Headlines, Ponderings on the Headlines, and just Random Ponderings

This photo of a 20 year old Florida woman riding on an endangered sea turtle caused her to be arrested last week in Melbourne, FL.  Reporter's note:  Why do people insist on taking photos of stupid shit they do and post them on social media?  I read about a couple arrested for robbing a bank after they posted a pic of themselves with the bundles of loot.


In an interview on CNN's Outfront with Erin Burnett, former U. S. President Bill Clinton called out Donald Trump for running a "...fact-free..." campaign.  Mr. Clinton also mentioned that when he spoke with Mr. Trump at Trump's wedding, he recalled that Trump had talked about what a great job Hillary had done in the Senate for New York.  Reporter's note:  How long will it take before we hear Mr. Clinton saying "with Hillary you get me" to boost his wife's campaign?


A Kentucky Waffle House restaurant refused service to a U.S. Navy sailor, who was in uniform and who was armed.  Staff at the location, which is owned by a franchisee said that the location had a strict no guns allowed policy and the only exceptions made were for law enforcement personnel.  Reporter's note:  I'm curious why this sailor was armed off-post.  That's not the norm.  When I worked shifts as an Air Force Security Police officer, we were instructed not to dine anywhere off-base.  But if he was carrying a gun for a legitimate purpose, they should have made the same exception for him that is made for law enforcement personnel.


After a delay of five hours while her last-minute appeals were heard and denied by the U. S. Supreme Court, 47 year old Kelly Gissenbander was executed by lethal injection in Georgia.  She'd been convicted for her husband's 1997 murder, although it was her boyfriend who actually stabbed her husband to death.  SCOTUS denied three different appeals on Tuesday.  Pope Francis sent his diplomatic representative in the U.S. to deliver a letter to the GA Clemency Board, asking them to spare Ms Gissenbander's life.  Reporter's note:  I remain opposed to the death penalty, not so much on moral grounds, but on fiscal ones.  It costs from five to ten times as much (or more) to execute a convicted murderer as it does to simply lock them up for life without the possibility of parole.  That money could be put to far better use.  On the moral side of the equation though, I think a lifetime of reflecting on one's transgressions is better justice than being put to death.


Speaking of Pope Francis, the attorneys representing Rowan County, KY County Clerk Kim Davis are claiming she had a private meeting with the Pope at the Apostolic Nunciature (Vatican Embassy)  in Washington, D.C. during his U.S. visit.  Both the Vatican and the Apostolic Nunciature have not commented on the claims from the Liberty Counsel.  Reporter's note:  It would be very interesting if it turns out the Vatican denies the meeting took place.  I can't imagine her lawyers would make such a claim if it weren't true, but who knows?


I normally shy away from stories about Caitlyn Jenner at this point, but the fact her second wife, Linda Thompson has commented on the change from Bruce to Caitlyn is worth noting.  In an interview with US magazine, Ms Thompson said, “I have to be honest and say it’s strange for me to see this beautiful woman, and look in her eyes, and think, ‘That’s the father of my children,’ ” the actress said. “That being said, I’m totally supportive of her and always have been.”  Reporter's note:  I have had the pleasure of meeting Linda Thompson.  I think the world of her and the grace she is showing here doesn't surprise me one bit.  Nicely done, ma'am.


The president of Planned Parenthood withstood a four hour inquisition by Republican members of the House, including questions about "lavish spending" and her own compensation.  Observers say Cccile Richards did not give an inch during the questioning.  Reporter's note:  I continue to be amazed that male Republicans who did not attend medical school continue to insist they know more about women's health issues than women themselves, or the medical professionals who treat them.  Mind-boggling.

That's the song "Sea Cruise" by Frankie Ford.  It was his one big hit.  He died recently in New Orleans from natural causes.  He was 76.  Reporter's note:  I've always liked this song.  RIP


Random Ponderings:

I was working on a pool on how long Trump's boycott of Fox News would last, but it ended before I could get organized.

Kudos to the FCC for slapping Smart City, a provider of Wi-Fi at convention centers and hotels $750,000 for blocking the BYO Wi-Fi of guests who didn't want to pay $80 a day for their service.

I don't care if the bright yellow ants of Australia's Kakadu National Park taste like lemon-lime soda if you lick their underbellies, I'm not licking ants.

Tom Brady's statement that he isn't endorsing Donald Trump restores a little faith in him.  But only a little.

I thought Julie Chang was the shortest woman on-camera on the set of Fox 11's Good Day LA, but now I'm thinking she might be the tallest.  It is hard to tell though from the angles.

Maybe Matt Damon should limit his comments to his own movies for the next few months so he doesn't wind up in hot water again.

Maybe Kim Davis will run for higher office.  I'd vote for her...if she was running for javelin catcher.  Dogcatcher would be too much for her.

I would love to flashback to 1975 or so and stage the ultimate Battle of the Bands.  The Wrecking Crew versus The Swampers.  That would be so awesome.

What I found most interesting about the latest Forbes 400 listing of the richest Americans is that their combined net worth of $2.34 trillion wouldn't fund the federal government for a full year.  Staggering amount our federal government spends.

Playing Song Pop on a Tuesday

Song Pop is a Facebook game.  You go head to head against an opponent, trying to identify songs as quickly as possible from a snippet of the tune.  Each round is five songs and it is multiple choice.  Four choices per song.  There are lots of categories.  60s #1 hits, 70s collection, Top Songs of XX year and so on.  When it is your turn, you play two rounds.  The round your opponent last played, trying to beat their times, followed by you choosing a category where you set times for your opponent to beat.

I found I had eight turns to take this morning and wound up with a lot of song snippets in my head.  So I listened to the tunes demanding attention and thought I'd share them.  Here they are, in no particular order:

Money, money, money

One thing I don't talk much about these days is how I used to be a coin collector.  It was my favorite hobby, at some point even surpassing trivia playing as an interest.  I would go to coin shows on weekends and spend my extra money trying to improve my collection.  So I thought it might be interesting to review the history of our nation's coins.  Today, we begin with the smallest denomination coins our mint ever produced.  We begin with the half-cent, which was roughly the same size as today's quarter.

In 1793, half-cents were part of commerce as even five cents was a lot of money.  This was the first of the half-cents made.  It was replaced the following year by a different design.

Facing left to facing right.  A lot like the two party political system that came to be in our nation.  This design was used until 1797 and no new half-cents were made until 1800.  Then they used the design below.

This design remained in use until 1808.  Then in 1809, the year of Abraham Lincoln's birth, another new design was put into use.

This is my favorite design of all of the half-cent designs.  One of the reasons I chose the year 1835 as the first year to collect a type-set of was this half-cent.  A type set is one example of each denomination coin made in one year.  Coins using this design were minted for circulation until 1835.  In 1836 and 1837, only proof issues (special strikes made for collectors) were minted, and in very small quantities.

While proofs were issued beginning in 1840, through 1848, no half-cents with this final design were made for circulation until the year 1849.  1857 was the last year of the half-cent being minted at all.  When adjusted for inflation, a half-cent had 14 cents worth of 2014 buying power in 1857.

In 2014, a complete collection of half-cents, with an example of every type ever minted sold at auction for $18.2 million.  One of the collection's pieces set an all-time record, fetching $1,15 million all by itself.


The cent also began being minted in 1793.  Since there were eight different types, we won't bother with photos of all of them.  Just the first and last.  Also made of 100% copper like the half-cent, the first large cents looked like this.

Seven more designs would be used starting in 1794 and ending in 1857 which turned out to be the last year of the production of the large cent.  Small cents began being produced that year.  Here is the last large cent design.

The record price for sale of a large cent was set in 2012, when a beautiful example of a 1793 "chain" cent brought $1.38 million at auction.

The reason the large cent was replaced with the smaller cent in 1857 was that it had simply become too expensive to make.  The alloy was modified to be 88% copper and 12% nickel.  The new Flying Eagle cents were first made in 1856, but only in pattern (test) format.  These cents are highly collectible today.

The public did not like the design and the coin lasted for just two years of large minting for circulation, 1857 and 1858.  Then in 1859 the famous Indian-Head cent was created.  BTW, in 2004 an 1856 Flying Eagle cent sold at auction for $172,500.

These cents were minted from 1859 through 1909, with only slight design changes along the way.  One reason collectors love collecting this set is that while there are some coins in it that are much scarcer than others, none are truly beyond reach.  Although it is worth noting that an 1877 Indian-Head in only "good" (G-4) condition will probably set a collector back at least $500.  All of these coins were minted at only the Philadelphia Mint until 1908, when the San Francisco mint began making Indian-Head pennies.  The 1909-S Indian-Head is also a coin that will cost more than $300 for a G-4 example.  Then in 1909, on the 100th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, the penny we know today began being produced.

That is a 1909 Lincoln cent, minted at the San Francisco Mint, with the initials of the coin's designer, Victor David Brenner at the bottom of the reverse side of the coin.  Known as the "wheat cent" because of the two stalks of wheat on the reverse, these pennies were minted for circulation with this basic design through 1958.  There were a few oddities along the way though.

In 1922 the Lincoln cent was being minted only at the Philadelphia and Denver mints.  Dies used at Denver became worn and the D mint-mark that should have been on the coin did not appear.  These coins can be very valuable, particularly in the higher grades.  Coins are graded from MS-70 (best condition possible) all the way down to 3 (horrible condition).  No 1922 no D cents graded MS-65 or better are known to exist.  One in MS-64 condition sold for over $57,000.

If the penny above looks weird, that's because it is made of steel, not a bronze/nickel alloy.  In 1943, at the height of World War II, steel was used due to shortages of the normal materials.  The following year saw used shell casings being melted and recast as pennies.  There are a number of 1943 cents that were made in bronze and a number of 1944 cents made in steel and they are all very valuable.

Do not adjust your monitor.  I blew this one up a bit larger to better illustrate what is known as a "double-die" strike.  The coin was struck twice but the second strike was slightly off and this is the result.  This happened in a number of years but the two most well-known years were 1955 and 1972.  A MS-65 RD (red, the more desirable color than brown) 1955 double-die penny is currently listed for sale at $59,500.

Next time I'm moved to write a blog about coins I'll cover the two-cent piece, the 2 varieties of three-cent piece and the story of how the five-cent piece came to be known as the nickel.

An open letter to the Republican leadership in Congress

Ladies and Gentlemen,

You are about to shut down the government for the 13th time since 1980.  For only the second time since 1995.  The most recent shutdown was over your intransigence over the Affordable Care Act.  Now you're going to bring the federal government to a screeching halt over the question of funding for Planned Parenthood.

The issue of funding Planned Parenthood is an important one for many of you and I recognize that you hold strong positions on that issue.  But this is not a significant justification for disrupting the lives of millions of people.  People who will be denied access to government services deemed "not critical" enough to keep them operating.  Government employees will not be paid for the work they aren't doing, but under the perverse way such things take place, once the funding faucet is turned back on, they'll get paid for having done nothing.

This is ridiculous.  Madness.

I pledge that I personally will work to ensure that every single Republican (and Democrat, if any) who brings about this shutdown will never again be elected to Congress.  I will seek to get every other American who believes in the values this nation was founded on to do the same.  If you are so petulant about one single issue that you will force the entire government to shutdown, you do not have the requisite majority to act as our elected representatives.

You have been warned.

The height of hypocrisy in double standards

Donald Trump feels he's being treated unfairly.  NBC News shows a poll that isn't one that gives him the biggest lead and he whines.  Fox News he's going to boycott altogether (we'll see how long that lasts) because of alleged unfair treatment.

So why doesn't Mr. Trump treat others fairly.  He makes disparaging remarks about Carly Fiorina's looks.  He takes cheap shots at every other candidate.

The answer is simple.  He isn't fair to anyone else because it's his world and the rest of us are just lucky he allows us to live in it.  That's his fifth-grade, egomaniac mindset. 

He is not fit to hold any elective office.  Not even County Clerk in Rowan County, Kentucky.

Names on things

Every day of the week, drivers on the San Diego Freeway (I-405) transition to the Glenn Anderson Freeway (I-105) and vice versa.  Tens of thousands daily.  Glenn Anderson was the politician who backed the building of the I-105 and the official name of the freeway is his.  It is commonly known as the Century Freeway.

The specific interchange where the I-105 and the I-405 meet is clearly labeled in all four directions as being the Sadao Munemori Memorial Interchange.  It mentions he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his service during World War II.  The other day I was passing through another local freeway interchange named after a Medal of Honor recipient and that got me curious.  I looked up the award citations for both of these heroes, Sadao Munemori and Eugene Obregon.  Here is the citation for PFC Munemori:

He fought with great gallantry and intrepidity near Seravezza, Italy. When his unit was pinned down by grazing fire from the enemy's strong mountain defense and command of the squad devolved on him with the wounding of its regular leader, he made frontal, one-man attacks through direct fire and knocked out two machine guns with grenades. Withdrawing under murderous fire and showers of grenades from other enemy emplacements, he had nearly reached a shell crater occupied by two of his men when an unexploded grenade bounced on his helmet and rolled toward his helpless comrades. He arose into the withering fire, dived for the missile and smothered its blast with his body. By his swift, supremely heroic action Pfc. Munemori saved two of his men at the cost of his own life and did much to clear the path for his company's victorious advance.

What makes PFC Munemori's award groundbreaking is that it was the only Medal of Honor presented to a Japanese-American soldier during or immediately after World War II.  The prejudice against the Japanese-Americans was so great, in spite of the bravery and heroism of those who fought in the famous 442nd Regimental Combat Team.  Aside from PFC Munemori, 20 other Japanese-Americans who fought in the 442nd were Medal of Honor recipients.  They include the late U. S. Senator Daniel Inoyue. 

Here is the citation for PFC Obregon:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with Company G, Third Battalion, Fifth Marines, First Marine Division (Reinforced), in action against enemy aggressor forces at Seoul, Korea, on September 26, 1950. While serving as an ammunition carrier of a machine gun squad in a Marine Rifle Company which was temporarily pinned down by hostile fire, Private First Class Obregon observed a fellow Marine fall wounded in the line of fire. Armed only with a pistol, he unhesitatingly dashed from his covered position to the side of the casualty. Firing his pistol with one hand as he ran, he grasped his comrade by the arm with his other hand and, despite the great peril to himself, dragged him to the side of the road. Still under enemy fire, he was bandaging the man's wounds when hostile troops of approximately platoon strength began advancing toward his position. Quickly seizing the wounded Marine's carbine, he placed his own body as a shield in front of him and lay there firing accurately and effectively into the hostile group until he himself was fatally wounded by enemy machine-gun fire. By his courageous fighting spirit, fortitude and loyal devotion to duty, Private First Class Obregon enabled his fellow Marines to rescue the wounded man and aided essentially in repelling the attack, thereby sustaining the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.  He gallantly gave his life for his country.

PFC Obregon was of Mexican-American descent.  He and PFC Munemori were both born here, children of immigrants.  When I hear Donald Trump, Ben Carson and others engaging in bigotry, I think of how poor our nation would be if they'd been in charge 100 years ago, when we encouraged people to come here.

When in doubt, let's go to the tape.

Carly Fiorina said some things about Planned Parenthood and videos that she has herself seen at the second Republican Candidates Debate that people are calling an outright lie.  She is not backing down from the claims she herself saw a "...a fully formed fetus on the table, its heart beating, its legs kicking, while someone says we have to keep it alive to harvest its brain. This is about the character of this nation!"

No one is supporting her version of this claim.  She herself insists it's true.  So, let's go to the video that Ms Fiorina has seen.  It's right here:


Well, that was enlightening.  It certainly cleared this up.  Obviously she saw what she saw, but can't provide one single image to support her claims.  She is right.  This is about the character of the nation.

When Ms Fiorina has spent a lot of time calling out Hillary Clinton for lying, not backing off of this claim is the height of arrogance.  Unless Ms Fiorina can provide proof of her claim, her credibility will plummet to zero.

It's easy to prove Hillary Clinton lied:

She made a claim and the video proved it false.  Ms Fiorina has made a claim about what is supposed to be on a video.  So release the video.  Or back off the claim.

At this rate, Ms Fiorina's campaign is doomed to be best described by part of another famous video.

That's Vinko Bogataj falling off the ski jump as the forever-remembered "agony of defeat" image in the opening of ABC's Wide World of Sports.  Ms Fiorina needs to own up to her lie or she too will suffer a disastrous fall as well.

What was actually said is really important. Always.

Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson is under fire for comments he made toward the end of his appearance on NBC's Meet The Press on 9/20/2015.  Here's a video excerpt from the show that contains the comments in question.

And for those who don't like watching video, or who want to parse the language of the statement, here is a transcript of this portion of the conversation:

"CHUCK TODD:
Let me wrap this up by finally dealing with what's been going on, Donald Trump, and a deal with a questioner that claimed that the president was Muslim. Let me ask you the question this way: Should a President's faith matter? Should your faith matter to voters?


DR. BEN CARSON:
Well, I guess it depends on what that faith is. If it's inconsistent with the values and principles of America, then of course it should matter. But if it fits within the realm of America and consistent with the constitution, no problem.


CHUCK TODD:
So do you believe that Islam is consistent with the constitution?


DR. BEN CARSON:
No, I don't, I do not.


CHUCK TODD:
So you--


DR. BEN CARSON:
I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that.


CHUCK TODD:
And would you ever consider voting for a Muslim for Congress?


DR. BEN CARSON:
Congress is a different story, but it depends on who that Muslim is and what their policies are, just as it depends on what anybody else says, you know. And, you know, if there's somebody who's of any faith, but they say things, and their life has been consistent with things that will elevate this nation and make it possible for everybody to succeed, and bring peace and harmony, then I'm with them." 

While I'm on a quoting binge, let me quote a section of the Constitution.  You know, the one that Dr. Carson believes being a Muslim is not consistent with following.

Article VI, paragraph three states:  "The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States." 

While Dr. Carson may be a renowned medical scholar, clearly he is not strong on interpreting and understanding our nation's Constitution.  We do not litmus test members of the any of the three branches of government, elected, appointed or hired; regarding religion.  Or lack thereof.

I would have had no problem with Dr. Carson saying that it would be inconsistent with our Constitution for a Muslim who was elected president to impose Sharia law on the United States.  But that isn't what he said.  Most followers of Islam who reside in the U.S. aren't interested in forcing the rest of the population to become Muslims, or to live under Muslim law.  Some extremists can be found in every corner of the world.  More of them in the Middle East, obviously.

Anyone who is a candidate for the highest office in the land who doesn't understand the importance of our freedoms as set forth in the Bill of Rights, is unfit to serve.

Dr. Carson, perhaps you should stop reading the talking points prepared for you by your handlers and spend a few minutes reading the Federalist Papers, #9 and #10.  It would help you a lot.

In the headlines as the week closes

The Hillary Clinton campaign used an attack ad by a superPAC run by Karl Rove against the former Secretary of State as justification for their latest email to subscribers to their mailing list, asking for donations to fight these kinds of ads.

Reporter's note:  I don't see her campaign decrying the attack ads taken out by superPACs that support her, slamming her primary opponent, Senator Bernie Sanders.  Does that mean it is okay for Democrats to attack one another but not okay for Republicans to attack Democrats?

* * *

A very, very rare set-used version of the Princess Leia "slave" costume from Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi will be auctioned off on October 1st.  Estimates are that it may bring $120,000 although considering how rare it is, some experts predict a much higher price.

Reporter's note:  I wonder if Carrie Fisher has maintained her 50 lb weight loss from 2011 and just how close she could come to wearing that outfit again.  I bet Jenny Craig would pay a lot for a commercial where she is wearing that costume.

* * *

National Park officials have identified the seven people who died at Zion National Park in Utah when flash floods swept them away while they were canyoneering.  Park Rangers warned them against going because of the danger from heavy rains, but policy prevents them from performing skill assessments/preventing guests from going if they want to go.

Reporter's note:  Given the dangers present in all of our national parks, I'm not sure any policy that prevents visitors from doing things would be wise.  Best that the Park Service ensure that visitors are fully informed of the risks before they can go into areas where high levels of danger exist.  Then again, when people ignore warnings about proper food storage where bears are present is proof that all of the warnings in the world won't prevent people from being dumb.

* * *

A delivery driver for Papa John's Pizza in North Carolina was given a choice.  Remove his Confederate flag decal plate or lose his job.  TMZ.com reported this story and pointed out they were told customers had taken to Yelp.com to complain.

Reporter's note:  This seems to have occurred in Huntersville, NC and there was only one complaint on Yelp about it.  This isn't a freedom of speech issue either.  If an employer doesn't want you using your vehicle to deliver their product due to your choice of vehicle decorations, that's their prerogative.  A reminder that the First Amendment only limits government in infringing on your freedom of expression.

* * *

A judge has thrown out Lindsay Lohan's lawsuit against Fox News, Sean Hannity and Michelle Fields for defamation of character.  Lohan had sued after Collins said Lohan and her mother Dina Lohan had used cocaine together.  The judge pointed out that the Lohans are public figures and that the statement wasn't made maliciously.  He also pointed out that truth is a defense against allegations of defamation.

Reporter's note:  Filing the lawsuit was a waste of time.  They had to know they were going to lose.

* * *

This is a check that was written as a donation to a school that uses the Common Core teaching methodology.  It was written using Common Core math standards.  Can you determine how much it is supposed to be worth?

* * *

Coca-Cola says the IRS is coming after them for $3.3 billion in back taxes, plus interest.  The allegations of underpayment involve claims that the company is charging its foreign subsidiaries lowered licensing fees for products in order to shift income away from the higher corporate income tax rates in the U. S.  They plan to fight it out in court if necessary.

Reporter's note:  This kind of case is usually settled for a much smaller amount that what is originally billed.  But this is also evidence of yet another way U.S. corporations attempt to avoid paying taxes.

* * *

Martin Winterkorn is the CEO of Volkswagen.  He issued an apology saying he is sorry that his firm had "broken trust" with its customers.  The EPA has charged the company with installing software in its diesel cars sold in the U.S. that cheated on emissions testing.  The California Air Resources board discovered the cheating after conducting road tests and getting different emission level results in comparison with the ordinary, stationary testing done to register vehicles.  Over 500,000 cars had the software, which enabled emission control equipment only when vehicles were being tested.

Reporter's note:  This is one where there should be jail time, not just big fines for deliberately polluting the environment of our country.  They didn't sell these cars in Germany.

Management versus Leadership

Since he declared himself a presidential candidate, seeking the 2016 nomination of the Republican Party, Donald Trump has said a lot of things.  Many of them are excellent examples to define the difference between being a great manager and being a great leader.'

There is no doubt that Mr. Trump has proven his abilities as a manager.  Ignoring his specious claims that successful businesses file for bankruptcy protection all the time, and the fact he was born with a platinum-spoon level empire amassed by his father; the fact remains he has enjoyed tremendous success as a business operator.  As an entrepreneur.  But he is not a leader.

Leaders lead by example.  The only example we have seen from Mr. Trump is that everything is about the Donald.  He's the lead singer and conductor of the one-man band that keeps extolling his own virtues and successes.  He talks about making America great, but not about how he specifically plans to help improve the lives of Americans.

It is in this most recent incident he shows his true lack of the moral fiber, the characteristics of a leader.  At a speech, one of the audience members made an incorrect statement, claiming that President Obama is a Muslim.  Anyone who is in touch with reality knows this to be false.  Mr. Trump said nothing to correct this mistake.

In response to the hue and outcry, Mr. Trump wrote the following, "Am I morally obligated to defend the president every time somebody says something bad or controversial about him? I don’t think so!"  Now the initial response by the Trump campaign to the controversy was for campaign manager Corey Lewandowski to claim that the candidate hadn't heard the question.  A nice prevarication, but the actual words written by Mr. Trump make it far worse.

He is correct by the way.  He does not have a moral obligation to defend the president.  That's the position of a a manager.  Do only that which you are obligated to do.  Leaders go beyond the obligation.  They do the right thing without regard to whether or not they have any moral or legal, or even ethical obligation to do so.  It's an automatic response of a great leader.  Do that which is right rather than that which is legally defensible.

Then Mr. Trump went further.  "If someone made a nasty or controversial statement about me to the president, do you really think he would come to my rescue? No chance."  He may be right.  He might be wrong.  But it's irrelevant in terms of what he should do.  The golden rule is to do unto others as you would have them do unto you, not to do unto others how you think they would do unto you.  Trump's version of the golden rule is more like my late father's.  He who has the gold makes the rules.  That may be a trademark of a great manager, but it clearly demonstrates a complete and utter lack of leadership.

Mr. Trump also managed to give us other examples of his junior-high schoolyard bully mentality this week.  Asked the first question at the Republican Debate, his first words in response were an ad hominem attack on Senator Rand Paul and his presence on the stage.  Unnecessary, rude and downright mean-spirited.  A cheap shot from a past master of cheap shots.

Great for entertainment value.  But not something that should be said by a future president.

Questions and Answers

Here are the questions (not the follow-up questions) that were posed by the CNN Debate Moderator, Jake Tapper and his fellow questioners, conservative talk-radio host Hugh Hewitt and CNN Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash:

Mrs. Fiorina, I want to start with you. Fellow Republican candidate, and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, has suggested that your party’s frontrunner, Mr. Donald Trump, would be dangerous as President. He said he wouldn’t want, quote, “such a hot head with his finger on the nuclear codes.
You, as well, have raised concerns about Mr. Trump’s temperament.You’ve dismissed him as an entertainer. Would you feel comfortable with Donald trump’s finger on the nuclear codes?

* * *

Mr. Trump, I want to give you another chance — Mr. Trump, I want to give you a chance to respond to something that your rival to your left, Governor Bush, said.  Governor Bush told me last week when I read him the quote from Governor Jindal that he agrees you’re not a serious candidate.  Tell Governor Bush why you are a serious candidate and what your qualifications are to be commander-in-chief. 

* * *

A phenomenon going on in the race right now is the political…phenomenon going on in the race is the political outsiders in the race, Dr. Carson, Donald Trump, Carly Fiorina, all together, have majority support in the polls.  Governor Christie, I want to ask you about something that Dr. Carson said the other day.  Dr. Carson said campaigning is easier for him, because he’s not a politician. He can just tell the truth, therefore, while politicians, quote, “Have their finger in the air to see and do what is politically expedient.  Governor Christie, tell Dr. Carson, is that a fair description of you?

* * *

Senator Rubio, you’ve taken a very different approach to the — the question of Russia. You’ve called Vladimir Putin a, quote, “gangster.  Why would President Rubio’s approach be more effective than President Trump’s?

* * *

Four questions in to get to a question that deals with an actual issue facing the nation.  Three about Donald Trump and other so-called outsiders.  What a complete and utter waste of time.  Oh it was effective in getting the candidates to take shots at one another.  Entertaining but certainly not educating the people about what these candidates plan to do differently if elected.

Political debates should be about the real issues.  Not who insulted who, who is the most childish and so on.  There are real problems facing the U.S. and no one is talking about them except Bernie Sanders.  None of the Republican candidates are talking about inequality of wealth and income.  No one is talking about the ever-growing disappearance of a middle class in the country.  

So I want to propose questions of my own for a debate of candidates.  

#1.  You're all talking about making American great again and all of the problems created by President Obama while insulting and denigrating his performance.  But the facts are these.  

In FY2009 the last Bush budget deficit was $1.4 trillion.  Now, in FY2016 the budget deficit is projected to be less than $470 billion.  He's cut the budget deficit by 2/3rds.

GDP is up.  By most measures, unemployment is down.

Exactly how do you propose to improve on this?

#2.  This past March, NPR published a story that claims the percentage of the U. S. population that is without health insurance has fallen from 20.2% in 2012 to only 13.2% now.  If Obamacare is working to reduce the number of people that are without health insurance, why are you so insistent upon attempting to repeal it?

#3.  The minimum wage is a major topic of discussion with many calling for an increase.  At the same time, people are calling for limitations on CEO compensation in publicly held companies.  Would a maximum wage be fair?  Why or why not?

#4.  The Tax Foundation has analyzed every proposal to reform the tax system advanced by Republican candidates and found that the people who benefit the most from the proposed changes are the wealthiest Americans.  A family of four living in Los Angeles County and earning $80,000 a year faces a total tax burden of over 23%.  Your proposals, including the so-called flat tax don't lower their burden.  What do you have to say to them when they hear your tax plans favor the wealthy at their expense?

#5.  In 1986 Congress passed the Emergency Medical and Active Labor Act, known as EMTALA.  The main purpose of this law was to prevent patient dumping.  What do you know about this law and how should it be changed, if at all?  (Yes, this is kind of a "gotcha" question, but anyone calling for the repeal of Obamacare needs to know how EMTALA impacts hospitals).

#6.  If you were forced to select your choice to be president from among the candidates here on the dais, and you cannot pick yourself, who would you choose and why?

What questions do you think debate moderators should be asking?