We can Afford to cover healthcare for everyone in the country

We can afford health care. We just need to make our wealthy pay their share. The cost per capita of health care is approximately $10,490.00 per capita. Which is a lot. Our gross income per capita is approximately $49,550.00. That doesn't include income from capital gains. If our system were fair to 90% of us we could easily afford healthcare in this country. Unfortunately the bottom 90% of us earn an average of $33,000 and most of the income in our country goes to the top 1% and the top .01%. And since the wealthy make their money from rents, interest and "capital gains" that under-reports their income. The bottom 90% of us cannot afford healthcare without income transfers from the wealthy. Which is why the GOP is stiffing us. Our real issue is our GINI coefficient and oligarchy.

The Ghosts In The Paintings

My friend's paintings haunt me
The Ghosts of the past alive on canvas
Haunted hands painted them
Guided by restless spirits
Burning memories

Active Measures and the Left

I wasn't surprised by the revelations of "active measures" involving Right Wing Organizations and Donald Trump [see Psyops & Trump]. What dismayed and alarmed me was that the Russian FSB directed it's active measures efforts at US reformers, liberals/progressives and "the left."

Active Measures are the agitation and propaganda, electoral, terrorism, activism and other "less lethal" efforts of a spy service, directed against its "frenemy" neighbors around the world. Active measures support rebels and undermine the legitimacy of target nations.

The Incredible Stupidity of restarting the Korean War

Trump seems determined to start a war with both North Korea and South Korea. With North Korea he's threatening to attack them and he and Tillerson are talking about North Korean Aggression.

“There is a chance that we could end up having a major, major conflict with North Korea. Absolutely,” Trump told Reuters. [Guardian]

Then he says:

“We’d love to solve things diplomatically but it’s very difficult,” the president added. [Guardian]

Meanwhile Trump is also threatening the South Koreans. Seems to be trying to destabilize the South and throw the election to anti-Americans. And wants South Korea to pay for the missiles we put in their to protect against North Korean Nuclear and conventional missiles.

"Trump told Reuters on Thursday that he wants South Korea to pay for the $1 billion Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system." [Reuters]

Maybe the guy thinks this brinksmanship will lead to a deal. It could also provoke another bloody war.

The Beginnings of the Southern Strategy

Illustration page 466 of Book

I've kept the book "American Ulysses" by Ronald C White, longer than I should have. If I get a chance I'll buy a copy for my personal library, but in the meantime I wanted to share what I considered important about it. Grant, like all Human beings, is both a hero and a human being. White compares him to Ulysses of Homer. He was a heroic individual who did heroic things during the heroic times of the Civil War, but was nearly destroyed facing corrupt and venal Democrats on one side and corrupt and greedy Republicans on the other. The post war era after the Civil War is recognizably modern. There is something quaint about the the anti-bellum period, even in the North. But the USA is recognizable from the Civil War on. And part of what is recognizable was the shift of the South from overt traitorous rebellion to covert murderous subversion at wars end.

How the Grinches Stole the United States

Tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35WgpMq6e3o

After John Puffy Cheeks Grinch failed to steal Christmas,

the Whovilians elected a new Mayor and kicked the Grinches out of town

The Grinches gathered at their Fake Chinese Diner

Not being able to stand the sound

Of happy whovilians feeling hope

They sat around the table saying "nope, nope nope."

They were feeling quite dejected.

Because the Whovilians had voted

And Out they'd been ejected!

So they moped and they groused.

And scratched at the occasional louse

And they smoked and they belched

And quite stunk up the House.

Til one of them looked around

and lit up the room with a smile

Community Policing as Part of Democratic Subsidiarity

Using the requirements of the constitution to Re-constitute the Police for better Policing

There is a recurring argument between those who want "order" and suppression of crime, and those who want community policing where the police respect the right of local citizens. In community policing police are often asked to fill roles that they aren't trained for. When they operate on a purely law enforcement level they tend to act like occupying armies. The reason for this is that our society neglects to systematically apply principles of good government locally. We claim to be a democratic republic, yet our communities are often voiceless, powerless, neglected and sometimes feel oppressed. We need to apply principles of democratic subsidiarity to our policing. When we start doing that we'll get better outcomes. The answer is to restore Policing to it's relationship with the militia requirements of the Constitution, and diminish the "standing army" portion of modern policing to a general aid function called on by communities in need or the courts. All that is part of applying principles of democratic subsidiarity to local government.