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NOVEMBER 19,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 9:55 P.M. ET: 

THE CLASS SYSTEM RETURNS – FROM DAILY MAIL:   Passengers will soon be boarding British Airways planes according to how much they paid for their flights.  From next month, those who pay the lowest fares will have to wait at the departure gate and board after everyone else.  The carrier will introduce a ‘group boarding’ system on all its flights from December 12.  When passengers check in they will be assigned a group number between one and five which will be printed on their boarding pass.The lower the number, the earlier the passenger will be allowed to board.  Number one will be assigned First Class passengers on long-haul flights and short-haul travellers on BA’s business class, Club Europe, as well as Gold members of the BA Executive Club  Next will be business class Club World passengers on long-haul flights, and Silver members of the Executive Club.  Group three will be passengers in World Traveller Plus, which is BA’s premium economy, as well as Bronze members.  Normal economy passengers will be in group four.  The indignity of boarding the plane last will be given to those travelling on the cheapest, hand-baggage only fares.  Well, the Brits have always had a kind of class system anyway.  And all this for the privilege of flying in a tube with passengers who are dressed for a bus ride.  Forget elegance.

NFL DISASTER CONTINUES – FROM BREITBART:   With the NFL’s Week 11 action wrapping up, it quickly became clear that football fans had found other things to do as thousands of empty seats could be seen in stadiums from coast to coast.  With TV ratings off nearly 20 percent over all and the networks already known to have lost up to $500 million in ad revenue, it is becoming clear that last year’s 12 percent decline wasn’t because of the raucous political season, a claim that served as the excuse for the 2016 season’s ratings loss.  The ratings slide is reflected in the skimpy attendance at the stadiums, too, with Week 11 photos showing that there are still empty seats galore.  The NFL is getting what it deserves.  Or at least the management is getting it.  They've got to clean up their messes, make rules that stick, and show respect for the fans.

THE FRANKEN WATCH – FROM DAILY MAIL:    A spokesperson for Sen. Al Franken, a Democrat from Minnesota, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that 'no' the embattled senator would not resign over allegations that he fondled and kissed a woman without her permission 11 years ago.  'He is spending time with his family in Washington, D.C., and will be through the Thanksgiving holiday,' the aide told the newspaper. 'And he's doing a lot of reflecting.'   On Thursday, Franken became the latest high-profile man whose career is now in jeopardy over bad behavior with a woman.   Radio host Leeann Tweeden said in 2006, when performing alongside Franken at a traveling USO tour, the then-comedian grabbed her breasts without her permission when Tweeden was sleeping and kissed her against her will.  I wonder how one "reflects" on something like this, and how long it takes.  Do you do it yourself, or hire a reflection coach?  Do you call Gloria Allred and ask for advice?  Or Bill Clinton? 

November 19,  2017     Permalink

NOT SURPRISING – AT 2:29 P.M. ET:  The submarine-launched ballistic missile is probably the most feared combination because submarines, even today, are so hard to detect.  Little wonder, then, that the North Koreans are reported to be working vigorously on that weapons system.  From Fox: 

Kim Jong Un’s regime is pursuing an “aggressive schedule” to construct its first operational ballistic missile submarine, an analysis of satellite images indicated as North Korea scoffs at international condemnation and moves to complete its missile and nuclear program.

The images of Sinpo South Shipyard released on Thursday by 38 North, a project by the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies that specializes in North Korea analysis, suggested there were signs of movement and parts in the area since the start of the year. The shipyard has been notoriously known to be used to build large submarines for North Korea’s army, the analysis stated.

Several signs indicated the regime is expanding the site and working on a shipbuilding program to build and deploy a submarine capable of carrying a missile. The Nov. 5 satellite images showed “two larger circular objects” that could be used for a pressure hull on a submarine. Gantry and tower cranes have been seen moving around the facility, suggesting a “prolonged and ongoing shipbuilding program,” according to 38 North.

 “The presence of what appear to be sections of a submarine’s pressure hull in the yards suggests construction of a new submarine, possibly the SINPO-C ballistic missile submarine — the follow-on to the current SINPO-class experimental ballistic missile submarine,”  the 38 North report said.

COMMENT:  We will have to measure this report against the results of Mr. Trump's recent trip to Asia, where North Korea was high on the agenda.  Will North Korea continue this program, or will it be persuaded to step back?  I think the chances of success are small, without considerably more pressure, both economic, and if necessary, military.

November 19, 2017       Permalink

OH PLEASE GO AWAY – AT 1:50 PM. ET:  Kirsten Gillibrand is one of our two U.S. senators here in New York.  Kirsten Gillibrand could also go into any venue in New York, and few would know who she is.  She has the presence of a can of sardines. 

There was a time when "senator from New York" was a distinguished title, held by giants of the Senate, like the Democrats Robert Wagner and Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and the Republicans Elihu Root and Kenneth Keating.   These days, Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand lowers the standard, but she would like to be president of the United States.  That's the buzz.

Last week, after years of receiving support from the Clintons, she announced, going with the current hysteria involving sexual misconduct, that Bill should have resigned over the Lewinsky affair.  This was not appreciated in Democratic circles.  So now she's making a big show of giving back some money.  Big deal.  From The Hill: 

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) is planning to donate the money she has received from Sen. Al Franken's PAC after an accusation of sexual misconduct against the Minnesota Democrat.

Gillibrand is planning to donate the $12,500 she's received from the political action group to Protect our Defenders, a group dedicated to ending the "epidemic of rape and sexual assault in the military."

"In light of today's news about Senator Franken, Senator Gillibrand will be donating all the donations her campaign has received from his PAC ($12,500 over the course of her career) to Protect our Defenders who she stood with at her Military Justice Improvement Act press conference earlier today," Gillibrand's senior adviser, Glen Caplin, said in a statement.

Gillibrand said earlier Thursday she believes the woman who accused Franken Thursday of groping and kissing her without her consent during a USO tour in 2006.

In a tweet, Gillibrand said the allegations against Franken were "deeply concerning" and called for an ethics investigation into his behavior.

COMMENT:  Just part of the show.  Gillibrand regularly makes reckless comments about this issue, and has accomplished little as a senator.  I get the feeling that no one ever asks her much about any serious subject.  Far from being a presidential candidate, she should leave and do something useful.

November 19, 2017       Permalink

GIVING TRUMP CREDIT – AT 12:53 P.M. ET:  Salena Zito once again nails it.  She deserves a Pulitzer Prize for understanding the Trump phenomenon.  I doubt if she'll get it, things being how they are.  From the New York Post: 

Glen Dale, W. Va. — Bad news travels fast. Good news, meanwhile, doesn’t seem to travel at all.

Last weekend in Beijing, as part of his 12-day trip to Asia, President Trump announced that the US and China had signed an $83.7 billion memorandum of understanding to create a number of petrochemical projects in West Virginia over the next 20 years.

If the agreement holds tight, it is an economic game changer for the state.

And yet, speaking to the locals here, you wouldn’t even know it had happened.

“I am surprised I heard nothing about it on the national news, nor in my local paper and newscasts,” said Jerald Stephens, 67, a West Virginia native and union rep, who has been a keen observer of local politics for as long as he can remember.

The BBC and CNN covered the news in their business sections, while The New York Times picked up a short story by The Associated Press on the deal. The stories’ headlines were muted; their placement low-key.

“One would have suspected that the prospect of an investment this large — nearly three times the total annual budget for the department of energy — would have been front-page news,” said Paul Sracic, political-science professor at nearby Youngstown State University.

COMMENT:  The age of corrupt journalism is with us.  We are not getting the news.  We are getting the views.  Read Salena's excellent reporting.

November 19,  2017     Permalink

NOVEMBER 18,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:48 P.M. ET:

TRUMP SLOGAN THE BEST – FROM BREITBART:  Pollster and political analyst Pat Caddell declared, “Make America Great Again was the greatest slogan of my lifetime” during a panel at Daniel Horowitz’s Restoration Weekend conference with former White House chief strategist and Breitbart News Executive Chairman Steven K. Bannon in Florida.  Pat Caddell explained that then-presidential candidate Donald Trump was able to tap into the anti-establishment fervor building with the 2016 presidential campaign.  Caddell said that 75 percent of Americans believed that the country was in decline and on the wrong track.  The polling analyst also argued that only 15 percent of U.S. citizens believe that if you work hard, you will succeed in this country, while 85 percent of Americans think that the rich and powerful rigged the system for their benefit.  Caddell added, “This is ultimately the truth.”  Caddell is a renegade Democratic pollster with much common sense.  If the party had listened to him, it would be on top right now, and not dependent on Bernie Sanders and Nancy Pelosi.

GERMAN CRISIS – FROM AFP:  Berlin (AFP) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel resumed complex coalition talks Saturday in a last-ditch effort to forge a government and avert a political crisis in Europe's biggest economy.  The veteran leader, in power since 2005, won a September 24 vote without a clear majority for her conservative CDU/CSU bloc, largely because of the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), and must now build an unlikely alliance with the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) and left-leaning Greens.  But their deep policy differences, especially on immigration and the environment, have hobbled the monthlong negotiating marathon, leading party leaders to miss a Thursday deadline and declare they will push on until Sunday evening.  This major political story has gone virtually unreported in the United States, but political weakness in Germany can destabilize Europe and lead to the rise of smaller, fringe parties. 

A FIRST FOR NEW ORLEANS – FROM THE HILL:  The city of New Orleans, Louisiana, has elected its first female mayor in the city’s history.  Fox 8 projected Saturday night that LaToya Cantrell would be elected Mayor of New Orleans.  Cantrell, a former New Orleans city council member and Democrat, defeated opponent Desiree Charbonnet to win the election. She succeeds former Mayor Mitch Landrieu.  "Almost 300 years, my friends, and New Orleans, we're still making history," Cantrell told supporters, according to The Times-Picayune.  Cantrell ran on a platform advocating criminal justice reform, creating an LGBTQ outreach office at city hall and increasing affordable housing in the city, according to her campaign website.   Sounds like a typical Dem.  I love the name of her opponent, Desiree Charbonnet.  Now that's a name you don't forget.

November 18,  2017     Permalink

THE GROWING ECONOMY – AT 2:34 P.M. ET:  We're now beginning to see a rise in wages for the blue-collar work force, which, up to know, has endured many years of being left behind.  From the Economist: 

IF THERE was a defining economic problem for America as it recovered from the financial crisis, it was stagnant wages. In the five years following the end of the recession in June 2009 wages and salaries rose by only 8.7%, while prices increased by 9.5%. In 2014 the median worker’s inflation-adjusted earnings, by one measure, were no higher than they were in 2000. It is commonly said that wage stagnation contributed to an economic anxiety in middle America that carried Donald Trump into the White House.

Yet Mr Trump’s rise seems to have coincided with a turnaround in fortunes for the middle class. In 2015 median household income, adjusted for inflation, rose by 5.2%; in 2016 it was up by another 3.2%. During those two years, poorer households gained more, on average, than richer ones. The latest development—one that will be of particular interest to Mr Trump—is that blue-collar wages have begun to rocket. In the year to the third quarter, wage and salary growth for the likes of factory workers, builders and drivers easily outstripped that for professionals and managers. In some cases, blue-collar pay growth now exceeds 4%.

COMMENT:  Good news.  Okay, Trump can't take credit for all of it, but he can certainly take a bow for the accelerating wage growth.  A booming economy will strengthen his hand in foreign policy, and will help him politically, unless the Republican Congress brings him down first.

November 18, 2017        Permalink

BUT NO BEDSIDE MANNER – AT 1:19 P.M. ET:   Maybe the future is approaching a little too quickly for comfort.  I'm not sure I like the idea of doctors with flashing lights.  From London's Mirror: 

One of the world's first robot doctors has passed its medical exams with flying colours, it emerged.
Xiao Yi was put through his paces in the test with his human counterparts and showed he had "mastered" the skills for the job.

Researchers got him ready for his big day by inputting knowledge from dozens of medical books over the past year.

But rather than just spit it back out it in the exam he also had to show a "reasoning process" for treating a given symptom.

The robot scored 465 points out of total marks of 600 when he passed China's National Medical Licensing Examination.

That was better than what his handlers had expected, said the makers of the robot at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

"Its score is 96 points above the acceptance line," said Wu Ji, deputy boss of its electronic engineering department.

"This shows that it has indeed mastered the medical knowledge and clinical knowledge, and it has owned the basic ability to employ the knowledge to solve some problems," he added.

COMMENT:  But what can you talk about with a robot doctor?  How can you complain that your children never visit? 

Not the future I want.

November 18, 2017       Permalink

A SHARP WARNING – AT 12:46 P.M. ET:  Fortunately, some conservatives are awake, and even warning of disaster to come.  Other conservatives are asleep, and some have even been pronounced gone, as even heartbeats are hard to find.  From John Hinderaker at Powerline:

The traditional criticism of Democrats is that they have no solution to any problem except money. Taxing and spending is their sole policy. That critique is valid.

The corresponding stereotype of Republicans is that they can’t govern. Based on the experience of the last 10 months, that criticism is also valid. President Trump has done a very good job, but the Republican Congress has been a disaster, unable to deliver on any of its major promises to voters.
If that doesn’t change soon, millions of Republican-leaning voters will stay home next November–why bother to vote for a Congress that can’t get anything done?–and the Democrats will take the House. I don’t think they can capture the Senate on account of the disparity in the number of seats that are in play, but the Republicans will miss their opportunity to strengthen their tenuous hold on that body.

If the Democrats take the House, every one of them will vote to impeach President Trump, no matter how absurd the articles of impeachment (the first set of which have already been filed) may be. That will lead to an impeachment trial in the Senate. Of course the Democrats won’t be able to get the two-thirds majority necessary to evict President Trump from office, but all or nearly all Democrats will vote for conviction. The last two years of Trump’s administration will be consumed by impeachment drama, which will be enthusiastically cheered on by the liberal media.

Hinderaker ends by saying:

That is how the future looks unless Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Ron Johnson and every other Republican Senate and House member get their act together NOW and pass tax reform. From there, they need additional legislative accomplishments in order to stand a chance in 2018 and 2020. But tax reform is the initiative that may benefit the economy in time for the midterm election, if they pass it promptly. The alternative is grim.

COMMENT:  It is a very real scenario.  The Dems want payback for the GOP's ill-advised impeachment of Bill Clinton.  This time, unlike last time, the media will be on the side of the impeachers. 

Read the whole piece.  It's clear and persuasive.

November 18,  2017     Permalink