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Rolla Peace News May 2, 2017 |
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================================= Dear Friends:In this newsletter is: 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THIS WEEK, THURSDAY, MAY 4, 2017 2. “WE CAN SUE THEM AND WIN LOTS OF MONEY” 3. I WANT TO BE LIKE YOU 4. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) Diplomacy Is Difficult b) Reviling Russia c) Drought To Flood d) Fires In Fukushima
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We vigil for peace in front of the Rolla Post Office THIS THURSDAY, MAY 4, 2017, (and all subsequent Thursdays until peace is established) from Noon to 1:00 PM. Please try to join us. The temperature is predicted to be in the 50s. If you do not feel comfortable standing with us in front of the Post Office, please consider driving by and showing your support for our message by honking your horn and flashing a peace sign. 2. “WE CAN SUE THEM AND WIN LOTS OF MONEY” One campaign promise Trump wants to keep: “One of the things I'm going to do if I win....I'm going to open up our libel laws so when they write purposely negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money.” Trump isn't interested in the Constitutional protection of free speech, but he is interested in “lots of money.“ Both Sean Spicer and Reince Priebus have confirmed that the administration is indeed “looking into” doing just that. Hope they don't read this newsletter! 3. I WANT TO BE LIKE YOU President Trump has been extending friendship (and probably concessions) to some of the world's worst dictators, including the Phillippines' Duterte, Egypt's Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, both of whom are documented abusers of human rights. He would like to meet North Korea's Kim Jong Un, whom he apparently admires, and thinks the world of Putin and Netanyahu. Critics theorize that his intent is largely to further his business interests — this view is strengthened by the fact the three “terrorist-supporting countries” that were not named in his attempted “Muslim travel ban” were ones where he was involved in business deals. After speaking to China's President Xi Jinping and giving his support to the “one-China” concept, China approved Trump's application to trademark his name in that country. The timing is suspicious. Given his disregard for (and many attacks on) civil liberties and human rights, one might think that he associates with these people because he wants to be like them. If “Off with his head!” were an option in this country, they would already be rolling. Don't be too sure it couldn't happen here; it's headed that way. 4. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) Diplomacy Is Difficult b) Reviling Russia c) Drought To Flood d) Fires In Fukushima DIPLOMACY IS DIFFICULT Well, yeah — especially if you are used to getting your way by bullying and threatening. So, we move closer to a nuclear war with North Korea which may have as many as 10 nuclear bombs to our over 7,000. Hey guys, it only takes ONE! REVILING RUSSIA Norman Solomon details how the Democrats have been, and still are, hoping to win back congress (and maybe start a nuclear World War III in the process) by demonizing Russia and linking Trump's electoral victory to Russian meddling. They've been partially successful. They goaded Trump into bombing Russian ally, Syria, just to prove that he's really not “Putin's poodle.” I doubt they have accomplished much else. As Solomon states, “Tone deaf hardly describes the severe political impairment of those who insist that denouncing Russia will be key to the Democratic Party’s political fortunes in 2018 and 2020.” DROUGHT TO FLOOD Central Missouri, which has been experiencing abnormally hot and dry to drought conditions for most of the winter and early spring, has been hit by flash flooding. The historic town of Devils Elbow in Pulaski County on the Big Piney is totally destroyed — gone — swept away by the rising waters. I learned of this from a climate change denier. I wonder what it is going to take before he and others like him will begin to recognize what we are doing to our planet. And I wonder what's next — maybe Mar-A-Lago in southern Florida. Will that make a believer out of Donald Trump? I doubt it. Incidentally, the article linked to above talks about year 2100. I think that's overly conservative. I'd GUESS 2035 to 2050 at the latest. Some would think that I am also being overly conservative. FIRES IN FUKUSHIMA Wildfires, thought to have been started by lightning, are burning in evacuated areas of Fukushima prefecture. So all those radionuclides are being wafted up into the atmosphere. Likely they will come down somewhere: perhaps in someone's food, perhaps someone will breathe one in. One more reason that Fukushima has been dubbed “a ticking time bomb.” Hey, folks: Sorry about all the bad news this week. Maybe next week will be better. Rolla Peace News is distributed by email once a week on Tuesday evenings (except on rare occasions) and is posted on the web at http://tomsager.org (click on Grassroots Rolla: top of rightmost column). If you don't wish to get notices of peace events in the Rolla area, let me know and I'll take you off this list. If you want to be added to this list, let me know. Wage peace, Helen helenm (at) fidnet.com ### |