NATIONAL DEBT OF THE UNITED STATES…..UGH!

NATIONAL DEBT OF THE UNITED STATES…..UGH!

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

The national debt of the United States is the amount owed by the federal government of the United States. The measure of the public debt is the value of the Treasury securities that have been issued by the Treasury and other federal government agencies.

Gross public debt consists of two components:

A. Debt held by the public, such as Treasury securities held by investors outside the federal government, including those held by individuals, corporations, the Federal Reserve System and foreign, state and local government.

B. Debt held by government accounts or intergovernmental debt, such as non-marketable Treasury securities held in accounts administered by the federal government that are owed to program beneficiaries, such as the Social Security Trust Fund. Debt held by government accounts represents the cumulative surpluses, including interest earnings, of these accounts that have been invested in Treasury securities.

Two plus paragraphs of mumbo-jumbo written by some Stanford graduate to explain what two words can explain our situation as a nation…..we’re broke. Yup the U.S. is broke, technically speaking, we…..ah, spend it before we’ve got it…..like an impulse sweet toothed buyer at the candy store.

We’re taking a spanking as a nation by our own people, Apple, Cisco Systems, Google, and Microsoft legally hold $124 billion in U.S. Treasury securities and $39 billion in U.S. government agency debt in accounts overseas, allowing them to avoid the 35% (maximum) corporate tax rate in the United States, according to Securities & Exchange Commission reports.

The four companies together would be the 14^th biggest overseas holder of Treasury securities, just ahead of Norway, Singapore, and India. Together the four corporations (Apple, Cisco Systems, Google, and Microsoft) have $255 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities…..in their foreign subsidiaries, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism reported.

If the total amount was held offshore, making it subject to being taxed by the U.S. government, it would yield $89 billion, or 17% of America’s projected $514 billion dollar budget deficit this year. Overall the four companies hold $333 billion in domestic and foreign accounts, making them the most lucrative American firms outside the financial sector. The companies also hold $93.3 billion of corporate, municipal, and sovereign debt.

WE PAY ALL THE TAXES THAT WE’RE LEGALLY MANDATED TO PAY

“We pay every penny of tax that is due,” (we follow the tax laws that are established) that canned response to taxes that are paid by these corporations…..or at least what Cisco Systems said in response to the Bureau of Investigation question on tax payments.

Look…..there is a legal, and then there’s a moral question with regards to tax payments in this incident, and morality trumps legal every single time. Each corporation enjoys the fruits of their individual labor, and they deserve every single penny of profit that comes their way. However at the end of the day, when you are part of the problem…..and not the solution, and you take advantage of every single loophole that is available…..there is something really wrong with your thinking.

Twenty six of the most powerful American corporations, like Boeing, General Electric, and Verizon (my cell phone provider) actually paid no federal income tax from 2008 to 2012, according to a recent report that detailed how Fortune 500 companies exploit tax breaks and loopholes.

And more is never enough, as there seems to be a push to lower the tax rates that corporations fall under, even though the U.S. tax system towards business is…..well, dare I say it, “ lax.” There is an allegation going around Capitol Hill that the federal corporate income tax rate is uncompetitively high compared to other developed nations.

“Hold on there. Nellie,” while the U.S. corporate tax rate is technically the highest among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s 34 member countries, the United States Congressional Budget Office found that the total corporate federal tax amount paid by American companies came to 12.1% of profits, the lowest total since 1972.

Besides offshore tax sheltering, companies are allowed to skirt tax rates based on factors that include accelerated asset depreciation based on continued investment, stock options, and industry-specific tax breaks. Bloomberg reported that the 317 largest U.S. based companies have $1.95 trillion held outside of the United States, an increase of 11.8% from 2012.

NATIONAL DEBT…..ABSOLUTELY NOTHING NEW

The United States has held a public debt since the original constitution went into effect March 4, 1789, except for 11 months between 1835-1836; America has had a national debt. Few understand exactly what a public debt is, and why or how we accumulated such an astronomical figure.

Like the man said, “its simple, stupid,” there really aren’t any secrets about America’s debt; it’s as simple as 2 + 2 = 4…..really. Government is just like operating a business; the government provides all sorts of services for us citizens, like a military, roads, education, and health programs. Here are the beginnings of problems…..politically with regards to what types of programs or benefits will be offered by the government.

The only source of income that a government, any government has is the taxes that it collects from its citizens…..the taxpayers. Here actually is the biggest divide between liberals and conservative thinking, the amount of taxes that are to be paid to the government…..for programs, benefits, and entitlements.

At the beginning of each fiscal year, government needs some cash on hand to procure all sorts of equipment, supplies, guns and bullets for those guns. If the country hasn’t been frugal…..like it never is, there is a debt…..it’s rolled over, and tacked on to the next budget.

This same activity without interruption has been going on for 178 straight years, since 1836, so you can understand how the country’s debt could be so…..ah, large. How large, try $17.226 TRILLION, and it just went higher…..I type slowly.

I could go on, with boring statistic after boring statistic, but I’m actually getting a headache from looking at all of these stats. This trend of deficit spending will (if left unchecked) be our undoing, our credit rating as a country was downgraded last year, and many experts said it was just a ho-hum thing. Well let me tell you, as a guy who has gone through some lean years, with the credit rating to prove it, a low credit rating is nothing to poo, poo, it’s not good, try to borrow money with a good rate attached to it…..you can’t, you’re a risk, and you’ll pay accordingly.

I’ve owed money to private individuals in my time, and let me tell you, it can strain friendships, and even family relationships. There’s an old saying, “never loan money to a friend,” and baby, truer words were never spoken. The United States however, has taken borrowing money to new extremes, owing the People’s Republic of China, and Japan excess of $1 trillion each…..come on, we’ve gotta be brighter than that.

WELL GUESS WHAT…..WE’RE NOT

What to get a real rush, I’ve got a list of the major foreign Treasury Securities holders, and the amounts that we owe them, better tighten up the old panty hose, it’ll be a rough ride;

China, $1268.9 billion; Japan, $1182.5 billion; Caribbean Banking, $290.9 billion; Belgium, $256.8 billion; Brazil, $245.4 billion; Oil Exporters, $238.3 billion; Taiwan, $182.2 billion; Switzerland, $175.1 billion; United Kingdom, $163.6 billion; Hong Kong, $158.8 billion; Russia, $138.6 billion; Luxembourg, $134.4 billion; Ireland, $125.1 billion; Norway, $97.2 billion; Singapore, $86.2 billion; India, $68.5 billion; Germany, $67.2 billion; Mexico, $65.1 billion; Canada, $55.7 billion; South Korea, $53.9 billion; France, $53.6 billion; Turkey, $52.2 billion; Thailand, $51.7 billion; Philippines, $40.2 billion; Netherlands, $36.9 billion; Sweden, $33.9 billion; Australia, $33.8 billion; Colombia, $33 billion; Poland, $30.9 billion; Italy, $30.3 billion; Chile, $26.1 billion; Israel, $23.7 billion; Spain, $23 billion; Peru, $14.8 billion; Denmark, $14.5 billion; Malaysia, $11.8 billion; South Africa, $11.3 billion; Uruguay, $10.7 billion; all others, $208 billion.

These figures were supplied on February 18, 2014 by the Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve Board. The total is Treasury bills, and T-bonds and notes for a total owed $5,794.9 billion dollars, a really, really staggering amount of money.

Some of the countries on the list I didn’t even know that they had that kind of money to throw around, like Uruguay, and Italy and their austerity programs that they’ve put into place. And Thailand, come on, what’d we do, give those people some water buffalo or something as collateral.

I absolutely stand corrected, we aren’t brighter then…..whatever, I’ve been in debt, actually still am, but geez, how in hell could the country even get some of those countries to come up with the cash. We are in really deep, the absolute worst sort of…..crap that a country could be in, and we run around the world proclaiming our spreading of our kind of democracy.

I WONDER IF THE UNITED STATES COULD GO TO A DEBT CONSOLIDATION COMPANY

The amount of interest that America must be paying is probably more than some smaller emerging country’s entire budget for their fiscal year. We need help, and I’m not talking about cutting governmental programs. Every time the fed cuts programs, it hurts those people who can ill afford another shot on the jaw.

Austerity needs to start at this time…..and trickle downwards, not the other way around like it seems to always happen. As a country, we’ve been at this deficit spending for decades, and it’s beginning to catch up with us. When lending institutions and money monitoring agencies start to worry about the perceived fat cat of the block, anyone with an ounce of gray matter knows that it’s time to reevaluate the operating procedures that have been in use…..for decades.

This blog has been, for me, an eye opener, it’s one of the reasons that I feel compelled, most times I learn as I blog…..and today I learned one hell-of-a lot….hope you did to.

 

HAVE A NICE DAY!

A SOBER LOOK AT WHAT IS BECOMING THE UKRAINE MESS!

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

“Get ready, get set…..go,” wow, can it be, another enemy…..no wait, the country never left the list of combative mongrel dogs on the list of American bad actors, or bad guys. Can it be…..the return of the Bear? The country is an 8^th bigger then our homeland (by the way, I hate that term homeland, it reminds me of Hitler, and WWII Germany) produces more oil than anyone on the planet, is number two in exporting petroleum, produces more natural gas than anyone else, supplies 34% of Europe’s natural gas, runs a huge trade surplus…..and has the second most powerful military in the entire known inhabited galaxy.

Who in hell am I talking about, well if the Bear didn’t give it away…..you are dumb, need to take a bathroom break, drink 8 ounces of toilet bowl cleaner….,and die, cause you are really out of touch. Russia, people, it seems to be our next and best enemy of the week, a worthy opponent, and one that we’d better walk lightly around.

The first paragraph of this week’s blog laid out some of the graphic differences between Russia and the United States. Is Russia and Vladimir Putin intimidated by the U.S. and the firepower that it posses, you’d better believe it, is the United States intimidated by Russia, I’m not sure, but I can tell you this, she had better be.

Russia has a history, and with little exception, that involves armed conflict, how else could it be when a loose knit country is inhabited by Eastern Slavs and Finno-Ugric peoples? Now I gotta admit I didn’t have a clue what Finno-Ugric peoples were until I looked the term up and learned it was the language of this group of people. Early in Russian history the land was home to Llmen Slavs, Veps, and Votes people…..and of course the feared Mongols.

The history of the inhabitants in Russia dates to 1.5 million years ago, and the facts were only discovered in 2006 by Kh. Amirkhanov, who found evidence of humans through carbon dating flint tools in the Dagestan region of the Caucasus.

My point is simple; Russia has been around for longer than some religious theologians want to know about. The Mongols invaded the Rus’ as it was referred to in 1223 A.D. That’s kind of in recorded history, before that, in 860, 862, and 882 A.D. there was the Rus’-Byzantine, the Rurikid Dynasty, and the Oleg of Novgorod conquer of Kiev.

Their (Russia’s) history is made up of literally hundreds of military conflicts throughout the country’s history and pretty much nobody was around to intervene on anybody’s behalf.  Of course there was the Russian Revolution and the establishment of the Soviet Union in 1922. Joseph Stalin ruled the country with an iron fist, and was responsible for up to ten million deaths during his regime…..and nobody lifted a finger to help the perceived down trodden.

Throughout Russian history, whatever conflicts were deemed necessary by whoever was either invading, or was in power was pretty much allowed to run its course. The Russian people are a hearty lot, and actually are used to conflict, and in some quarters look forward to it.

AND NOW WE HAVE THE UKRAINE, AND CRIMEA IMPENDING MESS

Sounds almost like a melodrama of some foreign play, populated by cheap first time actors trying to get a foothold unto the stage. Only this time, unlike a melodrama, this Ukraine-Crimean play just might have world-wide implications with regards to the differences between the West and our European counters.   

I’ve heard of Kiev, and Sebastopol, I didn’t equate them to the Ukraine, I just knew that they were two cities in Russia, or had split off from Russia during the 1991 break-up of the Soviet Union. Of course I’d heard of the Ukraine but what with my world geography being what it is, I wasn’t sure whether it, was a state, a city, or a range of mountains, quite like the Urals.

“That was then…..and this is now,” I looked up what a Ukraine was, and of course was surprised to learn that the Ukraine was actually a country in Eastern Europe, between Russia and Central Europe, with a land mass slightly larger than Texas, and home to about 44,573,205 Ukrainians.

The current chapter of history is being written even as I blog today, 3-13-14, and undoubtedly will play out no matter who intervenes, or what transpires, history in Europe has a habit of taking its own course, no matter what the reasons for the confrontation, or who the principles are.

The area (Ukraine) has a long history of being subjugated by foreign powers; this is even reflected in its name, which scholars believe means “borderland.” The country has only been independent since the summer of 1991, since the Soviet Union collapsed, and it broke away from mother Russia.

The Crimea is an autonomous republic, who supports and governs itself, and has since 1998 when it became a somewhat independent nation…..away from the Ukraine. Like the Ukraine, Crimea has a long and checkered past of being dominated by foreign invaders…..but, like its close neighbor, the Ukraine, it has survived.

Ostensibly the reason for the rift between the Ukraine, Crimea and Russia was the fact that protesters mostly in Kiev broke out after then President Viktor Janukovych rejected an expected deal for greater economic integration with the European Union. The deal was popular with Ukrainians, particularly in Kiev, and other parts of the country, although not by a big margin, about 42 or 43% support it.

Yanukovych’s has, since taking office in 2010, mismanaged the country’s economy and there has been increasing corruption. Viktor Janukovych is no stranger to claims of corrupting in government, back in 2004, Janukovych was blocked from the office of the country’s presidency because of accusations of voter fraud, and in a runoff, helped along by the Orange Revolution, Viktor Yushchenko was elected President, and in 2005 appointed Yulia Tymoshenko the first and only woman Prime Minister.

There is corruption in every government; it’s one of the reasons that foreign policy activity needs to be transparent in every aspect. In fact countries should curtail foreign policy activity to safeguard the autonomy of establish, or immerging nations.

The Ukraine is no stranger to corruption, the past three political leaders have tainted histories when it comes to what they’ve done, how they got to the positions that they held, and what they took from the Ukrainian people. Of course like many other countries, the Ukraine’s plead the 5^th when it comes to their complicity in the corruption.

AND THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION IS

You can call Russian President Vladimir Putin whatever you might figure is apt; however, I’ll call him an incurable romantic. Although he (Putin) has been highly aggressive in pushing the Ukraine to reject the European Union and accept, instead, the Moscow-lead Eurasian Customs Union, which consists of a few former Soviet states. Putin has threatened to impose economic sanctions on the Ukraine, like back in 2004-2006 when Russia shut off natural gas causing much financial damage.

Putin also is aware of the cultural connections which run deep between Russia and Ukrainian people, there is much shared history. The country is also a source of food, and is a transit hub for Russian energy exports, is economically strategically important to Russia.

Those foreign affairs officials in both the United States and Europe have long know how Vladimir Putin acts, and how he feels about foreign policies. Russia is little more than a bully boy on the block; they are used to getting their way. It’s much the same as the United States is with its endeavors throughout the world.

This is one of those blink moments when whoever blinks first losses, and Putin has already blinked…..oh wait, Obama blinked also…..that’s it, pack up the war machines, and the boats, we’re all going home.

It would be nice if it were that easy, but in this case, it almost is, believe it or not, the United States is war weary, and we have been in some altercation or another since September of 2001, coming up on 13 straight years. The military activity is taking lives, draining our bank account, and pretty much giving the name United States a pretty damn bad name world-wide.

This sure as hell is the 21^st century, and invading countries like Putin has, and like the United States did in Iraq back in 2003 is really early 20^th century activity. Cause when you invade a country today, it’s like the old axiom meaning, “you break it…..you buy it.” Today, when you invade, and conquer, you gotta support…..it’s the way the 21^st century works, baby…..and both Putin, and some in the U.S. political and military arena had better begin to understand.

 

HAVE A NICE DAY!

“I’D LOVE A DOUBLE DIP, THANK YOU.”

“I’D LOVE A DOUBLE DIP, THANK YOU.”

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

Wow, double dip, double trouble, double down, double dealing, and double-double, two little words, an itsy, bitsy phrase that surprisingly can mean quite a bit, and I thought it was ice cream. I’m always looking, with a hopeful attitude in my local paper, the Green Bay Press Gazette for a semblance of local investigative reporting, after all, Green Bay, Wisconsin does have a population of more than a hundred thousand…..and newsy issues do happen here…..other than the Green Bay Packers.

This morning (March 7, 2014) the Gazette almost broke with tradition, there was a front page story about Double Dipping written by Eric Litke, a Wisconsin Gannett Media writer. Although he’s not a Press Gazette scribe…..directly, I’ll give the local paper credit for reporting on a problem that has been going on more or less throughout the country for decades…..it’s just now getting a proper airing in the light of day.

Our nation is, and has gone through a financial downturn almost in every strata of our society, and somehow we continue to rumble down that old road of ignorance towards our collective oblivion, seemingly comfortable in the fact that we can get paid from the endless money tree, because it’ll reseed itself.

According to the Litke article, more than 3,000 public sector retirees returned to the work at the public trough, or what I call “plucking the money tree.”  This number of people which returned to work was for the calendar year of 2013…..(I had no idea.) “How can this be,” I had absolutely no idea that so many people out there were that greedy…..and make no mistake, these people are slime, they are taking advantage of a situation.

I’m sure that I know some of these people, or at least would recognize a name or two, it however doesn’t matter, whether they are my neighbor, or friend, they are still slime. And above and beyond that, they collectively must all have flunked general math. Otherwise how could they justify taking a double dipping position, getting paid from a retirement fund that’ll pay out way more than it brings in, in a year, idiots.

My wife gets a state pension, she retired two years ago this coming May, she’s deaf, and has balance issues, she couldn’t double dip if she tried. I wasn’t smart at all during my formative years, (pre-retirement) when I should have been salting a portion of my paycheck away for my golden years. So I couldn’t double dip…..from anything, there’s no pension fund for dumbness.

SOME REALLY STAGGERING NUMBERS

Last year, in Wisconsin, about 9,000 people retired from their public sector jobs, but returned to either their jobs, or another in the public domain. Public Domain, a place where taxpayer funds might be used, definitely public employee funds are used to buoy the sinking fund that the state pension is. Simple math dictates that when you have 1/3^rd of eligible employees taking retirement pay…..and that returning to work…..and keep getting their pension benefits, that the end result will be to bankrupt that pension fund.

The Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds administers the system, and apparently doesn’t have much of a problem with about 33% of its retirees become unretired because they have a craving for some additional cash to pad their bank accounts. School teachers seemed to be the most craving, they returned to their jobs in some way, shape, or form a whopping 59% of the time, these people made up 42% of the total retirees. A quick study of these greedy bas-----;

Neenah Schools, 43 pensioners, number 5 in the state

Green Bay, 46 pensioners

Sheboygan, 36 pensioners

Wausau, 36 pensioners

Appleton, 30 pensioners

And we’re not talking chicken feed here either, unless you would call $23,673, the figure paid on average a retiree at age 59.5, chump change, (if you do…..call more than $23,000 “chump change,” I’ll take that from you any day of the week).

And these retirements are what can only be termed “strategic” because a bunch of these people who retired at the legal age of 59.5 years were going to pay more into their retirement benefits after 2011 because of Act 10 which was passed into law during Governor Scott Walkers attack on public sector workers, their bargaining power, and a complete restructure of how much more employees would pay into their retirement plans.

Typically Wisconsin Retirement System, (WRS) contributions are the equivalent of 10% of an employee’s annual salary to the fund until Act 10 came into effect when employees began making half the contribution themselves. Employees retiring from WRS eligible positions can receive pensions as annuities…..ongoing monthly payments…..or lump sums that are paid out at separation, retirement, or death.

As of December 31, 2012, the latest year for such data is available, the WRS system had 256,833 active employees, 173,655 annuitants, and 159,973 inactive employees…..those who are not currently in a WRS-eligible position but who previously earned benefits which are payable at retirement.

The State of Wisconsin Investment Board manages the investment of pension funds, while the Department of Employee Trust Funds administers the system, collecting and disbursing money, and establishing procedures. With $93.6 billion in assets, the WRS is the only public pension fund in the country that is fully funded, meaning it has enough money on hand to fulfill its pension obligations.

As was mentioned before, “the average lump-sum payout at retirement, 59.5 years is $23,673, this figure to general employees, (all WRS with the exception of police, fire, teachers and elected officials). General employees, teachers and elected officials can get pensions as early as 55 years of age, but the benefit is reduced for anyone younger than 65.

REHIRES ARE RETREDS…..THAT’S THE FINDINGS

An audit in December, 2012 found that retirees generally returned to their old jobs as part timers, and were generally paid less than before retirement. Three fourths of rehired pensioners return to the entity from which they retired.

This audit provides the only historical context on the numbers of rehired pensioners, but true comparisons are impossible since the audit examined irregular time periods and looked at employers to which pension recipients returned, rather than where they left. The audit also examined a time period that included an abnormally high number of retirements in the wake of the Act 10 collective bargaining reforms.

THESE ARE JUST THE FACTS

Replacement income (which a pension is) was intended to provide retirement security…..not preretirement wealth. Pensions were not designed to be deferred compensation, as some would argue. There is a moral question here that some retirees figure that “they’ve earned their retirement,” but double dipping is not a part of what a retiree has earned…..check with the I.R.S. on using pension payments as deferred payments…..the education will shock you.

There are many issues here, a double dipper is taking jobs away from the job market, financially strapped states just might impose the old excise tax, or an income surtax on these smarty panted double dippers. And then there’s the old pension fund going broke argument…..which by the way is very real.

Those of you who are living in the lap of luxury in your golden years, I’m thinking that maybe the Gods of finance might have an extra special place for you at the Pearly Gates, and it won’t be selling ice cream.

HAVE A NICE DAY!

ANOTHER COLD WAR…..PLEASE, NOT AGAIN!

ANOTHER COLD WAR…..PLEASE, NOT AGAIN!

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

I’m at a total loss, I not one of those people who figure that they’ve always got an answer to every problem that they face. I grew up in a cold war, I didn’t know what was going on, but when I was a 1^st grader, we used to practice hiding under our desks in case that there was an air raid, this was back in 1950, some 64 years ago. And people wonder if history repeats itself.

The U.S. is fighting terrorists on, well, I don’t know how many fronts, I’m not sure that the military leaders have figured that one out either. I write about war from time to time, and by now anybody who is even a casual reader of my blog understands the fact that I absolutely hate war, and everything that it stands for.

The best way to term the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union would be as a complete disaster…..on both sides of the coin. Much capital from both countries went into the arms race, and without exception, everything else, in both countries! This was the actual legacy of the Cold War that was created by Russia and the United States…..and the jury is still out on the extent of the damage that was done.

The origins of the Cold War aren’t difficult to uncover, nor are these origins that complex, it all has to do with ideology about how to operate a country….(like it was a business. Here in the U.S. the fault of who started the Cold War rests completely with the Soviet Union. Of course this is a fallacy, but what the hell, regarding many different issues, it’s how we operate, we blame everything on them, whoever them) might be.

When Russia overthrew its Tsar structure of government through a revolution, and the country became the Soviet Union, unifying itself under Vladimir Lenin in November 1917, creating an ideological system called communism, the United States could only react with fear and trepidation. The U.S. government could not accept the simple fact that a country could exist with economic and political principles so critically opposed to democracy and industrial capitalism.

By 1919, the Red Scare had become an American reality, through the manipulation of public opinion, repression, and even physical force, anarchists, socialists and communists were clearly forced into retreat. Socialism or communism in the United States was simply an impossibility; it was too European for American tastes.

No matter who writes it, no matter who talks about it, the Cold War was, and possibly is a question of differences between the Soviet Union and the United States. Clearly socialism and capitalism do not mix; each is a completely different form of making money, and more to the point, who shares in the rewards of the effort to generate the money.

THE CHANCES OF ANOTHER COLD WAR

Are we on the brink of another Cold War, are the ingredients available for another run of meandering buffeting, and blustering, dialog that even those who talk the talk aren’t ready to walk the walk? Nobody in his right mind would consider unleashing a nuclear strike.

Starting another Cold War, and all of the issues that go along with it aren’t what the world needs at this time, and I’m not sure that the world court of opinion would allow these two overbearing crybabies to force everybody into another Cold War…..that is, unless everybody can make some money off from the deal.

I watch, I listen, and I read, I learn about what the incentives might be for keeping an at best, tenuous peace, or for countries being allowed by the world powers the right to govern their own people without interference. Then there’s the act of perception that ambassadors, governmental officials, and military leaders talk about. It’s like a kid’s game, almost like the tone of voice, If he’s gruff, watch out or if he talks in a quiet voice, he and his country can be had.

Have you ever heard of a more child-like approach to world issues that can have such dire consequences? Russian leader Putin “blinked,” so the West’s position is solidified, regarding to the Ukraine, what a load of dribble. These people aren’t on the ball field, there not on the playground, or in the gym, their surrounded by the world’s media…..and have absolutely nothing to fear, unless it’s a bad case of gas from the previous meal.

Republicans talk about how wishy-washy the President is on his foreign policy, is it…..I’m not sure, let me see, when he took office in January 2008, the country was involved in two wars, albeit, the war on terror, I’m talking on two fronts. Now we’re still at war battling terror, but now I can’t keep track of how many fronts that we’re on.

Right now, on this date, there aren’t any Hitler’s on the horizons, there’s terrorism, and then there’s man’s inhumanity towards man. If Russia is successful in reestablishing relations with Crimea, or getting the Ukraine to reenlist for another stent as members of the Soviet Union, to my way of thinking, that would be about it. All the rest of the land grabbing efforts that are going on in the world…..have been going on for awhile.

THE COLD WAR IN THE 21^ST CENTURY IS BASELESS

The United States has built an awesome arsenal the envy of the world, and has absolutely no peers, and for whatever reason, wink, wink, we taxpayers seem content on paying the taxes to keep the thing well maintained, oiled and greased.

An assertive military strike against the United States (by anybody) is completely out of the question, you don’t really call what we are fighting now, terrorism, an assertive military strike do you? We’ve been fighting somebody for so long, that if we didn’t have a foe, we’d be lost as a people, we NEED somebody to hate, we gotta, gotta have it.

The history of the Cold War runs long, and is deep here in the U.S., we don’t understand European ways, and we definitely don’t like communism/socialism. It’s really funny, our ancestors fled Europe to escape the degradations of the human spirit, to rectify a new order, religious freedom, and the right to stand on our own…..and today we want to get right back into the crap that Europe is. “I wish we could make up our minds.”

Yes my friends, the Cold War has been an on again, off again deal, and we’ve been fighting ghosts, the Cold War is a simple arm wrestling match of different ways of living, making money, living our lives, and how best to split up want is made. And if you look close….you can actually see reminisce of socialism right here in the good old U.S. of A.

HAVE A NICE DAY!

AND THIS IS REASSURING?

AND THIS IS REASSURING?

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

I surf the internet most every day, kind of like a shark looking for a morsel or tidbit of eatable food, or in my case, some decent news. Today there was an article penned by Dexter Mullins that appeared in Al Jazeera, relating a study the revealed the fact that 1 in 4 Army soldiers had mental illnesses before enlisting.

My initial reaction was great, sic those bastards on the Taliban, or some terrorist cells, like I said, that was my initial reaction. Like some of my friends who wouldn’t even give a thought about what sort of mental defect we were talking about here, they’d just be happy to get the problem out of society, into the military, where these diseased people can be properly diagnosed, or where their particular skills can be put to their best use.

The illnesses that the article talked about were some of the most common mental disorders…..and most of us have suffered from at least one, depression, panic attacks or disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) prior to enlisting into the Army. The study also revealed that 8% considered killing themselves at one time or another.

The study was done by the JAMA Psychiatry a kind of think tank in Washington D.C. that is commissioned by governments to study certain issues and problem areas that crop up from time to time. The director is Helen Blair Simpson an MD. PhD.

The report was triggered because of the high suicide rates among members of the United States armed forces. The study, which was released 3-3-14, stated that those who are most at risk of attempting suicide, I in 10 of those now survived and interviewed, also had a history of impulsive anger, a condition known as intermittent explosive disorder. That figure, 1 in 10, is more than five times the rate found in the civilian population.

The combination of this impulsive behavior, stress developed as a result of deployment and other mood disorders, increase the potential for a soldier to act on their suicide thoughts. Intermittent explosive disorder is the most common disorder among Army personnel and the second most common in the general population, coming in behind general “phobias” experts say.

The three research papers are the culmination of five years of collaborative work by academic, government and military researchers that have been investigating the numerous military suicides. The kinds of disorders that are very common ones, you just can’t have a business and say that “I’m going to take anyone.” These disorders should rule people out from being able to join the Army, or any other branch of the military, according to one of the researchers, Ronald Kessler.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN

I was in the military, not during war time, but I saw guys that were different, hell I don’t know, maybe I was different. I never saw anybody shot and killed, I never saw anybody die, but there were some strange rangers out there.

I can’t say what we supply the military with…..I’m talking about our kids, but whatever it is, they sure as hell seem to be different then what was supplied in the old days. When I say “old days,” I’m talking about World War II, which I must add, was a war of necessity. Most of the world was at war in December of 1941, there were defined lines of the good guys and the bad guys, there was little conversation, we just went to war.

But since that time, 1941-45, every war that the U.S. has fought in has been hard to figure out, there was no clear defined reason for going to war, it was more an idea, or to help protect our allies rights. And there also were the Russians and their ideology. All of this is confusing to me, and I’m 70 years old, what it must be like for a 20 year old kid, I can’t even imagine.

The study talked about the decrease in suicides by 19% in 2013, down from 185 confirmed kills to 150 according to Army figures. Notice the bold and underlined kills, I mean absolutely no disrespect, but I’m sure that the Army brass has some pretty much in your face things to say about their problem.

I thought that the military was ramping up their criteria for accepting new recruits, guess not, huh. I got a copy of the standards for the different branches of the military, and thought I’d share them;

Air Force, age to enlist, 17-27, no more than two dependents, pass aptitude test

Army, age to enlist, 17-34, no more than two dependents, pass aptitude test.

Coast Guard, age to enlist, 17-39, no more than two dependents, pass aptitude test, willingness to work around water

Marines, age to enlist, 17-29, meet exacting physical, mental, and moral standards, pass aptitude test

Navy, age to enlist, 17-34, pass aptitude test

So if you are 17 to 39 years of age, in decent physical health, and test well, baby, you’re in, (women are discriminated against…..but oh well, better than being in one of those sex scandal situations where Generals sweep things under the rug).

Is anybody ever really ready for military service, I can’t answer that question, maybe a professional military recruiter can, hopefully. But there seems to be a deeper question here, one that nobody seems to discuss, or even wants to discuss.

THE CONVERSATION

If some in our military, according to statistics, 1 in 4 in the Army are mentally challenged, what about the other branches of our military service? And worse yet, what about the citizens of the United States, are we a quarter sick…..mentally? And if so, what can we do to identify those sick people, and get them the help that they need before the beat the hell out of their neighbor, or some poor smuck walking down the street.

How do are young people get to be mentally challenged, are we inbreeding, or has my generation, and the one right after mine poisoned the gene pool with drugs, and a dangerous lifestyle? If that is the case, as a people…..we are screwed, our past has come back to haunt us.

 

HAVE A NICE DAY!

AUTO RECALLS AND WHY YOU SHOULD BE AFRAID

AUTO RECALLS AND WHY YOU SHOULD BE AFRAID

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

I just got off line after reading an article about automobile company recalls, and how they proved that the system was working because of the latest car recall, this time a General Motors recall of some 1.4 million cars in the United States who have faulty ignitions switches which can shut off a car, and worse, disable the air bags. I guess I’d call that one major flaw and something not to be taken lightly.

However, the guy in the article I read, took what I felt was a crazy view. He said that a recall, any recall for any consumer products, shows that the system that is currently in place covers the safety of the consumers. This person is what is commonly called a nut case, a guy without the availability of the common sense that God gave my cat.

The automobile recall list that I’m using for this blog was compiled by Andrew Wendler, and includes the top ten recalls in history, (according to Wendler,) and wasn’t even worthy of his top list because it only involves 1.4 million vehicles.

The first thing that adult thinking people consider when they are looking to buy a different car is how safe it will operate for them. It’s almost a subconscious priority, non-the-less, it’s a consideration, of course efficiency, looks, operating ability, how high will insurance be, and what are my car payments. All of these issues are floating around in your head while you consider what to purchase.

For a new car, everybody lists vehicle safety as a give because it’s a new car, and nobody’s had a chance to screw it up with faulty driving, and poor maintenance habits. A vehicle that is out of its warranty (usually 36,000 miles) but still doesn’t have enough miles on it (100,000 or more) to be considered a rust bucket, would be considered as a safe bet to buy because of its low miles, and the probable care that the former owner used in his operation and maintenance care.

VEHICLE RECALLS

Most people only read about auto recalls in a passing way, it usually applies to somebody else, and the news is dismissed. Too bad, we all should consider a vehicle safety recall as a possible threat to us…..as individuals. Recalls can be called by the fed, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, which sets minimum performance requirements for those parts of the vehicle that most affect its safety operation; (breaks, tires and lights,) or that protect drivers and passengers from death or serious injury in the event of a crash (airbags, safety belts, child restraints, and energy absorbing steering column)s.

The auto car company also has the authority to make recalls for any dangerous situations that have somehow been overlooked during manufacturing and post manufacturing safety tests. These may include steering components, fuel systems, accelerator controls that may break, or stick, wheels, engine cooling fans, windshield wipers that fail to operate, seats, wiring systems, air bags, and child safety seats that contain defective safety belts.

Keep in mind that defective recalls are like a heart attack to a car maker, they actually worry whether they’ll survive the event. It’s why auto makers look at a possible auto recall exactly like the plague, even the smallest of recalls means millions to the automobile maker.

I used to drive a semi truck, a Freightliner, it was brand new, a 2008 model, and it had all of the bells and whistles, and it was great looking, and would honk right on down the road. However it did have one issue, the engine would cut out when I was down-gearing to go into a turn, or when I was going to stop. And as everybody knows, when you lose your power to the wheels you have no breaking power, no power steering, bad things can happen.

I was lucky, I told my mechanic people, and they fixed it before my next trip on the road, but they never did find what the actual problem was, and of course I didn’t know what to say…..not being mechanically inclined…..and was just aware of the potential problem, which by the way never happened for the rest of my time with that tractor.

THE G.M. RECALL IS CLASSIC BIG INDUSTRY

My uncle used to work for General Motors, my cousin worked for G.M. I had a brother-in-law that worked for the company, they all drove General Motors products. My cousin was a maintenance worker, his crew would start at the south end of the plant, and work their way to the north end, and then turn around, go back to their starting point…..(at the south end of the building) and start all over again, it took two years to finish their jobs.

My uncle was a quality control person who checked all starts of stuff through the assembly line during his 48 years with G.M. The bad part of his job…..”According to him” was the boredom, everything was by rote, and it was so routine that he could do it without actually looking. My point here is that neither my uncle nor my cousin was challenged in their jobs, and both have told me that boredom was rampant at Fisherbody.

It took G.M. a total of nine years to react after the first concern was voiced back in 2004…..that’s right sports fans; there was an uneasy feeling about the ignition switch way back then. Today in 2014, G.M. doesn’t even manufacture the Cobalt; yup it was discontinued back in 2010. In 2013 General Motors admitted that the Cobalt was responsible for 31 crashes, and 13 deaths.

Now there’s a recall…..what about the 13 dead people, what are they going to get…..can you spell zero, that’s right, oh sure the families will, and some will undoubtedly be chastised for their legal action…..but to them I say, who the hell are you and what do you know.

 

HAVE A NICE DAY!

CHICKEN KIEV!

CHICKEN KIEV!

(FRAZER CHRONICLE)

(All the News That Nobody Else Will Print)

 

I thought I’d died and went to haven, I love Chicken Kiev, and here was a headline about Obama warning Russia, the Ukraine, and the sovereignty of the Ukraine. It didn’t have anything to do with Chicken, and that delicious chicken dish that the country’s famous for. I’m beginning to wonder if our diplomats were a little more worried about food, and less about pissing contests, we’d all be a hell-of-a-lot better off. I don’t think that President Obama is a war hawk, but then again, I’m not privy to all of his communications.

Obama talks about; if there was a violation of sovereignty that the Ukraine’s enjoy at the moment, there would be a deeply destabilizing of the fragile new government that has accused Russia of trying to provoke a military conflict with the Ukraine’s since yesterday, February 28, 2014.

Obama issued a stern warning to the Kremlin about respecting the Ukraine sovereignty in an apparent effort to stem the tide of a full scale military escalation. President Obama did not directly confirm a series of public statements made by the new Ukraine officials in the new Ukraine government.

This is just one more hot spot that military personnel, humanitarian groups, and the governments of all of those involved governments can’t know which action, or reaction might be necessary. It’s for sure that the Russian and the Ukraine people might throw all caution to the wind and react in a military way.

It’s the ago old conflict, or disagreement, one political leader say’s that he has the authority and ability to stand up for himself and his country. Russia has gone through more than two decades of military and political strife. And I’ll be the first to admit that I’m clueless as to the good guys and the bad guys…..and what’s worse…..I don’t care! Why should I, the population is made up of 77.8 % Ukrainians, 17.3 % Russian, and 4.9% unspecified.

The climate…..like Canada has a mean summer-time temperatures of around 67, and in the winter, burr, around 21 degrees. So to be sure the weather is not conducive to a summer vacation spot, like most of the rest of Russia, a person should be strapping on a pair of snow skies, and thinking about the enjoyment of cold weather sports.

The Capital of the country is Kiev, with 2,847,220 citizens, while the country sports 44,573,205, which is down from the 2001 census of 48,457,102. Per capita income is $3,862 in U.S. dollars, or the Ukrainian Hryvnia form of currency.

NOW I GOTTA ASK THE QUESTION

Ok, I gotta ask why is the United States, right from the President on down so interested in what happens to the people in the Ukraine which is slightly smaller than the state of Texas? There has been the usual pissing contest) between the U.S. Secretary of State (John Kerry), the European Union, and Russian officials each voicing their concerns about what is going on with the Ukraine, and where it’s all end up.

Please let’s put the issue into its proper prospective, first and foremost, neither Russia, nor the Ukraine are card carrying members of the European Union, ditto for the United States. So why in hell has the EU and the United States jumped all over Russia about what is going on between Russia and the Ukraine.

The U.S. and the EU traded unusually sharp barbs with Russia yesterday over Ukraine’s future amid concerns of possible military intervention to end anti-government protests. Russia pulled no punches, and the same could be said about the verbal reaction by Kerry or the European Union representatives. Nowhere is the fight for a democratic European future more important today than right here in Ukraine.

Kerry, with U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel alongside, said that the “vast majority of Ukrainians want to live free in a safe, and prosperous country.” I can’t think of any country were the citizens don’t want to live in a free environment (gee that sounds like a page out of an American history book), everybody wants that.

So, exactly where does that leave the United States in a seeming mettlesome position…..this time with the Soviet Union…..or remnants thereof? I can tell you without expending much thought, right in the middle of a hot situation. And this hot spot is in the process of opening up right before our very eyes.

The situation is hard to understand, given the fact that the Ukrainian defense military first said that they would not interfere in the crisis, but warned that the protestors seizure of government buildings was unacceptable and that the “further escalation of the confrontation threatens the country’s territory integrity.”

There is also talk of attempting to bring the Ukraine (a former satellite) back into the Russian fold; President Viktor Yanukovych’s decision to drop the EU’s offer to help the Ukraine resulted in massive and ever increasing violence protests.

So why is the United States standing alongside the EU instead of Russia…..some would like to call it complicated, others see the reoccurring activity of the United States as just that…..reoccurring. The U.S. doesn’t often get an opportunity to stand toe to toe with the big red Bear…..anyways they (the U.S.) needs to flex its muscles against a more meaningful opponent.

In a nut-shell, there’s the reason, the two toughest kids on the block, seemingly preparing to duke in out on the big theater of life. How sick are you of this kind of shenanigans, like me…..tired as hell. Confusing isn’t the word that can apply to what is going on in the Ukraine; Russian troops invaded the Crimea region of the Ukraine as the new government that has been installed in Kiev was powerless to do anything.

I guess its okay, because Crimea isn’t really a part of the Ukraine; the area occupies a small area of the Ukraine in the Black Sea. The history of Crimea goes back to at least the Ottoman Empire, when in 1921 the tiny state declared its independence. From that date forward (1928), the Crimean’s have relinquished their freedom, and took it back…..a strange way to run a democracy.

I’VE ASKED ALL OF THE QUESTIONS…..AND GOTTEN ALL OF THE ANSWERS

The simple truth is that the United States would just love to be done with Russian President Vladimir Putin; he’s been a pain in our collective butts since he took over authority. Putin is a humorless looking man who has served his country in some form of authority since 1999. The 62 year old served two consecutive terms as the country’s Prime Minister and its President for the past 15 years.

Trading barbs with Russia is almost like second nature to Americans, every since we allowed for such a derogatory splitting up of Germany back in 1945. It was by far the worst piece treaty that was ever drawn up in military history…..and it still pisses us off.

For us to try to put a finger on the pulse of the Ukraine would be fool-hardy, and everybody know it…..hell we can’t even put a stop to our war on terror in the Middle East, Russia would be…..out of sight.

 

HAVE A GOOD DAY!