Priorities

On Thursday morning, June 29, 2017; Donald Trump awoke in the White House.  Just some of the issues facing our nation included:

"Fixing" the Affordable Care Act
Changing the tax code to try to boost the economy
Mass shootings
MS-13
The Travel Ban
and many more

So what did the Cheeto-in-Chief do first thing?  Got on Twitter and launched a tirade against the hosts of MSNBC's Morning Joe.  As always, whenever someone says anything about him that is less than flattering, 45 assigned labels to the hosts.  Joe Scarborough was called "Psycho Joe" while Mika Brzezinski had her intelligence and sanity questioned.  He tagged her as "Low IQ Crazy Mika."

Now if we were to line up Donald Trump, Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski side by side, the only one of the three whose intellect and sanity should be called into question would be the one who is the current occupant of the Oval Office.  Does Mr. Trump know that Ms Brzezinski is a visiting fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics at the university's Kennedy School of Government?  You don't land that kind of position when your IQ is "low."

What triggered this tirade?  Since Trump says he doesn't watch their show someone else must have been watching.  That someone was his Social Media Director, Dan Scavino, Jr.  He apparently was watching Morning Joe when he heard and saw Ms Brzezinski say:

"Nothing makes a man feel better than making a fake cover of a magazine about himself, lying every day, and destroying the country."

The show was talking about the fake Time magazine covers that hang in the hallways of various properties owned by the Liar-in-Chief.

Why is it that with all of the major issues facing the Liar-in-Chief, his focus on a workday would be attacking people in the media?  I see two major reasons.

1.  It distracts from his inability to carry out the promises he made on the campaign trail.  Right now the Republican majority in the Senate is flailing and failing in their attempt to pass a healthcare bill.  45 said it would happen quickly and right now it just is not happening.

2.  It is the standard communication mode for Trump and has been for a long time.  I call it Trump's Bs of Communication:

     Baffle
     Belittle
     Blind the audience
     Bluster
     Boo whatever the other do
     Bullshit

As a distraction, his method has been wildly successful since he threw his toupee into the ring to seek the Republican nomination.  Anytime something is transpiring that is less than favorable for Agent Orange, he presses the "Distract" button.

As for the six Bs of Trump Talk, he's been using that method for so very long, he may be incapable of changing how he communicates.  He talked about a "pivot" but he probably can't make that move.

This piss-poor excuse for a politician is now the face of our nation.  The rest of the world is laughing and pitying us all at once.  No other world leader sends out these kinds of tweets.  There are a few leaders in history who have been as buffoonish as the blustering bullshit artist we call Donald Trump.  None of them had any interest in the people they governed.  Neither does he.  45 cares only about himself.  His fragile ego demonstrates this clearly.

Edit:  He doubled down today with another shot at Morning Joe.  Why is that more important than leading the nation?  Sad!!

The headline and the details, where the devil can be found

On June 23, 2017, CBS News ran a story about the Los Angeles VA Hospital.  The headline read:

Nearly 100 patients died waiting for care from Los Angeles VA

That will get your attention, especially if you're like me and get your healthcare at that very facility.  Here is an excerpt from the story:

"A new report by the VA inspector general shows 43 percent of the 225 patients who died between October 2014 and August 2015 at the Los Angeles VA were waiting for appointments or needed tests they never got. However, the report does not conclude these patients "died as a result of delayed consults."

If you click the link within that excerpt you are taken to the actual report from the Inspector General.  I'm still reading it, but one particular section leapt off the page at me:

"For the period October 1, 2014 through August 9, 2015, we identified 225 deceased patients who had 371 open or pending consults at the time of their deaths or had discontinued consults after their deaths.  

Of the 225 patients, we found 117 patients with 158 consults experienced delays in obtaining requested consults.  We substantiated that 43 percent (158/371) of consults were not timely because providers and scheduling staff did not consistently follow consult policy or procedures.

We did not substantiate the allegation that patients experienced serious or severe impact with long-term consequences or organ dysfunctions or that patients died as a result of delayed consults. However, we identified two patients who experienced intermediate impact (Patient 1) or minor impact (Patient 2)."

So in only two instances was there an impact on a patient due to a delayed consult.  Let's extract the two instances from that report.

* * *

Patient 1 experienced intermediate clinical impact (Level 3) from a delayed cardiothoracic (CT) surgery consult.

The patient was in his 70s with a history of valvular heart disease, heart failure, and an abnormal heart rhythm at the time of his death.  In 2014, the patient was seen by a cardiologist who ordered a routine outpatient CT surgery consult for heart valve replacement.21

The patient was admitted to the facility a few weeks later to expedite the preoperative evaluation needed for heart valve surgery. During the admission, the cardiologist noted “CT surgery consulted prior. Needs [valve repair] workup.”  We reviewed the EHR Consult Management Concerns, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA dating back to 1996 and did not find any CT surgery notes regarding a valve repair.  As part of the preoperative evaluation, the patient underwent a heart catheterization and was found to have coronary artery disease.  He was discharge with a dental appointment to evaluation for infections that might adversely effect his surgical outcome.

After the patient failed to show for his dental appointment, dental staff made three unsuccessful attempts to reschedule his appointment.  A week after the scheduled dental appointment, the patient presented to a non-VA hospital with “massive leg swelling” and was admitted for myocardial infarction (heart attack) with kidney and heart failure. Less than 12 hours after admission, he died of cardiogenic shock23 presumed to be related to a massive myocardial infarction. Facility staff did not take action on the CT surgery consult for more than 4 months, when they discontinued the consult because the patient had died.

We determined that the patient experienced an intermediate clinical impact (Level 3) from not receiving a CT surgery evaluation.  The patient’s advanced age and comorbidities (coronary artery disease and an abnormal heart rhythm), increased his risk for heart failure, a known complication of valvular disease.  While the EHR did not have documentation from a CT surgeon, the cardiologist had been coordinating the patient’s preoperative evaluation in preparation for a heart valve replacement.  Timely consultation by a CT surgeon would not likely have prevented his death because he was receiving appropriate care from the cardiologist.

* * *

Patient 2 experienced minor or self-limited impact (Level 2) due to delayed nephrology and cardiomyopathy consults.

Nephrology Consult
The patient was in his late 60s with a history of diabetes, hypertension, heart failure, and chronic kidney disease requiring several months of dialysis in 2014 (month 1), which he received at a non-VA facility. After completion of dialysis treatments, he was seen by the VA nephrology (kidney) clinic, with a plan to follow up in 4–6 weeks.  In month 10, the patient was admitted to the facility for heart failure with worsening kidney disease. In month 11, his PCP ordered laboratory tests and a routine outpatient nephrology consult to help determine the cause of the chronic kidney disease.  Clinic staff approved the consult for an appointment in 3–4 weeks noting that the patient had not been followed up by nephrology clinic since a month 4 appointment.  The scheduler made an appointment for month 13 after multiple scheduling attempts. 
                                             
Cardiomyopathy Consult

Prior to the patient’s discharge home from his month 10 hospitalization, the hospitalist requested a routine outpatient cardiomyopathy (heart failure) clinic24 consult. The patient did not attend a scheduled month 11 appointment, so the scheduler made another appointment for the next month (month 12).

Before the scheduled appointment in month 12, a physician’s assistant in the cardiology clinic saw the patient for worsening heart failure and sent him to the ED.  The ED physician treated the patient for heart failure and discharged him home with instructions to follow up with cardiology the following week.  The patient did not attend the cardiomyopathy appointment but presented to a non-VA facility 2 days after the missed appointment with massive leg swelling and shortness of breath. 

His kidney function had worsened but was without signs of kidney failure as indicated by normal electrolytes.  He was diagnosed with heart failure and underwent dialysis to remove fluid but not electrolytes. On hospital day 3, he developed worsening shortness of breath that progressed to cardiac arrest, and died of presumed myocardial infarction.  An autopsy was not performed.

We determined that the patient experienced minor clinical impact (Level 2) as a result of the delayed nephrology and cardiomyopathy consults. The patient had severe multi-organ disease.  However, had the patient received the nephrology consult timely, physicians would not likely have performed any interventions as he had no signs of kidney failure.  The goal of the cardiomyopathy clinic was to encourage treatment adherence, and the patient had a history of poor attendance at his cardiology appointments, including “no show” to a heart failure consultation in month 9.  

* * *

So in only two of the "43% of deaths" was there any connection to the failure to receive treatment and the cause of death, according to the report being cited by the news story.  In both cases, the patient missed appointments.

I hate going to the VA, or any hospital for that matter.  That mindset is because I spent an entire year inside of a hospital.  I sometimes rationalize my way to missing and/or rescheduling appointments.  It is a habit I need to break.

Two is still two too many cases where treatment being delayed is at least partially the fault of the care provider.  But the real story is not being told by the media.

Sunday morning ponderings

I had been under the impression I would not be going back to work until after the July 4th holiday but turns out I will return to the office next Wednesday.  Partly by choice and partly due to necessity.  The company requires those of us considered to be "seasonal employees" to take a break from employment for eight consecutive weeks each year.  It is nice to get rest and I needed it after the most challenging tax season ever.  The good news is that until classes begin again in August, I'm only going to have to work two (maybe three on occasion) days per week.

* * *

Look at these two different shoes.  One is produced by the Ivanka Trump brand and the other by Aquazarra Italia.

 
Ivanka Trump's company is being sued by Aquazarra Italia, who is claiming that Ivanka's company has copied their designs. 

It isn't the lawsuit itself that is newsworthy, but the tactic her attorneys tried to get her out of having to testify at a deposition in the matter is.  Actually there were two specious claims made by her lawyers.

One was that she "...does not possess any unique information" relating to the design process of the shoes in question (there are other examples in the lawsuit).  I'd wager money that until she stepped down from her post in her firm in order to work for the Liar-in-Chief that no design did not cross her desk for final approval.

The second reason her lawyers cited for their request to avoid letting her be deposed is that it would be too much of a distraction from her duties at the White House.  That's just ridiculous. 

In 1997 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Clinton v Jones that President Clinton would not be excused from the Paula Jones lawsuit against him.  Now if Presidents aren't able to cite their duties to avoid civil litigation that predates their inauguration, a "Special Assistant" to the president shouldn't even waste a court's time asking to be excused from a deposition.

* * *

An adjunct professor at the University of Delaware has put her foot in her mouth (don't know if she was wearing a pair of Ivanka's shoes) and apparently been fired; because of a statement she made about the tragic death of Otto Warmbier. 

Kathy Dettwyler is a professor of Anthropology and she wrote the following in a Facebook post:

Sorry Ms Dettwyler but you don't know a damn thing about what Mr. Warmbier did or did not do in North Korea.  I think he was very foolish to travel there but there was no conclusive evidence that he did anything untoward.  The video of his alleged attempt to steal a propaganda sign was not convincing to anyone outside the DPRK.

Worse yet, she posted this on the day that Otto Warmbier died. 

* * *

From the "Its Not a Muslim Ban" file, the Cheeto-in-Chief broke with a tradition dating back to the Clinton Administration and did not hold a dinner to celebrate the end of the Muslim holiday Ramadan. 

Was anyone surprised?

* * *

In Chicago's Dyke March this past Saturday, apparently it was not okay to carry this flag.

Why?  Because apparently the Star of David in and of itself is an expression of Zionism.  Because according to Ilianna Figueroa, a member of the Dyke March Collective:

"Yesterday during the rally we saw three individuals carrying Israeli flags super imposed on rainbow flags. Some folks say they are Jewish Pride flags. But as a Collective we are very much pro-Palestine, and when we see these flags we know a lot of folks who are under attack by Israel see the visuals of the flag as a threat, so we don't want anything in the [Dyke March] space that can inadvertently or advertently express Zionism."

You can read statements from both the Dyke March Collective and from A Wider Bridge (which describes itself as "the North American LGBTQ organization building support for Israel and its LGBTQ community" here.

What I don't get is that my perception of the LGBTQ movement is that it has been about inclusion, not exclusion.  What's next, the exclusion of Log Cabin Republicans because of their political views?

* * *

The L.A. Times has an occasional feature, L.A. Affairs.  This week's edition is one of the best written I've read yet.

Viewing Congressional special elections as referendums

The first of the five special elections to the House that resulted from sitting members of the House taking positions within the administration of the Liar-in-Chief was in the 4th Congressional District in Kansas.  Mike Pompeo had been elected to represent that district four times before leaving his seat to become Director of the CIA.

Pompeo had won reelection in November of 2016 with 60.7% of the vote.  The Democrat candidate opposing him received only 29.6% of the vote.

Kansas voter registration records show that among the district's population, registration at the time of the special election was:

Republican - 186,650
Democrat - 95,788
Unaffiliated - 140,376
Libertarian - 3,605

In the special election the Republican candidate, Ron Estes won.  He tallied 52.5% of the votes.  His Democrat challenger racked up 45.7% of the votes.  A much closer result.  Also worth noting is that only 28.9% of registered voters participated.  Then there is the fact that a Republican has held the 4th Congressional district seat in Kansas without interruption since 1995.

This was the first special election after the inauguration of the Cheeto-in-Chief.  In comparison to the money spent on the most recent special election in Georgia, the outside spending in this race was almost negligible.  The loser, James Thompson spent $146,000 of the $253,000 that was contributed to his campaign.  Mr. Estes spent $202,000 of the $312,000 given to his campaign.  Two outside Republican organization, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Congressional Leadership Fund spent nearly $200,000 more. 

Add this all up and we find that an underfunded candidate, outspent nearly 3 to 1, lost by less than 8,200 votes.

* * *

The race to fill the single seat in the House of Representatives for Montana got a lot of publicity just before the election because of this.

That is audio of a confrontation between then-GOP candidate Greg Gianforte and Ben Jacobs, a reporter for The Guardian where the candidate "body-slammed" the reporter.  Mr. Gianforte apologized for the incident in his acceptance speech after his win in the special election.  He also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge.

The race was between Mr. Gianforte and two challengers.  Democrat Rob Quist and Libertarian Mark Wicks.  Spending in support of Mr. Gianforte from outside sources was around $7 million, which is about $4 million more than was spend on behalf of Mr. Quist.

In the election Mr. Gianforte got just under 50% of the vote.  The at-large seat in Montana has been in Republican hands since 1997.  The prior representative, Ryan Zinke had tallied more than 55% of the votes in the two elections prior to this special election.  Trump defeated Clinton by a margin of 56.5% to 36.0% in last November's election.

Data from 2014 Gallup polling shows that voter registration in Montana was split in favor of Republicans by a 51% - 33% split. 

* * *

The results of the Georgia special election are well known and don't bear reiteration.  But did you know there was another special election held on the same day, to replace Mick Mulvaney in South Carolina's 5th Congressional district?

Mr. Mulvaney resigned to take on the job of Director of the Office of Management and Budget in the Liar-in-Chief's administration. 

Republican Ralph Norman defeated Democrat Archie Parnell by a margin of 51.1% to 47.9%.  That is a much closer result than the margins of victory for Mr. Mulvaney in the two prior elections.  He got over 60% in 2014 and nearly the same percentage of the vote in 2016.

* * *

Were these elections referendums on the Trump administration?  The Democratic Party leadership tried and failed to turn one of them into a referendum.  The other three were mostly local races with some outside spending involved. 

In all four elections, the margin of victory was much smaller than that of the Republican who resigned to serve the Cheeto-in-Chief, and smaller than Trump's margin of victory in that district last November.

Why did the Democrats fail to gain ground?  It is easy to blame the leadership of the party, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi but that is not the only cause.  How many men and women who took the time to register as Democrats failed to get to the polls for the election?  How many men and women failed to even register to vote?

Why was so much money spent in Georgia and so little in South Carolina?

Were these four Republican wins for Donald Trump?  I do not believe so.  To use a tennis analogy, the Republicans merely held serve.  These districts were in their hands and still remain in their hands.  Yet their margins of victory were smaller. 

The lesson here is that the Republican majority is in fact vulnerable.  The House can be re-taken by the Democrats next November.  But only if the party comes together, fixes its problems at the top and finds a way to energize its constituency to get out and vote.

The voters who stayed home last November will do it again if they are not brought into the fold.

Taken Out of Context

Meet Phil Hogan. 

Until recently he was a volunteer co-chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party's technology committee.  That is until this YouTube video of Mr. Hogan talking to two other people, Chelsey Gentry-Tipton and Destin Madison.

Before we look more deeply at Mr. Hogan, let's examine the timeline of events that led up to this recording.

There was the tragic shooting at the Republican Congressional Baseball team practice where Representative Steve Scalise was seriously wounded.

After that, Ms Gentry-Tipton, who is still the Chair of the Nebraska Democratic Black Caucus (an elected, unpaid position), posted this on a Facebook thread about the shooting:

"Watching the congressman crying on live tv abt the trauma they experienced. Y is this so funny tho?"

Followed by:

"The very people that push pro NRA legislation in efforts to pad their pockets with complete disregard for human life. Yeah, having a hard time feeling bad for them."

There was backlash for those comments and Mr. Hogan claims he went to Ms Gentry-Tipton's office to "console" her.  He also claims, according to an article in the Omaha World-Herald that she and Destin Madison recorded him in an effort to "...use the recording to get him to post a public statement of support for her."

In fact, lets look at that entire paragraph from that article:

"In an interview Thursday, Montag said that he had gone to see Gentry-Tipton to console her during the fallout over her posts and party leaders’ response but that she and Madison were trying to use the recording to get him to post a public statement of support for her."

Now let's compare that graph to one from a story on the ABC News website about this incident:

"Montag told the World-Herald he had visited Gentry-Tipton to console her during the fallout over her online posts and party leaders' response, but that she and Madison were trying to use the recording to blackmail him into posting a public statement of support for her. Madison and Gentry-Tipton did not respond to the allegation."

Is the addition of the word "blackmail" an effort to clarify or raise the stakes?

Now we get to Mr. Montag's claim that the recorded audio is being taken out of context.  He said:

"I wish he was f*****g dead."

How do you put that INTO context, Mr. Montag?

* * *

Johnny Depp told a joke.  First he said that Donald Trump needs help, a sentiment a whole lot of people agree with.  Then he posed a question:

"When was the last time an actor assassinated a president?"

Now he's saying he was joking.  Here is his statement:

“I apologize for the bad joke I attempted last night in poor taste about President Trump,” he said. “It did not come out as intended, and I intended no malice. I was only trying to amuse, not to harm anyone.”

Joking about killing a president isn't funny.  Can't put this in context either.

* * *

The death of Otto Warmbier and other headlines

Otto Warmbier has died.  22 years of age and we will almost certainly never know the details of his passing.  No parent should have to bury a child., at any age.  What we do know is that it appears that he was not subjected to torture, nor was his severe brain damage due to the head injury that the North Koreans (Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, or DPRK) claim he suffered.

The DPRK claims he violated their laws by stealing a propaganda sign that mentioned the name of Kim Jong-il, father of the nation's current despot, Kim Jong-in.  That is a serious crime in that nation.  There is speculation that he was sentenced to 15 years at hard labor as pushback for U.S. sanctions against the DPRK.

I am saddened by his death.  It should have never happened.  I wonder if he had read the U.S. State Department's Travel Advisory regarding travel to the DPRK.  Here is an excerpt:

"The Department of State strongly warns U.S. citizens not to travel to North Korea/the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). U.S. citizens in the DPRK are at serious risk of arrest and long-term detention under North Korea’s system of law enforcement. This system imposes unduly harsh sentences for actions that would not be considered crimes in the United States and threatens U.S. citizen detainees with being treated in accordance with “wartime law of the DPRK.” Since the United States does not maintain diplomatic or consular relations with North Korea, the U.S. government has no means to provide normal consular services to U.S. citizens in North Korea."

It is a bad idea to go to North Korea.  I wouldn't get on a plane to Pyongyang unless I was a credentialed diplomat, which can't happen.  We don't have diplomatic relations with the DPRK..

Did you know there are three other U.S. citizens being held by the DPRK?  Kim Dong-chul, born in South Korea (Republic of Korea or ROK) and a naturalized citizen owned a business in a special economic zone on the border of the DPRK and China.  He began serving a ten year sentence for espionage in April of 2016.  Kim Sang-duk and Kim Hak-song were both working at Pyongyang University when they were separately detained in 2017.

They had reasons for being in the DPRK.  Otto Warmbier did not.  He was in China in 2015 when he heard about a company there (run by a British ex-patriate) that organized tours to the DPRK.  They market them as being tours that your parents would not want you to go on.

The DPRK is extraordinarily strict about travel in their nation by foreigners.  You can't go anywhere outside of your hotel without being accompanied by a guide.  Going for a short walk could result in you being detained and imprisoned, accused of espionage. 

I hope that other people considering traveling to North Korea learn from this and just don't go.  If the death of Otto Warmbier isn't enough to convince them of that, consider this.  The money you provide to the DPRK in such a visit would go right into the government's coffers.

* * *

We might know as early as this week if the Liar-in-Chief has tapes of his conversations with former FBI Director James Comey. 

Why is this being drawn out so much?  To distract from the secrecy in the Senate and the White House?  How can senators be re-writing this nation's healthcare laws without public hearings?  Without participation from the minority party?

The thing is, as long as the Republicans hold the Oval Office and the Congress, they can do whatever they want, within certain limits.  They can't go too far because the courts will prevent some things. 

Hopefully we will get good news tomorrow from Georgia in the election to replace Tom Price in the U.S. House of Representatives.  If I could fly with my oxygen tanks, I'd be there tomorrow, volunteering to drive voters to the polling places.

* * *

As the speculation about the upcoming NBA draft swirls, there is an excellent profile of Jeannie Buss in today's L.A. Times that is a must-read for anyone who is interested in professional sports.

Also in the professional sports world, infamous baseball-hawk Zack Hample whined on Twitter about how the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw refused his request for a ball at a game in Cincinnati.  He mentioned that Kershaw had said "no it wouldn't, you've got 7,000 of them" when Hample mentioned that the blue Father's Day ball would have meant a lot to him.  Hample then tweeted:

"...with that logic, Kershaw's next paycheck shouldn't mean all that much to him, right?"

Only an idiot would compare the meaning of someone's paycheck (which is earned by one's work) with baseballs that one begs for.

* * *

I'm pleased that the Megyn Kelly show that included a 19 minute interview with Infowars founder Alex Jones was a rating bust.  Anyone who claims the Sandy Hook shootings was a hoax does not deserve any exposure.

I'll have more on that in a separate blog.

* * *

False equivlancy

There has been some controversy over the current production of Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" by the Public Theater of New York.  Delta Airlines and Bank of America have pulled their support for the theater (Delta pulled support for the nonprofit completely and Bank of America just for this production) because Breitbart and Fox News (and others) made the fact that this production has a "Trumpesque" portrayal of Caesar.  As you may remember, Caesar is assassinated during the play.

Jen Yamato, who covers film for the Los Angeles Times, writing in the paper's entertainment section drew a comparison between the death of a sitting president in the Public Theater's production and the death scene of an Obama look-a-like in the 2014 movie Kingsman: The Secret Service.

Here is an excerpt from the article:

T"he point of "Kingsman" was much less pointed than fitting Julius Caesar (played by actor Gregg Henry) with a familiar blond coif and a business suit. But no corporate partners distanced themselves from "Kingsman." It opened in wide release, grossing $414 million worldwide, and now has a sequel set for release in September.

The Trumpius Caesar-disapproving Delta Air Lines even extended its partnership with 20th Century Fox post-"Kingsman," launching a big cross-branded campaign for the studio's "Snoopy" movie later that year."

You can see the shot from the Kingsman movie at roughly 25 seconds into this clip:

In terms of making a comparison of the imagery, there may be an argument to be made.  The allusion to then-President Obama is obvious, but we don't see his face.  Nor is he singled out for attention as a Trump-clone of Caesar is in the play in the park.

But where the comparison becomes an extreme false equivalency is that Ms Yamato is comparing a movie that was made to generate profits for those who invested in it to a nonprofit organization's program to provide free theater to the public.

Delta's connection to the Public Theater was giving money to a nonprofit organization.  Their partnership in the upcoming Kingsman sequel is a marketing partnership.  Both are designed to raise their public profile.  But the play isn't an attempt by the organization that is putting it on to make money.  Matthew Vaughn and the people who put up the money to make the movie did it solely to make money.

I have no problem with the people who want to boycott Delta and Bank of America for their choice to give in to pressure to pull their support from the Public Theater.  They have that right.  That doesn't mean that it was not a business decision to pull that support.  Just as ESPN has made a business decision to bring Hank Williams, Jr., back to Monday Night Football.

* * *

Behind Closed Doors

Remember this song by singer Charlie Rich?

I thought with what is going on in the U.S. Senate at the moment as the Republican members of the Upper House work to repeal the Affordable Care Act, behind closed doors, some reworking of the lyrics might be in order.


My duplicity makes me proud, lord don’t my hiding make me proud,
I keep constituents in the dark, write bills far away from the crowd.
Cause people like to jaw, about how we screw them with the law
But when we turn out the lights, we know we’ll deceive them again 


Cause when we get behind closed doors, we tally up our lobbyist's cash
That hey pay us for passing their bills, to ignore society’s need.
And it makes me glad that I’m a Congress Man.
Cause no one know what goes on behind closed doors.

Sorry for the poor quality but I hope the meaning is clear.  In the U.S. Senate, the men and women who were elected to represent the needs of the citizens of the states they represent; are engaging in an effort serve the interests of corporations ahead of individuals.  Is it illegal for them to do this?  Ask a constitutional lawyer, but I do not believe it is.  However, it is morally wrong.  In fact, it is reprehensible.

Why are they doing this?  To quote the New York Times:

"There is no mystery why the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, is trying to push this bill through quickly. The legislation would repeal major provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Opening it to scrutiny before a vote would be the congressional equivalent of exposing a vampire to sunlight."

They don't care that millions will lose their healthcare coverage.  These men and women only care about two things.  Being reelected and obtaining the funds to make that happen.

* * *

The thing is, this is going on at all levels of government.  Look at what is going on in Inglewood, CA.  Their city council approved entering into an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) with the Los Angeles Clippers so that the "other" Los Angeles area NBA team can build a new arena near the site where the Los Angeles Rams are building a football stadium.

Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has not made any secret of the fact he does not want to keep his team at Staples Center.  I don't blame him.  With the presence of the Lakers and the Kings, the Clippers are in third position in the scheduling matrix for their home floor.

Here is a statement about this situation from the ownership of the Forum, the arena where the Lakers and Kings played for decades before moving to Staples Center in 1999.

A letter from Latham and Watkins, attorneys for the Forum sent a letter to the city of Inglewood, accusing them of violating the Brown Act in not giving proper notice for the meeting today where they approved that ENA. 

It may well be that in how the Forum was renovated to make it one of the finest concert venues in the region may have made it a less than stellar choice to be home to an NBA team.  Fine.  Do the deal in the open and come right out and say that.

It seems that behind closed doors, the interests of the public are ignored at the expense of serving the interests of businesses. 

In a time where the expanding divisiveness of our nation is causing violence, distrust and worst of all, a lack of regard of the welfare of the people, it is time to remember two quotes from history.  One from the 20th century and another from the time before the birth of Christ.

The late jurist Louis Brandeis, in his time before he became a Supreme Court Justice wrote:

"Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman. And publicity has already played an important part in the struggle against the Money Trust."

Cicero, a Roman politician and lawyer who was Consul in 63BCE wrote:

"The welfare of the people is the highest law."

June 14, 2017

The big story today is the shooting in Virginia, involving Republican members of Congress who were practicing for the upcoming annual baseball game where Republicans play Democrats.  The game raises funds for charity and will go on as scheduled tomorrow at Nationals Park in D.C.

Steve Scalise, a member of the House from Louisiana and the House Majority Whip was shot in the hip and listed in critical condition after surgery.  Matt Mika, a former House staffer and currently working for Tyson Foods was hit twice in the chest and is also in critical condition.  Two other people were shot, one of the a Capitol Police officer who was hit in the ankle.  Capitol Police were on hand as the House leadership are provided with security details. 

The shooter, who was killed by the Capitol Police officers protecting Mr. Scalise, has been identified as James T. Hodgkinson.  He was a 66 year old who had voluntarily shut down his business as a home inspector last December  According to multiple sources, he has been living in Virginia since March of this year.  This is a photo from the Yelp page for his former business,

His social media footprint is filled with anti-Trump rants.  He did volunteer for the Bernie Sanders campaign in 2016.  Charles Orear worked with Hodkinson on the Sanders campaign and told the Washington Post "Hodgkinson was a passionate progressive and showed no signs of violence or malice toward others."

Were there warning signs that he was about to lose control?  We won't know for certain until the investigation is complete.  Fox News calls him a "left-winger" and some conservatives on social media are trying to blame Bernie Sanders and all other progressives for the shooting. 

It is easy to differentiate between the Liar-in-Chief and Bernie Sanders in pointing out that only Trump has called for violence, at times.  But we have to put the bulk of the blame for the trend toward politicized violence in another place.  In the growing divide between the two political parties.  It was bad during the Bush Junior years.  It got worse during Barrack Obama's presidency.  Now the rhetoric is worse than ever, and it appears there is an upswing in violent acts. 

I do not like what Dishonest Donald and his Republican minions in the Congress are doing.  How dare the U.S. Senate refuse to let the American people know what they are doing with their healthcare bill?  We need to tone down the rhetoric and try to find common ground wherever and whenever possible.

In my mind, Mr. Hodgkinson reached his breaking point.  All of the social media posts he made make it clear he loathed the Trump administration and Republicans in general.  Words, as long as they do not intentionally incite violence hurt only feelings.  Guns kill. 

* * *

It is interesting that today was the day that a bill being pushed by Jeff Duncan (R) of South Carolina was going to be discussed in a meeting of the House Committee on Natural Resources.  Mr. Duncan had left the practice field before the shooting.  His bill would make it much easier for people to buy silencers.  Right now, purchasing a silencer is as restricted as it is to buy a machine gun.  The typical waiting period is nine months and there is a $200 fee.

You can speculate for yourself what the advantage of having silenced weapons would be for would-be terrorists.  Make no mistake.  Mr. Hodgkinson was a terrorist.  It should be more, not less difficult to get silencers.

The committee meeting was cancelled.  House Democrats want to use this incident to promote their gun-control agenda.  Their Republican counterparts want to use this event to push to make it easier for people to carry weapons.  Do we need to go back to the era of the Wild West where everyone was "packing?"  I don't buy that.  Do you?

Aside from the few people at that baseball practice who are veterans, most of them probably couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with the handguns they claim they wish they'd been carrying.  I qualified as expert with rifles and handguns when I served.  I would prefer it if people didn't have guns to use to shoot at me, rather than depending on a gun I would carry, even with my training and skills.  But that's just my opinion.  What is yours?

* * *

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, a gunman wearing a UPS uniform walked into a UPS facility and killed three people before taking his own life by shooting himself in the head.

This shooting has gotten very little coverage as CNN became the Congressional shooting News Network for hours, with other news organizations following their lead.

To borrow a word from an Agent Orange tweet "Sad!"

Pet Peeve - Or Symptom of Something Larger?

I am very happy with the medical care I receive at the West LA VA Medical Center.  Some of the administrative functions are less than pleasing, but considering I haven't had to wait months and months to get care, I have no serious complaints.  But I do have a pet peeve about going to the VA.  The patient parking lot on the north side of the main building.

I wrote about the VA Parking Wars back in 2004 and things have only worsened.  I go out of my way to schedule my appointments for times that I know the parking situation will not be at its worst.  I've seen that lot completely filled with more than a few cars circling like vultures, waiting for any car to pull out.

They did take steps to try to improve the situation.  You can see that from these signs:

Do you see any mention of employees?  Maybe this sign explains their omission from the above sign:

That sign, admittedly tough to read, says "All Employee Parking" with an arrow pointing away from the parking lot to the north of the Medical Center itself.  It is to the left of the first sign pictured.

Maybe this next one will reinforce the point that employees aren't supposed to park in this lot.

You can't really see it in this pic, but the blue tape on the sign is covering the word "Employee."  That's right, this lot was once designated for employees to park in.  That was changed some time ago.  However, as I noticed on my most recent visit to the VA, I saw at least a dozen people who clearly work at the VA walking to and from cars in this lot.

Let's review for a moment.  The administration at the West LA VA made a decision to require employees to park in other parking lots, and then does nothing to enforce this change in the rules.  The question is why?

Are the powers that be on the building's sixth floor unaware that employees are flouting the rules?
Do they know that this is the case and simply ignore employees failing to park where they are supposed to?

Parking in this lot is a nightmare at almost any moment between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on any weekday that is not a federal holiday.  I have a handicapped placard but because so many of my fellow veterans also have those placards, the competition for the handicapped parking spaces can be extremely fierce.  I often take one pass through a couple of rows and then just park wherever I can, often at the far side of the lot.  I don't really mind.  I can walk and rest, walk and rest if need be.  But there would be a lot more available parking if the employees would park where they are supposed to.

Whoever is in charge needs to read Colin Powell's 13 rules of leadership and pay particular attention to this one:  "Inspect Small Things" 

Two unanswered questions

First the Cheeto-in-Chief called James Comey a "nutjob."  Now he's calling him cowardly.  The real coward here is Dishonest Donald himself.  Clearly someone is lying.  Is it the man who spent years claiming that Barrack Obama was born in Kenya?  The man who lied over 30 times in a deposition when he'd sworn an oath to tell the truth?  The man who lives by spreading what he considers "truthful hyperbole?"  Or is the liar the former Director of the FBI who served more than one president, with distinction?  The answer is found in another of Agent Orange's nicknames.  Liar-in-Chief.

There are two big unanswered questions.  No, one of them is not the question about possible collusion between Trump, or one of his satellites; and Russia to cause Hillary Clinton to lose the presidency.  They are:

Why did 45 ask everyone else to leave the room when he admittedly spoke to James Comey? 

If there are tapes, why don't you just release them and prove that you are telling the truth and Mr. Comey is the liar?

* * *

I continue to laugh at the attempt of the talking heads who attempt to defend Dishonest Donald regarding the words "I hope" that he allegedly said to Mr. Comey.  When you are the ultimate authority in the "chain of command" of an employee, and you make a suggestion like that, you are engaging in exactly what James Comey said you did.  You are giving "...direction."  It may sound like a suggestion. 

There has to have been a reason why Trump told Attorney General Jeff Sessions, among others, to leave that room.  Sessions was Comey's direct report, in simple terms, his boss.  Why does the boss's boss tell that boss to leave the room in order to talk to a subordinate?

Let us not forget that Dishonest Donald does not believe that any of the rules apply to him.  He's lived as though he had executive privilege his entire adult life.  He seems to think that the legal system is his personal club with which to attack those who stand in the way of his agenda.  Yet he did something in the way Mario Puzo wrote about in his masterpiece, The Godfather. 

When Amerigo Bonasera begged Don Corleone for "justice" and was told he would receive it, the Don would later tell one person what he wanted done.  His acting consigliere, Tom Hagen.  Hagen told one person, Peter Clemenza what to do.  Clemenza told Paulie Gatto, to carry out the assault on the two youths that had raped Bonasera's daughter. 

This chain of one-on-one discussions to pass on illegal instructions is designed to make certain that it can never be conclusively proven who told whom to do what.  It will always become a case of "he said, he said."  45 did not want Jeff Sessions, Jared Kushner or anyone else to hear him attempt to intimidate James Comey into dropping the probe into the actions of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.

* * *

As to the second question, why all the "mystery" over whether or not there are tapes of any of the conversations between the Liar-in-Chief and the former FBI director?  Either there are or there aren't tapes.  If they exist and they would prove the extremely unlikely event that it was Trump who was the truth-teller, why wait to release them? 

Is it because there are no tapes?  Seems like a very realistic possibility.  As fragile as the Cheeto-in-Chief's ego is, if he could prove someone accusing him of anything to be telling lies, he'd have put that proof into the public's hands the instant he stood accused.  He did not do that.

Why?

A question that will be answered if and when Trump tells the truth about the existence of tapes.  Which may be never.

Less than a 12.3% expense ratio

Eric Trump was on Sean Hannity on the Fox News Channel (you remember, the "news" network that let a story continue to run for almost a week after it had been proven false) saying that those who oppose his father's administration "...aren't even people."

Coincidentally, Forbes Magazine reported that the Eric Trump foundation "...shifted kids-cancer funds into the Trump Organization."

A writer named Glenn Fleishman took to Twitter and tweeted "I steal from kids with cancer" in response to Eric Trump's tweet about how he was looking forward to appearing on Hannity.  Eric's response was:

"I have raised $16.3 million dollars for terminally ill children @StJude with a less than 12.3% expense ratio.  What have you done today?!"

That may well be true for the period from 2007 to 2015 (the last year for which Eric Trump's foundation has filed tax returns).  But it isn't true for 2014.  According to the Form 990 the foundation filed with the IRS, their golf fundraiser in 2014 had gross receipts of $1,774,011 of which $1,531.717 was contributions.  The expenses involved were $242,294.  Then the charity gave out $1,428,575 in grants.

Let's do some math.  $242,294 is 13.7% of the $1,774,011 raised.  Not a big difference per se.  Until we look at the fact that the foundation spent $242,294 to raise funds, gave out grants of $1,428,575 and put $99,644 into their coffers.  If we look at the ratio of expenses to grants, that percentage rises to 16.9%.  But wait, there's more.

Now let's take a look at the 2014 Eric Trump Foundation Golf Brochure.  On page 3 of the brochure the following language is found:

"ETF is dedicated to improving the lives of children battling life-threatening or debilitating medical conditions at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Through direct personal involvement and financial assistance, we strive to enhance the physical, emotional and social well-being of children and families in need. A not-for-profit organization, our foundation was created to transform donations into miracles."

If someone were to choose to pony up $25,000 for this event, they would assume that all of that money, less of course the expenses, would go to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, right?  Would you think some of your money would be going to any of the following instead?

Chai Lifelines - $10,000
Harboring Hearts - $6,250
Intrepid Fallen Heroes - $10,000
Joe Torre Safe at Home - $10,000
Little Baby Face Foundation - $10,000
Lubavitch Youth Foundation - $10,000
Nephcure Foundation - $30,000
North Shore Animal League - $10,000
Paws Place - $55,000
Staten Island Zoological Society - $37,000
Tivka Children's Homes - $15,000

When we deduct these grants and come up with the amount raised that actually went to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, we get a total of $1,225,325 raised for the specified charity.  Now if we divide that into the amount of expenses incurred, that expense ratio goes up to 19.7%.  If you're going to raise money for your pet charities under the guise of raising it for one, then I believe that grants made to those pet projects should be booked as expenses and not as grants.

If I use my metholdology and put this into the language of Charity Navigator, one of the leading "watchdog" monitors of charities, this means that 80.3% of funds raised by the Eric Trump Foundation go to program expenses.  Let's compare that to some other well-known charities.

American Red Cross - 90.1%
The Clinton Foundation - 86.9%
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation - 88.5%
United Negro College Fund - 87.1%
Wounded Warrior Project - 75.1%

But the numbers can be misleading.  All five of these not for profit organizations have administrative expenses which include salaries and benefits for paid employees.  The Eric Trump Foundation did not have any paid employees until 2015.

The main point however is that both the Eric Trump Foundation and the Donald J. Trump Foundation have been alleged to have engaged in self-dealing, prohibited by IRS regulations.  In fact, the most recent IRS filing by the Donald J. Trump Foundation admitted to self-dealing, as reported by the Washington Post last November.  Is anyone investigating these allegations?  Probably not.

Where is the joke?

I refuse to put the photo of Kathy Griffin holding what has been made to look like the severed head of Donald Trump.  Yes, I refer to him regularly in this space as "The Cheeto-in-Chief" and I may add Agent Orange and other appellations to the list.  But even to illustrate what I am commenting on, adding that photo is just too much.  If you haven't seen it for yourself, you can search it out on your own.

Here is the text of Ms Griffin's first apology, posted to Twitter.

"I sincerely apologize. I am just now seeing the reaction of these images. I’m a comic. I crossed the line. I move the line, then I cross it. The image went way too far. The image is too disturbing. I understand how it offends people. It wasn’t funny. I get it. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career. I will continue [to do so] … I ask for your forgiveness … taking down the image, gonna ask the photographer to take down the image, and I beg for your forgiveness. I went too far. I made a mistake, and I was wrong."

Here are the thoughts of some others who shared their thoughts on that photo:

Chelsea Clinton - "This is vile and wrong.  It is never funny to joke about killing a president."
Anderson Cooper - "For the record, I am appalled by the photo shoot Kathy Griffin took part in. It is clearly disgusting and completely inappropriate."
Jake Tapper - "For those asking, I said on air that I thought the beheading imagery by Griffin about the president was disgusting and inappropriate."

There are many more, but you get the gist.  I chose Mr. Cooper and Mr. Tapper because they both work for CNN who chose to fire Ms Griffin from her gig co-hosting their Time Square coverage of New Years Eve.

Then came the press conference where Griffin's attorney Lisa Bloom called CNN's actions "...censorship."

Sorry Ms Bloom but that is not censorship.  CNN did not say Ms Griffin could not make that photo.  They did not prevent its distribution.  What they said is that she cannot work for them because of what she said.  The First Amendment only protects us from the government infringing on our freedom of expression.  It doesn't protect us from non-governmental consequences for our words, images and so on.

Look at what happened to Adam M. Smith, Talia Jane, Justine Sacco, Conner Riley, and Nicole Crowther.  Don't recognize their names?  Remember this?

Was it censorship when Mr. Adam M. Smith posted this rant online and was fired from his $200,000 per year job?  This action reportedly cost him stock options worth $1,000,000.  Three years after this event, multiple news sources reported that he was living on food stamps with his wife and four children.

But making a social media mistake is not an absolute guarantee that you can't recover.  Justine Sacco blew up Twitter and became the #1 trending topic in the world when while en route to South Africa, she tweeted “Going to Africa. Hope I don’t get AIDS. Just kidding. I’m white!”  She was fired from her job as a senior PR person, probably before she landed.  But a New York Times magazine article two years later reported that she was gainfully employed and painfully shy of any public attention.

* * *

The problem with Kathy Griffin's photo is that it seems very clear that it wasn't a joke.  It was a political statement.  Anyone who wants to try and give us a better explanation of her "attempt at humor" than she was mocking Trump's comments about Megyn Kelly having blood coming out of her eyes and so on, feel free.  It is going to have to be a pretty darn convincing explanation of her intent to get me to buy into the notion it was a joke gone bad.  In an era where we are horrified by photos and videos of people being beheaded, where is the humor in holding up the head of a decapitated person in any instance?

I also don't see any humor in the comment made by Bill Maher and find his excuse that he was "sleep-deprived" to be weak.  But he'll get a pass on it.  He isn't seeing his tour dates being canceled as Ms Griffin is.

That is the right of the people who are choosing not to do business with her.  Speech is not without consequence.  Neither are actions.  Just ask Bill O'Reilly.