Month: December 2020

Holiday Gifts I Want From Joe

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Joe Biden is finally getting his chance to run the country. Becoming president was a long-term dream of the former senator and vice president. What must he do in the near future to convince Americans that he deserves to reside in the White House?

Here are objectives that would make Biden a success during his tenure as president:

[in no special order]

  • End the pandemic. Biden will be inheriting the Corona epidemic. If anything happens on his watch that delays a return to normalcy, Biden will be held responsible and lambasted for it. The safest and smartest thing for the new president to do is to follow the lead of the medical community. Although distribution of the vaccines has become the most pressing issue.
  • Diversify and include. So far, Biden selected a wide array of cabinet members and advisers representing quite a few groups. Many of his colleagues in Congress, particularly the Black Caucus, will make demands on the administration in payment for their support during the 2020 election. Biden will need to navigate carefully as he tries to accommodate these individuals and groups.
  • Continue economic growth. If Biden or Democrats do anything that depresses the economy, they will be held accountable. In particular, overspending represents a grave danger with regard to the national deficit. Continuing surges in spending could set off a new recession, inflation and a weaker dollar.
  • Improve our relationships with Russia and China. The president’s ability to affectively negotiate with these leaders is paramount because of the magnitude of current differences between the countries. Everything is on the table including nuclear proliferation, conventional military strength, trade and terrorism. If Biden is too lax in his response to provocation from either country, he will be criticized. There is less downside to his being more aggressive with the leaders than being more accommodative.
  • Tame Iran and North Korea. These countries pose existential threats to world peace and mankind. The US must rein in both countries or nuclear weapons will eventually be in the hands of maniacal, irresponsible madmen.
  • Control the House. The current leader of the House of Representatives is reaching the end of her reign. She has lost strength and is making dubious political moves there are being rejected by the opposition as well as her more progressive colleagues. Biden should encourage a regime change and find a more moderate voice that will assist him in governing the country. If he cannot temper the radicals in his own party, he will be ineffective.
  • Work with the Senate. If Republicans hold the Senate, Biden’s agenda will not have a chance to be enacted unless he makes peace with Senate Republicans. Just like Obama, all legislative efforts will be opposed by the right without compromise. And the president will only be able to govern with presidential mandates.
  • Control the cabinet. As exhibited during the Trump administration, turmoil created by outliers in the cabinet can have a detrimental effect on the smooth operation of the government. Biden has selected some controversial individuals who have had differences with him in the past. These people should be kept on a short leash.
  • Minimize gaffes. Too many Americans think Biden is absentminded. He makes many small errors, which are usually not consequential. But more than a few Americans are concerned that his age and mental acuity could be a problem when under the gun.

Biden has a tall order, and a very big challenge ahead of him. I think it’s a toss up whether he will be able to deal with the rigors of the presidency.

Biden Will Change Foreign Policies, Is This A Good Idea?

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American foreign policy may change drastically during the Biden era from an aggressive stance to a more accommodative attitude. In this regard, I’m very concerned that the new president will decrease pressure on those countries that wish us harm and those that look to the US to assume the cost of their defense.

Iran is putting maximum pressure on the US to decrease sanctions by threatening to accelerate efforts to build nuclear weapons. The ayatollahs and their representatives are liars. They will never live up to the terms of any agreement with America.

Joe Biden said he will attempt to establish better relations with Iran. This strategy will ultimately encourage the production of an existential weapon with the oil money that will flow into Iran’s coffers. Additionally, it will provide financing for Iran’s terrorist activities. The only sensible strategy is to encourage a regime change by increasing sanctions that will cause Iran’s economy to implode.

Biden and other Democrats have an affinity towards China. This regime cannot be trusted either. They are expanding their influence in Asia and provoking our naval forces that patrol that part of the world.

The country’s leaders are sanctioning efforts to steal technology and boost their economy in competition with the US. And they relentlessly spy on us.

America must call out China and treat them like the enemy they are. Sanctions should be bolstered to offset tariffs the Chinese have attached to US goods. In a perfect world, a peace treaty with China would be wonderful, but it is interested in diminishing US influence globally and crushing us economically. They also have no intention of abiding by generally accepted human rights standards.

All of the advances Trump has made with their Israel, that include signing agreements to establish peaceful relations with neighbors, are now in jeopardy. Some Biden supporters are suggesting that Trump moved too fast. I would say any movement, even with some untrustworthy nations, is better than the lack of progress in the Middle East during the past 75 years.

Re-signing the climate change pact is a farce. The world definitely needs to focus on the damage being done to our environment. However, signing bogus agreements with countries that have no intention to adhere to the terms of agreements is a waste of time and money.

Developing countries like China, Brazil and India will not decelerate the speed of their respective industrial revolutions. For instance, the use of coal by China is highly detrimental to our environment. But its prohibition would leave many millions of Chinese without a way to heat their homes.

The US must continue to sign into law mandates that will end pollution and avoid making unenforceable deals with other countries.

The US’s tendency to buy influence across the globe needs to be reexamined. In the past century, billions of dollars have been spent in lesser developed countries in an attempt to “buy” friends. Trump examined many of these diplomatic ploys and found them to be bad arrangements for America.

The major problem is that after accepting our aid, too many countries throughout the world reject our friendship and openly lambaste American diplomacy. If you question this observation, you need only to look at the United Nations. The US sponsors the organization and yet in nearly every critical vote, our friends voted against our perspectives and strongly support our opponents. Further, many of these countries damn America and its citizens overtly.

Biden will, unsuccessfully, try to rebrand America’s image overseas. He will revert to an old Obama tactic of assigning blame on the US for all the problems in the world. He will find positivity in the actions of countries that have the most human rights violations including China, Cuba, some South American countries and the poorest and most violent nations in Africa.

The world looks at the US as a dangerous nation that wants to claim valuable assets and territory owned by other countries. Biden should work to dispel these imperialistic and colonialistic misconceptions and no longer throw away money into countries that are envious of America’s success and leadership.

What If The Bidens Are Corrupt?

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Regardless of your political persuasion, it’s frivolous to ignore past and continuing accusations of misdeeds by elected officials and associates of these individuals.

If there is credible evidence, our government and the Department of Justice, must follow up with comprehensive investigations about all acts of treason, espionage, corruption, sexual misconduct, racism, collusion, etc. The most publicized probe was the one in which president Trump was accused of being in cahoots with Russia to influence the 2016 Election.

In fairness, it should be noted that no one was able to prove that Trump was guilty of any crimes, even though the US government invested tens of millions of dollars in the infamous Mueller sham report and impeachment of the president.

You may have noticed that I used the word “credible” earlier in this post. As it turns out, the information that was the basis of four years of presidential harassment was based upon a dossier assembled and paid for by Democratic operatives. The information in the dossier was debunked. The data was false, but the DOJ had an obligation and a responsibility to investigate to ensure that our election process was viable and free of outside interference.

What’s interesting is that after the allegations were proven bogus, it then became crucial for the DOJ to investigate the parties that were responsible for the dossier. These proceedings were/are just as important as the ones involving Trump’s alleged collaboration with Russia.

The fact that biased DOJ agents dragged their feet when told to investigate the dossier is a legal travesty. It is obvious that certain politicians were involved in illegal shenanigans, even as reticent federal agents swept the misdeeds of Democratic operatives under the table.

Fast forward to this moment. Joe Biden and his son Hunter are allegedly involved in suspicious, peculiar and self-dealing activities with foreign governments and companies. Informed people believe that both Bidens, or at a minimum Hunter, received money to buy the cooperation and influence of Biden senior.

There are whistleblowers and a computer that authenticate these allegations. Yet, the DOJ stonewalled the investigation and waited until after the election to announce an investigation of Hunter.

Making the investigation of the Bidens public could have resulted in a different outcome on 2020 Election Day. The Bidens may not be culpable. A comprehensive investigation will enable law enforcement to get to the bottom of these allegations. If the Bidens are innocent of any wrongdoing, they will be exonerated.

It is a miscarriage of justice to ignore these allegations. Corruption by elected officials is not a new issue, and as people always say- no one is above the law. Too often, after achieving the status and perquisites of elected office, people do illegal things that enhance their financial and political power. They must all be investigated and prosecuted.

Our country really doesn’t need to have a Biden scandal before Joe takes office. It is the fault of federal agents that the country is now in such a precarious position. The investigation should have been announced so that voters could make a decision with all the facts.

Are You Happy With What’s Going On?

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Maybe it’s just me, but I feel very uneasy about what’s happening in the country from a number of perspectives.

I was relieved when Donald Trump lost the election. He doesn’t believe it, but it’s true. Yet, the big loser continues to try to inspire discontent, while his loss was a function of his own doing.

His defeat saved our country from a new threat, an uprising of radical and liberal miscreants. They hide behind the skirts of righteous causes like racial equality, voting rights, free speech and income equality. The only problem is that they are violent and have no problem withholding the aforementioned rights from those that disagree with them.

In 2016, Trump had an easy target as an opponent. Clinton was just about as unlikable as Trump. America was sick and tired of the same old dirty politics of the Clinton era. Trump won because so many dreaded the thought of Hillary in the White House. This sounds like 2020.

Trump even surprised himself. I’m convinced that he thought he was going down in flames and all of a sudden Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan went red.

So, we’ve had to live with alleged scandals concocted by left wing zealots and the bias press for the past four years. The latter was so tilted that Trump coined a new expression, fake news.

Liberals tried everything to discredit the president. They paid for a fake dossier, they impeached him and were soundly defeated, and they colluded with the press that harassed the president every single day of his tenure.

Trump fought back, unsuccessfully. He never yielded to any of his opponents and still is defying them to this day. Yet, as mentioned earlier, his loss saved our country from me new threat- the radical and liberal segment of our population.

State and local governments shook in their boots when rioting and looting began shortly before the election. Governors and mayors want to defund police departments because a few bad eggs among the police acted aggressively. A socialistic and communistic wave shrouded many urban centers as the leaders of these revolutions called for open warfare.

Thank goodness Trump lost. A pandemic and violent civil unrest could have destroyed our republic.

OK, Biden is going to be our new president. Things are getting better. Really? Do you think so? Has Biden exhibited any leadership skills that makes us sleep easier each night?

We have a second or third or fourth wave of Covid wreaking havoc on our families and neighbors. All Joe has said to this point is that he wants everyone to wear a mask for the first 100 days of his administration.

Governors are closing restaurants and bars to the chagrin of the owners and patrons. Restaurants have been one of the hardest hit industries during this current economic time. Many are revolting against closures because no one has proven that restaurants that obey guidelines are causing the number of Covid cases to increase. Some leaders are basing business closure decisions on how many beds they have in hospitals that are available for new serious Covid cases.

Some segments of our economy are on their asses, while some are managing. The prior group are in dire straits. They along with middle class and needy families need relief. What have Pelosi and Schumer done to rectify this situation? Nothing. They want to open the money floodgates and make everything free for Americans. Instead, they should be negotiating with Republicans for a temporary fix and relief funds for those in trouble financially.

Who is negotiating for the Democrats? Pelosi? Why not take what Republicans are willing to agree to right now, and come back later for more? What the hell. Worst case is that liberals are going to control the White House and the House of Representatives.

I am extremely uncomfortable with socialistic lawmakers who are lurking around ready to pounce on Biden and influence his decisions. The US is not going to evolve into a socialistic state. Only misguided college professors and former hippies believe they will be part of a socialistic society in the near future. Our country is based upon capitalism and exceptionalism.

Who’s In Charge Of Covid War?

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Who are the decision makers regarding the Covid epidemic?

From the birth of our nation, federal and states’ rights have been in conflict. In a war, it’s easy to understand the decision makers are the politicians in Washington. In a war with a virus, it’s not so simple.

Our country is structured to give responsibility for crises to federal, state and city officials. And then, local officials sometimes opt out, or opt into, contradictory orders. Is this system effective and functional?

For sure it is, unless the interested parties jockey for political points. Then it can become a sh**storm. In this day and age, nobody cooperates and negotiates in good faith. The president fights with governors, governors fight with mayors, mayors fight with unions, unions fight with parents, and so on.

There are even intra organizational battles taking place all the time. Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House is continually at odds with Republicans in the House, Republicans and Democrat senators and even members of her own party in the House. Consider AOC and her squad of radical liberals.

If our leaders would work together, compromise and take control and stand up against evil doers, criminals, terrorists, murders, bigots, misogynists, racists and the pandemic, we could do make some revolutionary progress.

The vaccine for Covid is going to be the subject of the next epic battle between our political leaders. Governors will compete with other governors for limited vaccine supplies. Everybody will have a different cascade of how the vaccine should be delivered.

Should first responders be the first on the list, then old people, and what about sick old people who will likely die? Are we going to triage sick Americans? And who comes next? Is it reckless young people because they are anxious to party, congregate and raise hell in high school and college? Or should 40 to 60-year-olds be next? What about people of all ages with dangerous medical conditions? How do we prove that these people are really at risk?

And finally, we have those who don’t want to take any vaccine at all because Donald Trump was involved in the production of these lifesaving medicines, in record time. There’s a lot to be concerned with in this regard.

Supposedly, the potions being produced are efficient. Will they stop individuals who had recovered from contracting the flu again, or will they have to be inoculated once more. When can an individual safely go to a crowded restaurant or bar, school or work after taking the vaccine? Can an inoculated person infect someone who has not taken the vaccine? Like a grandpa or grandma?

The timing of the whole vaccination process is really up in the air. Return to normalcy maybe more than a year away.

The Education Conundrum

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Here we go. Biden hasn’t even moved into the White House and radical progressives are calling for massive forgiveness of college debt. A New York Times article on the subject of student debt was the inspiration for this blog post.

The bid and ask range of college debt forgiveness stretches from $10,000 per borrower, or a total of $400 million, to $50,000, a total of $1 trillion. The Department of Education owns $1.4 trillion of student debt and is the largest consumer lender in the country. Liberals including teachers’ unions and the NAACP are calling for the higher amount. Biden has endorsed a $10,000 program and a promise to chip away at the remaining debt overtime.

The first major issue to contend with is whether a debt forgiveness program is best legislated or accomplished with a presidential executive mandate. There is an embedded constitutional issue with the mandate, as only Congress has the power to effectively pay Americans. But this is now being hotly contested by attorneys. Obviously, a mandate is the most efficient way to forgive the debt.

It should be noted that forgiving $400 million or $1 trillion would not be a cash outflow from the Treasury. The money has already been spent. Student loans were funded. The federal government would essentially be forgiving principle and interest on the loans, which would reduce future cash flow assuming borrowers paid the money and debt service in the future.

Then of course, someone must decide whether the most needy people would be getting the benefit of the debt forgiveness. Some say debt forgiveness is inefficient as 70% of the unemployed do not have college degrees. And 60% of the debt owed belongs to 40% of earners who have annual income of $74,000 or more. It appears that most debt forgiveness programs will benefit middle and upper class individuals more than the poor.

Proponents say debt forgiveness would be a stimulus to economic activity as borrowers would instantly have more cash flow to spend. And as mentioned earlier, the government would be providing stimulus without incurring more national debt.

Opponents say that those who have paid off loans will surely feel cheated. And, many students would borrow more money hoping that future debt payment forgiveness programs would happen again. Nevertheless, forgiveness of debt does not address the systemic problem of high cost of a college education.

Various experts have said that state schools should be free of charge. Others say repayment should be based upon the borrower’s earning power. But there have been no suggestions to date that would address the underlying problems outlined above.

There has been a lot of talk of the evils of student debt. Mistakes were made by many parties. Students borrowed today and did not concern themselves with the specter of repayment or taking courses that would enable them to repay their student loans after graduation.

Overzealous congresspeople incorrectly thought that providing debt for higher education without any quid pro quos was good policy. They were wrong to the tune of $1.7 trillion. Now the same people want to double down and make the debt disappear.

This legislation will be difficult to consummate unless the number is far lower than what progressives are demanding.  

Pandemic Party Pooper

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I’ve been sitting around thinking about “My Life in Covid.” This will be the title of my book, if I ever sit down and write about the misery, deaths, politics, depression, unhappiness and despair of the time.

I was a very early victim of Covid. I’m in the vulnerable age group, but clean living, exercise, no alcohol and good food helped me beat the disease. Actually, I slept for most of the time that I was in the grip of the virus. Thankfully, I had no idea, nor did any of the experts, that I was in great jeopardy. If I had known, I probably would have suffered a nervous breakdown. Kudos to my family for nursing me back to health.

When I think of all the things that I do and don’t do since this freaking virus ruined our world, I’m amazed. It’s a wonder I have been able to keep busy and be somewhat productive. I’ve read scores of books (mostly junk novels), read newspapers, did crossword puzzles, discovered a new word play game in the Times called “Two Not Touch,” exercised two or three times a day, ate five times a day and paid bills.

I’m blessed with adult children who have stayed with my wife and me for extended periods. The game competitions are heated as are the political conversations. Everyone except me has a real job, so most of the day, family members isolate in different rooms zooming with their colleagues. But what have I been doing since March of last year?

The most obvious thing is that when I go outside, I concentrate on keeping a mask properly situated on my face and staying away from all people I encounter. The good news is that Central Park is nearby, but there are many more people to avoid in that section of New York City. Walking is supplemented by frequent yoga instruction, via computer, and weightlifting. We purchased weights for our apartment because our gym has been closed indefinitely. For a time, there were no weights available online anywhere in the country. Many had the same idea we had, to workout at home.

The bigger issue is what I have not been doing. My wife and I are typical city dwellers, and so before the flu, we ate at local restaurants with family and business contacts several times a week. I would say that not being able to dine out has been one of the biggest issues for me. I never realized how important our restaurant regime was to our lifestyle and social life.

We have no young children so dealing with whether schools are teaching in person or via the Internet is not an issue for us, although it’s a huge problem for many people in the City.

But, what do we do for entertainment? We can’t see the Yankees, Mets, Knicks or Rangers. The New York City Ballet is closed, Broadway is shut down and SoulCycle has ceased operations.

Since restaurant dining is not in the cards as the temperature drops, where is global warming when you need it, I go grocery shopping to make dinner for my wife. Eli’s seems to be profiting in the time of Covid. They have not reduced their prices.

I have tons of family and in-laws in the City, along with a plethora of nieces and nephews. It’s been a full-time job to avoid and condemn family get togethers. The mayor and governor have effectively put a clamp on parties for the holidays. This has caused significant agita for most people. My father in law and his wife are insistent on having dinners and meals with the clan, but we must continue to dissuade them. In fact, they are the most vulnerable.

It would be terrific to drop everything and fly out to Vail or down to Miami for a few days, but the infectious disease gurus say flying is dangerous. I guess we know that to be a fact. Being confined in a long metal tube with re-circulated air with 200 potential carriers of the bug would appear to be a dangerous environment to be in for a couple of hours.

The world is on the cusp of benefiting from a vaccine. It was created in record time, in part, due to the efforts of President Trump. The man is universally despised, so let’s give him some love for getting the medical people to move rapidly. But there are a lot of unanswered questions. Like, who is going to receive the vaccine first? I assume first responders, for saving us, deserve to be at the top of the list. Old, vulnerable people should have a priority. Our government leaders and teachers are essential. But what happens next? The little ones get inoculated, do 15 to 30-year-olds come next or do 31 to 59-year-old individuals get the magical potion? Are City dwellers higher on the list and then ruralites? Should poor people have a position in the front of the line? And what about the rest of the world? Are we only going to be saving Americans and the other seven billion people be damned?

We need somewhere between seven and 14 billion doses of vaccine, depending upon whether you get a one-shot vaccine or a two-shot vaccine. Just imagine the politicians arguing over who should be immunized first, second and third. Maybe Democrats should come before Republicans because they control the greatest part of the government.

The return to normalcy is also an enigma. When will it be OK to fly in a plane, take a subway, ride in an elevator, eat in a restaurant, work at the office, go to school physically, not wear a mask, not distance from others, kiss a loved one on the face, go to a religious celebration, go to a funeral, have a beer with friends? Is it five minutes after you get the vaccine, or one year?

The Dangers Of One Party Government

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Our nation is about to face a critical moment on January 5th, as Georgians vote for two senators. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler are Republicans and the Reverend Raphael Warnock and John Ossoff are Democrats all vying to become part of the highly politicized Senate.

I doubt I have very many readers who are voting in the election, but the contest is going have a monstrous national impact on the way we are governed prospectively. Therefore, every American should be aware of the implications of these two Senate campaigns.

Other than to say that the Democrats are radical and left-wing politicians, and the Republicans are relatively moderate lawmakers, I will address what could possibly happen in the future in Congress depending upon who is victorious.

If Democrats win the two seats, they will effectively control the Senate with a 50-50 split between Republicans and Democrats. Vice president Kamala Harris will vote in any ties. If Republicans win either contested seat, they will control the Senate.

What are the ramifications of having a Democratic-held Senate? It would mean that Democrats would control the presidency, the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Currently, the Senate business is subjected to filibusters by the minority party for all votes except judges and SCOTUS nominations. This means that judges and justices are confirmed with a simple majority vote. This changed several years ago when the Democratic majority voted to eliminate the filibuster, or a supermajority vote, to confirm judges. A few years later a Republican Senate majority voted to abrogate a supermajority vote for SCOTUS justices.

Currently all laws are enacted with a majority, unless the opposition filibusters the vote. Then the controlling party needs 60 votes to end the filibuster and enact a law. Democrats have threatened a vote to eliminate the filibuster for all Senate business. This would mean that the opposition party would have no power to stop any legislation for all intents and purposes.

You may ask why a filibuster is necessary. After all, the majority should rule. The filibuster became part of the lawmaking process so that frivolous and inappropriate legislation would be more difficult to enact. It is a way for the opposition to make it more difficult to enact laws that they believe are bad for our country. If a party has 60 votes in the Senate, as Democrats did during the early years of the Obama administration, there is no stopping the majority party if they also hold the presidency and the House.

Why is this issue critical at this moment? It’s because radicals in the Democratic Party have indicated that they would take action that will hurt our country our economy and our capitalistic system. Here is a short list of Democratic objectives:

  • The Senate can change the number of justices on the Supreme Court, thereby changing the political persuasion of the Court.
  • Congress would effectively change our economic system from a capital-based economy to a socialistic economy by bleeding the affluent and most successful among us.
  • The right of Americans to bear arms would be in jeopardy.
  • Immigration policy would be open borders.
  • Health care would be 100% socialized at an enormous cost.
  • Inane climate change policies would cripple industry.
  • Taxing policies would steal assets from hard working Americans.

Radical left-wing lawmakers would have a field day ripping down basic institutions like the banking system and high-tech companies.

The US would take several steps backwards just by the election of two Georgia senators.

Even if you are a Democrat, you should be aware of a country run by power hungry politicians with unlimited control over our government.

Biden Wants To Negotiate With Iran, Not A Good Idea

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Tom Friedman of the New York Times wrote an instructive piece about the rogue state of Iran and its intentions moving forward. It’s about time a columnist on the left called out the ayatollahs for what they really are. Re-negotiating the Obama nuclear deal with Iran is not the best course for the new administration. Certainly, Friedman thinks not. I think it is idiocy.

It appears that Iran is still far from building a deliverable nuclear weapon, although it is difficult to be sure given all the secrecy surrounding the program. The continued assassinations of Iran’s nuclear scientists by Israel will serve to delay the schedule to an extent.

It’s a goal of the country’s leadership to have a WMD because the threat of a bomb would enable it to intimidate their neighbors in the Middle East. Friedman says the ayatollahs would never actually use it because Israel would retaliate and obliterate its mortal enemy. But why take this chance?

“The Iranian Air Force launched drones and precision-guided cruise missiles at Saudi Arabia’s most important oil fields and processing centers [several week ago] causing huge damage.” The Israelis called the attack a “Middle East Pearl Harbor.”  Neither the US, Saudi Arabia nor the UAE responded in kind. Unbelievably, not one country returned fire.

“The US did nothing.” Trump wants the Saudis to pay the US to respond militarily. This was part of his strategy to let the Arabs fight it out without US interference, right or wrong. This action will likely cause Israel and Saudi Arabia to increase their ties against a common enemy.

Bibi Netanyahu has already visited the Saudi Arabian leadership. These countries and other Gulf states will surely have a lot to say about Biden’s reported plans to re-establish a relationship with Iran, by easing sanctions and re-upping to the flawed nuclear deal.

Another point Friedman emphasizes is the development of precision-guided missiles, a more likely weapon to use, as opposed to initiating a nuclear Holocaust with a WMD. In the past, Iran provided missiles to terrorist organizations and countries surrounding Israel. They were inaccurate and did little damage. The Iranians proved that their precision missile are very accurate, and if unleashed on any of their enemies, they can create havoc.

Iran is a menace. The ayatollahs cannot be trusted. The leaders want to dominate the Muslim world, eliminate Israel and diminish the US presence in the region. The question is what kind of weapons will they use to try to achieve their goals?

Biden should play tough with Iran, increase sanctions and push for regime change. There will be no peace in the Middle East, so long as Iran has the money to build new armaments. The US need to be diligent about any effort to produce a nuke.

The Light At The End Of The Tunnel

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Despite recent political insanity and regional problems relating to the influenza crisis, Americans have reasons to be optimistic.  As in all other crises, including world wars, 9/11 and other terrorist attacks, our country will rally once again and be the beacon of hope for all mankind. The light at the end of the tunnel is shining brighter every day.

Several things have happened or are happening that should give us a feeling that there are good times ahead. First and foremost, the Trump experiment is over. Even if you are a supporter of the president, it’s got to be a great relief that he will soon leave the White House. Americans from both political parties are tired of his antics.

Trump did some positive things. Unfortunately, his brash attitude and terrible persona offset his accomplishments. Our economy is ready to take off, we are enjoying better and fairer relations with enemies and allies and most of us now recognize that what we read and hear from the press must be taken with a grain of salt.

The president failed miserably as a leader, a diplomat, a peacemaker and a friend. The man has no confidantes except for his close family. All he has is a long line of groupies that ride his coattails by telling him what he wants to hear. Trump was bad for America, and hopefully he will fade away into oblivion.

Another positive event is the pace at which our scientists and doctors have reacted to COVID-19. Frankly, I was dismayed by the original response of the medical community to the pandemic last March and April. None seemed to be prepared for the deadly shroud that the flu cast on the entire world.

The US and all countries have experienced outbreaks of infectious diseases before, so there should have been action plans to fight deadly viruses. Why was the medical community not ready to combat a bug that could literally wipe out mankind? Existential threats should be at the top of researchers’ focus lists. We spent billions of dollars on cancer, heart disease and other maladies. Why weren’t we spending more to protect the world from this type of existential threat?

Anyway, that was yesterday. Pharmaceutical companies broke all sorts of records creating a new vaccine. The time needed to invent an effective serum to kill off Covid-19 was a fraction of the time it usually takes to bring a cure to market. Disregarding the aforementioned un-preparedness, our scientists have done a great job and deserve a lot of credit for working so diligently to save us.

It’s only a matter of time before the vaccine is distributed worldwide. Our worst fears are being allayed as I write this essay. There is a strong chance that we will get back to normalcy in the coming months.

In America, there is one trend that is frightening, however. Radical political and social groups are attacking fellow Americans needlessly. I totally appreciate the fact that all issues relating to our society, such as civil rights, gender rights, a woman’s right to choose, etc. are on the table. I’m delighted that the country seems prepared to address inequality of every type.

What I’m not happy about is the intensity and violence affiliated with those who are leading specific efforts. What saddens me is that needed discourse about political and social preferences always become vitriolic and confrontational in Washington, at colleges, at cocktail parties and even in kitchens at suppertime.

All Americans must appreciate that the evils and unfairness of 250 years cannot be rectified in one congressional session or by one president. And, appreciating both sides of disagreements is essential to finding lasting solutions.

Free speech is in jeopardy. If this continues, it will result in an unfortunate backlash, rather than correcting inequalities some experience every day.

Now sit back and watch the light at the end of the tunnel grow brighter every day.