SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET:

MENTAL HEALTH ALERT – FROM DAILY MAIL:   Labelling millennials 'snowflakes' is damaging their mental health, research claims.   The controversial term is now fashionable to use when describing young adults who are seen as taking offence easily and emotionally vulnerable.  Almost three quarters of 16-24 year olds surveyed believe the moniker is unfair and are adamant it could negatively affect their mental health.  The findings, made by insurance firm Aviva, were derived from a survey of 2,022 British participants between those ages.  The thoughts were echoed by adults of all ages, with 58 per cent claiming the label is unfairly applied, the survey showed.  A further 57 per cent felt that the term 'generation snowflake' could also harm the mental health of young people.   I will be very careful not to do damage to these gentle souls.  I will always caress them with the same compliments my mother gave me when I was three years old. 

WILL WE BE IN THE 2018 OLYMPICS? – FROM THE HILL:   United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley said Wednesday there’s still an “open question” as to whether the U.S. will send its athletes to South Korea in February for the Winter Olympics, citing escalating tensions with North Korea.  “I think those are conversations we’re going to have to have. But what have we always said?  We don’t ever fear anything. We live our lives,” Haley said on Fox News.   The 2018 Winter Olympics start Feb. 9, 2018, and are being held in PyeongChang, South Korea, which is roughly 50 miles from the demilitarized zone.  Haley said U.S. officials will monitor activity in the region closely, and determine a way to ensure athletes are protected.
“What we will do is we’ll make sure that we’re taking every precaution possible to make sure that they’re safe, and to know everything that’s going on around them,” she said.  I think there's a bit of appropriate posturing here.  She's stressing to the American audience how dangerous the Korean peninsula has become.

FARCE – FROM FOX:  The House of Representatives overwhelmingly rejected an attempt to impeach President Trump after a liberal Texas congressman forced a vote on his effort.  Democratic Rep. Al Green, who has repeatedly called for the president's removal, introduced two articles of impeachment against Trump on Wednesday.  But lawmakers immediately voted to effectively kill his resolution, with 364 voting to table it and 58 Democrats voting to move ahead.  In a dramatic speech on the floor ahead of the vote, Green called Trump “unfit” for office and accused him of "high misdemeanors."  The thought that a nutcase idea like this could collect 58 Democratic votes tells us much about the state of the Democratic Party.  They want to remove a president on general principles. 

December 6,  2017