husband of 24 years. He was a man of Korean descent
(hence my unusual last name, shared with my kids), someone whom I had married
at age 21, defying my family, and who was also blind and who had relied on me
as well as his own political talents to advance in his successful career. So, I
entered post-divorce dating life with some trepidation and this was well before
the internet and internet dating were a “thing.” My first new boyfriend had
been born in Japan and had been out of his marriage for some years already. He
accepted my kids and even my dog and wanted to us to marry. But I was new to
all this and, had just come out of a long marriage, so I was hesitant to commit
again and when inevitable concerns between us arose, I decided to explore who
else might be out there, thinking I might possibly do better. He died several
years later and I had regrets, imagining that I might have even saved his life.
In retrospect, I decided that he would really have made a reliable husband, a much
better fit than later prospects, and wished I could have taken back my decision
to move on, but, of course, we can never go back in time (whatever Einstein has
said). I was talking about this on the phone with my sister (no internet for
her!), who wisely observed that I was who I was at the time and always would
have made exactly the same decision based on who and where I was right then. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">We don’t have the gift of foresight any
more than of hindsight</b>. I don’t know if that makes any sense. Of course,
after my son and, later, my foster son both died, the trauma of my divorce and
any marriage regrets paled in comparison. The value of a long life is that it moves
on inexorably and the perspective is always changing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Of
course, Donald Trump is like Teflon in never expressing remorse, regret,
responsibility, nor admitting to a mistake. Whenever he changes his mind, he
denies it. A no more outlandish fictional character could ever be invented. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-56421176298818791732019-04-03T08:08:00.000-07:002019-04-03T08:08:13.405-07:00Spring, Old Friends, Mueller Report, Lock Them Up, Climate Change, Migrant Labor, Nordic Model, Anti-Vaxxer, Gun Accidents, Me-Too, Cuba, Peace Corps Budget Cut, Spanish Spelling, Neo-Nazis Too Close to Home<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV08NPqVyugSK_txRhyjuIyd3pE-EVIJQENX_C9FLq_tp_ZL_V6v-Eoc9MI_b4XviWvWymoVEHCUNrqM5Blw49zk8VSwh1u27yf2X_5IAKbUF4veo5NLMIk2s1RcKCSz4Nvl01i5Xuqo5o/s1600/tree+bloom%252C+March+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV08NPqVyugSK_txRhyjuIyd3pE-EVIJQENX_C9FLq_tp_ZL_V6v-Eoc9MI_b4XviWvWymoVEHCUNrqM5Blw49zk8VSwh1u27yf2X_5IAKbUF4veo5NLMIk2s1RcKCSz4Nvl01i5Xuqo5o/s320/tree+bloom%252C+March+2019.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFEaWYw7g2-bgT8fZ7xY7r90h7ZK6omAHPwoNSbn3Re8dlkFc07t4ZIKUsy7wpAQQqnp2CnNyaZZGAe4EUB90WEZhIFw3PR2T6q9muHLIeY1gPrkuc_mG14Dn_YtqiXoALk3RA8z-9Es5N/s1600/tree+bloom+from+bedrom+window%252C+march+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFEaWYw7g2-bgT8fZ7xY7r90h7ZK6omAHPwoNSbn3Re8dlkFc07t4ZIKUsy7wpAQQqnp2CnNyaZZGAe4EUB90WEZhIFw3PR2T6q9muHLIeY1gPrkuc_mG14Dn_YtqiXoALk3RA8z-9Es5N/s320/tree+bloom+from+bedrom+window%252C+march+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgQyfwB1RMg7Z2rkFGjqdQTd9zEFVG3xOQJWstIvaD8CMCYITpnDQ9SJ0cH-brv-SFCibEpXQVe_OVse1sUZ82Kl6qjOxa1HPy8aKSWhv2yErMT5fVD6EKoYxKgKYfplrD2tlbmxmn_KMa/s1600/tree+blossoms%252C+March+25%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgQyfwB1RMg7Z2rkFGjqdQTd9zEFVG3xOQJWstIvaD8CMCYITpnDQ9SJ0cH-brv-SFCibEpXQVe_OVse1sUZ82Kl6qjOxa1HPy8aKSWhv2yErMT5fVD6EKoYxKgKYfplrD2tlbmxmn_KMa/s320/tree+blossoms%252C+March+25%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Spring must finally be here. Here is
the first day of spring as seen from my bedroom windows and again, a few days
later. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
surprise visitor from 20 years ago, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Matt,</b>
rang my doorbell, someone who had stayed at my house before I joined the Peace
Corps. This time, he came from his home in Delaware with his two sons. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUpF-iyAlgWvClJdjntW7GNbSgYEhYoJcltUp_yYd2_BnYTBfZ1Z-da8S6NVJQP3CwKOYNHpgkPNGYyppnIRwClyyoHsOdP6Q8Huk6ZXtmzvMTDb_EVdRE5wpqoIJp1sewgP1TCDP-6gqN/s1600/Matt+and+sons%252C+March+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUpF-iyAlgWvClJdjntW7GNbSgYEhYoJcltUp_yYd2_BnYTBfZ1Z-da8S6NVJQP3CwKOYNHpgkPNGYyppnIRwClyyoHsOdP6Q8Huk6ZXtmzvMTDb_EVdRE5wpqoIJp1sewgP1TCDP-6gqN/s320/Matt+and+sons%252C+March+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Another
visitor, who used to live in the DC area and was always active in promoting
human rights, is now retired to Minnesota. She is </span><b style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Sister Alice,</b><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> who recently celebrated her 93</span><sup style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">rd</sup><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> birthday
at Communitas, a local Catholic community gathering. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBSa2Eqp5qHckq98U7iaxbTUCyYtKHxKg4NOShV09QXZraLCEhlDD1_ewgFf_op1t9Qbt6Na7K6uZkqwJq3Qv7pjhACZbCUyIK_xw_IzfGVRiW0Siqm7Qn0hpRcAY70BW0BAlKYjbHhUSP/s1600/Sister+Alice+and+Barbara.+March+31%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBSa2Eqp5qHckq98U7iaxbTUCyYtKHxKg4NOShV09QXZraLCEhlDD1_ewgFf_op1t9Qbt6Na7K6uZkqwJq3Qv7pjhACZbCUyIK_xw_IzfGVRiW0Siqm7Qn0hpRcAY70BW0BAlKYjbHhUSP/s320/Sister+Alice+and+Barbara.+March+31%252C+2019.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsiN1XJcUXVbvBqSbW6sWR39MITQDiwRID-VcC__A96FQhGB8NsMMQEhpnjK0dmvwhrKUKmCZJeyxV12mklEujxdBtIpi4Z2TyHlTjSsPvpp9OF_TKP1f5F-SQcLJu0gAHJlrcC-BIDux-/s1600/Sister+Alice%2527s+Communitas+lunch%252C+3-31-2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsiN1XJcUXVbvBqSbW6sWR39MITQDiwRID-VcC__A96FQhGB8NsMMQEhpnjK0dmvwhrKUKmCZJeyxV12mklEujxdBtIpi4Z2TyHlTjSsPvpp9OF_TKP1f5F-SQcLJu0gAHJlrcC-BIDux-/s320/Sister+Alice%2527s+Communitas+lunch%252C+3-31-2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here’s
an article about a woman living in Vermont whom I have known all my life, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Wanda Johnson,</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">now age 104</b>! I always send chewable goodies for her to share at her
birthday party. Wanda is fortunate that, at her age, her three children are all
still living. (My late son Andrew is alive and well only in my dreams.) </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.montpelierbridge.com/2019/03/from-egypt-to-vermont-wanda-johnsons-transoceanic-love-story/">http://www.montpelierbridge.com/2019/03/from-egypt-to-vermont-wanda-johnsons-transoceanic-love-story/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While
we are on the subject of old friends, I am an older person, a friend of readers
of this blog, who recently had a birthday, but I won’t say which one, shown
being celebrated here with daughter <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Melanie.</b></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipZpHCD4e8osymzY1DhpdsVZcKcr1YQ6JRjIj_wZMRpNphpNHcsZCXRH-muJJUCV8tG0v-ikU4zDSboGfGlqxrT1NzmaibPB1WrbcbtFywj3cYNZMJP5hXPRllVlAfAFvcNthEbwa8jFrM/s1600/Barbara+and+Melanie.+B%2527s+81st+B%2527day+2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="778" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipZpHCD4e8osymzY1DhpdsVZcKcr1YQ6JRjIj_wZMRpNphpNHcsZCXRH-muJJUCV8tG0v-ikU4zDSboGfGlqxrT1NzmaibPB1WrbcbtFywj3cYNZMJP5hXPRllVlAfAFvcNthEbwa8jFrM/s400/Barbara+and+Melanie.+B%2527s+81st+B%2527day+2019.jpg" width="193" /></a></b></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Meanwhile,
another good friend, </span><b style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Bill Jones,</b><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> with
whom I worked side-by-side, both of us as longtime volunteers with Amnesty
International USA, has died. Bill was in charge of Turkey and often picked me
up in his car to drive us to regional conferences. Our lives had intersected at
various junctures around the world, including in the former Yugoslavia. He
lived in SW DC and his memorial service will be held at a church here on Capitol
Hill. </span><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As
board president, I just received a notice from DC government that the tax
exemption for our adoption agency, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Children’s
Adoption Support Services,</b> was expiring. Our agency actually expired long
ago. We founded that agency with the late <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Hope
Marindin,</b> herself the single adoptive mother of three children, including one
from Vietnam. I once wrote an article about Hope, a single adoption pioneer,
and her kids that appeared in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Washington
Post.</i> Alas, adoption, especially international adoption, has been caught up
in politics (remember Don Jr.’s meeting with the Russians?) and excessive red
tape originally intended to protect children, also has been eclipsed by international
surrogacy. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Robert Mueller</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> has submitted his final report, which
apparently neither exonerates nor indicts Trump, though few have actually seen
it. There is apparently neither a smoking gun nor a clean bill of presidential conduct.
It looks like we will have to endure having Trump in office for <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">two more years</i> and simply keep on trying
to mitigate the damage. We got through the last two years despite considerable harm
done to so many people and we will have to continue to do the same now. As much
as a majority of Americans would dearly love to see Mr. Trump <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gone,
gone, gone</i></b>, it may be hard to prove that he actually committed a criminal
offense, especially as he is protected as president and refuses to answer questions
orally under oath. His has been a destructive and deliberately cruel presidency,
mitigated, to some extent by the inexperience of his staff and his own stupidity.
Right-wing websites and messages are now gleefully declaring that Trump has been “vindicated
“and “fully exonerated,” hardly the case. Sarah Sanders has labeled the whole investigation
“treason.” Trump also has alleged “treason” and “evil” acts, vowing to investigate.
But a conclusion that may not meet the high bar for proving criminal intent “beyond
a reasonable doubt” hardly proves innocence. His son and others seem to have <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tried </i>to collude with Russia, but were
unsuccessful. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now,
for a specified donation, right-wing websites are offering a chance to win a dinner
with a triumphant Trump! (I cannot imagine anything less appealing!) Trump’s
adversaries are being described as “radical leftists” bent on obstruction to advance
their nefarious “socialist” agenda. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump
and Republicans seized the advantage that Barr gave them and were quick to spin
the Mueller report as an issue that’s now over and done with, the end, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">finis,</i> a final and complete vindication
of Trump, thanks to Barr’s carefully worded initial summary, leaving that impression
with the voting public before the full report is actually released, if ever. McConnell
is already vowing to block release of the full report. If and when it is released
and Democrats delve into the details, that PR impression will have already been
cemented in the weary public’s mind. Democrats may then be accused of knit-picking
and ganging up on Trump after Barr already had seemed to have declared him innocent.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Lock ‘em up! Jared and
Ivanka</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> apparently have
used personal e-mail for government business and persist in doing so. Donald
has not even publicly scolded them so far. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Conways’ family feud</b> has given us a
little comic relief. I can imagine the two of them laughing at home together at
having fooled both the public and Donald Trump with their show. Meanwhile,
Kellyanne is bringing home the bacon to support the family and there is always the
prospect of her own future tell-all book. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Catastrophic climate change</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> seems to be happening all around the country
and the world, but Trump appears not to have noticed. He does make perfunctory
trips to the scenes of environmental catastrophe, along with a stone-faced and
seldom seen Melania (almost her only recent public appearances), whenever red
states are afflicted. Are continuing weather extremes merely unlucky twists of
fate that Mr. Trump is helpless to confront? Most of us already know the answer,
even if he does not. Tough luck, Puerto Rico; blind fate simply assaulted you
folks who are not really Americans anyway and President Trump is apparently helpless
to confront climate change. And as the man continues to rail against dead war hero
Senator John McCain, it’s time for the public to tell Trump, “Just shut up for
a change!” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Migrant labor shortages</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> have contributed to the woes of agriculture
and dairy producing states already taking a big hit from Trump’s tariffs, also affecting
shortages in child and elder care. Only recently, because of press scrutiny (“fake
news”?), have Trump properties actually fired undocumented workers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2019/03/29/mexico-warns-mother-of-all-caravans-headed-toward-us/">https://nypost.com/2019/03/29/mexico-warns-mother-of-all-caravans-headed-toward-us/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/436459-trump-threatens-to-close-mexican-border-next-week" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4;">https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/436459-trump-threatens-to-close-mexican-border-next-week</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">labor shortages</b> abound in agriculture
and construction, where the lack of foreign workers are being felt most acutely
right now, eventually, as machines and self-driving vehicles become more
efficient and reliable, human labor will then be less in demand. Autopilots
will largely replace human pilots as Boeing and other manufacturers figure that
out. It’s even happening in my own current sphere with computer translation. Health
and service jobs will still exist, but everyone should have more free time. Then
it will make sense to move ever closer to the Nordic model of levying substantial
taxes and providing basic benefits universally. Republicans and Mr. Trump (trying
to mimic aspects of historic socialism by curbing free press and speech) can
call the Nordic model “socialism” if they like, but it won’t be a governmental
dictatorship, as in the former USSR or even contemporary China, or in Cuba and
Venezuela where free speech, free press, and free voting are not allowed. Instead,
Nordic nations have shown the way by allowing considerable freedom for economic
development and free expression, but a more equitable distribution of income from
taxes, demonstrating that such a system is do-able in the modern world. We would
no longer need to have the big gap that now exists between the uber-wealthy and
the have-nots. There will still be enough challenges to fulfill what my old occupational
therapy colleagues call “meaningful activity.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Although
it is a smaller and less prosperous country than the US, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Colombia,</b> unlike the US, is doing its best to accommodate Venezuelans
streaming across its borders to escape the Maduro regime, no walls, no threats
to shut down the border, no sending people back. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Anti-vax Kentucky Governor
Matt Bevin</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> boasted that
he deliberately exposed his children to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">chickenpox</b>
to avoid vaccinations. He was lucky, as they all apparently survived unscathed.
Chicken pox is a childhood disease that’s usually less serious as some others,
such measles, which can have more dire or even fatal consequences. However,
even chickenpox is not totally benign. During my 3 1/2-year tenure as a Peace Corps
health volunteer in Honduras, I saw cases of kids who suffered lasting injury from
chicken pox, including a formerly healthy teenage girl who became permanently
paraplegic. I helped fit her for a wheelchair. Besides the risks that anti-vaxxers
may inflict on their own offspring, they are also preventing the development of
the herd immunity that protects those unable to be vaccinated because of
serious health problems.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Country
singer <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Justin Carter</b> was killed by
the accidental firing of a gun used as a prop in a music video, another example
of how an accidental gun death can so easily occur. A little girl playing in
her back yard in Tennessee is also near death after being hit in the head by a stray
bullet. New Zealand’s swift action on gun control has been an example to other nations.
We literally dodged a bullet in my family when son Jon was only shot in the
foot, not killed instantly at age 11 by an unsecured bedside handgun dropped by
another boy. (It’s more than enough that I’ve endured the deaths of my older son
and my Cuban foster son). Two apparent suicides by survivors have resulted from
the Parkland, Florida, school shooting, becoming further casualties of that
attack, and another suicide was reported by the father of a Sandy Hook victim. Vigilance
is required to assure that this suicide contagion does not spread further. The
New Zealand mass shooting has aroused such fears again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Majority sentiment in
the US favors stricter gun control</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">,
but a quirky modern Supreme Court reading of the Second Amendment, contrary to
what had been the prior understanding, has led us to this unfortunate point. But
nothing is set in stone. Political winds do change. Supreme Court justices are
not immortal nor is the idea of a lifetime appointment and/or having nine
justices necessarily sacrosanct. Likewise, abolishing the Electoral College
and the congressional enfranchisement of us citizens of the District of
Columbia will both eventually come about, though probably not in my lifetime. What’s
fair is fair, after all. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Majority rule
may be imperfect and seem oppressive to the minority, but minority rule, as we
have now, is even worse.</b> The Democratic Party and candidate Hillary Clinton
obviously failed to appreciate the appeal and strategy of Donald Trump.
Democrats should have learned their lesson. They failed to take such a ridiculous
candidate seriously and even Trump was caught by surprise by his victory. Now
we are all living with the consequences. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Has
the “Me-too” movement gone too far in targeting <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Joe Biden</b> for kissing a woman’s hair? What about a man embracing a
woman and kissing her on both cheeks, as is common in Latin countries? Is it
always wrong if the woman decides she doesn’t like it? How is assent discerned
in such ambiguous cases? There may be a generational divide, with men of Biden’s
age greeting women affectionately, whereas younger men just shake hands. What
if a woman spontaneously hugs a man without his consent? We are in a grey zone
of changing mores. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nancy Pelosi</b> has
advised Biden and other men to “straight-arm” women, no more hugs. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In
late March, the case of our <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Amnesty
International Cuban prisoner of conscience</b>, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Dr. Eduardo Cardet,</b> was presented in Geneva at the Summit for Human
Rights and Democracy. Also in March, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mexico
</b>deported <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">66 Cuban migrants back to Havana,
</b>apparently the only migrants being deported by Mexico. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For
the third year in a row, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trump is
recommending a cut in the Peace Corps budget, </b>which comprises only<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>a minuscule part of the total federal
budget. This time the proposed cut is $14 million, which would have a considerable
negative impact. Probably few Trump voters have any connection with Peace Corps,
the only thing that counts for him. And, yes, most voters do like tax cuts, but
cuts for what? Many of us <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">would</i> like
to see cuts in military spending, in aid to Israel and Egypt, and in “wall”
funding. But we’d also like to see <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">more taxes</i></b> levied on wealthy individuals
and corporations and even on ourselves to fund universal health care, rebuild
Puerto Rico, increase food stamps, add more early childhood education, and also
to expand the Peace Corps. Most Republican voters and office holders, if confronted
with someone drowning or bleeding, would rush to their aid. However, in the
abstract or the aggregate, with Trump as their leader, they refuse to help anyone,
only to punish or hurt them and to create havoc. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Closer
to my everyday life, a reader has made a good suggestion for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">parents of children with developmental
delays or behavior issues n</b>ow being seen by a therapist (with me as interpreter),
namely reinforcing individualized treatment sessions with access to video lessons.
I know that sometimes groups of parents have gathered together to watch such videos,
but it would be helpful for them to also have personal access. Necessarily, those
videos would not be specific to their own child. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When
writing in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Spanish</b> or reading aloud
from a text, I always appreciate the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">phonetic
quality of the written language</b> compared to English. There are a few tricky
areas, such as the silent “h” and, in Latin America, the often inter-changeable
sounds of c, s, and z, also of y and ll. Sometimes x and j can sound the same, as
in México. Given those relatively few exceptions, why do so many Spanish-speakers,
even some well-educated ones, misspell some common Spanish words? Probably because
their schools never taught them spelling. Accents present another sort of challenge.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Furthermore,
while English pronunciation stresses consonants, Spanish gives more emphasis to
vowels. Reading aloud can highlight the differences. When I’ve asked the adult
child of an older patient who’d never learned to read to read a medical consent
form aloud to their parent, they cannot do it, leaving that task to me. They
say they learned to speak Spanish at home, but never to read and write in Spanish,
which looks to them on the printed page like a foreign language! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Neo-Nazi flyers</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> have reportedly been distributed in my
own Capitol Hill neighborhood. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-40887069446066412652019-03-20T12:54:00.001-07:002019-03-20T12:54:40.019-07:00Pelosi on Impeachment, Plane Crash, Trump Rebuffed, Cuba, Brazil School Shooting, New Zealand Massacre and Copycat Threat, Dalai Lama, Therapy Interpretation, Honduras Trip Addendum<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">In
this posting, a little bit of everything. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">As
much as I would like to get rid of Donald Trump’s very annoying and very harmful
presidency, I tend to agree with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nancy
Pelosi</b> that it’s best not to make a big fight about impeachment, which
would only rile up Trump’s base. Better to just ignore and work around Trump
and render him ineffective, perhaps even winning some Republicans over,
especially those facing re-election in 2020. If Trump were to leave office, we
would be left with Pence, with less of a devoted following, but likely to be a
more effective promoter of the rightwing agenda and possibly with more
prospects of winning the 2020 presidential election. If Trump loses reelection,
which I fervently hope and expect he will if he even runs again, then he can
always blame “fake news” and “the deep state.” And if he is actually charged
with a crime, he has said he will pardon himself. </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I will vote for anyone opposing Trump. Maybe all these
Democratic contenders know that many voters feel the same way, so they are all
jockeying to secure the nomination and the presidency.</span> <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">It’s very
unfortunate that Republican appointees to the Supreme Court have agreed with
Trump’s immigration detention policies. We can only hope that Ginsburg hangs in
there long enough until Trump leaves office. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Meanwhile, while Trump
fails to acknowledge climate change, it’s been happening big-time here in the
US and around the world, exacerbated by his policies. Farmers already harmed by
Trump’s tariffs are now facing floods, hurricanes, and cyclones. Will they
stand by their man, like members of a suicide cult? Of course, climate change affects
everybody, not only farmers, but people in other countries, including those “invading”
our southern border. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">While
Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs have hurt the auto industry, the man himself
takes no responsibility for the closing of an Ohio plant, instead berating management
and the union. Since he promised to save and even increase US jobs in the heartland
where his base is concentrated, he then visits a Ohio plant producing military vehicles,
something he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">can</i> control. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">With
so many automatic and computerized features built into <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">airplanes,</b> pilots need to know how to override or respond to them
when necessary. A plane crash not only threatens so many with death, but with a
particularly scary and painful death. Is the aircraft involved in these recent
crashes perhaps too automated? Override features also need to be built into
automatic cars. While machines may be more reliable than human beings, machines
are not omniscient. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Neither
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Boeing</b> nor Trump will want to admit
any possible flaw in the design of the planes involved in the recent fatal
crashes since that would require compensation for victims, dampen future sales,
and leave the company open to demands from airlines that have already purchased
the planes. At the same time, Boeing needs to find a fix to prevent a third
fatal crash, which would certainly sink the company. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Trump
has not said anything as far as I know about the college cheating scandal,
perhaps because he himself and others in his circle (such as Kirschner?) may
have benefited from similar efforts. If Trump’s father would intervene to save
him from the draft, it’s not unlikely that he would intervene to assure the
college admission of a mediocre student. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Good
to see a few<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Republican lawmakers </b>finally
daring to oppose Trump (still ranting about departed Senator John McCain and
thinking that Brazil could be part of NATO) —and may the independence trend continue,
even if that means governmental paralysis, better that than enactment of Trump’s
goofy and harmful schemes. His true believers, those he says would support him
even if he killed someone on Fifth Ave., seem to worship the man like no other
president. But it’s hard to govern with only the support of fanatics, a
minority now oppressing the majority. Remedial steps need to be undertaken,
such eliminating or reducing the clout of the Electoral College (and also enfranchising
us forgotten DC residents), to make the voters’ collective will able to count
for more. The debacle of the Trump presidency is a warning that imposing the agenda
of a radical right fringe on the majority is not a sustainable practice in a
democracy. What has saved Trump so far is the strong economy, an economy,
however, that favors the wealthy because of big tax breaks. To protect their
wealth, many will continue to invest in Trump, whatever the consequences for the
majority. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Obviously, whatever
happens in Venezuela affects the Cuban regime and its citizens. <o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">News item: more than 6000 Cubans
entered to US through the southern border in 2018, many withut visas and asking
for asylum. </span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><a href="http://app.topicaplus.com/clicktrack.cgi?cid=19194&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cubanet.org%2Fnoticias%2Fmas-6000-cubanos-entraron-eeuu-frontera-mexico-ano-fiscal-2019%2F&u=59557&utm_source=TopicaPlus&utm_campaign=Noticias+de+Cuba&utm_medium=email" target="_blank"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #196ad4;">Más
de 6000 cubanos entraron a EEUU por frontera con México en año fiscal 2019</span></i></a><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Las cifras
incluyen a todos los inmigrantes de la Isla que ingresaron sin documentos y
solicitando asilo político<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;">Lunes, marzo
11, 2019 | CubaNet</span></i></strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Capitalism within communism<br />
</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/cuba-taps-high-end-luxury-tourist-market-031218019.html"><span style="background: white;">https://news.yahoo.com/cuba-taps-high-end-luxury-tourist-market-031218019.html</span></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">-----------------------------------------------------------<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
school shooting in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Brazil </b>was
horrifying and I hope won’t start a copycat trend in Latin America where
firearms proliferate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">New Zealand</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> is taking the right steps to reduce
the proliferation of guns after the mass shooting there. The subsequent shooting
in the<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Netherlands</b> appears to be a
copycat or retaliatory attack, perhaps by a Muslim? In the US, we are just
holding our breath that a similar mass shooting won’t happen again here. Trump
has given tacit approval to the actions of rightwing extremists around the world.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">This
year when we are acknowledging the contributions of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Dalai Lama</b>, I am reminded of being present with a small group of
Amnesty International volunteers at a reception for him held in Washington, DC,
I think back in 1981. He spoke very movingly then. It’s unfortunate that the
Chinese regime has not allowed him to return to Tibet. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; letter-spacing: .25pt;">The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Catholic church</b> is under fire again, this time in a civil (not
criminal) complaint filed by W Va.’s attorney general against the Diocese of
Wheeling-Charleston saying, effectively, that parents can sue in civil court to
get their money back if their child attended a school where at least one man
worked who apparently has admitted abuse. It seems quite a convoluted way to
attack or reveal a problem, depending on your point of view, and is sure to set
up a fight between the Catholic church in W Va. and the attorney general. Was
he pointing out a real problem or just reaching for straws? </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; letter-spacing: .25pt;">While the medicinal or
occasional use of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">pot </b>may not be harmful,
it now looks like regular use, like anything in excess, can promote the development
of psychosis. </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I
often work as an interpreter at <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">home therapy</b>
sessions for children with behavioral, mental, and/or physical disabilities. After
my social work experience, 16 years at the occupational therapy association,
and 3 ½ years as a Peace Corps health volunteer in Honduras, such sessions are
right up my alley. The role of the therapist, who only visits the family a
maximum of once a week, is to show the mother (and father and siblings) how to
interact consistently with the child to foster desired behaviors and/or physical
and social skills. However, many mothers at first expect the therapist to “fix”
whatever developmental or behavioral problems the child has, like a doctor setting
a bone or prescribing a medication, whereas the therapist is instead trying to
show the parent what repeated actions on their part will encourage the desired
response by the child, whether decreased hyperactivity or the ability to grasp
a toy or to learn to crawl or walk or talk. Often there are other children in
the family who have met behavioral and developmental milestones automatically with
little effort on the parents’ part, so they don’t know quite how to respond to
a child who falls behind. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Sometimes
it’s a frustrating task to work with parents, as with the mother of a girl with
Down Syndrome who kept comparing her development with that of an older daughter
without the syndrome. The child with Down’s was actually quite high functioning
and very sociable and responsive, but the mother could not see past her
disability. It’s sometimes tricky to get parents to cooperate without making
them feel blamed or judged. However, most children (and their families) do show
progress in therapy due to the child’s growth and maturation combined with therapeutic
intervention, something heartening to witness. In contrast, for older persons,
like myself, the therapy goal is often not necessarily to achieve improvement,
but just to slow the rate of decline. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">{By
the way, when I’ve had occasion to notice it, it looks like Central American
families living here still put toilet paper in a bathroom wastebasket, not in
the toilet.} <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">It
was with a flash of surprise recognition and familiarity that I noted the
illustration for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Google’s home page of
March 18</b> (illustrations that change daily). On that date, we saw only the tip
of a red-and-white cane typically used by a blind person depicted next to the
person’s feet on a raised-dot surface indicating the proximity of the edge of a
subway or metro train track. For 24 years, I was married to a blind man who
used a red and white cane like that, so it was a familiar image that triggered memories
of our life together. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Forgot
to mention in my report on my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduras
trip</b> that when I got off the bus in Tegucigalpa after coming back from the south,
a man waiting at the bus stop shouted, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Señora,</i>
whatever are you doing traveling around this country all by yourself? Where is
your husband?” I said he had died [indeed my ex-husband had died]. “Where are
your children?” I said they were in the US. “What a travesty,” he insisted, “very
sad.” That encounter still gives me a chuckle</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-46651370903234232902019-03-11T09:32:00.001-07:002019-03-11T09:48:25.694-07:00International Women’s Day, Prozac, Book Club, Cohen Testimony, Church Reform, Hormones & Behavior, Dreamland, Amnesty Int’l Staff Suicide, High-Tech Lynching?, Fake Attack, Honduras Mission <br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">March 8</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">, in case you missed it, was<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> International Women’s Day.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At an interpretation
assignment with an 11-year-old girl and her father, I learned she is now taking
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Prozac.</b> I have seen her off and on
since she was about 9. She seems to have improved dramatically on the Prozac,
actually friendly to me when she was so withdrawn before. Psych drugs can have
some amazing effects.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I joined a dozen
others, mostly young people, at a meeting of a local <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Spanish-language book club,</b> discussing a slender volume by a
Colombian author. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">La Perra</i> (The Dog, a
Female Dog or Bitch). I had not actually read the book, having just come back from
Honduras, but glanced at someone else’s copy. The book opens with the dog’s death
by apparent poisoning. From the discussion, I gathered that this dog had had
human-like aspirations for partnership and motherhood, all set against a
Colombian backdrop involving actual humans. Something I have not mastered in my
own writing is that often less is more, that much can be conveyed with a few
carefully chosen words, as in this novel. What also impressed me is how book
publishing has changed in the digital age, allowing a book not even written in
English, likely with a very small circulation, to end up as a printed book,
also available electronically or as an audiobook. The group’s next read is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">El oido miope</i> (The miopic ear). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Michael Cohen’s </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Congressional<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>testimony has certainly showcased partisanship. At his public
hearing, Democrats focused on Trump, while Republicans emphasized that Cohen has
admitted lying before, so why should we believe him now? They asked nothing
about Trump’s alleged misdeeds and used some of their brief time allotment to
express support for “the wall” and other Trump administration projects. Trump
must have felt torn being so far away in Vietnam with Kim, but even that was
not enough to distract the public from his troubles here at home. Nonetheless,
Republicans have a point. If Cohen lied under oath before, how do we know he is
telling the truth now? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trump
has been stubbornly resistant to Obama’s assertion that he was born in Hawaii
and rejects the mounting evidence on climate change, but he has been quick to
believe <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Kim</b> when he says he did not
know about the mistreatment of American <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Otto
Warmbier</b> and gives the benefit of the doubt to Saudi Prince Crown </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mohammed bin Salman</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> in the killing of journalist <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jamal Khashoggi.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I’d like to see a
2020 Democratic presidential candidate other than tried and true centrist
stalwart <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Joe Biden,</b> but, of course,
if he should be the one running against Trump, of course, I would vote for him.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Is it antisemitic to criticize Israel?</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> That country and its leadership can be subjected to
criticism, just like anywhere and anybody else. Did Minnesota Congresswoman Omar
go too far? Quite possibly, that’s a question of judgment. Of course, Trump has
led the way in disparaging people, both as individuals and as members of ethnic
or other groups, including women. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pope Francis</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> was once a fresh face leading the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Catholic church</b>, an inclusive and big-hearted
pope from Latin America, popular around the world with people of all faiths. Now
he is mired in one church sex scandal after another, first, clergy preying on
underage boys, then priests sexually assaulting nuns and other women as well as
male seminarians and everything being covered up. As many of us have long
advocated: <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">open up the Catholic
priesthood to married persons and women</b>. While adult women occasionally do seduce
underage boys, mostly cases of female teachers getting too close to male students
(another power dynamic), such incidents are relatively rare compared to sexual
aggression perpetrated by adult males. Nor is marriage necessarily a hedge
against sexual exploitation, as Weinstein, Cosby, and Sandusky have amply
demonstrated. We are talking here only about averages and about reducing the<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> probabilities</i> of sexual exploitation. The
Catholic church also has a substantial shortage of priests which would be
addressed by a more expansive measure. Francis seems open to the idea of
married male priests. That at least would be a start. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One
has to wonder if the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">celibacy
requirement for Catholic clergy</b> has encouraged gay men ad pedophiles to
join in an effort to curb their sexual desires? It does seem that priestly
ranks have attracted a disproportionate share of each, or is only that we are
seeing such men being prominently discovered within the ranks of one of the
world’s largest religions? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">And
while we are talking about reform within the Catholic church, there also needs
to be a flattening of the hierarchy and encouragement of more lay responsibility
and authority; at least, that’s on my own wish list and something that seems to
actually be happening, though only very slowly. Yes, I have a wish list not
only for an American government free of Donald Trump and all vestiges of
Trumpism, but of a Catholic church free of sexual exploitation and excessive
top-down authority. These are not impossible dreams and I, along with others, must
do my part to help make them a reality both in our country and in the church.
As I’ve tried to show in my books and in the example of my own life, even
ordinary people like you and me can and do make essential contributions to humankind
and to the weaving of the ongoing fabric of our shared human life here on earth.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Dare
I mention the role of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">testosterone</b>
in promoting sexual and physical aggression? That seems to be largely ignored.
Testosterone production in human males as well as animals influences both physical
and sexual aggression, as well as the development of strength and endurance.
Women’s ovaries also produce testosterone, but at relatively low levels. And
men also produce low levels of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">estrogen,</b>
which in women promotes breast and scalp hair growth and other female
characteristics. The whole controversy now around male-to-female transgender
athletes is based on the fact that such athletes, if they transition after
puberty, still maintain high levels of testosterone, giving them a huge
advantage in terms of speed and strength in sports competition beyond what
females from birth can usually achieve, no matter how hard they train.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Male
primates and other warm-blooded animals are more sexually and physically
aggressive than females for reasons having nothing to do with social norms. While
human boys and men can be socialized to curb their physical and sexual urges,
these are probably stronger in most men than in most women and stronger than
many women realize. Some women don’t understand that male aggression, including
sexual aggression, is not just a matter of self-control and proper
socialization, though that is important, but also of biology. Acknowledgment of
this fact has sometimes been overlooked in discussions of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">me-too</b> movement and of male celibacy in
the Catholic church, as well as of male sports prowess and excessive incarceration
rates, as though human behavior is rooted only in cultural and social norms. Most
men do have more challenges than most women in curbing urges toward sexual and
physical aggression. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Dreams</span></b><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> are often intriguing if
we can remember them. I had a very vivid recent dream about a neighbor who
drove his daughter and me to the airport post-haste, lest we miss our flight to
Hawaii. At the airport, we ran into my late son Andrew, alive and well, as he
usually is in my dreams. I asked him if he was going to Hawaii too, but he said
he was just returning from there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Such a dream was an odd mixture, harkening back to the
attendance by this man’s daughter and me at my daughter Stephanie's wedding in
Honolulu in 2003. It was a memorable outdoor event held by the seaside. I had
traveled all the way from Peace Corps in Honduras to attend. As my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Honduras</i> book recounts, I also had
memorable dreams during my Peace Corps service, fueled, it seems, by anti-malarial
drugs. Our unconscious can be quite imaginative and entertaining. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A
longtime Amnesty West Africa staff member stationed in Paris, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white;">Gaëtan
Mootoo</span></b><span style="background: white;">, 65, committed suicide last
year, saying he felt overwhelmed by the work. There was a hue and cry on-line
about how much AI pressures its employees and now AI is giving his family the
equivalent of almost $1.3 million in compensation and 7 top AI officials have
offered to resign after another suicide of a younger staff member working out
of the Geneva office. (https://www.theguardian.com/global-development.) Mootoo
memorials are being held at AI conferences around the globe. Perhaps the amount
of compensation is fully justified, given that Mootoo was a veteran employee
supporting his family. And I do not belittle the work pressures, as human
rights’ work is never done. I am a witness to that myself, even just as a
volunteer for the last 38 years, which is why I have recently taken on 2
helpers for the Caribbean, one for Jamaica, the other, the DR. However, I would
question whether AI work pressures alone were to blame for Mootoo’s suicide,
though probably confronting the many human rights challenges in his sphere
contributed to his sense of helplessness and inadequacy. Looked at objectively,
was it rational to confront those challenges by completely absenting himself
from the world? At age 65, after so many years, he might have retired or resigned
in dignity, or even taken a leave of absence as other AI staffers have done. He
could have insisted on getting more help. Was AI too quick to take major blame
when usually personal, health, and relationship factors contribute
substantially to a suicide?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just asking.
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Va.
Lt. Governor <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Justin Fairfax,</b> like <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Clarence Thomas</b> before him, characterizes
the accusations against him as a “lynching.” That line of defense is no more
credible for him than it was for Thomas. In fact, it seems to have reduced his
credibility. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Quite
obviously, former TV star <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jussie
Smollett</b> has done considerable harm to future victims of<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> actual </i>racist and homophobic attacks. However,
if he wanted more publicity, he certainly has gotten it, and some of his fans
will defend him no matter what, just as fans defend Trump and also the late
Michael Jackson, despite contrary evidence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After
my return, my daughter Melanie and I were able to visit son Jon in <b>Berkeley
Springs, W Va,</b> a town he moved to after being injured by a robber in Honolulu. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UxeKwhqoxejrTanD9WdN9Tjeem5NNz8aa63DbLzN9iMmByeow-Q14C96ekkk_rfUb_6AQr2SxM9L8sHBqB60r1Js1ns5WarNN3qoki6fPyJ2Y1RRspEPw5XMVxp0KuUhwk_yXjBTvxw2/s1600/Berkekley+Sp.+March+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UxeKwhqoxejrTanD9WdN9Tjeem5NNz8aa63DbLzN9iMmByeow-Q14C96ekkk_rfUb_6AQr2SxM9L8sHBqB60r1Js1ns5WarNN3qoki6fPyJ2Y1RRspEPw5XMVxp0KuUhwk_yXjBTvxw2/s400/Berkekley+Sp.+March+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now, about my Honduras trip</span></b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfPvHsb93z0-Gb2reor4OPvmlCfE0yzqDtmN53FrDohEPfm6FNODymA2Vvj5SvTIHCKGKwQ-s4vMXXjVxzoLgTHt1I6WtOSgHkNS01IpJPptUBwXmes7rWhBC1mg_PuNfHa6C8Vewz1j9w/s1600/Honduras+2019%252C+luggage+ready+to+go+.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfPvHsb93z0-Gb2reor4OPvmlCfE0yzqDtmN53FrDohEPfm6FNODymA2Vvj5SvTIHCKGKwQ-s4vMXXjVxzoLgTHt1I6WtOSgHkNS01IpJPptUBwXmes7rWhBC1mg_PuNfHa6C8Vewz1j9w/s400/Honduras+2019%252C+luggage+ready+to+go+.JPG" width="300" /></a></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Before
I left, I gathered some items in my living room. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I
was fortunate to meet up with former Peace Corps health volunteer <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sandy,</b> who, like me, has health
projects in Honduras, in her case, for clubfoot, something I have tackled in
the past. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I also met again with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Luis,</b>
who had worked with me in the Peace Corps office in La Esperanza, now stationed
in the capital with the Honduran Red Cross. He has told me that the Red Cross
tries to help deportees threatened in their original homes move to new
locations. [photo]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Honduran newspapers and TV
news</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> reports are not
shy about showing lurid photos of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">blood
and dead bodies.</b> Newspapers are 80+ pages thick with lots of classified
ads, including some showing photos of houses or cars for sale. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Relatively few
private homes have internet access. Most people pay by the hour at internet
cafes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At
a home in the capital, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Tegucigalpa,</b> the
maid Maria showed me how to make round <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">tortillas,</b>
not by rotating palms, I had been taught to do, but by pressing round balls of
dough flat under a piece of wax paper. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That home had two tiny but
very shrill barking dogs set off by any unfamiliar sound. Like all Honduran
dogs, they were hardly lap dogs, always staying outside, in this case in an
interior patio. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
daughter in this family donned a costume for a function at her private school. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAB9fVNABGrw9dUOcvXpkH7LfjKdlfdw5cSsLWtzOPCI5iVMEUKIuefzs7NZFscwVN4GuHxQI4nd2HKr5Wwwn6O8aKMnB4XzWKzekivZgcWfaspwtXl6ScwQ5OaSPQIhSn2K-OqbUkp2rF/s1600/Honduras%252C+Lucy+costume%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAB9fVNABGrw9dUOcvXpkH7LfjKdlfdw5cSsLWtzOPCI5iVMEUKIuefzs7NZFscwVN4GuHxQI4nd2HKr5Wwwn6O8aKMnB4XzWKzekivZgcWfaspwtXl6ScwQ5OaSPQIhSn2K-OqbUkp2rF/s320/Honduras%252C+Lucy+costume%252C+2019.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUd_3nsSA4SKeoClYvQ___4HqDazOIOyvurTu_bzIvBOQX9VY6FyfGMgGD6quyu27ra1PSF7LXMtkV8q42brM3D84Q4qEOtzF6U3N4GcaxMIfNT0xvkBX-bXsRXABthaGURhbpdo-r0kqf/s1600/Honduras%252C+Lucy+w+folks%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUd_3nsSA4SKeoClYvQ___4HqDazOIOyvurTu_bzIvBOQX9VY6FyfGMgGD6quyu27ra1PSF7LXMtkV8q42brM3D84Q4qEOtzF6U3N4GcaxMIfNT0xvkBX-bXsRXABthaGURhbpdo-r0kqf/s1600/Honduras%252C+Lucy+w+folks%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"> </a><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjLyZtl4CAW2pdKsA1_ueUEkxrJZNgPYRg-YyHRlEYjDEG2SW6zEP-tPvm5ceLbwGoIMPRuQJGjHIZa1dFBksUnz5kLrD2E9xtBq4uVN77ATYN71CGdctDYDCfizO_X8penaM_m2LM8Fch/s1600/Honduras%252C+Lucy+in+costume%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjLyZtl4CAW2pdKsA1_ueUEkxrJZNgPYRg-YyHRlEYjDEG2SW6zEP-tPvm5ceLbwGoIMPRuQJGjHIZa1dFBksUnz5kLrD2E9xtBq4uVN77ATYN71CGdctDYDCfizO_X8penaM_m2LM8Fch/s320/Honduras%252C+Lucy+in+costume%252C+2019.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I
also visited a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">public school</b> in the
capital, where many students are US-born, having been deported with their
parents. While I consider Honduran public education to have overcrowded
classrooms and too much reliance on rote learning, as well as stereotyped gender
roles, the children still enjoy going to school and are getting more education that
many of their parents. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRVQWX0uNcrCa-JwMoIwT7BrGvml9LTL-Rod-bHHh0YXF33fbWIqksBF6eaCvc0R9XzrGTOBXkAO_2T4CbMhsxX3PSCYn_8PL6ay4JLSJMz7kzeqvfrxRxJnjpivntyKunfXR0dlFv3xu/s1600/Hond%252C+Teguc+sch%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRVQWX0uNcrCa-JwMoIwT7BrGvml9LTL-Rod-bHHh0YXF33fbWIqksBF6eaCvc0R9XzrGTOBXkAO_2T4CbMhsxX3PSCYn_8PL6ay4JLSJMz7kzeqvfrxRxJnjpivntyKunfXR0dlFv3xu/s320/Hond%252C+Teguc+sch%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieMFvCzuOamVHVf6_sD8uDIEI_rvauw9AB4_19art0-DYaWZQMtpeo7KmJRoNBB47J7Sc2pImt0Cny8SSpMRE9MHh62DZ7g8si2QHr7xVPy0r6i0yIK6dcKxkKE6-h7t1-l7MUbStk10us/s1600/Honduras%252C+Teguc+school+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieMFvCzuOamVHVf6_sD8uDIEI_rvauw9AB4_19art0-DYaWZQMtpeo7KmJRoNBB47J7Sc2pImt0Cny8SSpMRE9MHh62DZ7g8si2QHr7xVPy0r6i0yIK6dcKxkKE6-h7t1-l7MUbStk10us/s320/Honduras%252C+Teguc+school+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK3UhK29vhOGEn59E49WuAMZ-bmxzneC0URTXJ8DCUhfzhiJFUHgo5LG3UK8zg7xmr7B2lNnqwqJnVv9zeP9C-9v0xkUdqSgHZDjh6y9Ill2h6yFcpV-37gGZ0MGN9AYac36EPrXwgKCEe/s1600/Honduras%252C+Teguc+school%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK3UhK29vhOGEn59E49WuAMZ-bmxzneC0URTXJ8DCUhfzhiJFUHgo5LG3UK8zg7xmr7B2lNnqwqJnVv9zeP9C-9v0xkUdqSgHZDjh6y9Ill2h6yFcpV-37gGZ0MGN9AYac36EPrXwgKCEe/s320/Honduras%252C+Teguc+school%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">No
photos appear here from the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">residential
school for the blind </b>in Tegucigalpa, which absolutely forbids photos, lest
they be used for phony fundraising. The numbers of children in the residential
school keeps shrinking, with most now coming from rural areas where
mainstreaming of students with disabilities has not yet taken place. That integration
of blind and other students with disabilities into regular schools was
encouraged by me and others and is now actually taking place. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In
walking outdoors almost anywhere in Honduras, my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">balance</b> is challenged by uneven streets and sidewalks, as well as by
huge holes and, sometimes, by fallen power lines. Back home in DC, going out on
errands or to interpretation assignments, I am able to navigate on fairly
smooth sidewalks and across paved streets to and from metro and bus stops. But
in Honduras, I experience balance problems walking on unfamiliar terrain,
mostly because when I was in Peace Corps there, a lightning strike and
thunderclap landed frightenly close to my right ear (as described in my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Honduras </i>book), permanently affecting my
equilibrium and also my hearing in that ear, but fortunately not killing me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Before
leaving from Tegucigalpa for the south, I gave a bunch of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">dental supplies</b> to a dentist there to distribute as she saw fit. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Traveling
this year on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">commercial buses</b> between
cities, although many vendors still got on and off to sell food and patent
medicines, I did not see any vendors this time who appeared younger than 12. I
wonder if they have been outlawed? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On
the bus from Teguc (pronounced TEY-goose) to Choluteca in the south, we
passengers were hit by a sudden familiar blast of stifling heat as we descended
into a lower altitude. I carried my personal belongings with me in the
passenger section, reached only by climbing up enormous steps. The wheelchair,
walker, and suitcase of medical supplies I was taking with me had been stored
in the bus’s underneath compartment. Our bus stopped 3 times at convenience
stores and fast food establishments along the way, presumably facilities operated
by friends of the driver. The driver of this and other buses used only a manual
shift, as do most cars in Honduras, including cabs (and they also favor diesel
fuel). The bus driver is always accompanied by a youthful fare taker who
collects from each passenger. Because the various stops delayed our trip south,
I had to use the restroom at the last stop, something to be avoided if at all
possible. The smell hits you before you actually get to the open door where a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pila </i>(large cement water basin) divides
2 windowless open dark rooms, one on the left for women, on the right for men. No
toilet paper, of course. When finished, you are supposed to scoop up water from
the<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> pila</i> using an empty can left
there to flush, but I skipped that step in my eagerness to reach fresh air. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On
the subject of bath rooms, in Teguc and in the much colder climate of La
Esperanza, shower water is heated, if at all, by an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">electroducha</i>, a scary looking electrical switch turned on in the
shower head, which often doesn’t work. In Choluteca, even in the fanciest homes,
there is only cold water, because who needs a warm shower in that climate? In
El Triunfo, it’s just a matter of pouring <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pila
</i>water over your body. A pila is a cement water collection tank filled up
when only water is available. On the side of a pila is a corrugated built-in
washboard and a drain for the outflow of wash or rinse water scooped up from
the pila with a plastic bowl. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig3PeJl25YZqcJ4krmrwRW09kcfiDLy4grBCavs_DLgfEoWUbSre18_j8WWHqGw5NrzVTksqqQ6NliS6b5we69bx5ML4N95e9DmXwrbeyTIowdNocHeFpwYPfo6NQVlb7OpnUixM88YihA/s1600/pila.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig3PeJl25YZqcJ4krmrwRW09kcfiDLy4grBCavs_DLgfEoWUbSre18_j8WWHqGw5NrzVTksqqQ6NliS6b5we69bx5ML4N95e9DmXwrbeyTIowdNocHeFpwYPfo6NQVlb7OpnUixM88YihA/s320/pila.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEym56FFNBaFsdS-QVnJs9tqsd7oYLXfKULwCnTTNKCzACDrH4E4Htn0miXXTvDNNTeXrfcD7sjx-ROhzNtttKWcqL82B98cCrYgD5AJsH-p9o7YBU6InHoK2NVvJs6wfL0r3D7icQKGWE/s1600/pila+washed+clothes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEym56FFNBaFsdS-QVnJs9tqsd7oYLXfKULwCnTTNKCzACDrH4E4Htn0miXXTvDNNTeXrfcD7sjx-ROhzNtttKWcqL82B98cCrYgD5AJsH-p9o7YBU6InHoK2NVvJs6wfL0r3D7icQKGWE/s320/pila+washed+clothes.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Above are the clothes I washed.</span><br />
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My
friend <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Gustavo,</b> a judge in the
Choluteca court (as per my Honduras book), opines that the southern region is less
attractive to criminal gangs because of the intense year-round heat, usually
rising to 100 F and above during the six months or more of the dry season. Even
in the rainy season, and in the slightly shorter days of December, or at night,
it rarely descends below the high 80’s. In my more than 2 years living in the
south with the Peace Corps, I always slept with an open window, an electric fan
(if there was electricity), and a mosquito net. I have known Gustavo since
1992, when we both were invited to a Spanish-language course in human rights
conducted by the Inter-American Court of Human rights in San Jose, Costa Rica. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While
Gustavo is a judge, Honduras, like other Latin American countries, does not
have jury trials, too dangerous for jurors, subjecting them to perhaps
life-threatening pressures. For the same reason, security officers wear black face
masks covering all but their eyes when arraigning prisoners or bringing them into
court. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3eJQs0ghLItmiHiwpQMIk6NuyUV4WT88Jt97q0kBCq9JgiRAHpMtHMK5brR5zx671VLTSRCZroJ6DWNvwpXTHfukOqiRMJ-gkWobvfS6XvMjXXGmPRB-LBMTNI4adK8Jf_nmGeAGq4QbI/s1600/Escoto+baby+Oliver+w+Barbara%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3eJQs0ghLItmiHiwpQMIk6NuyUV4WT88Jt97q0kBCq9JgiRAHpMtHMK5brR5zx671VLTSRCZroJ6DWNvwpXTHfukOqiRMJ-gkWobvfS6XvMjXXGmPRB-LBMTNI4adK8Jf_nmGeAGq4QbI/s320/Escoto+baby+Oliver+w+Barbara%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkJqhZqthBxqS23N50U0jhZ5LWEsFgECjEcP5DUhWAAg79ZzfL_DdSQyyWnAs9_ioxQe6-Nz9Pv68hvl-EC5P9Z-AJL7J39QMrp0OCuA6fKPK9mmakA7H_Qtt5DRDQmmz9KFOdlGZhTGeV/s1600/Escoto+household%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkJqhZqthBxqS23N50U0jhZ5LWEsFgECjEcP5DUhWAAg79ZzfL_DdSQyyWnAs9_ioxQe6-Nz9Pv68hvl-EC5P9Z-AJL7J39QMrp0OCuA6fKPK9mmakA7H_Qtt5DRDQmmz9KFOdlGZhTGeV/s320/Escoto+household%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Gustavo's family above with live-in servant and her sister, who stays with her.</span>. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYJ57AQzX4RP0ysoSB8zEGZZ_JtaoEwqvphztQ4dDgDHl9bzBtFSifTixStUnRrt4oI4SkntGpZ-KD7NhwCPwP2p2iQ3kGGu_wuqKTLTcxI3bRPGESnRJAIkHxbWEs6ljh5k6UsKJnbbXy/s1600/Escoto+yard+party%253B+Barbara%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYJ57AQzX4RP0ysoSB8zEGZZ_JtaoEwqvphztQ4dDgDHl9bzBtFSifTixStUnRrt4oI4SkntGpZ-KD7NhwCPwP2p2iQ3kGGu_wuqKTLTcxI3bRPGESnRJAIkHxbWEs6ljh5k6UsKJnbbXy/s320/Escoto+yard+party%253B+Barbara%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKUH1B69GsRihyphenhyphennCf6jwho11-OgzC6aDdzU97cDHCA7UAj4-IoBpbz0XE0XMQk7vLP9sNd0XvIxmQSuFZ5XGNBfXSN4BiRIKf8xUunPhcyjzPlBZGylgnh_Yoc5C8vfhrOKQxPRxixnaGo/s1600/Hond%252C+Cholu+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKUH1B69GsRihyphenhyphennCf6jwho11-OgzC6aDdzU97cDHCA7UAj4-IoBpbz0XE0XMQk7vLP9sNd0XvIxmQSuFZ5XGNBfXSN4BiRIKf8xUunPhcyjzPlBZGylgnh_Yoc5C8vfhrOKQxPRxixnaGo/s320/Hond%252C+Cholu+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4neIQqI8N4O_UyoRDzcly4XFXyM5G-g-IRjB5OQw4YhyphenhyphenB3z8dToOtBRntKTq5XlLaGQoVo7DYf0cH12aTmEXrCaR71TkeO-UfVSRyJUv4K4aUf6ebqqWMoTZJbVtg5kl-vQVyYXcrngqk/s1600/Hond%252C+Cholu%252C+Oliver+w+pal%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4neIQqI8N4O_UyoRDzcly4XFXyM5G-g-IRjB5OQw4YhyphenhyphenB3z8dToOtBRntKTq5XlLaGQoVo7DYf0cH12aTmEXrCaR71TkeO-UfVSRyJUv4K4aUf6ebqqWMoTZJbVtg5kl-vQVyYXcrngqk/s320/Hond%252C+Cholu%252C+Oliver+w+pal%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Before
traveling to El Triunfo to donate a wheelchair, walker, and medical supplies to
the health and rehab centers there, I stopped by </span><b style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">San Jose Obrero,</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> a Choluteca Goodwill-type store featuring donated
goods from the US. The Cuban priest who operates it is able to transport
donations back to Honduras free-of-charge in empty banana shipping containers.
He has offered to transport items for me for free as well, but I have not been
able to get them into the containers when they are in port in Miami nor to
arrange for their transport from La Ceiba on the Honduran north coast, where
the ships dock.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All
the donated wheelchairs at Obrero had missing footrests, just like the ones I
had to get rid of after they donated to me last year. And those chairs were
exceptionally pricey. The priest in charge explained to me that he had to
charge high prices to support his own rehab center. However, I did buy a set of
crutches there to take to El Triunfo.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In
Choluteca, I also visited the market stall, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">El
Regalon</i> (the Give-away), family of Lesly, a young doctor I worked with in
El Triunfo, now married to former Peace Corps volunteer Sam. She is working as
a nurse practitioner, and living with him and their 2 daughters in the US. I
called them Loni and Seth in my Honduras book for their privacy, but now they
don’t mind being identified. Lesly’s dad says chicken sales are generating less
income now because of competition. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieHF3u3WAxRcz1zC6eag1UeDSQfhyphenhyphenHvR3KD2vkCcIbEZxKfdR2fT8GCUEhFVc0AG3PFx45p6SMrBz5lf9KZJbKvbkPy6waa9HjmKchJrV7FtA5j9yxuneqKRLjkPSeviouJgOgPnoU-QwV/s1600/Honduras%252C+Cholu.+grandapa%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieHF3u3WAxRcz1zC6eag1UeDSQfhyphenhyphenHvR3KD2vkCcIbEZxKfdR2fT8GCUEhFVc0AG3PFx45p6SMrBz5lf9KZJbKvbkPy6waa9HjmKchJrV7FtA5j9yxuneqKRLjkPSeviouJgOgPnoU-QwV/s400/Honduras%252C+Cholu.+grandapa%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOaHQRS1RowGgDKo863yt2ThS5E_Nfl3GUMhyphenhyphen5JD5q0QAGREQgqP8qtzd5x1mmVSDnjV4422T35qpqKSVBhWSITSr2HJP_rE53tAalCTgpp49gU3rkRT7IC2edEuqtuaBoDrZwIc3DUME/s1600/Honduras%252C+Cholu%252C+kids+w+magic+towels%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOaHQRS1RowGgDKo863yt2ThS5E_Nfl3GUMhyphenhyphen5JD5q0QAGREQgqP8qtzd5x1mmVSDnjV4422T35qpqKSVBhWSITSr2HJP_rE53tAalCTgpp49gU3rkRT7IC2edEuqtuaBoDrZwIc3DUME/s320/Honduras%252C+Cholu%252C+kids+w+magic+towels%252C+2019.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> Above,paterfamilias at market stall</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMb2oaJU6nRboOrQN-3KuRPcF2dskebBUj6MrqcoRsUwEixYoAD52bdKDY1K-USmwPMSeD6_8pwG11qu1HjIkw-KBm04RU3j8OqWyF40FGFC1ZexSrHRQ9MzljXySv_DL542cxXB7Wp5j/s1600/Hond+Cholu%252C+grandau.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMb2oaJU6nRboOrQN-3KuRPcF2dskebBUj6MrqcoRsUwEixYoAD52bdKDY1K-USmwPMSeD6_8pwG11qu1HjIkw-KBm04RU3j8OqWyF40FGFC1ZexSrHRQ9MzljXySv_DL542cxXB7Wp5j/s200/Hond+Cholu%252C+grandau.+2019.JPG" width="150" /></a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Granddaughter eating lunch and with brother showing magic towels.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pinatas are for sale in a neighboring stall. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjArsu06GdW_4PyKih_bo-tnj9U1HZPmiwd8tMYeo1B81jDviGTO5x9nCwnV8il6CZlkw8WEuDloqTCAkfcq7jA4-b2G0m9XAHBC6-PzZ1gZS9CcGqtRifletgqYFrlptKivOOmFIEnPOi0/s1600/Hond.+Cholu%252C+pinatas%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjArsu06GdW_4PyKih_bo-tnj9U1HZPmiwd8tMYeo1B81jDviGTO5x9nCwnV8il6CZlkw8WEuDloqTCAkfcq7jA4-b2G0m9XAHBC6-PzZ1gZS9CcGqtRifletgqYFrlptKivOOmFIEnPOi0/s400/Hond.+Cholu%252C+pinatas%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I’d
scheduled my trip to El Triunfo for Thurs., Feb. 14, but, alas, Valentine’s
Day, I soon discovered, is a big holiday in town. I didn’t recall that from the
time I lived there. The health and rehab centers were both closed and band and
concession stands were being set up in the park. Nonetheless, because I’d
advised in advance about the date of my arrival, Doctora Jeanette and a few
other staffers were waiting for me at the health center, though not technically
on duty.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyXYKY603undxDQbJ4U47q5D29r6GDZpqe1BFLFcmiUXSOYIIM_xbHKaUSDeMEJq-buFhT9BYqyVTSt2QsIDYNtQMVlboeQ5xJ-QU1ulEq5cGOtQ2yhDDmHbRhQhgSf76Q-KR8Piitmd0V/s1600/Barbara+w+sick+baby%252C+Triunfo+health+center%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyXYKY603undxDQbJ4U47q5D29r6GDZpqe1BFLFcmiUXSOYIIM_xbHKaUSDeMEJq-buFhT9BYqyVTSt2QsIDYNtQMVlboeQ5xJ-QU1ulEq5cGOtQ2yhDDmHbRhQhgSf76Q-KR8Piitmd0V/s400/Barbara+w+sick+baby%252C+Triunfo+health+center%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2m7uzjdcVgCoU8kMtg6MXfk3ZTRbF2Xj3w_m_bT3z68-K_LijcZtmIknJRbSIPq0oNu85_4L1k7cq5n9HTh-_-CjldECgUeMMzOQHf6rT7vj7RFqHv1dm_CFNuwGh5hPILBMGsDfqmPmb/s1600/Hond%252C+Triunfo%252C+medical+supplies%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2m7uzjdcVgCoU8kMtg6MXfk3ZTRbF2Xj3w_m_bT3z68-K_LijcZtmIknJRbSIPq0oNu85_4L1k7cq5n9HTh-_-CjldECgUeMMzOQHf6rT7vj7RFqHv1dm_CFNuwGh5hPILBMGsDfqmPmb/s400/Hond%252C+Triunfo%252C+medical+supplies%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Above, staff who showed up to greet me, with items I had brought. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> A few patients also had shown
up. The staff told me where to deliver the wheelchair, to an 82-year-old man
who had suffered a stroke, paralyzing his left side, meaning the stroke had
occurred on the brain’s right side, so he still had speech, though was barely
audible. He was lying in bed, naked except for an adult diaper because of the
heat.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQnQFlQpudGoxgqIGY_KrkvkdkPOE4XrVaJ4G8DnMUbjvvcsuwHRK1pRgt9gTIYN5yqPluzUR32wSCFieJF351El9-fiBTbA5hT_eZXYqOptREsHfbG6sq-7Uydl9c5CGgGxfiOiDNFr-v/s1600/Honduras%252C+Triunfo%252C+stroke+pt.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQnQFlQpudGoxgqIGY_KrkvkdkPOE4XrVaJ4G8DnMUbjvvcsuwHRK1pRgt9gTIYN5yqPluzUR32wSCFieJF351El9-fiBTbA5hT_eZXYqOptREsHfbG6sq-7Uydl9c5CGgGxfiOiDNFr-v/s320/Honduras%252C+Triunfo%252C+stroke+pt.+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When his sons placed him in the wheelchair, he smiled and thanked
me. They wheeled him around and even outside. His granddaughter is holding one
of the magic towels unfurled. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4tptnxGbLOOSd6wajdtCTLwf8bD1BAPyv40WT42rPYG4iEA7PIpq45c_g5Rbse2nTLUWu5qNWF7HxuAU8ZNctcW9EU1fPbArbDABHeHzeist0PtOmT0HcNgYwvtLzRVR6Y1mjs83HeR3v/s1600/Barbara+w+wheelchair+recip%252C+El+Triunfo%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4tptnxGbLOOSd6wajdtCTLwf8bD1BAPyv40WT42rPYG4iEA7PIpq45c_g5Rbse2nTLUWu5qNWF7HxuAU8ZNctcW9EU1fPbArbDABHeHzeist0PtOmT0HcNgYwvtLzRVR6Y1mjs83HeR3v/s400/Barbara+w+wheelchair+recip%252C+El+Triunfo%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqALsCiebRqexlXl3ghiXNxtMDXgosEapWDqDsg77zj0_cnXDgzpAaipNVqvv7lhzBudq4LWDP7RKZ1TNOD3VqqXVCC35lbRzuxTlNtEZOET182273hLMHiH-IS30gG3YXqfVkC42_jbL/s1600/Honduras%252C+Triunfo%252C+girl+w+magic+towlel%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqALsCiebRqexlXl3ghiXNxtMDXgosEapWDqDsg77zj0_cnXDgzpAaipNVqvv7lhzBudq4LWDP7RKZ1TNOD3VqqXVCC35lbRzuxTlNtEZOET182273hLMHiH-IS30gG3YXqfVkC42_jbL/s320/Honduras%252C+Triunfo%252C+girl+w+magic+towlel%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With
a sense of futility, I brought some more books to would-be librarian <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Pedro Joaquin.</b> More than 15 years on,
we still don’t have the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">library.</b> My
friend who died last year and had visited me in Peace Corps, insisted that
money for the library was included in her will, but when she died last year, no
money was there. We are still at ground zero on the library, an idea that has
evolved as libraries have evolved beyond just physical books. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thank
goodness for <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">moto-taxis</i></b> taking me and my gear all around El Triunfo, saving me
from nearly melting in the heat, though I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was</i>
sweating. The little girl is holding her magic towel.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEuXAG8FD7RrHYtlBrNz0QLtOH4Ob7tgdeLCigvKHd3raoRD_ZI_j3BMzriyuV0TZ9WojjhBPRahcfXKlYljgS6L_lGXY6IBkcHJjd6MWAgotU1O9MXYUjYTakFghlvHKtXG4Kl1XObbey/s1600/Barbara+w+mototaxi%252C+El+Triunfo%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEuXAG8FD7RrHYtlBrNz0QLtOH4Ob7tgdeLCigvKHd3raoRD_ZI_j3BMzriyuV0TZ9WojjhBPRahcfXKlYljgS6L_lGXY6IBkcHJjd6MWAgotU1O9MXYUjYTakFghlvHKtXG4Kl1XObbey/s400/Barbara+w+mototaxi%252C+El+Triunfo%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One stop was at the home of the mother of
a girl with spina bifida whom I had helped get a wheelchair and water mattress,
but who had finally succumbed to bed sores. I always give the mother some cash
and this time I also gave her a suitcase, now emptied of its contents. She said
a suitcase was just what she needed to take with her to Teguc, where she was soon
scheduled to have surgery. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Vt3D_nKzQGdQKi1byzL0CdpyOtXi7gBjcyuTGurJNRALgHHpTmGHvizPFrC3xCIEz8lLgBFK8nC5t4r1snNcOrI0QJVILyQMDjoVy-jfLCAt3ZYHKXW1YeCvN_39NJHtzvUdAnuRQPb5/s1600/Hionduras%252C+Triunfo%252C+kitchen%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Vt3D_nKzQGdQKi1byzL0CdpyOtXi7gBjcyuTGurJNRALgHHpTmGHvizPFrC3xCIEz8lLgBFK8nC5t4r1snNcOrI0QJVILyQMDjoVy-jfLCAt3ZYHKXW1YeCvN_39NJHtzvUdAnuRQPb5/s400/Hionduras%252C+Triunfo%252C+kitchen%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAkvKGAF8h3r5mpCNq-4ufpyvvxaeexnPZw6Wjq9nTv9Z-ZevnTFs-O_hEQlMlt3g3mdjIFiznubZfpWzcnN8H-Nu-X88f7Wv5lGB_bZFzs_deqJO943Rt3Q37AvADm9jgveHIPK_Bjov/s1600/Honduras%252C+Triunfo+2+yr%252C+old+boy%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAkvKGAF8h3r5mpCNq-4ufpyvvxaeexnPZw6Wjq9nTv9Z-ZevnTFs-O_hEQlMlt3g3mdjIFiznubZfpWzcnN8H-Nu-X88f7Wv5lGB_bZFzs_deqJO943Rt3Q37AvADm9jgveHIPK_Bjov/s400/Honduras%252C+Triunfo+2+yr%252C+old+boy%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
New electric stove and refrigerator, but housewife prefers her old open fire wood stove.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Above, kids typically potty train themselves by going bare bottomed. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKtPpWLLMKOjpDF71vEVk7WIPjpGtzss6SkB3Osz91A3AGCNPWgxwOGtpONrFrE8zVBnxcSZGhH9xBwXacRl6zmD2NiibsohDUbc59v2wd_Me1yKReP65m06BD0G_vo54qxrA_0Nd4tJOP/s1600/Honduras%252C+El+Triunfoi%252Ctwin+daughters+w+mother.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKtPpWLLMKOjpDF71vEVk7WIPjpGtzss6SkB3Osz91A3AGCNPWgxwOGtpONrFrE8zVBnxcSZGhH9xBwXacRl6zmD2NiibsohDUbc59v2wd_Me1yKReP65m06BD0G_vo54qxrA_0Nd4tJOP/s320/Honduras%252C+El+Triunfoi%252Ctwin+daughters+w+mother.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pedro Joaquin's twin 17-year-old daughters with his wife. I remember when they were born. (At the time. I gave their mother calcium tablets from my Peace Corps medical kit.)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While
I’ve taken crutches, walkers, and wheelchairs to Honduras over the years, it has
always been only a single wheelchair, represented to the airline as my own. But
now, I am rethinking that strategy. Would it be worthwhile just to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pay </i>for one more item of extra luggage,
since I always have to pay anyway outgoing, though not on the return, where I
only have a carry-on? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On this last trip,
the layover in Miami for my flight to Honduras approached 4 hours. During that
time, an attendant to whom I gave a $5 tip had parked me in a circle occupied
by other wheelchair users and there I sat among them, unable to go anywhere
else, even to the restroom, lest I blow my cover. I decided it was not
worthwhile just to save a few dollars.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Then
I discovered a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">WalMart in Teguc!</b>
Going there, I further discovered, yes, an actual wheelchair on display, so I
took a photo. However, I don’t recall the footrests exactly, as in my photo, it
looks like there may be just a sort of belt instead of actual footrests. I was
told that several wheelchairs were available, all of the same type. Those
wheelchairs each cost about $50 more than a basic manual chair in the US. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7nrjO3NxKNqQ8jprEBHR3pLP2rgOBxryT61i3qlh0KQb-OH761f7LwcGhEjrCdXWa0MkWW7dFx4RYpB1tlyaAHnAcf5Q0czkPR6_HHbppk1EsIc7wTlPZO_cu3k4VOaz6qNzvt7bb0wMB/s1600/wheelchair%252C+Teguc+Walmart.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7nrjO3NxKNqQ8jprEBHR3pLP2rgOBxryT61i3qlh0KQb-OH761f7LwcGhEjrCdXWa0MkWW7dFx4RYpB1tlyaAHnAcf5Q0czkPR6_HHbppk1EsIc7wTlPZO_cu3k4VOaz6qNzvt7bb0wMB/s320/wheelchair%252C+Teguc+Walmart.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heck,
for $50, I would gladly be done with transporting a wheelchair with me on the
plane. I could still take a walker--much easier. Hondurans were horrified that
I would be willing to spend $50 more to avoid flying down there with a
wheelchair, but if I should travel there again next Feb., WalMart in Teguc
seems to be the way to go. I might even buy <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2 wheelchairs</b> to take to El Triunfo! It would seem most practical for
wheelchairs to be manufactured right there in Honduras, but apparently no one
has taken on that initiative. It may be because few folks who need a wheelchair
can actually afford to buy one. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
San Felipe public hospital in Teguc is over 100 years old and occupies an extra-large
city block in a dicey part of town, encompassing almost a small town within
itself, with guards at all entrances, internal parking for staff, interior tree-lined
patios and flower gardens, cafeterias, wards, operating rooms, and confusing
long winding hallways. It is a labyrinth that is hard to navigate and easy to
get lost in. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A sign on the hospital's front door announced the Operation Smile (Operacion Sonrisa) medical brigade.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHpBhrbQgPPJQ_7WduaMhxI4Gbfbqzn8nG_sQR2vkQASglZgKy6EzNqwlTBKIlP0WGFtqdXYoGuaRX3AGhVFoJw0aUXXmW-mL1iMVV0vKYgeGA0fXMiMyM1tNCjPCcYfhkko_HJayMSXd/s1600/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile+poster%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHpBhrbQgPPJQ_7WduaMhxI4Gbfbqzn8nG_sQR2vkQASglZgKy6EzNqwlTBKIlP0WGFtqdXYoGuaRX3AGhVFoJw0aUXXmW-mL1iMVV0vKYgeGA0fXMiMyM1tNCjPCcYfhkko_HJayMSXd/s400/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile+poster%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">First, I delivered donated
eyeglasses to the women’s ophthalmology dept. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMJomqng7hn3U0Q_W7iaPFqTIAfZxFvxq9krYFnj6DDOTQ7OuAT_BPLjkJV9fm5cekTBgIOZc1zhxcwqdtoDHKcTqCdYuQ1x9ne4HRolVpFBniL8R-HKkEvCUAxEQdTckKsYzXBNNhCP-L/s1600/Hond.+S+Felipe%252C+ophth.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMJomqng7hn3U0Q_W7iaPFqTIAfZxFvxq9krYFnj6DDOTQ7OuAT_BPLjkJV9fm5cekTBgIOZc1zhxcwqdtoDHKcTqCdYuQ1x9ne4HRolVpFBniL8R-HKkEvCUAxEQdTckKsYzXBNNhCP-L/s400/Hond.+S+Felipe%252C+ophth.+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the hallways, armed guards
wearing face masks stood stock still,<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2-5tCs7PLhMEYqaTsaRn-LdQayCiOpv-ehOQrm5V2KxKFsIkdwuQweDU0l_rkZQaDFwfLzDLf9lWFs2K-6nYIx4WHhrziYlWu_LIegsa9gf6GjN_Trk2rX2XcW26cfYz7gH7tko1u0f7/s1600/Hond.+S+Felipe+Hospital%252C+guard+at+right%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2-5tCs7PLhMEYqaTsaRn-LdQayCiOpv-ehOQrm5V2KxKFsIkdwuQweDU0l_rkZQaDFwfLzDLf9lWFs2K-6nYIx4WHhrziYlWu_LIegsa9gf6GjN_Trk2rX2XcW26cfYz7gH7tko1u0f7/s400/Hond.+S+Felipe+Hospital%252C+guard+at+right%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All
staff, including volunteers like me, worst identifying buttons, citing 75 years of Operation Smile at the hospital. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I have been told there has never been a fatality in all the years of such surgeries at this hospital.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazTeDK_CfN763-NQt-76F2Vqr6Kd3_teVAvSmAKYoOty8STV05QDC81jFDhlRDOOHVyqqRtuo_DqonZpfUw5bcq-xXGVsynIA9pKTr6IIyIksz9q6RoWv-_fO3U-DF5dKo9ZbWnsDF3WJ/s1600/Honduras%252C+Op+Sonrisa+button%252C+75th+aniiv.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazTeDK_CfN763-NQt-76F2Vqr6Kd3_teVAvSmAKYoOty8STV05QDC81jFDhlRDOOHVyqqRtuo_DqonZpfUw5bcq-xXGVsynIA9pKTr6IIyIksz9q6RoWv-_fO3U-DF5dKo9ZbWnsDF3WJ/s320/Honduras%252C+Op+Sonrisa+button%252C+75th+aniiv.+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I also had
to wear hospital garb. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbF1msfCWIkGTuXJAMAo1LP1pUX1c3vdvGFRwvVzVnF-0y2sf9Mf840zAtHbJ0ZvdxDGJEy2gxTPeRyUunaCasF01jG9IO5z4AeOOWwdN55I80xvVn9JSyanL0GDcGmBIMJWK4_CakDlBY/s1600/Barbara+in+hospital+garb%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbF1msfCWIkGTuXJAMAo1LP1pUX1c3vdvGFRwvVzVnF-0y2sf9Mf840zAtHbJ0ZvdxDGJEy2gxTPeRyUunaCasF01jG9IO5z4AeOOWwdN55I80xvVn9JSyanL0GDcGmBIMJWK4_CakDlBY/s400/Barbara+in+hospital+garb%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Patients waiting for each day’s surgery had to
fast. Some were having follow-up surgeries. My impression is that because of
better prenatal nutrition, especially of folic acid. There are fewer and mostly less
severe cases. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii9rjKOSo38FyC30xML0nJ0fcefeHdG0U9DZf59OvivtCg3kbB3bNDjyepGUe8c6tSVA0DQROrClMDF0w29JK0Se1IVefwHjR2SdMkCkkVkbh4d0ipJWMuda540FFwp2fpOmcCy2Srckoj/s1600/Hond.+Op.+Smile%252C+mother+w+baby+awaiting+surgery%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii9rjKOSo38FyC30xML0nJ0fcefeHdG0U9DZf59OvivtCg3kbB3bNDjyepGUe8c6tSVA0DQROrClMDF0w29JK0Se1IVefwHjR2SdMkCkkVkbh4d0ipJWMuda540FFwp2fpOmcCy2Srckoj/s400/Hond.+Op.+Smile%252C+mother+w+baby+awaiting+surgery%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ0Z72iZXCmf-5rk-apiJuIQF5ALZmMJ5mIQ8bXd4pKyVH09ZmnDObqNpDnqu9VhUzmVpL-DUqRk9ibyfe2VRF3Xqee0Pc_rrZgXAzJtgsAdI84rq8GDTeScs3iZn9Y08SsFSpsjQAoGxf/s1600/Hond.+Op+Smile%252C+pt.+pre-surgery+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ0Z72iZXCmf-5rk-apiJuIQF5ALZmMJ5mIQ8bXd4pKyVH09ZmnDObqNpDnqu9VhUzmVpL-DUqRk9ibyfe2VRF3Xqee0Pc_rrZgXAzJtgsAdI84rq8GDTeScs3iZn9Y08SsFSpsjQAoGxf/s400/Hond.+Op+Smile%252C+pt.+pre-surgery+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgySgQb5sZ_9TKG1eIegxlqIGfzH7s9-bcxNh-GH_BRI1UUkNfa0AFeh28XOkl3RbPuj7aud_ANz_8H9A10QCoFW_idzhuvy6I2v8jIQVEXVVIEqA-T7uc6LDJN8siCRPkwttDpGp1edRR1/s1600/Honduras%252C+kids+in+presurgery+waiting.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgySgQb5sZ_9TKG1eIegxlqIGfzH7s9-bcxNh-GH_BRI1UUkNfa0AFeh28XOkl3RbPuj7aud_ANz_8H9A10QCoFW_idzhuvy6I2v8jIQVEXVVIEqA-T7uc6LDJN8siCRPkwttDpGp1edRR1/s320/Honduras%252C+kids+in+presurgery+waiting.+2019.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEJsQVNWb1jfiiaovnhjTl4mkVdEKsHvQnyh5_ui_FgpiU07R9R1OUrEYT3fA38KpSCVd565z2lMjW0whGbaNLxytMaDms9p9jpe-UxOfc4Bwju7DpGzyVs9itQWETnK-p_k6GhDHNSHT/s1600/Honduras%252C+harelip+pt%252C%252C+presuerg.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEJsQVNWb1jfiiaovnhjTl4mkVdEKsHvQnyh5_ui_FgpiU07R9R1OUrEYT3fA38KpSCVd565z2lMjW0whGbaNLxytMaDms9p9jpe-UxOfc4Bwju7DpGzyVs9itQWETnK-p_k6GhDHNSHT/s400/Honduras%252C+harelip+pt%252C%252C+presuerg.+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Baby waiting to
go into the operating room doesn’t know what to expect. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJyb4CzlGRiHHi3DUYGAJmdpKMP1rA_pn_5E4GCwnB0qpzNH5J9e1B701cyl_tf0CNtfVqeBOlmbZbLAJyBdqn3Ob7B_gfWfzXqd0t7Ufqbpxk6zdlEn3SKURrQYhk_XmQLf1K5HU33ITt/s1600/Honduras%252C+child+waiting+for+surgery%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJyb4CzlGRiHHi3DUYGAJmdpKMP1rA_pn_5E4GCwnB0qpzNH5J9e1B701cyl_tf0CNtfVqeBOlmbZbLAJyBdqn3Ob7B_gfWfzXqd0t7Ufqbpxk6zdlEn3SKURrQYhk_XmQLf1K5HU33ITt/s400/Honduras%252C+child+waiting+for+surgery%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Always, surgeries are at least 2 in each operating
room, even 3 per room in past years. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKaya6x4AxajgUUUI2pMQn4M1tmHjmfurRYA0ERl0AV_iKw-hJ5XndZ5NQbCsgeUUP1b6IheaLqCduAl4-DkwR8ZNZJ5sLXy7c7DIFUjZYQKRLboMNN0dtHFPkYe7WbztUL1NXdu_ftBYX/s1600/Hond.+Op+Smile%252C+op..+rm.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKaya6x4AxajgUUUI2pMQn4M1tmHjmfurRYA0ERl0AV_iKw-hJ5XndZ5NQbCsgeUUP1b6IheaLqCduAl4-DkwR8ZNZJ5sLXy7c7DIFUjZYQKRLboMNN0dtHFPkYe7WbztUL1NXdu_ftBYX/s400/Hond.+Op+Smile%252C+op..+rm.+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaU6Z2ce1tlu78nwOH4nsXzc0WgbeYg_NL2mxTJBr-zwLSSLbEsRw5owOds-2eiabWkywSZht2o9gk8O_rUzjQ0TrIhmn5arrFZ8r7pjEnOlAjmMp6oc8DHrEC59NH8rhGwvirNSgXCDzQ/s1600/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile%252C+operating+rm%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaU6Z2ce1tlu78nwOH4nsXzc0WgbeYg_NL2mxTJBr-zwLSSLbEsRw5owOds-2eiabWkywSZht2o9gk8O_rUzjQ0TrIhmn5arrFZ8r7pjEnOlAjmMp6oc8DHrEC59NH8rhGwvirNSgXCDzQ/s400/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile%252C+operating+rm%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA83jizRPsgtok38pJAiIwy56TlhmHZmwzSc3XtRi6aED9_fZK9FeXiW9Pwd7iSWhla-Jg4KbJZcaLtr9_PiXTEZZ99i9l1ZNPQsyGPFmGZ17SLM_XQ0Ot8xBXFkHdc0tTsQ281fQv8qWd/s1600/Operation+Smile%252C+Operacion+Sonrisa%252C+San+Felipe%252C+2+simultaneoue+surgeries%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA83jizRPsgtok38pJAiIwy56TlhmHZmwzSc3XtRi6aED9_fZK9FeXiW9Pwd7iSWhla-Jg4KbJZcaLtr9_PiXTEZZ99i9l1ZNPQsyGPFmGZ17SLM_XQ0Ot8xBXFkHdc0tTsQ281fQv8qWd/s320/Operation+Smile%252C+Operacion+Sonrisa%252C+San+Felipe%252C+2+simultaneoue+surgeries%252C+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Then
kids go into the recovery room. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibH_AbtFcnHHfHfuk94jEX80Yw82UtVKR8_U0itUecWuDXcHPw4YNZFE6TVssJF0Q6YUqUBp8YpZWmjaB9Ndh37WtwNcDy1ec2ZnZSO2oyWsJIXy7dn03iXX1bHIlAts7RYyci35OBcPSY/s1600/Hond.+Op+Smile%252C+post+surgery%252C2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibH_AbtFcnHHfHfuk94jEX80Yw82UtVKR8_U0itUecWuDXcHPw4YNZFE6TVssJF0Q6YUqUBp8YpZWmjaB9Ndh37WtwNcDy1ec2ZnZSO2oyWsJIXy7dn03iXX1bHIlAts7RYyci35OBcPSY/s400/Hond.+Op+Smile%252C+post+surgery%252C2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLIbPuvAg0EYhH9EUV4VF2yDpE3EAaB3VxeRoa1eDz2njQQLwVpkIPttakYUtn7gChqQNFk0u_PKoiciVoOSZb9WCNP_J4ErlB8m6oKTYC2ScSdS2-tmv96u8NaX4IkEFLgwnZ15RboQWW/s1600/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile%252C+post-surgery%252C+2019+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLIbPuvAg0EYhH9EUV4VF2yDpE3EAaB3VxeRoa1eDz2njQQLwVpkIPttakYUtn7gChqQNFk0u_PKoiciVoOSZb9WCNP_J4ErlB8m6oKTYC2ScSdS2-tmv96u8NaX4IkEFLgwnZ15RboQWW/s400/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile%252C+post-surgery%252C+2019+%25282%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXlsgjfOX402qzepnKmvddc1BmZldNB0lo_onfam-3xjYfu4K0WT06pzBGJnug8DFIzhHOxibCwu1u2u_gXNXsPs5cb-1csAO4JnZI5lvnczqXIIxGmrwaOwkRa0569fQrB6p1aHOTff5n/s1600/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile%252C+post-surgery%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXlsgjfOX402qzepnKmvddc1BmZldNB0lo_onfam-3xjYfu4K0WT06pzBGJnug8DFIzhHOxibCwu1u2u_gXNXsPs5cb-1csAO4JnZI5lvnczqXIIxGmrwaOwkRa0569fQrB6p1aHOTff5n/s400/Honduras%252C+Op+Smile%252C+post-surgery%252C+2019.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Below, staff and volunteers take a lunch break.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWPjCoR9Fl0r9KsJqhmSCMUPCIJjet3uHupvw2YoBiurKLHmdK-oV1scVko63TYN6JrHM3oygGNUENRpCEKLt_Z1sbagfl2NXfz_e4QYgVCHjsyk1hnQn40a4ZlRwA5_WLNNHduxhF5mRI/s1600/Honduras%252C+OP+Smile+staff+lunchroom%252C+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWPjCoR9Fl0r9KsJqhmSCMUPCIJjet3uHupvw2YoBiurKLHmdK-oV1scVko63TYN6JrHM3oygGNUENRpCEKLt_Z1sbagfl2NXfz_e4QYgVCHjsyk1hnQn40a4ZlRwA5_WLNNHduxhF5mRI/s400/Honduras%252C+OP+Smile+staff+lunchroom%252C+2019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">OK,
folks, let’s see what happens next Feb. Abrazos, Barbara<span style="background: white; color: #26282a;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-59943535340000442862019-02-07T06:31:00.001-08:002019-02-07T06:31:01.918-08:00 Shutdown Over for Now, The Wall, State of the Union, My Terrible Day, Maduro on the Ropes?, Trump Still with Us, Me-Too, Cuban Heroine, Socialism and Taxes, Gov. Norton’s Flub, Abortion Debate, My Honduran Mission<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Finally, there was a temporary end to the
temporary government shutdown. (Of course, everything in life is temporary,
including Trump’s presidency, thank goodness.)<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Trump </b>must be upset that a mere <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">woman, Nancy Pelosi, </b>has outmaneuvered him on “the wall.” That wall
and MAGA hats have become unwelcome symbols for Trump himself, which is why
many of us react viscerally to them. “The wall” fight is not so much about a physical
barrier or the MAGA hat but that they represent everything we reject about the
man himself. “Wall” support is stronger with Trump’s base in the Midwest than
along the actual US-Mexico border. And Trump himself is a bigger national
security threat than refugees and asylum seekers arriving at the border. Since
probably more drugs and even people enter the US illegally by sea (who knows actually
how many?), depriving the Coast Guard of pay, even temporarily, was not such a
wise move. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">When Trump started to give his <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">State of the Union</b> address, I turned
off my radio, because I just could not stand to hear him. In snippets rebroadcast
later, it sounded like he stuck to the teleprompter. He called for “unity,” meaning
“do it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my </i>way.”<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">My</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">terrible day was also
something temporary</b>, like the temporary government shutdown and,
eventually, mercifully, the Trump administration. But it was quite challenging.
Because of high winds and rain, I left early for an interpretation assignment for
a therapy session at a private home. I needed to take 2 metros and a bus and
walk several blocks to an address in NW DC. On the way to Eastern Market metro,
right off the bat, a fierce wind turned my umbrella inside out, wrecking it, so
I trashed it. An hour later, after walking to the address battered by freezing rain
with no umbrella and climbing up 2 sets of stairs with no railings to the
designated residence (only house on that hilly block with no stair rails), the
mother of the child to receive therapy greeted me at the front door, telling me
she doubted the therapist was coming. She showed me a text message (in English)
on her phone: "Sorry, have to cancel today. Will re-schedule.” So, I
turned around with the icy rain in my face and walked gingerly back downstairs,
then traversed a few blocks to wait outside for the bus back to the metro
station. I arrived home wet and cold to the bone</span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 18.0pt;">. </span><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Is this what I signed up for when I
agreed to become an on-call Spanish interpreter? </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I almost never agree with anything done by
the Trump administration, and usually oppose the US putting its thumb on the
scales, especially in Latin America. But after helping Venezuelan asylum
seekers, I do agree that it is past time for a change of government in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Venezuela</b>, a government that has
brought death, repression, and economic ruin to a once prosperous nation. No
one knows if the US tactic of recognizing an alternative president will work
without leading to more bloodshed, but some other countries are following suit by
recognizing the opposition, while Russia and China have redoubled their support
of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Maduro. It would<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> <u>not</u> </i>be prudent for the US to intervene militarily, which
would only increase sympathy for Maduro, and I would hope that isn’t being
considered. </b>Wouldn’t it be great if we could get <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trump</b> to step down voluntarily, as well as Maduro? Of course, any
change of leadership in Venezuela will have an immediate effect on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Cuba,</b> which relies heavily on the
Maduro government for moral support and oil. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Trump</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> seems not to be particularly
enjoying his presidency, though he did beat the odds in achieving it. He
reportedly spends much of his day occupied with “executive time,” that is, just
being left alone and uninterrupted while he watches TV or naps. Luck and sheer bravado
seem to have propelled him forward. He is an unattractive, lazy, and
emotionally and mentally challenged guy who happened to have had a rich father who
taught him some dirty tricks and how to take advantage of odd flukes that opened
up opportunities. Donald’s blatant lies and cheating are almost breathtaking,
yet he pushes forward without apparent regret, shame, or empathy. Even efforts
by staff and confidants to curb his excesses seem fairly ineffective as he
often simply ignores them or contradicts them publicly. He likes being an
outlaw and having someone like that in the presidency has been nearly catastrophic.
Nonetheless, a fairly steady economy and some external controls (laws, courts,
political opponents), as well as some internal controls that we cannot see,
have kept him somewhat in check for now. But <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Vladimir Putin</b>, who has known Trump for years, must be chuckling to
himself about how well his schemes have worked out to undermine the US with
nary a shot being fired, inflicting damage even beyond his wildest dreams. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Donald Trump is clownish, ridiculous figure. Almost
a caricature, whom most people around the world cannot take seriously, but to
whom they must defer because of his position. He lies so much that even his
followers don’t believe much of what he says. I am now <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">reading Bob Woodward’s book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Fear:
Trump in the White House</i>, </b>Trump has been good for book publishers, also
for news outlets. A record number of tell-all books have come out of the
churning vortex of the White House staff, but Trump scarcely recalls meeting any
of their authors. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Donald
Trump</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">
has also indicated that he hardly knew <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Roger
Stone,</b> just like he barely knew <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Michael
Cohen. </b>As for<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> women </b>to whom he<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> has </b>paid thousands of dollars to keep
quiet about sex, he’s never even met them. I’d thought that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">George W. Bush</b> was our worst modern
president, but I was wrong. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Though I’m hardly a fan of Education
Secretary <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Betsy DeVos</b>, as the mother
myself of sons/grandsons, as well as of daughters, I don’t think that men
should automatically be deemed sexual aggressors whenever they are accused. Probably
regarding human behavior in the aggregate, nothing is 100% true or false. While
most sexual assault accusations by women against men are true (and most are
never reported), a few outliers may actually be malicious or false and some may
even be ambiguous. If the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">me-too</b>
movement is now changing the view of acceptable romantic overtures and sexual
consent, then a new consensus needs to be forged. Men and women will continue
to seek out romantic and sexual partnerships, so what are the new rules of the
game? Just asking someone to go out on a date should not be construed as sexual
harassment, assuming it’s not overly persistent or tied to a job. There still
needs to be some acceptable system of give-and-take to bring men and women
together romantically. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Even a man I had met and admired (even for
his swimming prowess, see him in my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Confessions</i></b> book), namely, former
Nobel laureate and Costa Rican president <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Oscar
Arias,</b> has not been exempt from sexual assault allegations. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Sirley
Avila </span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">is<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>a woman from a rural community in
central <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Cuba.</b> She had spoken out on
behalf of school children and had her left hand severed by a machete and had other
serious injuries inflicted for her trouble. She has been living in exile in south
Florida for the last two years. Just now, she dared make her first return trip
to Cuba to be with her very ill mother and was able to come back without
incident. I had written about her previously in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Huffington Post.</i> <u><span style="color: #2f5496; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;">https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/a-revolution-with-promise_b_9801712.html<o:p></o:p></span></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">While some Democratic lawmakers are calling
for more <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">taxes</b> on the wealthy, there
will obviously be strong resistance to any such efforts. After all, didn’t
business leaders and wealthy individuals just push through a big tax break mainly
for themselves? Even the poor may identify with rich folks, aspiring or
dreaming of becoming just like them in a mythical future, imagining living in a
nirvana where their every whim is satisfied. Of course, the uber wealthy don’t
actually have problem-free lives nor can most people ever expect to achieve that
economic status, but such hopes do fuel the purchase of lottery tickets and
gambling. It has been found that after Americans achieve an annual income in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">the $75,000-plus range</b>, their sense of
wellbeing and life satisfaction are not measurably enhanced by higher incomes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">At the same time, I am well aware that
so-called “socialist” nations like the USSR, Mao’s China, Eastern Germany,
Cuba, and, now, Venezuela, have miserably failed most citizens. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“Socialism”</b> encompasses a wide range of
definitions, but it does not have to go as far as in the examples cited. Most
desirable is a more moderate redistribution providing health and social services,
as in Nordic countries, which have high taxes together with businesses
operating along conventional capitalist lines. Trickle-down economics has been
proven ineffective. Nor have Trump’s tax cuts have substantially increased
investment. Instead, corporations and wealthy people seem to mostly be holding
onto their wealth or parking it offshore. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">What
does government owe to its citizens and residents?</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Safety above all.
After that, what about basic food, medical care, education, and housing? Those
are considered key and are provided or guaranteed by a number of advanced
nations. What about legal aid for the indigent? What about parental leave,
higher education, and internet as proposed by some lawmakers? Where do
government guarantees go too far? What should be left to charity, family and
neighbors, or personal initiative? These matters are all up for discussion and
debate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Va. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Governor
Ralph Northam</b> may well have moved on since a racist photo was posted in his
medical school yearbook, but he was no callow youth at the time. Whether or not
he actually appears in the photo, it was still posted on his page. And however
progressive he may have become since, his tone-deaf citing of his appearance in
blackface as Michael Jackson only worsened his position. Yet, now his African
American Lt. Governor and Attorney General are also tainted. If all three were resign,
then a Republican would be next in line, so I guess they should all remain in office,
since they are not resigning anyway. Maybe the furor will blow over, but
certainly their standing has been diminished. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here’s an article about the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">abortion debate</b> that expresses much of
my own perspective, as both a birth and an adoptive parent. No, I don’t think
we should consider every fertilized ovum, every embryo, a “person,” though it
could become one. But where a fetus has developed sensations, especially pain,
and could survive outside the womb, then abortion would be killing it (or,
rather, killing him or her). Can a consensus emerge on this contentious issue? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/what-the-push-for-legal-until-birth-abortion-tells-us-about-the-abortion-debate/2019/02/01/7830bf94-25ac-11e9-90cd-dedb0c92dc17_story.html?utm_term=.3f1d998874c4">https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/what-the-push-for-legal-until-birth-abortion-tells-us-about-the-abortion-debate/2019/02/01/7830bf94-25ac-11e9-90cd-dedb0c92dc17_story.html?utm_term=.3f1d998874c4</a></span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Okay, folks, I am now <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">off to Honduras</b> on my annual volunteer humanitarian and medical
brigade mission. Will report back here after my return. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-79782083536645172062019-01-22T07:09:00.000-08:002019-01-22T07:27:17.637-08:00Snow, MLK Day, Mazateo, Designated Driver Philip, Honduras, Nairobi, Cuba Embargo, Forrest Trump, Migrant Caravan <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Well,
it finally happened. On January 13, 2019, we woke up to <b>snow</b>, as seen from my bedroom window. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKdUPaRn7_uU_vkPnjbEKrVFUh7a5hDxzYANLWl_tHlf_Vj_OI5Hzgg3K_bZ0y_G1Rp0TQzINjATLmaGvaRBqTA_DBNRgvNmDiSnFPDd9tzE_UN1cRIsNEqdDrpahx_C6gxrj3yldd54W2/s1600/snow.+Jan.+13.+2019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKdUPaRn7_uU_vkPnjbEKrVFUh7a5hDxzYANLWl_tHlf_Vj_OI5Hzgg3K_bZ0y_G1Rp0TQzINjATLmaGvaRBqTA_DBNRgvNmDiSnFPDd9tzE_UN1cRIsNEqdDrpahx_C6gxrj3yldd54W2/s320/snow.+Jan.+13.+2019.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Whenever <b>Martin
Luther King</b> Day rolls around, I am reminded of standing with my late former
husband at the edge of the crowd as King delivered his “I Have A Dream Speech”
back in 1963. Little did we know then that it would be such an historic
occasion. When <b>Barack Obama</b> made a commemorative
speech 50 years later, security was much tighter than on the original day. Of
course, both the original and Obama’s commemoration took place in August, quite
a contrast from the weather on MLKIng Day, based on King’s birthday, in 2019,
so very frigid.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The weather on this year’s King holiday reminded
me of the bitter cold when we were squeezed together in Obama’s first record-breaking
inaugural crowd, which my daughter Stephanie had come out from Hawaii to join.
In 2017, I saw Trump’s pitiful inaugural crowd on a fairly balmy January day while
I was walking in the neighborhood, but the next day, at the women’s march, we
were out in full force. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Happened recently to run across a reference
to the <b>whistling language</b> of a group
of Mexican mountain dwellers, <b>Mazateo,</b>
communication that carries across long distances, and a lovely sounding
language that is dying out. If you Google “Mexico’s whistling language” and
open a Facebook video there, you will find and hear it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I gave up my driver’s license recently because
the requirements for renewing it were too onerous, especially since I haven’t
had a car for 20 years anyway (before Peace Corps). Meanwhile, apparently <b>97-year-old</b> <b>Prince Philip</b> enjoys driving around alone not wearing a seatbelt,
getting immediately back behind the wheel right after an accident that injured people
in another car. What are the authorities to do in such a case? Only the queen
can lay down the law, but she herself, at age 92 and with no driver’s license,
has also been seen out driving alone failing to use a seatbelt. Even royalty does
not enjoy divine protection while driving. Wouldn’t it be an irony if the
queen’s reign were to end with her involvement in a traffic accident?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">One of my sociology professors at UC Berkeley
many years ago, <b>Nathan Glazer</b>, has
died at age 95. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I was surprised and slightly flattered when a
couple from Central America, when I was serving as interpreter during a home
therapy session for their son, asked me if I were Honduran. Maybe after Peace
Corps and subsequent visits, aspects of <b>Honduran
speech</b> have rubbed off? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Speaking of <b>Honduras,</b> I do plan to go again this year as a medical brigade
volunteer. I’ve already booked my ticket and have ordered a new wheelchair to
go with a walker that I already have. I won’t mention the exact trip dates on
this forum, but will report back with photos after my return. I’m praying that
the government shutdown ends before I have to leave. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The <b>shutdown’s
effects</b> are being felt far and wide, including by my daughter and her
husband, working as environmental biologists in Hawaii. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m familiar with the upscale <b>Nairobi</b> neighborhood where the recent
Somali terrorist hotel attack occurred and have had coffee in the Westgate
shopping mall where even more people were killed in 2013. That area has been
the pride of the city, but terrorists are making it a scary place. I can well
imagine that the American killed this time might have been attracted to that
neighborhood. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As I must have
mentioned before, <b>Amnesty International,</b>
where I have been a decades’ long volunteer, opposes embargoes as a matter of
principle. Now there seems to be a switch occurring among Cuban Americans. (I
suspect part of the diaspora’s softer line toward the Cuban regime may have to
do with the fact that a Castro is no longer officially in charge, although Raul
Castro is still calling the shots behind the scenes.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I sent the results
of this poll to a number of Cuban Americans. Most are still strongly in favor
of the <b>embargo</b>, but one was opposed,
feeling that it gives the Cuban government an excuse for everything that’s
going wrong in Cuba. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">More Cuban-Americans reverse support for ending
embargo, poll says</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> | Fox News</span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
</span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/frustration-over-lack-of-democratic-reform-in-cuba-fuels-growing-support-for-u-s-trade-embargo-among-south-florida-cuban-americans-poll">https://www.foxnews.com/us/frustration-over-lack-of-democratic-reform-in-cuba-fuels-growing-support-for-u-s-trade-embargo-among-south-florida-cuban-americans-poll</a></span></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><br />
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> In my volunteer role
as Caribbean Coordinator for Amnesty Int’L USA, I’ve received a petition on
behalf of <b>six Cubans being detained</b>
in </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">immigration in Louisiana. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The sign they are holding says </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">“We are Cuban immigrants, not delinquents.” </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> [Have tried to correct spacing, if it comes out wrong again, I give up.]</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am trying to get pro bono
lawyers for them, just as I would for any other immigration detainee. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With all the attention now
on asylum claims, I have done interpretation both in person and at the border
telephonically. But I never know what the final decision is in each case. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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</span>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As has been pointed out by
immigration observers, people can and do <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">enter
the US illegally with little problem if by sea</b>. Some are intercepted by the
Coast Guard, but many are not. A wall along the Mexican border would not curb
that avenue. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Trump may be clinging so
tightly onto his wall because he needs to keep his base faithful, as that is
the only support he now has, which is also keeping many Republicans in line for
fear of alienating that voting sector. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nancy
Pelosi</b> has shown that she is a much more savvy dealmaker than Trump ever
was. It was so childish of him to cancel her overseas trip in retaliation. I do
salute now-Senator <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mitt Romney</b> for
breaking ranks with McConnell and openly criticizing Trump. But Romney has supported
Trump on “the wall.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">If, indeed, trolls
intervened in the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Alabama senatorial
contest</b> on behalf of the winning Democrat, that just shows that both sides
can play that game. It was much less extensive and serious than Russian
intervention into national elections, so there is no moral equivalency, but
still shows that on-line attempts to sway elections are open to any and all
wrongdoers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Can I get through s blog posting without any further
reference to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">you-know who?</b> Probably
not, because even when his name is not mentioned, he is in the news and daily
making a negative impact on so many lives. I attended the first women’s march
the day after the inauguration, but no longer have had the energy to attend
follow up marches which seem to make no impact. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Very appropriate to refer to the president as
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“Forrest Trump.”</b> He cannot put
together a coherent sentence or spell ordinary words and he lies so much that even
his hardcore followers don’t believe much of what he says. His staff do their
best to cover up for him and to pretend everything is normal until they just can’t
take it anymore and quit. So why should Americans believe what he says about
the border wall? Trump is not any sort of deal maker. He wants to “negotiate”
with Democrats only <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>after</u> </i>they
give in to his border wall demands. What kind of “deal” is that? Then, what
leverage would they have? He would have already gotten what he wanted. He needs
a face -saving way out of the impasse he has now created. In pediatric therapy,
advice is to not give in to a tantrum or bad behavior, as it just encourages a child
to continue. Making a non-negotiable demand and walking out of a meeting is not
how to make a “deal.” Deals, especially in government, imply negotiations to
arrive at a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mutually acceptable</i>
solution, not one side holding the other hostage and holding out until “winning”
by getting exactly what he wants. Is Trump too old and stubborn to learn more
effective tactics? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Many of us, probably a majority of Americans,
don’t want a massive <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">border wall.</b> We
consider further extending the “wall”, already in existence in many places, a
waste of money and undesirable. It would be anti-environmental, ugly,
unfriendly, and destructive. Some existing barriers might be fortified or even
extended in a few places, as has been done before, but physical barriers are
not the main way to keep most unauthorized immigrants out. And is keeping them
all out even desirable? Trump’s own properties employ them. Many Americans have
been against “the wall” ever since Trump first proposed it and, as opposition
to him grows, the wall as a symbol of his presidency and his intransigence
becomes increasingly important to oppose and defeat. And like the boy who cried
“wolf,” Trump is not believable when he calls the migration at the southern
border an “emergency” that only his “big, beautiful wall” can stop. (It’s
actually a smaller “invasion” than in former years.) Conservative websites are
selling “Build the wall” mugs. Part of the objection to the wall is an objection
to Trump himself. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">However, it
certainly is not helpful in opposing “the wall,” that a new migrant caravan is setting
out from Honduras for the US. </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://abcn.ws/2ANcDHS">https://abcn.ws/2ANcDHS</a></span></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Honduran
migrant caravans are rooted in Hondurans’ real fears and frustrations, as well
as their exaggerated dream of finding an easier in a life in an idealized USA.
But participants are also being manipulated by political forces in Honduras
opposed to the current president. </span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The caravans are not a
spontaneous phenomenon. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The announcement of another
Honduran migrant caravan is being made, in part, to embarrass the current
president of Honduras and challenge Donald Trump. But some in Trump’s hardcore
base may now be finding that the lack of a border wall actually affects them
less than having crops they cannot sell or not being paid during the furlough.
At worst, for most who oppose illegal immigration, it’s simply a matter of putting
up with the annoyance of hearing people speaking Spanish and feeling those
folks don’t belong here. Meanwhile, many of these same anti-immigration
zealots, like Trump himself, rely on the undocumented to provide restaurant
meals, do construction and landscaping tasks, and take care of children and
elders. In light of these competing realities, maybe “the wall” does not seem
so important after all.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">A friend in another state asked me about the origins
of the migrant caravans from Honduras and about Honduran politics in general.
Rather than reinvent the wheel, if you are interested in more detail. I’m pasting here my reply to him, including a
little in Spanish (he knows Spanish), as this narrative gives my take on the
current situation there. My message to him below is shown in <span style="color: #0070c0;">blue </span>lettering, which I hope comes out blue on the
blog. We shall see. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
</span></div>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left;">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now, as for your question (not bothering here
with accent marks, tildes), gang members are active in Guatemala, El Salvador,
and Honduras and can readily cross borders by just showing an ID from one of
those countries. Gangs and crime have existed for decades in those countries
and too many people are armed, so gun deaths are much higher than even here in
the US. (And the guns mostly come from the US.) In Tegucigalpa and other major
Honduran cities, there are armed guards in banks (and patrons must go through
metal detectors), Western Union offices, pharmacies, and grocery stores, that
is, almost anywhere that money changes hands. Despite or because of this, there
is a high gun death rate. Many of the gangs got an infusion of new
sophisticated members when Latino gang members were deported after prison from
the US, especially from California. All three countries, Honduras included,
have high rates of poverty and a big divide between the wealthy, who have
servants and sometimes armed guards outside their homes, and the more numerous poor,
Some of the folks I stay with in Honduras are in the wealthy category with
live-in servants. A few might be considered middle-class—i.e. a family where
the wife is a hospital nurse and the husband works for the Honduran Red Cross
(he once worked for the Peace Corps before the corps left Honduras). They have
2 kids in a private school, but not a fancy bilingual private school. A (poor)
woman comes in some days to help with housework. Another middle-class family
sells roast chickens and other food 7 days a week in a stall in an open market.
Two of their daughters are physicians. A small-town man with four kids plays in
a band at parties and also fixes electronics in his home and does some
farming—the family still has an outdoor shower and latrine. So, it’s a mixed
group of people, all aspiring to do better economically, but facing an uphill
battle, just as here, only much more so. Bank teller or fast food attendant,
any job that pays regular wages, is prized. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Probably most poor people, especially if they
have TV, aspire to live in the US. They may be receiving remittances from
relatives there or else know someone who is. Few people go hungry, but getting
enough to eat is sometimes difficult and, especially in the countryside, where
the diet can be monotonous: handmade corn tortillas, boiled beans, and rice.
I’ve mentioned that in my Honduras book. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br />
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Politically, the divisions in Honduras are as
stark as here. Soon after I left the Peace Corps, a member of the legislature
belonging to the Liberal Party, Manuel Zelaya, probably equivalent to the
Democrats here, ran for president against the National Party (Republican
equivalent) candidate. Certain towns or regions traditionally favor one party
or the other, regardless of local economics.</span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(My two
PC sites of El Triunfo and La Esperanza were mostly Nationalist strongholds
despite high poverty.) Zelaya had been accused of corruption before his
presidential bid, but seemed to have overcome that. He was from a wealthy
ranching family and his father had spent some time in prison because of the
deaths of folks occupying his land, Traditionally and constitutionally in
Honduras (and in much of Latin America), presidents are limited to one 4-year
consecutive term, so in Honduras, presidents of each party typically
alternated. When Zelaya ran for president, it was the Liberal Party’s turn.
Also, Zelaya got help financing his campaign from a well-to-do former Peace
Corps volunteer who had originally offered to finance public libraries in
Honduras, but switched his support to Zelaya (a decision he reportedly
regretted later) just as I had finished helping a local group submit a library
funding proposal in El Triunfo, my first PC site. (We still have books
collected, but no library.) <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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</span>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Midway through his presidency, Zelaya
suddenly became an ally of Hugo Chavez, who sold him cheap oil. This alliance
upset the political establishment, which became even more upset when Zelaya
declared he was going to change the constitution to allow himself to run for a
second consecutive term. You may recall the so-called “coup” (depends on who is
calling it) whereby he was taken out of the country in his pajamas. Zelaya, who
has a black mustache and wears a cowboy hat, came back to Honduras and has been
a member of the legislature from a new party that he created, Libre, from which
he has run his wife as a presidential candidate. </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">But by</span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">taking votes
away from the Liberals in a 3-party race, Nationalist Juan Orlando Hernandez
(JOH) won.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Furthermore, Hernandez, with considerable
opposition, managed to actually get the constitution changed to allow himself a
second term, which he is occupying right now. His main second-term rival was
Salvador Nasralla, a sports’ TV host who had boasted publicly about his sexual
prowess and was supported by Zelaya. I polled some Honduran friends on the
contest. Below are four replies (misspellings are not mine—because Spanish is
mostly phonetic, folks don’t bother to learn spelling).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></b>
<b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1.Nasralla + Mel Zelaya
+ Juan Orlando Hernandez = Insuficiente para el Presidente que Honduras
necesita en los próximos 4 años. </span></i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Si gana Nasralla = Gobierno INCIERTO por la incompatibilidad ideológica
de Nasralla con Zelaya. Gobierno del aceite con vinagre.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Si gana JOH = Gobierno
INGOBERNABLE por inconstitucional y porque la mayoría de
los hondureños votantes estan en contra.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left;">
<b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">POSIBLE Solucion</span></i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Segunda vuelta solo para la
eleccion Presidencial (que no esta en la Constitucion Hondureña) encabezada por
un Tribunal Supremo Electoral INTERNACIONAL<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2. La mejor opción es JOHA</span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">pues de quedar Nasrala seremos igual a
Venezuela.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3. aqui estan ocurriendo muchas cosas en lo politico las autoridades
estan siendo prudentes con dar los resultados finales de la eleccion
presidencial por obias razones , nosotros no pudimos votar por que martin se
enfermo y estuvo hospitalizado todo el domingo. espero que esta situacin en mi
pais se calme y podamos seguir trabajando como siempre<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
Hola Bárbara... Ninguno de los dos es lo mejor...pero el menos peor es el
actual Presidente JOH, pues Nasralla es un títere del ex presidente Manuel
Zelaya y ahorita en las elecciones volvimos a ver los mismos actores y
seguidores de Zelaya que meses y años atras habían desaparecido y de ganar
Nasralla volverían a posiciones importantes dentro del Gobierno...haciéndonos
recordar el Gobierno de Zelaya.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">El Tribunal Superior de Elecciones acaba de declarar a JOH como
presidente electo... Nasralla viajó hoy a Washington a denunciar el fraude ante
la OEA y otras organizaciones... creo que al final nada cambiará y
luego de algunas semanas de protestas, todo volverá a la calma, similar a
lo que pasó despues de la destitución de Zelaya en el 2009.</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="ES-HN" style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Of
course, the election was not run again and Hernandez was declared the winner in
January 2018. Last Feb., I was in Honduras and polled people informally,
including cab drivers. Many had not voted because they didn’t like either
candidate. Hernandez appeared in TV press conferences and was 100% more
articulate than Trump, but that’s not saying much. He has a histrionic delivery
style that doesn’t appeal to me. He seems to have allied himself with Trump,
but I doubt that Trump knows who he is or cares. Hernandez has a reputation for
being hard on crime and the murder rate has actually gone down, but many accuse
him of having too heavy a hand.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Meanwhile,
Zelaya, still in the legislature, has not remained quiet. He and his followers
are reportedly behind the organization of the migrant “caravans,” designed to
challenge both Hernandez and Trump. Impoverished Hondurans, who have always
aspired to go to the US and who may have relatives already there, but who lack
the means to pay a smuggler, have eagerly joined in and, passing through
Guatemala, have picked up other would-be migrants there. Some people may be
fleeing gangs and domestic violence, but probably the majority are economic
migrants.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">That
may be more than you need to know, but that’s the situation. Now, what should
be done? Not a wall, but programs to help Central America develop local
opportunities would be best. How about $5 billion for that instead of a wall? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is another crisis in Central America that has not gotten much press,
namely the ongoing uprising against Daniel Ortega which has now claimed more
than 500 lives. </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">An OAS body has been expelled. </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">(Ortega has also been consistently accused of
years of child rape by his </span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">stepdaughter Zoilamerica
Narvaez, charges which he has vehemently denied.)</span><span style="background: white; color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nicaragua has an electoral law, allowing the
candidate with the most votes, not a majority, to win. After his defeat by
Violeta in 1990 when the opposition united behind UNO (and when I served as an
election observer there), Ortega ran twice again for president but lost. Then
in 2006, he won with only about 37% of the vote. The opposition did not learn
from the experience of UNO in 1990. Ortega changed the constitution so that he
could run again, packed the courts, and now, in his 3<sup>rd</sup> term, has
named his wife as vice president. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nicaraguan friends have appealed to me to
come back and help them once again while I am in Honduras. I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will</i> be traveling very close to the
border, but hardly have the time and energy to take on that fight again. They
did not earn the lesson of UNO, though admittedly, some folks were quite young
in 1990. In any case, it would take an enormous organized and coordinated
effort that I don’t have the energy to undertake now. Let others do it this
time. Nor will I take on the Honduran establishment, preferring to focus on my
very small, targeted medical brigade tasks where I can see the immediate result.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span>Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-84967422835587371552019-01-06T13:47:00.001-08:002019-01-06T13:54:12.174-08:00Senior Citizen, Shortest Day, Honduras, Nicaragua, Cuban Doctors Stay in Brazil, Venezuela, Bhutan, Child Deaths at the Border, the Wall/Shutdown, Kilauea<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now when I ride the metro,
people often offer me their seat, so I must have become a proverbial “little
old lady,” a bit disconcerting, but I’m still glad to have a seat on a crowded
train, one of the few perks of being a senior citizen. I spent the holidays
with some of my family during the holidays, minus daughter Stephanie and her husband, living in Hawaii, who went on vacation to Vietnam. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVusRMzChN7C0Cluw4eoeaxzyiAVxjy16dPSk9esZGgo7YhYRVAALDi3970sgGVmZaEcJFcilvyHzV4yis-hGLXmFUDtbgrV9zGg-pqJdnW0NCqyac9qVGqG_pfZVL-WfsZKbY0BiA_e3e/s1600/Jon%252C+Tash%252C+etc%252C+Dec.+2018.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="778" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVusRMzChN7C0Cluw4eoeaxzyiAVxjy16dPSk9esZGgo7YhYRVAALDi3970sgGVmZaEcJFcilvyHzV4yis-hGLXmFUDtbgrV9zGg-pqJdnW0NCqyac9qVGqG_pfZVL-WfsZKbY0BiA_e3e/s400/Jon%252C+Tash%252C+etc%252C+Dec.+2018.jpg" width="193" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Talk about a senior citizen,
a champion in that regard is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Wanda
Johnson,</b> born in Egypt in 1915 and now celebrating her <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">104<sup>th</sup></b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">birthday</b>
in Vermont, where I first met her when I was a child. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I always send a basket of chewable goodies for
her birthday to share with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
She is very fortunate at her age to have not lost any one of them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We in the northern
hemisphere have now passed the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">shortest
day of the year,</b> so thankfully <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">daylight</b>
will lengthen from now on until June 21. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk533583558"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk533583558"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While
every year, I do what I can in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduras,</b>
it’s obviously a drop in the bucket, a grain of sand on the beach, as per this
article. </span></a><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/dec/25/16-stories-of-jesus-in-honduras"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk533583558;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/dec/25/16-stories-of-jesus-in-honduras</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk533583558;"></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk533583558;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk533583558;"></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
death toll due to anti-government protests in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Nicaragua</b> was nearing 500 at last count, including children, though
there have been few recent reports. OAS observers have been expelled from
Nicaragua, but, otherwise, Nicaragua is not so much in the news these days</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I still have many contacts
there, asking for my help, but have not been able to go when I am in Honduras,
as I have enough logistical problems already. And my Nicaraguan friends live
near Managua, far from the border and have no vehicles available to pick me up.
(I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will</i> be very close to the border
in El Triunfo, Honduras.) </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I
did what I could for Nicaragua in the 1980's in Nicaraguan refugee camps in
Honduras and in the 1990 election as an observer when the opposition to Daniel Ortega
united as UNO around Violeta. Nicaraguans did not learn that lesson and let
Ortega get his foot in the door once again</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">More than <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">800 Cuban doctors and medical workers sent
to Brazil</b> have remained in that country after the Brazilian president-elect,
<span style="background: white; color: #26282a;">Jair Bolsonaro (now in office)</span>, signaled
his</span> <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">refusal to pay the Cuban government for their services, causing them
to be called home by the Cuban government. Some will now take their chances by remaining
to work in Brazil and getting paid directly. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Meanwhile Brazil and other
South American nations are being flooded with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Venezuelans</b> (and also with Cubans able to get out but no longer
welcome in the US), countries not well able to absorb an influx of refugees,
yet proving more hospitable than our own country. In Brazil, Venezuelan refugees
also experience language barriers. Portuguese and Spanish, especially in
written form, have many similarities, but are not the same when spoken, as I
have found working as an interpreter and being mistakenly assigned to
Portuguese-speaking client (we’ve muddled through). I have also helped
Venezuelans seeking asylum here in the DC area. The tragedy of Venezuela is
completely unnecessary and could be reversed with a change leadership, an
object lesson for us here in the US where matters are also going downhill
because of the president’s bad judgment and repeated errors. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #26282a;">“We arrive sick and hungry”: Venezuelans in Brazil</span></b><span style="color: #26282a;">, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Guardian </i><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/gallery/2018/dec/24/venezuelans-in-brazil-migrant-camps-in-pictures">https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/gallery/2018/dec/24/venezuelans-in-brazil-migrant-camps-in-pictures</a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here’s a rare article about<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Bhutan </b>shared with past and current Bhutan
visitors. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://correspondent.afp.com/phalluses-nightlife-and-other-bhutan-surprises" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4;">https://correspondent.afp.com/phalluses-nightlife-and-other-bhutan-surprises</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So many<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> gun deaths</b> occur daily in this country, mostly accidents, suicides,
and domestic disputes. Criminal attacks or even mass shootings actually are the
least of the casualties in terms of total numbers. A teen in an Atlanta suburb
apparently accidentally killed his friend, then turned the gun on himself—a gun,
no doubt, belonging to his parents, but too easily accessible. The parents may
have thought that gun protected their family, but the opposite happened. A man
fired into an Oklahoma Taco Bell because of getting the wrong sauce. A gun is
lethal because of impulse and accident, only too common human attributes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Five
thousand US troops at the Mexico border</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> to confront a ragtag group
of Central American families, but <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">2,000 in
Syria is too many? Two migrant children have died in immigration custody so far.
</b>Were they just depleted after their long trek and vulnerable to illnesses
passed around in a closed setting?<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children do not belong in detention. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While the “adults” in the
White House, albeit anonymously, had reassured the American public that they
were controlling the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">worst impulses and
temper tantrums of an erratic and childish president,</b> now it seems that most of those
adults are no longer around. So Trump listens to foreign leaders and talk show
hosts instead. He seems blissfully unaware of his own intellectual deficiencies.
He speaks without any program or practical specifics, calling people nasty names
or targeting “fake news” without specifying just what those labels mean. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Trump has now become a national
emergency! What about <b>Ivanka</b> and <b>Jared</b>, what about <b>Kellyanne,</b> can they have any
moderating influence? Trump cannot fire his own daughter, but her positive influence
seems to have been minimal so far. We are at a point where the president has
run out of trustworthy advisers and the whole nation and the world are being subjected
to his whims. The stock market is gyrating. World leaders are alarmed. The
man is not a strategist, never was any sort of “deal-maker,” just a very flawed guy of
below-average intelligence, puffed up now with the power of his office and running
amok. If he were a fictional character, he would not be believable. Even when
he had his TV “reality” show, the most he could do was to say was “You’re fired!” <b>Hannity</b>
seems to have the most influence over Trump, first by urging the current shutdown,
and now by urging him to prolong the shutdown over the wall at least until the end of the month.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDiSPY_H8zd8CsjHcbD-dIg3GBJpfN26-1uUJfm1Vjr5AEL-WthxZhuKVNxJ0NH86tiZigraZwLzM6fgUmjHtAYERyIooy-lHGcapbxWkflp75-n89svxnpaArwmsWOdSG_o3KXTrZuXQB/s1600/Trump+walled+in.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="543" data-original-width="540" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDiSPY_H8zd8CsjHcbD-dIg3GBJpfN26-1uUJfm1Vjr5AEL-WthxZhuKVNxJ0NH86tiZigraZwLzM6fgUmjHtAYERyIooy-lHGcapbxWkflp75-n89svxnpaArwmsWOdSG_o3KXTrZuXQB/s320/Trump+walled+in.jpg" width="318" /></a></div>
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<o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Senator Chuck Schumer </b>is
right, Trump promised that <b>Mexico</b> would pay for his border wall, so what’s the
problem? It’s not just the money, but adding substantially more walls and
fences are a bad idea. We already have enough where they are needed. Maybe give
Trump a really short wall that he pose in front of for a photo-op? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Will spineless Republicans at last stand up
against him?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b>Weren’t their mid-term
losses in the House enough to convince them?<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> With a few notable exceptions, such as Mitt Romney, the only Republicans
apparently willing to speak out are those who have decided to quit. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s somewhat encouraging to
see </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Pence</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> and </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Kushner</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> leading the negotiations on the shutdown. Though we might not
agree with them, they conduct themselves in a fairly normal fashion.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Also encouraging is that<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Chief Justice John Roberts </b>has taken
on the role of sometimes serving as the court’s “swing” vote and may <b>Ruth Bader</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ginsberg </b>soon recover, though she is
running on borrowed time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Another, <b>bigger migrant
caravan</b> is reportedly on its way from Honduras. <span style="background: white;"><a href="https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/border-baja-california/sd-me-another-caravan-20181227-story.html">https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/border-baja-california/sd-me-another-caravan-20181227-story.html</a></span><span style="color: #26282a;"><br />
</span><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4; word-spacing: 0px;"><a href="https://www.latimes.com/world/la-me-ln-new-migrant-caravan-20181227-story.html" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.latimes.com/world/la-me-ln-new-migrant-caravan-20181227-story.html</a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This
is not good news--Trump will double down on his border wall to keep them out
instead of trying to implement programs to keep them at home. Mexicans are
going to get tired of helping them. It's not as though Mexico can absorb large
numbers. Too bad the Peace Corps left Honduras. Internal Honduran politics is
involved here as well, since the migrant caravans there are reportedly being
organized by folks associated with former president and now legislator <b>Manuel
Zelaya</b>, once an ally of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. (Hondurans, like Americans,
are politically divided.</span>)<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How did Trump get <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mexico</b> to agree to let US asylum
seekers wait for their decisions on that side of the border? It’s a cumbersome and
unprecedented system, but if it holds, Trump deserves some credit for pulling
off that unlikely feat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Is it only my wishful
thinking, but is Trump losing some knee-jerk <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>support even among Republican voters and
office holders? Republicans have already gotten much of what they wanted: massive
tax cuts for corporations, judges including for the Supreme Court, deregulation,
and ending environmental protections. Still remaining are abolishing Obamacare,
which now seems a lost cause for Republicans, and the immigration problem,
but maybe Trump is being recognized even there now as an obstacle even among
Republicans? I’d like to see Democrats mount another female presidential
candidate, <b>not Hillary, </b>who, however, who should be given a prominent role in
the new administration, maybe as HHS Secretary? Will I live to see the day when
the Democrats win back the presidency, despite the Republican advantage in the
Electoral College? In hindsight, Hillary’s folks obviously did not pay enough
attention to that. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Glad that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Eleanor Holmes Norton</b> has again introduced
the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DC statehood</b> bill. Most
Americans don’t realize that we don’t have Congressional representation. At least
two states, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Wyoming</b> and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Vermont,</b> each with two senators and a
representative, have fewer people than DC. Meanwhile a record number of
Americans, especially young people, have moved out of the US since Trump’s
presidency. </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">An alert reader has kindly
corrected my previous spelling of the name of the well-known volcano on Hawaii’s
Big Island, </span><b><span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Kilauea. </span></b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Spell-check didn’t catch that. If lava is no longer flowing regularly along its well-worn path into the ocean, then perhaps the island’s biggest tourist attraction is no more. It was quite spectacular, especially at night. Now, I understand that
there have been some smaller lava flows, but I’m not sure how close the public
can get since they apparently occur sporadically and unpredictably.</span></div>
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[If this last font comes out too small again, I cannot correct it.]</div>
<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-70295287160737954182018-12-20T09:42:00.000-08:002018-12-20T09:42:20.064-08:00Daughter’s Birthday, Kiluea, Quiescent, Bhutan in the News, Remembering CASS, Venezuela, Syria, Weekly Standard, How Many Immigrants? The Wall, Catholic Church, My Books on Amazon This Holiday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqRWu8Z9GH1dyrCKp-e6hLsBWawbbSeS_aQok1oDk-EkTK6XhDNqHHxinTpbZ47uaQCt7cPUX8zAo_zIskzdYrcL9WBVya1uz2cHka5cf2PiHxYWmkvblJLmtNjdV2m1UMq-uwphpZ9z2_/s1600/Mel%2527s+b%2527day+lunch.+2018.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqRWu8Z9GH1dyrCKp-e6hLsBWawbbSeS_aQok1oDk-EkTK6XhDNqHHxinTpbZ47uaQCt7cPUX8zAo_zIskzdYrcL9WBVya1uz2cHka5cf2PiHxYWmkvblJLmtNjdV2m1UMq-uwphpZ9z2_/s400/Mel%2527s+b%2527day+lunch.+2018.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Our family has just observed my older daughter
Melanie’s birthday, celebrated on the anniversary of my late son Andrew’s passing.
The holidays are always bittersweet for us. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Kiluea
volcano</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">
on Hawaii’s Big Island now finally seems quiescent after exploding for months
and destroying many homes. For years, I and countless others have marveled at
the regular lava flow plunging down in a cloud of steam into the ocean below, the
flow glowing brightly at night and giving off tremendous heat. It was a
spectacular sight and experience like no other. But now, it seems, the volcano
is resting without any more flowing lava, just harboring a molten lava lake
still glowing in the crater below, seen from the rim. But visitors must be
careful about not falling in; I don’t know how close they are now allowed to
go. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Bhutan</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> is a small country
with a total population of about 800,000, slightly more than Washington, DC.
Somehow, I’ve gotten on Bhutan’s radar and have come to know a number of
Bhutanese here in DC. But international news involving Bhutan is exceedingly
rare and most Americans have never heard of that country. I am alert to any
news of Bhutan, such as this:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/fairytale-wedding-singapore-journalist-goes-112217081.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/fairytale-wedding-singapore-journalist-goes-112217081.html</a></span></span><u><span style="color: #4472c4; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-themecolor: accent1;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Also, here is an article on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Bhutan travel,</b> but apart from just
getting there, the daily fees mandated by the king are costly (only visitors
from India are exempt, I’ve been told). Also, the weather, at least in the
capital city <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Thimphu</b>, is always
rainy and cool or even downright cold every time I check. That probably allows
tress there to grow tall, with lumber seeming to be the main industry besides
tourism. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/18/travel/places-to-go-bhutan.html?action=click&module=Editors%20Picks&pgtype=Homepage">https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/18/travel/places-to-go-bhutan.html?action=click&module=Editors%20Picks&pgtype=Homepage</a></span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">A notice from local government reached me out
of the past from my tenure as board president for a local agency called <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Children’s Adoption Support Services (CASS)</b>.
It was reminding me to renew our tax-exempt status. How much water has flowed
under the bridge since we started that agency! My long-time friend Hope, a single
parent pioneer who adopted three children, including one from Vietnam, was the
spark behind our effort. (I once wrote about her and her children for the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Washington Post.)</i> Alas, our agency is
long gone, friend Hope is no longer with us, and adoption has undergone many
changes since. So, I won’t be renewing our status, but just now receiving that
letter reminded me of both our victories and challenges in getting our agency
underway. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">On
Saturday, Dec. 15,</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">
daughter Melanie and I were driving back to DC from Va. when several bridges
crossing the Potomac were all blocked. Police could not tell us why. Then, the
next morning, we read in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Washington
Post</i> that “<span class="MsoHyperlink"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/trump-makes-unannounced-visit-to-arlington-national-cemetery/2018/12/15/c2d53062-00a8-11e9-ad40-cdfd0e0dd65a_story.html" title="Trump makes unannounced visit to Arlington National Cemetery"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Trump makes unannounced visit
to Arlington National Cemetery</span></a></span></b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">.”<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">According to news reports<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">, <u>gun-related deaths</u> in the US now surpass vehicle deaths.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Very sad what has happened to<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Venezuela, not so long ago probably the most
prosperous country in Latin America thanks to its vast oil wealth. </b>Venezuela
started going downhill when <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Hugo Chavez </b>assumed
the presidency and began dispensing oil largess to allies, including<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Cuba. </b>Under<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Nicolas Maduro</b>, the nation has continued its precipitous decline.
I’ve helped <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Venezuelan asylum seekers </b>here,
folks who once enjoyed a normal middle-class life and since were blindsided by
Maduro’s incompetence, corruption, and power grab. Venezuelans (and Cubans who
can get out) are fleeing to other<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>South
American countries. Those Venezuelans lucky enough to have US visas (sometimes 10-year
visas issued before the worst of the crisis) are now coming here. There is an object
lesson for us here in the US about not letting a populous power-hungry president
destroy our democracy and our economic wellbeing. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/dec/18/the-fallen-metropolis-the-collapse-of-caracas-the-jewel-of-latin-america</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Should the US now pull out completely out of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Syria?</b> The time doesn’t seem right. But
since Trump’s surprise announcement did not mention a date, maybe there is some
wiggle room there? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Weekly Standard’s</i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>unfortunate demise strikes fear into the
hearts of Republicans who dare to counter Trump. However, the tide will turn
rather suddenly, I predict, and will become an anti-Trump tidal wave, even
among Republicans. They will fall all over themselves to try to distance
themselves, “I really never supported him.” Fortunately, Trump is not actually such
an adept “dealmaker,” just a braggart, so has done less real damage than he might
have intended. Most Americans will feel enormous relief when he is out of
office, but some of us will also grieve for our losses. Pundits and historians
will endlessly examine all that went wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">158 million would-be migrants</span></b><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> want
to move to the US, the world’s top pick, including among Hondurans. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/158-million-migrants-want-to-move-to-the-us-worlds-top-pick">https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/158-million-migrants-want-to-move-to-the-us-worlds-top-pick</a></span></span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">It’s not
surprising that folks want to come here, Trump's policies notwithstanding.
Films and TV have made the USA a desirable “dream” destination. People
elsewhere with the actual means to do so (money and visas) seem less inclined to
come here now with Trump in office, but poor people still imagine a land of
milk and honey. Upper-class and even middle-class people abroad often appreciate
being able to hire servants to care for their kids, do their housework, and
guard their homes, something they could not afford in the US, so are not as
inclined to move here. Of course, if everyone who wanted to come actually
could, it would create an unacceptable avalanche. Still, the US could absorb and
actually needs more than are coming here right now, especially among working
age adults able to fill jobs and reduce our population's overall decline and
aging. At the very least, those undocumented folks already here and working
productively, as well as the Dreamers, should be legalized. There would be no
loss in doing so. Even Trump's properties employ "illegals."
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">As for how to keep so many new <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“illegals”</b> from coming into the US, one
way would be to <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">increase <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>legal</u></i> immigrant visas,</b>
including with the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">visa lottery</b>, won
by some folks who once lived at my place, also to welcome many more <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">refugees</b>. We need to keep the US
working-age population from declining, as has been happening in Japan and some
European countries. We are not producing enough babies! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">A wall is not a good optic anyway—Trump cites
the example of Israel’s wall, which has not been good for that country’s
reputation. Perhaps because he feels besieged by the Mueller investigation,
Trump has been asserting his manhood in a tangible way by demanding a physical
wall, threatening a government shutdown over a border wall promised to his
ever-shrinking base of supporters. Hey, isn’t <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>Mexico</u></b> supposed to pay for the wall anyway? So, let’s say
that Trump makes the government shut down happen; then what? I doubt Republicans
would want that, especially as Trump is taking full ownership. (Now, at the last
moment, the budget has apparently been extended into the new year, though Trump
has yet to sign.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Donald Trump, who has so often boasted about
his enormous wealth, could actually offer to fund the @#$%^&* wall himself,
put his own vast money where his mouth is. But a wall between Mexico and the US
is not a good optic or environmentally sound; better is a see-through fence only
where necessary. Speedier processing of asylum applicants and getting separated
kids back with their parents should be added to any border security effort.
Children should not die in custody, as has sometimes happened. But parents also
bear responsibility for embarking with them on such a perilous journey. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet, those who seek asylum because of threats
of gang violence or domestic abuse are not making unsubstantiated claims. A
young <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduran man was murdered</b> days
after being deported. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduran-teens-joined-migrant-caravan-killed-mexico-155726711.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/honduran-teens-joined-migrant-caravan-killed-mexico-155726711.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here is
another challenge to Trump & Co. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Judge
orders deported asylum seekers to be returned to US, </b>in a Trump
administration rebuke <br />
<a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/judge-orders-deported-asylum-seekers-to-be-returned-to-us-in-trump-administration-rebuke">https://www.foxnews.com/politics/judge-orders-deported-asylum-seekers-to-be-returned-to-us-in-trump-administration-rebuke</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Instead of pledging money for a wall, the US
has reportedly partnered quietly with Mexico, pledging <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">$10 billion in aid for southern Mexico and Central America</b>. Trump
has not tweeted about this, as far as I know. It’s not clear whether this is
actual money, just a loan, or a matter of moving funds around. <span class="MsoHyperlink"><a href="https://apnews.com/0fcda32812024680ad98676379c47233">https://apnews.com/0fcda32812024680ad98676379c47233</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Mexico is also reportedly considering a $30
billion Central American investment</span></b><span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> to stop the migrant
crisis. Again, after this announcement, details of an actual investment are
murky. It may be loans, private donations, and/or funds already allocated for other
purposes, possibly not new money. </span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/421930-mexico-considering-30-billion-central-american-investment-to-stop-migrant">https://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/421930-mexico-considering-30-billion-central-american-investment-to-stop-migrant</a></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The Trump administration does deserve some credit
for agreeing to ban <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">bump stocks,</b> a
no-brainer, also for agreeing to reduce some federal sentences.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The Fed</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">ever so</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">slightly raised
interest rates</b> despite a warning from Trump. The stock market, which has been
plunging, is recovering somewhat. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Maybe The Donald has finally begun realizing
that he’s in trouble, as he reportedly failed to leave his bedroom on Dec. 14
when news came crashing down all around him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">There has been speculation (wishful
thinking?) that Trump might actually resign, claiming victory for the most
successful presidency ever known in American history. He doesn’t seem to be
getting a lot of job satisfaction right now. However, resignation might bring
the day of reckoning for him even closer, although the political class might
just let him retire in collective relief. Surely Pence would pardon him and he
would still enjoy Secret Service protection. He could continue to play golf and
give rally speeches to his ardent followers to boost his ego—maybe even charge
admission. It’s doubtful after his real estate machinations have been so
thoroughly exposed that he could get back into that business. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Would a truly capable and smart leader, secure
about his own abilities, actually boast that he’s the greatest ever? Muhammed
Ali’s boasting was partly tongue-in- cheek, but Trump has avoided any hint of
irony in his own braggadocio. And does the United States really need to tout
its economic might and military superiority? Doing so raises doubts, especially
under Trump when we are actually going downhill. (But the man does know now to
draw attention to himself. I’ll grant him that.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With all the focus in the Republican Party—and
for that matter among members of the public--on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">jobs, jobs, jobs,</b> I’m reminded of the maxim of the occupational
therapy association where I worked for 16 years, namely that everyone seeks “purposeful
activity” however defined subjectively by each person. Work and being paid for that
work are major ways of valuing one’s own “purposeful activity,” though an artist
like Van Gogh might paint on his own schedule and without any remuneration. Actually,
primates and other mammals also seem to engage in purposeful activity and often
seem listless and bored without it. Hence, gerbils have climbing wheels, dogs chase
sticks, and zoo gorillas’ search out hidden food. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">At this point, the revelation of the vast extent
of clergy sex abuse, especially of minors, in the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Catholic church</b> and the cover-up, not only in the US, but around
the world, has prompted me to take a long time-out from the church. I feel for sympathy
for Pope Francis confronting this serious long-festering problem. I remember my
own youthful interest in becoming a nun and even, not so long ago, attending a
mass officiated by Cardinal</span><span style="background: white; color: #545454; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">McCarrick. But now, late in life, the
pope and the church would have to take dramatic action to win me back again. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Dear readers, why not consider giving your
loved ones an <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">adventure-filled, inspiring
book</b> for the holidays, one outside the ordinary mainstream, namely, one of my
own titles, available on Amazon? (You can tell the recipient you know the
author.) The main message of both books <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(Triumph
& Hope</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Confessions of Secret
Latina),</i> memoirs from my own life, is that we all have unique and amazing experiences,
not only you and me, but even the panhandler on the corner if only he could put
words to paper. My immediate neighbors greet me regularly outside my front door,
seeing only a slender smiling woman of a certain age and, as I return their
greetings, I see only their own superficial appearance. But we all have secret
depths and unique feelings and vast experiences. Read about my many adventures
and challenges, then acknowledge and celebrate your own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-60409504507129522182018-12-10T07:56:00.001-08:002018-12-10T07:56:48.576-08:00Son’s Death Anniversary, 70th Human Rights Declaration Anniversary, RIP George HW Bush, Migrants, Assange, Suicide in America, Plunging Birthrates<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilnpa2v_y_nKk6VZPoszyshFxD1N75yyVf1H0OJFp3s6PBQ_8Hf_TH90xtrAHZ1ZTohG45-kYJNGXD9PQnhmsfPeXc9hpb1-bk_DZ5T_F2wiHFFentlEnUl9tB2_wPGJ4yPPaEL9DDT2LH/s1600/Kingston%252C+Dec%252C+2018.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilnpa2v_y_nKk6VZPoszyshFxD1N75yyVf1H0OJFp3s6PBQ_8Hf_TH90xtrAHZ1ZTohG45-kYJNGXD9PQnhmsfPeXc9hpb1-bk_DZ5T_F2wiHFFentlEnUl9tB2_wPGJ4yPPaEL9DDT2LH/s320/Kingston%252C+Dec%252C+2018.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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My 3-year-old grandson Kingston in Hawaii, in a photo taken by his father, my son Jon, visiting there recently from his current home in W Va. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNO-GdQY2wt6DN1QjZJHkro0WCLbQPiun4WIsaJkCDEkt7kAfzUNbqXp6k6GNAYDb4ytRheb8a0lvuKjk9QkNn7-bWt1ULcEW4n1D1PjMJbrcPz76Q2PlFDXTtqj1TM_hSfWBho18FE9Uc/s1600/Andrew%2527s+grave.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNO-GdQY2wt6DN1QjZJHkro0WCLbQPiun4WIsaJkCDEkt7kAfzUNbqXp6k6GNAYDb4ytRheb8a0lvuKjk9QkNn7-bWt1ULcEW4n1D1PjMJbrcPz76Q2PlFDXTtqj1TM_hSfWBho18FE9Uc/s320/Andrew%2527s+grave.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Dec. 19 is the anniversary of my beloved son Andrew's untimely death.<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">December
10</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> is not only Human Rights Day, but also the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">70<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights.</b> We’d like to think some progress has been made during those 70
years. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Donald Trump, who has constantly disparaged the Bush family and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">George HW Bush’s NAFTA initiative</b>,
suddenly decided to go all-out for the former president’s funeral. Trump is
nothing if not unpredictable. Of course, the Bush family, in an attempt at
reconciliation, invited Trump to the funeral, an olive branch that he seems to
have relished after being snubbed by McCain’s family. (How will he react if
former President Carter dies on his watch?) No doubt Trump was squirming in his
seat during the long ceremony which was not about him for a change and seemed a
rebuttal to his approach to governing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Though I did not vote for GHW, I consider him to have been an OK
president, better than his son. He was certainly moderate and reasonable in
contrast to Trump. He showed restraint after the invasion of Kuwait (but failed
to support the Iraqis after urging them to “rise up”). He presided over the
enactment of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Americans with
Disabilities Act,</b> which I had worked on beforehand behind the scenes,
assisting my late former husband. Bush Senior also signed the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Clean Air Act</b> now being thwarted by
Trump. He advocated statehood for Puerto Rico. His “Thousand Points of Light.“
much disparaged by Trump, were considered inspiring. And the elder Bush welcomed
the fall of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Berlin Wall, </b>but
also oversaw the Tiananmen Square massacre. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But for all the accolades heaped on a fallen leader, his legacy is
not unblemished. Bush presided over the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Anita
Hill</b> hearings and nominated <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Clarence
Thomas</b> and also was lukewarm about confronting <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">AIDS,</b> which afflicted my late Cuban foster son <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Alex, </b>leading to his death. The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Willie Horton</b> accusations that he repeatedly leveled during his
presidential campaign were pretty egregious. Father Bush was also famous for
his garbled syntax, echoed later by his son in his own presidency. (But compared
to Trump, GHW in his presidency was the soul of eloquence.) In his later (senile?)
years, while posing for photo ops in his wheelchair, the late former president
would reportedly routinely pinch the bottoms of unsuspecting young women
standing next to him and chortle <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“David-cop-a
feel,”</b> to wife Barbara’s great consternation. So, like most human beings,
he leaves a mixed legacy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Me-Too</b> movement is an
ongoing cultural and power distribution shift leaving many men befuddled and defensive
and propelling many of them to join with misogynist Donald Trump. While women of
my generation in our youth simply accepted male dominance and sexual aggression
as reality, thanks to birth control and rising expectations, women are now
seeking more options. Just as there was (and still is) resistance to black
empowerment and equality, there is going to be continuing resistance to female
empowerment. At least some of the vilification of <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Hillary Clinton</b> has been based on that. Today’s Republican-dominated
Senate is one of the last bastions of male dominance. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Here’s another take on the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Central
American migrant caravan.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2018/11/30/how-the-caravan-crisis-boomeranged-on-the-latin-american-left/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #196ad4;">https://nypost.com/2018/11/30/how-the-caravan-crisis-boomeranged-on-the-latin-american-left/</span></a></span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The migrant situation <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is </i>complicated,
like most issues when examined in depth. I am not a big fan of contrarian
legislator <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mel Zelaya,</b> who may have
set this caravan in motion. Neither am I a fan of the current president of
Honduras, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Juan Orlando Hern</b></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">á</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ndez,</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> who
managed to change the constitution to give himself a second term, as Zelaya had
attempted to do, but was thwarted. A pox on both their houses! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Here’s another story about the Honduran president’s brother being indicted
on drug charges in the US,]. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: #034990; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: hyperlink; mso-themeshade: 191;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2018/12/02/brother-of-honduran-president-used-speedboats-submarines-to-smuggle-cocaine-courts/"><span style="color: #034990; mso-themecolor: hyperlink; mso-themeshade: 191;">https://nypost.com/2018/12/02/brother-of-honduran-president-used-speedboats-submarines-to-smuggle-cocaine-courts/</span></a></span></span><u><span style="color: #2e74b5; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: accent5; mso-themeshade: 191;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Of course, there were 16 siblings in the Honduran
president’s family, so their parents might not have been able to keep track of
them all and chances are that some bad apples might have turned up among them.
Many Hondurans believe the president is another bad apple, but the family does
seem to have been an enterprising bunch. When I was in Honduras in Feb.,
people who had voted for the president considered him the lesser of evils, as
the other major candidate was a TV entertainer who had bragged about his sexual
prowess and was supported by Zelaya, the legislator and former president
mentioned in these pages before, an ally of the late Hugo Chavez. Many people
simply told me they had not voted when faced with those choices. I will say
that President Hernandez talking on TV sounded much more organized and coherent
than Trump, including when he took questions from reporters. That's not saying
much. </span><u><span style="color: #2e74b5; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: accent5; mso-themeshade: 191;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Many, if not most, people in Central America dream of going to the
US. It's a shared fantasy of a better life, although since Trump took office,
some have changed their mind—his rhetoric has had a chilling effect and border
crossing are actually down. Still, poverty and violence there are real, but
unless you are starving, you can adjust to poverty--it becomes normal. It's a
situation shared with all your associates, so simply what you come to expect,
as I found out when I lived there as a Peace Corps volunteer for 3 1/2 years.
When I came home to the US to a bathroom with a hot shower and flush toilet,
that seemed exotic. But violence that threatens you directly is another matter.
I do worry about my own safety whenever I go to Honduras, especially in a taxi
or on a bus when a hold-up is always possible. And it really isn't feasible for
a poor Honduran to just pick up and move to a safer part of the country since
there are not many safe places, except maybe in remote villages where it's
practically impossible to fit in and earn even a subsistence living. For
many Central American young people, the journey north is an adventure and a
rite of passage. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The northward journey is dangerous and difficult
and the risks don’t end when they arrive in the US, but when they are first starting
out, they don’t know that. Of course, this guy did, because he had done it
before. </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="https://apnews.com/aaac850c517441b4a1936cb59cdc7040" target="_blank"><span style="color: #196ad4;">https://apnews.com/aaac850c517441b4a1936cb59cdc7040</span></a></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If Mexico is willing to accept most of the migrants who already speak
their national language and are willing to work in border sweatshops for $2 or
less per hour, that might still be preferable for them than trying to get into
the US. But Mexico's capacity is also limited and there is plenty of violence
there too. It would be an irony if migrants now become attracted by <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“the Mexican dream." <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Why is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sen. Chuck Schumer</b>
seeming to agree to fund <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Trump’s</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">border wall</b>? Is it to try to agree with
Trump on something or to avoid a government shutdown? Is it because he knows
the rest of the Democratic contingent won’t allow it? It would be a big waste
of money, be environmentally damaging, and present a negative image of our
country. Shore up fences, if you will, but no wall! Now Schumer is saying it’s money
actually for “border security,” not necessarily for a wall.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
younger daughter and her husband live and work in<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Honolulu</b> and I have a little grandson living there, and am also concerned
for all of Hawaii’s residents. So, I believe we need to get Trump out of the presidency
as soon as possible, before <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">North Korea</b>
builds up its nuclear arsenal to the point that it can reach not only Seoul and
Tokyo, but Honolulu. Trump represents a grave danger to humankind. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Julian
Assange</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> may have avoided prison by holing up in the Ecuadoran Embassy,
its own sort of prison. Now that it is becoming clear that WikiLeaks was
instrumental in getting Trump elected, will Assange become eligible for a
presidential pardon? If so, there may not be much time left, as the noose seems
to be tightening around Donald Trump. (Or is that just my wishful thinking?) Trump
seems to be getting increasingly ansy as he tries to feign being in charge.
Will his supporters both in government and in the public jettison him if the
evidence against him appears too strong? If it comes to that, probably Mike
Pence will pardon him, following the Nixon playbook. Then Donald Trump can
retire mercifully to the golf course and try again to make real estate deals,
though with much diminished capacity with his fraudulence revealed. He may even
find a ghostwriter for another memoir giving his side of the story, how the
fake media and deep state did him in, which will still sell among his hard
core. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Looking back on my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Peace
Corps</b> years, after the tragic deaths of my son and Cuban foster son and so
many years of juggling the needs of my family as a single parent with work
obligations and volunteer duties, being in rural Honduras served as a retreat
and a respite. Some folks may seek peace in an ashram or a monastery, but I was
able to get away from it all by just leading a simple life in a Honduran
village. No wonder that I was willing to extend my Peace Corps service for more
than a year while many other volunteers went home early or left immediately
after completing their 27-month term. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">According to the<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Economist</i>
cover story for Nov. 24-30, 2018, global suicide rates are falling, rising only
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">in the US, where half of suicides are
carried out with guns. </b>Since suicide is often an impulsive act, easy gun
availability makes it lethal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In the same issue, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">US
birthrates are falling below replacement</b>, approaching low European and
Japanese levels. The availability of effective contraception is certainly a
factor, as is the greater participation of women in the workforce. Birthrates
for Hispanic women are the only sector approaching replacement, but even those have
begun falling. All the more reason why our country, as well as Europe and
Japan, should welcome more immigrants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-74139082053101387632018-12-01T09:12:00.001-08:002018-12-01T14:38:18.800-08:00Thanksgiving Here & Abroad, World AIDS Day, Pending Anniversary of Son Andrew’s Death, Daughter Melanie’s Birthday, Camp Fire, Trump Again & Again (alas still with us!), Canadian Diplomats Targeted by Sonic Attacks in Cuba, Refugees & Migrants <span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here
is my friend <b>Priscila </b>with her 2
sons on Thanksgiving morning at McDonald’s, of all places, the only local
breakfast venue we could find that was open.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj16yFX6SPq9hyphenhyphenyDTf5wkQmJRfDg4EwVgNREvy5vTB6MPxC4BfHMXnPfgcTx15FELw4n2IKXnCPqmG9zLN0zL0FBoKKcKfwu6-bjznNEoSe3l9UEpyu5Lbxv2cAwglWekiu5rLRQnWIuJ8T/s1600/Pris+and+sons%252C+Thanksgiving++2018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj16yFX6SPq9hyphenhyphenyDTf5wkQmJRfDg4EwVgNREvy5vTB6MPxC4BfHMXnPfgcTx15FELw4n2IKXnCPqmG9zLN0zL0FBoKKcKfwu6-bjznNEoSe3l9UEpyu5Lbxv2cAwglWekiu5rLRQnWIuJ8T/s400/Pris+and+sons%252C+Thanksgiving++2018.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">I had a wonderful
dinner that evening with my daughter Melanie, my only child living here in DC. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here’s something about<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> Honduras</b> regarding the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">migrant caravan. </b>Who really are the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“very bad hombres”</b> whom Trump has referred
to in relation to the migrants? I’ve been asking folks in Honduras about this
allegation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"Caravan Refugees Fled
Honduras —Where the President's Brother is an Alleged Cartel Kingpin"</span><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><a href="https://thebea.st/2ztINaX?via=ios" target="_blank"><span style="background: white; color: #196ad4;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">https://thebea.st/2ztINaX?via=ios</span></span></a><span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="color: #26282a; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Central American migrants
being sprayed with tear gas reminded me of my own experience. While <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">tear gas</b> may be less harmful than
bullets, it is hardly benign. I was caught with a crowd demonstrating against Pinochet
while an election observer in Chile in 1988. We all experienced eye irritation
and searing of our throats and lungs, all of us gasping and choking as we fled.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">On Thanksgiving, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">the Donald,</b> quite typically, gave
thanks for himself for being such an outstanding president. Was he joking or just
acting out a parody of himself? <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GW Bush,</b>
under the spell of Cheney and other wayward advisers, did some very dumb and
harmful things, but also did, or at least tried to do, a few good things, like
immigration reform (unsuccessfully). But it’s hard to say anything good at all
about Trump so far, two years in. Of course, “good” and “bad” are subjective
categories about which there will always be disagreement. However, in a
democracy, the definition of such terms should rest with the majority, while
under Trump, only a minority really consider him a “good” president and a
majority consider him decidedly “bad”. He’s had enough time and opportunity to
show his good side, if he has one. We like to think that humankind is making
progress, but under Trump, the world has been backsliding. Even US life
expectancy has fallen slightly. So now the task is to get rid of Trump and start
to undo the damage. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Today is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">World AIDS Day,</b> which I used to celebrate
in Honduras with the aid of young people marching along with an AIDS banner
that we had made and putting on outdoor skits about avoiding sex or using
condoms or getting tested if they were pregnant (a teenage girl with a pillow
under her shirt). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Yet, I agree with
House Democrats who want to go slow in opposing and investigating Trump to
avoid arousing his supporters, both in Congress and among the public, and to tamp
down the already fierce partisan divide. They should offer an olive branch and try
to find areas of agreement with Trump, even as he remains in fighting mode. How
about building a very short section of “<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The
Wall</b>” just to give him something to brag about and stand next to for photo-ops?
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trump is vulnerable to manipulation by
actors both foreign and domestic, even within his inner circle, especially if
they seem to praise him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Thanksgiving </span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">just past has put me in mind of Thanksgiving
holidays that I have <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">celebrated in other
countries,</b> including in Colombia as a teenager, in Romania on a mission on
behalf of institutionalized children, and later as Peace Corps volunteer in
Honduras.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, Thanksgiving is not
a holiday elsewhere, except in Canada at an earlier date, nor are turkeys
normally eaten elsewhere, being an American bird. So it’s always a special task
to find a Thanksgiving turkey in other countries and, in my experience, they are
usually tough and boney and forget about cranberry sauce. Still, there is a
special camaraderie in celebrating the holiday with just a few kindred souls
and in making the effort to try to duplicate the holiday back home. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">December</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> is a bittersweet month for our family. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">My older son, Andrew,</b> died at age 27 on
December 19 in 1994, a date that is also my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">daughter Melanie’s birthday.</b> This year, she turns 50, which I
simply have trouble believing. Has it really been 50 years since I first held
that little dark-haired baby in arms? Lots of water under the bridge since
then. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">After the
terrible <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Camp Fire</b> in northern
California, I suspect a few folks who had wanted to skip out on their families
and start a new life will now do so, since it has been predicted that not all bodies
of the disappeared will be found. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Donald Trump,</span></b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> misspeaking as usual, referred to the
fire-ravaged town of Paradise as “Pleasure.” Nor has he commented much on his
daughter <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ivanka’s</b> use of private
e-mail for government business, something that he considered a mortal sin when
done by Hillary, requiring <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“lock her
up.”</b> It’s not like Ivanka didn’t know that was a no-no. The Trump offspring
have been pretty quiet lately, laying low. And Donald has basically exonerated
the Saudi Crown Prince in the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Khashoggi </b><span style="background: white; color: #222222;">murder. Of course, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">GW Bush</b> also ignored the Saudi role in 9/11.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Singer Rufus Wainright is right-on, warning that “<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">the fox is in the henhouse</b>.” Trump’s
ascendancy to the presidency, after acquiring the support of only a minority of
Americans, gives the majority the experience of living under a dictatorship
where everything is decreed by the dictator and enforced by the minority who
support him. Trump has certainly acted like a dictator, firing people
willy-nilly, aligning himself with foreign dictators, and trying to silence the
media. While the minority who voted for Trump might have felt disregarded
before and empowered now, is it better that they overrule the majority? In a
dictatorship, a minority always supports the ruler as he cannot act alone and
must rely on his faithful to carry out orders. When Trump’s appointees fail to
carry out his mandates, he fires them. Will we remember Trump when he is out of
office, as is bound to happen, hopefully sooner rather than later? Then the analysis
of what went wrong will go on ad infinitum. But at the moment, the Tea Party is
still going strong, at least on line, drumming up conspiracy theories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This article in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">NYTimes</i>
warns that projections of the US becoming a “minority-majority” country, that
is, with native-born whites in the minority, has become a rallying cry for
Trump and other white racists. So might it be best to play down those
predictions? The article points out that the definition of “whiteness” is
pretty fluid and that people with some minority inheritance may actually become
absorbed into the “white category, since<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">
race</i> is a social construct, not something objective and immutable.
Definitions change, Is the offspring of a parent with northern European
heritage and another parent of another ethnicity “white”? If that offspring
married someone of European heritage, then what? Are Jewish people “white”? What
about a blond, blue-eyed Hispanic? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
have been two cases recently of black men shot and killed while trying to defend
against a shooter. The NRA’s “a good guy with a gun” refers only to white guys? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<u><span style="background: white; color: #4472c4; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/22/us/white-americans-minority-population.html?action=click&module=Well&pgtype=Homepage&section=US</span></u><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 2;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The pattern for
Trump appointees seems to get fired (like on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Apprentice</b>) or being pressed to resign, then to write a book. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">US diplomats in
Havana are not the only ones injured by mysterious sonic attacks that also
targeted <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Canadian diplomats.</b> <span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="color: #2e74b5; mso-themecolor: accent5; mso-themeshade: 191;"><a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-canadas-brain-injured-cuba-diplomats-speak-out-about-ottawas-silence/"><span style="color: #2e74b5; mso-themecolor: accent5; mso-themeshade: 191;">https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-canadas-brain-injured-cuba-diplomats-speak-out-about-ottawas-silence/</span></a></span></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">It’s great that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Honduran migrants</b> are being offered jobs in Tijuana, where they not
only don’t have to worry about being deported, but also speak the same language
as everyone else. Some locals have protested their arrival, but they seem to be
a minority. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">While my sympathies are with <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">refugees and migrants</b> to the US, who enrich
our culture, help fill our worker shortage, and offset the aging of the
population, nonetheless, there are limits as to how many new people can be
absorbed, something Canada, Australia, and Europe are also grappling with. But
we can admit higher numbers than are now being permitted. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-31430221128486582752018-11-19T07:40:00.001-08:002018-11-19T07:40:36.122-08:00Red-hot Peppers, Early Snow, Daughter’s Birthday, Gun Violence, Trump Stumbles in Europe, Border Wall, Cuba, Paradise Lost, Thanksgiving Wishes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUSljbYlLia_2awabVTL0yO07HohlVK6mPwe4CCq1dfJZtpwuliUlwXRgt0PVQGfv2EHvCEWPcXx_dwrvbDoX1-G08tFXz8yfsQLIWCBdb6qyksJChpqDBbc05z22-iw7uU2Y15F7Lgvlx/s1600/red+peppers.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUSljbYlLia_2awabVTL0yO07HohlVK6mPwe4CCq1dfJZtpwuliUlwXRgt0PVQGfv2EHvCEWPcXx_dwrvbDoX1-G08tFXz8yfsQLIWCBdb6qyksJChpqDBbc05z22-iw7uU2Y15F7Lgvlx/s320/red+peppers.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Hot peppers</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> anyone? They can clear out your throat
and sinuses. The pepper plant grown from seeds planted by my former Bhutan
visitors is now bearing fruit that’s turning fiery. I don’t care for hot
peppers myself and my family and associates who have dared to try them have
found them really a bit too hot, all excerpt my visitor from Bhutan, who has
snapped them up. Sometimes I check the weather in Thimphu, Bhutan’s capital,
and it’s always cold and rainy there, colder and rainier (and snowier) than even
here in Washington, DC, so folks there may need to eat hot peppers to keep them
warm inside. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">On
Nov. 15, as all DC residents know, we woke up to snow, not a lot, but very
early in the season, the earliest Nov. snowfall in 30 years. [photo]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Yes,
46 years ago in Nov., I gave birth to my <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">daughter
Stephanie</b> at George Washington University Hospital here in DC. She is a
woman of many talents, but has chosen to work in science, where she excels, as in
everything. Am I perhaps biased? I consider all my kids and grandkids very
special, as most of us do. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">It’s
safe to say that most Americans are getting weary of mass shootings and of<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> NRA</b> arguments touting the sacredness
of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Second Amendment</b>. As a Canadian
couple commented after a previous mass shooting, “We’re from <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Canada,</b> so we don’t have this sort of
thing there.” How terrible that a young man who was spared in Las Vegas was
killed a few months later in Thousand Oaks. His anguished mother said she
doesn’t want any more “thoughts and prayers,” she just wants gun control! After
a mass shooting in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Australia,</b> tough
gun-control measures were enacted there that almost halted such shootings in their
tracks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I’d
ask those who contend that the best defense against <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">gun violence</b> is having even more guns around to take a look at
Honduras. There city grocery stores, Western Union outlets, banks, cell phone
sellers, and even some ice cream parlors have armed guards. The result is an
enormous gun death rate, though, so far, no copycat mass shootings. More guns statistically
result in more gun injuries and deaths. Doesn’t the right to life and to the
pursuit of happiness, also enshrined in the Constitution, trump the right to
bear arms? Why not try a new approach, one that reduces the number of and
access to guns, since a “more-guns” strategy obviously is not working? This is
no longer the wild west! I’ve even advocated giving time-limited financial
incentives to gun manufacturers to reduce their production and switch to making
plowshares or whatever, much like what has been given to farmers to grow fewer
excess crops. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">One
of the rightwing websites supporting Trump that has gotten into my feed is now
offering a chance to win a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">state-of-the-art
pistol</b> complete with earmuffs and ammunition. Apparently, avid gun-owners
(whose numbers mercifully are shrinking), don’t feel safe without their handgun
at their bedside or strapped to their side; it’s part of their persona. Those
folks will just have to die out. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Why
are <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">guns and people</b> such a dangerous
combination? Because people tend to be impulsive, irrational, excitable, and
error-prone. In the hands of children, many guns become lethal toys. Motor
vehicles are dangerous too, so there are restrictions on driving. And while
driverless cars may not be foolproof (nothing is), they are probably safer than
cars with human drivers. People are inherently accident-prone. Probably more
than half of humans now on earth are the products of surprise or accidental pregnancies.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Trump
embarrassed himself and us all with his missteps and misstatements recently in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Europe,</b> missing a main event on his
official itinerary because of rain, while other world leaders still attended. He
probably just didn’t feel like appearing there after making statements that displayed
his woeful ignorance of history and geography. A high school student could have
done better. When Trump doesn’t know something, he should just keep his mouth
shut. Rain seems to present a persistent problem for him, as when walking in
the rain with Melania, he forgets to put the umbrella over her head and when he
enters a plane, since he doesn’t know how to close an umbrella, he just leaves
it open outside. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">If
Trump actually told the truth, we wouldn’t believe it. Are we really to believe
that he, as the president who fired Sessions right after the midterms, didn’t know
about Whitaker’s views on the Mueller investigation when he skipped over
Rosenstein, the next-in-line, to appoint the newly hired Whitaker whose antagonistic
views on Mueller were common knowledge? What an ill-informed chief executive,
if that were the case. And his self-evaluation is way off if he thinks he’s wildly
popular and an A+ president, attributing his low marks to “fake news.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Unfortunately,
the guy is seriously mentally and emotionally challenged, so sad for him, his
family, and his associates, and sadder yet for our whole country and the wider world.
He is setting a bad example for other despots and encouraging actual fake news
on the internet which multiplies and disperses his misstatements. Worse yet, he
is not only uninformed and cognitively challenged, but also very meanspirited
and deliberately cruel and never says he’s sorry or wrong. He is gratuitously
nasty. We are almost becoming numb to his mistakes, misstatements, and insults.
And when Trump reads from a teleprompter, he undermines a fairly
straightforward presentation with a silly ad lib. He never apologizes or backtracks,
doubling down instead. He should retire ASAP to the golf course and take out his
frustrations on a little round golf ball. Pundits say it’s hard for a nation to
recover after being led by demagogue and charlatan, so the longer Trump remains
in in office, the worse it gets. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Sarah Sanders</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> has defended Trump’s efforts to strip
Jim Acosta’s White House press credentials saying there has to be <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">“decorum”</b> in the White House. How about
the commander-in-chief setting the example? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Trump
is lucky that the good economy, started under Obama, is still keeping him
afloat as president. If, indeed, he has done nothing wrong, he should be glad
an inquiry will prove that and not be acting so guilty and defensive. When
Trump wrongly accused Obama of having been born in Kenya (for which he has
never apologized), Obama finally came up with his official Hawaii birth
certificate. If the accusations against Trump are wrong, let him come up with
evidence to prove his case instead of belittling and name-calling his accusers.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">The
man has certainly been in a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">funk</b> and
a very bad mood ever since the mid-terms, not only missing a commemoration
ceremony he went to France precisely to attend, but also an Asian-Pacific
economic summit, sending Pence (with his own ambitions) instead. On Veterans’
Day, he failed to go to Arlington Cemetery, as is customary. Trump is probably
rightly worried now that Mueller will get him and that he may be losing
supporters even in the Republican Senate as his hard-core base shrinks. If the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Republican Party</b> finally sees its way
clear to jettison its knee-jerk support of Trump for its own survival, then he
will be left without allies. Some Republican office-holders already realize he
is dragging down their party. Mostly, he has been governing by winging it and
letting staff clean up his messes. We’ve lost a lot of respect not only for the
president himself, but for the office. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #26282a; font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">In Brownsville, Texas, Catholic <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Bishop Daniel Flores</b> says church
property should not be used for a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">border
wall</b> - that it “would limit freedom of the church to exercise her mission
in the Rio Grande Valley.” He is worried they won’t be able to stop federal officials
who have now filed in court to obtain rights to survey the property for
eventual border wall construction.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I
feel like a broken record advocating that the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Catholic Church,</b> in which I was raised, baptized, and married,
allow married and women priests. (See pp.181-2 of my book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Triumph & Hope.)</i> Now, George Shultz, former Secretary of Labor,
says the same in an article appearing in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Washington Post</i> <span class="MsoHyperlink"><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-not-allow-priests-to-marry-or-women-to-be-ordained/2018/11/13/025fe2d0-e69c-11e8-a939-9469f1166f9d_story.html?utm_term=.ede102858b9e">https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-not-allow-priests-to-marry-or-women-to-be-ordained/2018/11/13/025fe2d0-e69c-11e8-a939-9469f1166f9d_story.html?utm_term=.ede102858b9e</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Pope Francis,</span></b><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;"> who started out with much support
from the faithful, has had his image tarnished by the revelation of longstanding
priestly child sex abuse and coverup. And the church worldwide has suffered a
serious crisis; it is not just an American problem. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">In
Brazil, President-elect <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Jair Bostoner</b>
will require Cuban doctors working there to receive their pay directly, instead
having it go to the Cuban government, and also have then be allowed to bring
their families with them, so the Cuban government has decided to pull them out.
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk530063561">The Cuban government’s doctors-for-hire program, a big
source of foreign income, has long been a bone of contention</a>. As per my
books, I have often worked with Cuban doctors and other health professionals in
Honduras, some of whom have stayed on there, leaving their families in Cuba
behind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/u/1/null" name="_Hlk530063635"><u><span style="color: #4472c4; mso-themecolor: accent1;">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/14/cuba-doctors-brazil-withdraw-jair-bolsonaro<o:p></o:p></span></u></a></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk530063635;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">On Dec. 7, the OAS has scheduled a
conference at its DC headquarters on <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Human
Rights in Cuba</b>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">I
well remember <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Paradise, California,</b>
a lovely special town, not far from Sacramento where I lived many years ago. My
late ex-husband and I bought a piece of land on a stream outside of Paradise and
camped out there several times. My ex got that property in our divorce. So sorry
it has all gone up in smoke. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana",sans-serif;">Happy Thanksgiving, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias<o:p></o:p></i></span></b></div>
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<br />Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1642798624994941459.post-80361120350269269312018-11-08T06:46:00.001-08:002018-11-08T06:50:08.052-08:00Halloween, Berkeley Springs, Migrant Caravan, Midterms<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKZO995Jevs_Rx7AhKWnoVN8P9Wy9DYVmLUUPhSX53e0dlSfgU5MG7Cxy1c7BnJ0cU6ArEOry4ejSQagBEEV2GQ_f-MBQ4-zxs6chnF9mnG5hGPSgqEPtnde99nFhkaIr4wxGD79_4c4d/s1600/Halloween+2018+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKZO995Jevs_Rx7AhKWnoVN8P9Wy9DYVmLUUPhSX53e0dlSfgU5MG7Cxy1c7BnJ0cU6ArEOry4ejSQagBEEV2GQ_f-MBQ4-zxs6chnF9mnG5hGPSgqEPtnde99nFhkaIr4wxGD79_4c4d/s320/Halloween+2018+%25284%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOXrfPG2X4vFV_S20U6DT9uEf0Gh-QDz6C7N0pSk7reT8iXUskgXwytQ693-qh_AmJLw3kdgxC_nf9W9nn3KZN7umTDWCc_6NMJ0xpfegncBNvXyiNfohaC4d8q2wvMyPa8FLUYYG8dxiX/s1600/Halloween%252C+2018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOXrfPG2X4vFV_S20U6DT9uEf0Gh-QDz6C7N0pSk7reT8iXUskgXwytQ693-qh_AmJLw3kdgxC_nf9W9nn3KZN7umTDWCc_6NMJ0xpfegncBNvXyiNfohaC4d8q2wvMyPa8FLUYYG8dxiX/s200/Halloween%252C+2018.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>
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Halloween gave us a respite from national and world news. Halloween evening in Washington, DC, was balmy, with lots of kids out and </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpmcJEjwJpmTxKm4Pz5kKHQ4W8E4iFbB68P-t6fpi_Bix2T6lz9v_aB8IL1FiXf75f9AbtAvZTGJT0ToA6UDRv2OTV1eHP0SlwEl91nbmMIXhMwmgcXzjqCR667laCPm8nRJ1FthEZBJXT/s1600/Mel+and+Jon+Nov.+2018.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpmcJEjwJpmTxKm4Pz5kKHQ4W8E4iFbB68P-t6fpi_Bix2T6lz9v_aB8IL1FiXf75f9AbtAvZTGJT0ToA6UDRv2OTV1eHP0SlwEl91nbmMIXhMwmgcXzjqCR667laCPm8nRJ1FthEZBJXT/s320/Mel+and+Jon+Nov.+2018.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Daughter Melanie with son Jonathan in Berkeley Springs, W Va.<br />
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Below, yours truly, with Jon on same visit<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbqFcRjznv_84wy5fpqKz_9TXqZkaR-l4fxtMFNl8eYQCkJ_SQBtPAsSQ4jLu9drHzrO3Vohv6h10TIf0P_Blu9EO7XMJqQoPODRQAUWr_9mUUqsLmbwftST9eXnyZ7Rbg72_fd82sMURF/s1600/Barbara%252C+Npv.+2018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbqFcRjznv_84wy5fpqKz_9TXqZkaR-l4fxtMFNl8eYQCkJ_SQBtPAsSQ4jLu9drHzrO3Vohv6h10TIf0P_Blu9EO7XMJqQoPODRQAUWr_9mUUqsLmbwftST9eXnyZ7Rbg72_fd82sMURF/s320/Barbara%252C+Npv.+2018.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwBPm954MyWNyidDCoRqb2Vck8OSAAl71d33oWug2y_jiOP9qUMolVQDo97otJM8owMHlFQuVA06LJx50zhVqluyXzoYJ3EV105tgvwLgvXoRVfQEBeLyzF1VJovuE1di8SyodU0nBcPUp/s1600/Jon+and+Mom+Nov.+2018.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="778" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwBPm954MyWNyidDCoRqb2Vck8OSAAl71d33oWug2y_jiOP9qUMolVQDo97otJM8owMHlFQuVA06LJx50zhVqluyXzoYJ3EV105tgvwLgvXoRVfQEBeLyzF1VJovuE1di8SyodU0nBcPUp/s400/Jon+and+Mom+Nov.+2018.jpg" width="193" /></a> </div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Did
the American <b>civil war</b> ever end? It
often seems as though it’s still going on. Trump is reviving the Confederacy!
His main lament as he continued with his pre-election rallies was that the bomb
packages and Pittsburgh synagogue shooting were distracting from him and his
message, which seems to be to vote Republican to save him from impeachment. And
while he made a perfunctory call for unity, he undercut it by saying “Now,
aren’t I being nice?” His only response to mass shootings has been more guns
and the death penalty. Americans are becoming almost numb to mass shootings.
Who’s next? Does “the right to bear arms” trump the “right to life”? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We
are all sitting ducks if we gather now in groups. You’d better believe that Trump’s rally crowds are screened for
weapons beforehand.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As
weary<b> migrants</b> walk with their kids
through southern Mexico, Trump has sent troops to the border to stop them from
entering. Isn’t that overkill? More troops than migrants—and are the troops supposed
to shoot them? Trump has equivocated on that. The migrants are still weeks and
months away. I suppose Trump has sent troops now because of the midterm
elections, anything to fire up the base. And he declares that Democrats and George
Soros are organizing and funding the caravan—why would they do that at this crucial
time? Maybe Trump’s supporters are actually funding and encouraging them—Trump himself
is not, because he never spends a dime of his own money if he can avoid it—but he
needs an excuse to play Commander-in-Chief Other such Trumpian efforts are promises to
give an additional tax cut to the middle class and do away with birthright
citizenship, neither of which the president can do by decree. He acts like a
dictator or a king. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Here
is a summary about the migrant caravan, which seems to be a pre-election gift to
Trump, but which, indirectly and ironically, may have been inspired by his rhetoric.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/04/americas/migrant-theori<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif; font-size: 13pt;"><a href="https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article220920255.html">https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article220920255.html</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">As it has every year since
1992, the United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Thursday for a
resolution that called for lifting the U.S. embargo against Cuba — despite a
U.S. move to put the focus on Cuba’s human rights’ record. The vote was 189-2
in favor of the resolution with no abstentions. Only the United States and
Israel voted against it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , serif; font-size: 13pt;">Before the vote, there was
debate on eight amendments proposed by the United States that criticized Cuba’s
human rights record and lack of civil liberties on the island. The amendments
were all defeated by wide margins with only three delegations — the United
States, Israel, and Ukraine — consistently voting for them. The Marshall
Islands also voted in favor of one amendment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now
that the midterms are over, Trump is moving aggressively to protect himself
from the </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mueller probe.</b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> He can veto
any proposal to continue the probe that the Democratic House puts forth. This promises
to be open warfare.</span> </div>
Barbara Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17453204112967055077noreply@blogger.com0