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ofthisandthat.org. All rights
reserved.
ofthisandthat.org. All rights
reserved.
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INAUGURATION, January 20, 2009
Drunk in its stale air
For two hundred years.
Fettered in mind and body,
The soul, the safe escape
To let me breathe the cries
Of my heart singing
Tears of mel-an-choly.
Drunk in its stale air
For two hundred years.
Fettered in mind and body,
The soul, the safe escape
To let me breathe the cries
Of my heart singing
Tears of mel-an-choly.
The tears flow free today
Washing the stains of blood
And sweat in brotherhood.
Raise the curtain then an'
Let the world look in
On this promised land --
We breathe free today.... almost.
--- Arshad M. Khan
We will be known forever by the tracks we leave.
--- Native American proverb
--- Native American proverb
July 12, 2019
Mr. President: The bullying in Washington is the current trend. On Monday, the
British ambassador resigned his post after Trump refused to deal with him. Well-liked
in Washington and the halls of Congress, his downfall was an honest assessment of
the Trump administration as 'inept' and 'dysfunctional'. The letters were leaked in the
U.K.
Suppose the president tweets comments contrary to current established policy, does
that mean a policy change? Do departments adapt promptly. Nobody knows. That's
dysfunctional, and everyone knows it. In the meantime, he has enjoyed 17 golf
outings since February averaging three a month. No wonder he is that rare president
who does not seem to age in office from the stresses of the job. Obama's hair turned
gray.
But then a lighter hand on the tiller has kept us out of war, whereas Obama, the Nobel
Peace Laureate, destroyed Libya and escalated in Afghanistan. The consequences
are still being felt in Southern Europe particularly, through the hordes of refugees still
continuing to arrive. Also in the resurgence of anti-immigration political parties in
northern Europe.
The supreme irony is the fact of refugees being rescued from ramshackle boats and
dinghies or often dying in one part of the Mediterranean while the Obamas cruise on
a billionaire's luxury yacht in another. Is that a metaphor for democracies in the
modern world? One is also reminded of Mr. Modi's specially woven pinstripe cloth
repeating his name endlessly on the stripes in the material.
Fortunately, the current president does not like the sea, or we would never see him in
Washington. As it is he has had 14 visits to golf clubs (not as much time on the
course however) since the beginning of June. He once had a small yacht that lay
anchored in New York until he sold it. His pleasures have generally centered on the
more mundane: cheeseburgers and women -- the younger the better, although
perhaps not as young as those that have gotten his friend Jeffrey Epstein in trouble
again. To be fair, Trump had a falling out with him 'about 15 years ago' he said
recently. 'I was not a fan of his, I can tell you,' he added although he called him a
'terrific guy' in 2002.
At least one party had 28 girls to a so-called calendar-girl party at Mar-a-Lago
(Trump's estate and club) in Florida, meaning selection of a calendar girl. The male
celebrities attending, according to the man assigned the task of finding the girls,
happened to be Trump and Epstein, and no one else! So surprised, the man still
remembers the story. The falling out between Trump and Epstein was rumored to
have been a business deal.
It brings us to the second resignation, that of Alex Acosta the Labor Secretary. A
Harvard-educated lawyer, Mr. Acosta was the US attorney for the Southern District of
Florida when he made a generous agreement with Epstein who had been charged
with sex crimes. For a 13-month sentence of mostly community work, usually from his
mansion, Mr. Epstein was protected from further prosecution. In a clear rebuke to
Acosta, the case has been re-opened with a new charge of sex-trafficking minors.
As a result, Mr. Acosta has had to bow to the chorus of calls for his resignation. The
real question: How ever did Trump get elected? A mainstream press failure?
Mr. President: The bullying in Washington is the current trend. On Monday, the
British ambassador resigned his post after Trump refused to deal with him. Well-liked
in Washington and the halls of Congress, his downfall was an honest assessment of
the Trump administration as 'inept' and 'dysfunctional'. The letters were leaked in the
U.K.
Suppose the president tweets comments contrary to current established policy, does
that mean a policy change? Do departments adapt promptly. Nobody knows. That's
dysfunctional, and everyone knows it. In the meantime, he has enjoyed 17 golf
outings since February averaging three a month. No wonder he is that rare president
who does not seem to age in office from the stresses of the job. Obama's hair turned
gray.
But then a lighter hand on the tiller has kept us out of war, whereas Obama, the Nobel
Peace Laureate, destroyed Libya and escalated in Afghanistan. The consequences
are still being felt in Southern Europe particularly, through the hordes of refugees still
continuing to arrive. Also in the resurgence of anti-immigration political parties in
northern Europe.
The supreme irony is the fact of refugees being rescued from ramshackle boats and
dinghies or often dying in one part of the Mediterranean while the Obamas cruise on
a billionaire's luxury yacht in another. Is that a metaphor for democracies in the
modern world? One is also reminded of Mr. Modi's specially woven pinstripe cloth
repeating his name endlessly on the stripes in the material.
Fortunately, the current president does not like the sea, or we would never see him in
Washington. As it is he has had 14 visits to golf clubs (not as much time on the
course however) since the beginning of June. He once had a small yacht that lay
anchored in New York until he sold it. His pleasures have generally centered on the
more mundane: cheeseburgers and women -- the younger the better, although
perhaps not as young as those that have gotten his friend Jeffrey Epstein in trouble
again. To be fair, Trump had a falling out with him 'about 15 years ago' he said
recently. 'I was not a fan of his, I can tell you,' he added although he called him a
'terrific guy' in 2002.
At least one party had 28 girls to a so-called calendar-girl party at Mar-a-Lago
(Trump's estate and club) in Florida, meaning selection of a calendar girl. The male
celebrities attending, according to the man assigned the task of finding the girls,
happened to be Trump and Epstein, and no one else! So surprised, the man still
remembers the story. The falling out between Trump and Epstein was rumored to
have been a business deal.
It brings us to the second resignation, that of Alex Acosta the Labor Secretary. A
Harvard-educated lawyer, Mr. Acosta was the US attorney for the Southern District of
Florida when he made a generous agreement with Epstein who had been charged
with sex crimes. For a 13-month sentence of mostly community work, usually from his
mansion, Mr. Epstein was protected from further prosecution. In a clear rebuke to
Acosta, the case has been re-opened with a new charge of sex-trafficking minors.
As a result, Mr. Acosta has had to bow to the chorus of calls for his resignation. The
real question: How ever did Trump get elected? A mainstream press failure?