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OCTOBER 10,  2017

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

ABSOLUTELY INSPIRING – FROM DAILYWIRE:  Football players from two opposing college teams led the stadium in singing the national anthem on Saturday when the stadium's public address reportedly failed, which led to an announcement that the anthem would not be played.  The two schools, Trinity College and Hamilton College, are part of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) and were getting ready for kickoff when they learned about the problem with the stadium's PA system...Trinity coach Jeff Devanney said the announcement did not sit well with his players.  "A couple of guys on our team were like 'No man, you gotta play the song,'" Devanney said. "And then a couple guys just started singing."  Within a matter of moments, both teams were singing the anthem.  Watch it here.

A WARNING FROM UP NORTH – FROM THE TORONTO STAR:  Once a titan of Canadian retail, Sears Canada announced Tuesday that it is going out of business, putting 12,000 people out of work and shuttering all operations nationwide.  Among the first to lose their jobs will be most of the 800 people at head office near Dundas Square, who will be let go next week. Liquidation sales at stores are scheduled to begin Oct. 19 and to take 10 to 14 weeks.  The chain was forced into closure after a bid by executive chairman Brandon Stranzl to save the company was unsuccessful.  “Following exhaustive efforts, no viable transaction for the company to continue as a going concern was received,” according to a press release from the company issued Tuesday. “The Company deeply regrets this pending outcome and the resulting loss of jobs and store closures.”  Sears is a shadow of what it once was, but its Craftsman tools are still solid.

MOSCOW BLASTS WASHINGTON – FROM REUTERS:   MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia accused the United States on Tuesday of pretending to fight Islamic State and of deliberately reducing its air strikes in Iraq to allow the group’s militants to stream into Syria to slow the Russian-backed advance of the Syrian army.  The Pentagon strongly denied the accusations, saying that the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State posts data every day on the number and result of strikes for the public to see.  In the latest sign of rising tensions between Moscow and Washington, the Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement that the U.S.-led coalition had sharply reduced its air strikes in Iraq in September when Syrian forces, backed by Russian air power, had started to retake Deir al-Zor Province.  Wait, wait.  I'm confused.  Wasn't President Trump supposed to be a puppet of Vladimir Putin?  Didn't he "collude" with the Russians?  All I've heard since the inauguration are Russian denunciations of the United States and the Trump administration.  Where's the supposed romance?

October 10,  2017     Permalink

ABOUT KNEES – AT 1:21 P.M. ET:   Ratings for professional football plunged again last night, and the NFL, as well as team owners, are plainly worried about what's happening.  They're finally realizing that insulting the national anthem doesn't go down well with fans.  From The Wall Street Journal: 

The National Football League’s owners will discuss at meetings next week whether to unilaterally change the league policy to require players to stand during the national anthem.

The decision to consider the change came after weeks of persistent criticism from President Donald Trump about players protesting during the anthem, including his call for fans to boycott games if the demonstrations continue.

In a conference call, NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart said league officials, owners, fans, and likely certain players are frustrated that the issue has dominated the game in recent weeks. He said owners will consider player input on the issue, but suggested that a rule change would not require player approval.

“I don’t believe that the anthem per se is something that needs to be collectively bargained,” Lockhart said.

COMMENT:  They'd better get to it and put those rule changes in place.  Sponsors are going to run away or demand deep discounts if the erosion continues.

October 10, 2017       Permalink

SCHEMING IN IRAN – AT 11:22 A.M. ET:  President Trump will announce his new Iran policy later this week.  Meanwhile, reports surface on what Iran has been doing secretly, and illegally, to build its military arsenal.  From Fox: 

Iran tried to obtain illicit technology that could be used for military nuclear and ballistic missile programs, raising questions about a possible violation of the 2015 agreement intended to stop Tehran’s drive to become an atomic armed power, according to three German intelligence reports obtained by Fox News.

The new intelligence, detailing reports from September and October and disclosed just ahead of President Trump’s planned announcement Thursday on whether the U.S. will recertify the Iran deal, reveals that Iran’s regime made “32 procurement attempts … that definitely or with high likelihood were undertaken for the benefit of proliferation programs.”

According to the document, the 32 attempts took place in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The report lists Iran as a nation that engages in proliferation, which is defined as “spreading atomic, biological or chemical weapons of mass destruction.”

Missile delivery systems are also included in the definition of illicit proliferation activity in the report.

The North Rhine-Westphalia agency accused Iran of using front companies in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and China to circumvent international restrictions on its nuclear and missile programs.

The intelligence report, which covered the year 2016 — the Iran deal was implemented on Jan. 16, 2016 — calls further into question Iran’s compliance with the agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA.

COMMENT:  And that's only now.  The JCPOA expires in ten years, leaving Iran free to build nuclear weapons.  With the kind of secret acquisitions it's making today, Tehran will be well equipped to do just that.

October 10, 2017       Permalink

THE BAFFLING POLLS – AT 10:33 A.M. ET:  It's a given that the president is not riding a wave of popularity.  But just where does he stand with the public?

The two polls we most depend on here are the Rasmussen poll and IBD/TIPP, which have records of high accuracy.  And on Trump they profoundly disagree.  From Rasmussen today: 

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that 43% of Likely U.S. Voters approve of President Trump’s job performance. Fifty-six percent (56%) disapprove.
The latest figures include 27% who Strongly Approve of the way the president is performing and 47% who Strongly Disapprove. This gives him a Presidential Approval Index rating of -20.

Trump was up to 46% late last week.

Now, here's IBD/TIPP:

Trump's approval rating took another beating, dropping five points to 33%, while 61% disapprove. Last month, 38% approved while 57% disapproved. That drop brings Trump close to where he was in August, when his approval rating stood at a low 32%.

"The most significant declines in Trump's approval rating, according to our data, came from southerners, conservatives, millennials and women," noted Raghavan Mayur, president of TechnoMetrica Market Intelligence, which conducts the IBD/TIPP poll.

Trump's support in the south plunged 14 points, going from 48% in September to 34% in October. Among conservatives, it went from 72% to 63%; millennials, 33% to 22%; women, 34% to 26%.
Trump's favorability rating went from -20 points in September (38% favorable to 58% unfavorable) to -26 points in October (33% favorable, 59% unfavorable).

More than half (53%), say Trump is providing weak leadership.

COMMENT:  The gap between Rasmussen and IBD/TIPP is a full ten percent.  That's very rare.  Is one poll way off?  Are both? 

But remember – on election day Trump was well behind Hillary Clinton in the polls, and won.  He tends to underpoll.  But neither the Rasmussen result nor the IBD/TIPP numbers are anything to write home about. 

October 10,  2017     Permalink

OCTOBER 9,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M. ET:

RIGHT ON, GUV! – FROM NEWSMAX:   New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he will not allow New York City's Christopher Columbus statue to be removed under his watch.  "As long as I am governor of the great State of New York, there will be a statue of Christopher Columbus standing tall and proud in the city of New York," Cuomo said Saturday night at a function, according to the blog State of Politics.  How often do we get the chance to praise a Democrat here?  Good going, Andy...although this may end your 2020 presidential chances.

THE DISGRACE – FROM CNN:   Washington (CNN) Many Democratic office holders were quick to repudiate disgraced Hollywood executive Harvey Weinstein following a bombshell report detailing decades of alleged sexual harassment.  But former Democratic Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton, as well as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton -- all of whom have longstanding ties to Weinstein, a major Democratic Party fundraiser -- have not publicly addressed the accusations.  Representatives for the Clintons have not responded to comment for this story, and Obama's office declined to comment. The recent report in The New York Times cataloged accusations of sexual harassment against the filmmaker that spanned three decades. Three days after the report, Weinstein was fired by the company he co-founded.  Longtime Hillary Clinton aides have been confused by the former secretary of state's silence on the issue, questioning -- in private -- why she has not weighed in at all.  Hypocrisy, my friends.  Just standard Democratic Party hypocrisy.

A HAT IN THE RING? – FROM CBS NEWS:  Disney CEO Bob Iger would not confirm or deny rumors yet again about a potential presidential run in 2020. He is set to step down from the company in 2019.   According to the LA Times, during a discussion at Vanity Fair's New Establishment Summit in Los Angeles last week, a Vanity Fair reporter inquired of the audience if they would support an Iger run for office, leading to a round of applause.   "That sounds tepid — so maybe that's a sign," Iger responded. "And my wife is out there somewhere and I can guarantee that she's not cheering," he added.  "I will figure it out when I have to figure it out."  The magazine had previously asked Iger of his political ambitions back in May, which the CEO also deflected.   Mickey Mouse could not be reached for comment.

October 9, 2017       Permalink 

BUSINESS LEADERS IN OUR FUTURE? – AT 10:29 A.M. ET:  One result of the 2016 election, and Donald Trump's victory, is a new interest on the part of business leaders in running for office.  Is this good?  Bad?  No difference?  I think we may find out.  From Reuters:   

(Reuters) - With a businessman turned politician now in the Oval Office, a small but growing number of bankers and Wall Street financiers across the United States have set their sights on politics.

In New Jersey, Connecticut and California, former bankers, hedge fund managers and private equity executives have either announced bids for legislative and gubernatorial seats, or associates have told Reuters they are considering running.

Meanwhile, industry trade groups including the American Bankers Association are launching formal programs to teach members in various states how to campaign successfully.

It is not the first time well-heeled candidates have entered American politics, and there are not a great number of them. But historians, political scientists and bankers say the atmosphere has changed abruptly under President Donald Trump.

“It’s certainly raised the visibility of folks who in the past may have said ‘I‘m not a politician,” said Richard Baier, president of the Nebraska Bankers Association, which is launching a training school for potential legislative candidates. “We’ve shown that you don’t really need that background.”

The Oklahoma Bankers Association is also planning to launch its own candidate school, a spokesman said.

Foreclosures, job losses and growing income inequality after the 2007-2009 financial crisis made anyone with Wall Street ties into a political pariah. But Trump, a self-described billionaire who made a fortune in New York real estate and entertainment, has stocked his cabinet with Wall Street bankers and industry tycoons.

His presidency has inspired others in the financial community to pursue civic duty, according to people who have studied campaigns or are involved with current election efforts.

COMMENT:  Hard to know whether this is a long-term trend or a tentative boomlet.  We also don't know whether this new class of potential candidates will be conservative or stylishly liberal.

The Dems will frown at the business types, but they depend on those big checks, as do the Republicans.  And many of their leading candidates, like Hillary Clinton or Elizabeth Warren, are far from poor.

October 9, 2017       Permalink

SOUTH KOREA DEVELOPS NEW WEAPON – AT 9:52 A.M. ET:   South Korea is preparing a weapon to neutralize North Korea's power grid in the event of war.  From The Telegraph: 

South Korea is ready to deploy graphite bombs - also known as "blackout bombs" - that will paralyse North Korea's electrical power plants in the event of war breaking out on the peninsula.

Blackout bombs were first used by the United States in Iraq in the 1990 Gulf War and work by releasing a cloud of extremely fine, chemically treated carbon filaments over electrical components. The filaments are so fine that they act like a cloud, but cause short circuits in electrical equipment.

South Korea is actively looking to increase its defensive capabilities against the North and has been keen to develop graphite bombs because they are not lethal to civilians in surrounding areas.

The weapons have been developed by South Korea's Agency for Defence Development, Yonhap news agency reported, as one element of the Kill Chain pre-emptive strike programme.

COMMENT:  President Trump has made it clear that the status quo with North Korea cannot continue.  He has hinted at military action as one outcome of the current standoff.

There are always stories running that the Norks are preparing a new missile test or nuclear test.   There has actually not been anything major for a time.  If North Korea does do something seriously provocative, like firing an ICBM in the direction of Guam, I'd expect Trump will react, but not necessarily with immediate military action.

October 9, 2017       Permalink

NO HURT FEELINGS! – AT 9:36 A.M. ET:  That seems to be the new national motto of the United States, at least according to some "educators."  Changes are being made to avoid hurt feelings.  From Fox: 

Some schools are getting rid of naming and honoring the student with the highest academic achievements in his class, saying it promotes unhealthy competition between students.

At least half of U.S. schools have either stopped naming valedictorians or name multiple ones in the graduating class. Several schools in North Carolina, Virginia, and New York  have done away with the title altogether.

“I think it’s pretty stupid, and I don’t think it’s fair” said Ryan Walters, a student at the top of his class in Wake Forest, North Carolina, which dumped the title. "Wake County is recognizing mediocrity, not greatness.”

However, some students have been so outraged at the opportunity being pulled out from under them that they demanded it be brought back.

Students at Melrose High School just outside of Boston requested the school reinstate the honor.

COMMENT:  Big mistake to withdraw the honor.  As a general rule, valedictorians are chosen fairly, on the basis of academic records.  Those records reflect grades given by a number of teachers, so one administrator doesn't have make-or-break power.

I don't see the unhealthy competition.  I do see a pursuit of excellence and achievement.

Contrast that, please, with awards or "honors" given by faculties or administrators on the basis of their own "evaluations."  That's what's coming.  And you can be sure that group quotas aren't far behind.

October 9,  2017     Permalink