Topics in this week's blog: WIPP; Tuesday primary turmoil; gerrymandering; school violence; world cup soccer; THE book tour; Iraq; incumbency; immigration; too big to fail?; Father's Day thoughts.

WIPP. The WIPP (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant) near Carlsbad, NM, suffered an as yet unexplained accidental fire, 2,100 feet below the surface. WIPP was built to be the final disposal site for America's nuclear bomb-making waste. This idea is now in limbo and the fire raises questions about where to store our nuclear waste materials that future generations will have to live with.
     During the Cold War era, America was quick to condemn the USSR for its reckless, hurried, and unsafe exploitation of its satellite nations as their dumping grounds. Contamination was not a long-term concern for the Soviets; they simply folded and left. Now it is our turn to examine our long-term contamination problems.

VA Republican primary. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R, VA) was defeated in last Tuesday's primary by a more conservative, Tea Party-backed opponent, thus becoming the first majority leader to be defeated since the post was created in 1899. The repercussions, as yet unknown, will be substantial for the Republican party, nationally and locally. Cantor outspent his challenger 40-to-1 (reportedly $5.5M to $122,000), only to be defeated by a throw-in-the-towel-margin of 11%. Cantor and the Republican establishment felt secure with multiple polls that confidently predicted an easy victory; on Wednesday morning there may have been some pollsters experiencing job insecurity!
     In choosing Eric Cantor's replacement, FreedomWorks, a very right-leaning Republican group, avows "‘the next guy in line’ isn't entitled to the next rung on the ladder....[T]he American people have made it loud and clear that the status quo is not acceptable anymore- and Raúl Labrador is the man to make DC listen." Really, the "American people"? Or does "a very small minority of VA Republican voters" seem a better characterization?

The 'ole gerrymander... ain't what it used to be! As students of government know, the tradition of shaping election districts to benefit a particular political party originated in MA, aptly illustrated by the now iconic 1812 political cartoon in the Boston Gazette. The practice was first used to redraw the Massachusetts state senate election districts and was signed into law by Governor Elbridge Gerry, hence the slightly altered name. The practice quickly spread and its history in the US is much storied.
     Last Tuesday's defeat of Eric Cantor in VA highlights one major problem with this two-edged sword. The state legislature successfully gerrymandered its districts to help ensure the election of Republican candidates, but, viola, it also created another problem: the possible victory of a very narrowly-focused candidate (Democrat or Republican).
     Nationally, the Republican party acknowledges the need to garner more Hispanic votes, but gerrymandering by Republican-dominated state legislatures virtually insures the selection of very narrowly-based, conservative Republican candidates unlikely to appeal to many Hispanic voters. As this PBS story notes, the "Virginia problem" may be duplicated in other states. "[Republican] candidates will have to try and balance an activist base they need behind them and a changing demography in the country."

More school violence. Sadly, last Monday's school shooting in OR seems to make the following a terrible but increasingly apt analogy.

                    US : school shootings :: Middle East : sectarian violence.

An American public, inured to Middle East violence, now faces the same psychological prospect regarding home-grown school violence. There will be, of course, calls for stricter gun regulation and the NRA and its allies will, just as assuredly, call for more guns in more schools.

Brazil's lament. If all the indications are correct, the land of sun, sand, samba, happiness, and good soccer is not quite ready for the month-long world soccer summit. Soccer aficionados can only hope for the best. "Nothing encapsulates this sense of impending doom like the phrase "imagina na Copa," "imagine during the Cup."

On the road, again. Hillary's book tour surely sold some books, though how many "extras" is a matter of conjecture -- preaching to the choir and all. But, is there any doubt that, barring some totally unforeseen calamity, she will run for president? Looks more and more like a good bet. There are indications, though, the Chinese government, for one, is not terribly thrilled about the prospect of a President Hillary Clinton.

Iraq. Once in the forefront of the "war on terror" and from which the US has withdrawn, this very troubled nation is again dominating Middle East news. Sectarian warfare seems to have broken out anew. This linked map lays out Iraq's and nearby ethnic boundaries. Fighting forces from Syria and Iran have entered into the fighting, further complicating the already bloody sectarian picture. One can only say, "Stay tuned," and wonder if this analogy is too far fetched? And, if not, is there a possible Middle Eastern equivalent of a Good Friday Agreement!

Northern Ireland : protestant vs. Roman Catholic (a relatively small area)  ::
Iraq : Shiite vs. Sunni (an immense expanse)

One Washington Post writer questioned the wisdom of again becoming involved in the "millennium-old feuds between Sunni and Shia Muslims." A wise point, me thinks; one which begs the question of the Bush administration's initial decision to attack Iraq. A decision which, by the way, is causing more than a little back-and-forth for (former senator) Hillary Clinton, who voted for the invasion. A decision which may well cause the US to become engaged with Iran. 

The ABTI party.  This movement is gaining adherents: Anybody But The Incumbent. Voter unhappiness breeds discontent and leads to interesting, sometimes unpleasant, consequences.

Immigration. Speaking on last Sunday's "Face the Nation," Senator Lindsay Graham (R, SC) (a video) tried to lay out his vision of what the Republican party's position should be in November 2014 and 2016. In view of last week's Cantor debacle in VA, it is very unclear how much of the activist Republican base would support Graham's program. To some it might have sounded much like "his" position were he a presidential candidate in 2016.
     Graham also pointed out that by the year 2025, the US population (pp. 147+ of US Census report) would be less than 50% white, a frightening prospect for many whites, one which more extreme elements readily exploit.

Under water?  Hopefully your home mortgage did not go "underwater" in the last economic collapse. And, hopefully, neither did the mortgage of your nearest and dearest. In this video clip, Bill Moyers, to my mind, one of the leading voices of moderation in America, offers some thoughts.

Some thoughts for Father's Day. But, really, these thoughts could be from/by anyone who has lost a loved one.

Topics for this week's blog: somber remembrances this past week, D-Day and Tiananmen Square; the changing US Senate; peak water; the Bergdahl exchange; rustling leaves; climate justice; finally, "school's out"

June 6, 1944, D-Day.  Memorials were held around the nation and world, with special note taken in the US of the "Bedford Boys." Proportionately, young men from this small VA town suffered the greatest number of casualties in this colossal military operation. As Charlie Rose noted last Friday on CBS Morning News, if you were at Normandy and 18 in 1944, you would be 88 years-old this D-Day. Sadly, many D-Day vets will not live to see a 75th celebration. The military cemeteries near Normandy are starkly beautiful -- and somber.
     Also noted during this period of remembrance: Chester Daniels passed away at the age of 93. Mr. Daniels was the last surviving member of the fabled "code talkers", Native Americans who used their Navajo language to convey orders, while befuddling the Japanese "listeners" in the Pacific.
     General (President) Dwight David Eisenhower was buried in a simple wooden casket in a uniform bearing only the military decorations awarded him as the Supreme Allied commander for D-Day.
     Literary trivia: J.D. Salenger reportedly landed on Utah beach carrying 4 chapters of The Catcher in the Rye.
     The French, hosting this year's 70th remembrance day, faced a bit of "a sticky wicket" with seating arrangements for the planned luncheon. The assembled dignitaries included the not overly-friendly presidents, Obama and Putin. "Rise above it" seemed in order for all concerned.

Tiananmen Square.  On June 4, 1989, twenty-five years ago, the world when one iconic image emerged as a courageous, still unidentified Chinese citizen faced down a line of four tanks. After several days, the Chinese government quickly and brutally ended the freedom demonstrations with death tolls variously reported from only a few to a thousand or more.

     Today's technology made it easy for the Chinese government to push the electronic "censor" button. Im mainland China, internationally broadcast news programs (BBC, CNN, etc.) had their screens instantly blackened whenever Tiananmen was mentioned, though there were some timid remembrances broadcast from Hong Kong.

Collegiality or confrontation?  An article in this Monday's Roll Call concerned the MS  senatorial primary contest which pits Senator Thad Cochran (R) against his Tea Party-backed opponent.

Cochran [is]...already an anomaly because he [has] never wavered from the view that being urbane and soft-spoken in public, and collegial and collaborative behind the scenes, [is] the surest route to institutional success and job satisfaction. But that approach, of course, has almost entirely fallen out of fashion on both sides of the aisle and on both sides of the Capitol — supplanted by a pathway in which partisan bombast and reflexive combativeness are rewarded while cordiality and thoughtfulness are ridiculed.

And we wonder what causes congressional inaction? Take a second and look at this winning humorous Roll Call cartoon caption submitted by a reader.

Peak water is defined as when more water is promised to various users than the mountains, rivers, wells, and mother nature can provide. More and more observers, renowned water watcher Peter Glick among them, are becoming convinced that we have reached that point. Contrary to commonly held wishes and political lore, more & deeper wells and larger reservoirs are not the answer, either. Rather, it is simply the old economic adage of supply and demand applied to water. Once upon a time there was even talk of towing large ice bergs to dry coastal areas. Once upon a time......

The Bergdahl prisoner exchange. It appears that the president is increasingly between a rock and a hard place viz-a-viz the sergeant's release. For yet unexplained reasons other than Bergdahl's supposedly deteriorating health, the administration intricately planned and carried out his exchange for five high-value, hard-core Taliban militants.
     Congress was upset about not being given what they thought was a lawfully required 30-day advance notice. Now the President also has to deal with vigorous dissent from various military and veterans groups, even active duty soldiers who have begun using social media to call for Bergdahl's punishment under military law for desertion and/or being AWOL.
     One has to wonder who in the White House was so absolutely clueless about the questionable circumstances surrounding Bergdahl's disappearance and could not anticipate the impending fire storm. It is a certain bet that the story will continue to play in today's vicious 24/7 news cycle.

Rustling leaves. It is very pleasant sitting on the front deck, listening to the aspen leaves,  and being gently lulled into an afternoon nap. One of the joys of living in CO is our generally "dry heat" where the temperature may be 85, but in a shaded chair in a light breeze you are really quite comfortable. That and the noticeable absence of bugs. It seems that this year's predicted upsurge of miller moths is less than expected and, since we have had several hotter-than-usual days, the moths have hastened uphill to the cooler foothills and mountains. Besides, these moths do not bite, they are just a fluttery nuisance, something to shoo off the screen or out of the house.

Climate justice. Have you not heard about this topic? Read the story "Ground Zero in the Fight for Climate Justice," by Wen Stephenson on p. 16+ in the June 23/30th issue of the Nation. Around the globe, it is the poorest who are living next door to, in close proximity to the world's most toxic energy producing facilities and suffering the inevitable health problems.

School is out. Finally, a little humor especially for those readers who may be retired teachers. The last bus pulls away on the final day of the school year and the teacher of America's beloved problem child, Dennis the Menace, proclaims "Lunch is on me!" Amen!

Enjoy a peaceful week and thanks for reading.

Topics for this week's delayed blog: High school graduation; high school GPAs; primary day; the 4th Revolution; Ralph Nader; Russia, China, and gas; ballot access; Memorial Day; lethal floods; UN and the Roman Catholic Church; WW I; minimum wage; prisoner exchange

Graduation day, always a great day. My grand niece is off to FSU. Summer school begins in only two weeks, not much vacation. It will be interesting to see how mom and dad deal with being "empty nesters," especially since mom was so very involved from K through 12.

High School GPA. Is that number water over the dam? Maybe you should have listened to your high school teachers. A recent study in the Eastern Economic Journal indicates a definite link between high school GPA and future earnings. Pass the news along to the "young-uns." Because they are visual-oriented, be sure and point out the graph.

Primary day.  There were six Super Tuesday state primaries, all being closely watched by both parties, with the major emphasis on KY and GA. The major worry of the Republican establishment was whether or not expensive and psychologically draining primary runoffs would be necessary? Results were varied, but tended to favor the Republican establishment.

The 4th Revolution. A recently published book has the interesting title, The Fourth Revolution: The Global Race to Reinvent the State. (Penguin Press, May 2014). A teaser: Part I "The Three and A Half Revolutions"; Part II "From the West to the East"; Part III "The Winds of Change". The book highlights the new challenges for America and Europe emanating from Asia. (Remember the "pivot to Asia" proclaimed by President Obama?)

     The authors begin by reminding the reader that the ancient Chinese system established the world's first civil service system. The authors next take an introductory look inside China's newly established Leadership Academy, which is not one of the Chinese Communist Party schools. Rather, this Leadership Academy focuses on style and skills. Although already oversubscribed with a lengthy waiting list, successful completion of a course at this school is a prized entry on any Chinese bureaucrat's resumé.

     For another discussion of east vs. west, see David Brooks's recent column. "It’s now clear that the end of the Soviet Union heralded an era of democratic complacency. Without a rival system to test them, democratic governments have decayed across the globe." In comparing American democracy with what he calls "modernizing autocracies," Brooks says, At the national level, American politics has become neurotically democratic. Politicians are campaigning all the time and can scarcely think beyond the news cycle. Legislators are terrified of offending this or that industry lobby, activist group or donor faction. 

     "Neurotically democratic" A new phrase for the pundit community? The saving grace, "Democracy is always messy, but, historically, it’s thrived because it has been more flexible than its rivals." Brooks's aforementioned cautions would challenge this latter statement.

Unstoppable. This is the title of Ralph Nader's new book. For those unfamiliar with Nader -- even for those who know of him -- his conversation on a recent C-Span program will shed light on his background and often controversial views.

Russia, China, and gas. Despite two decades of  preparation and hopeful pre-trip pronouncements, President Putin did not initially "close" a deal with China regarding gas exports. "[The failure to reach an immediate agreement] was a shock, a blow to Putin's objectives, and a reminder of how much China has the upper hand when it comes to gas deals [even] with Europe's biggest gas supplier." As Putin found out, the world's second largest economy has more than a little clout and felt free to challenge Russia's prices. 


Ballot access.  In this case, the story relates to getting on the ballot. It appears that two of the signature gatherers for the re-election campaign of US House member John Conyers (D, MI) were not registered voters and, therefore, the signatures they gathered could not be counted. This left the 25-term congressman short of the required number of signatures to be automatically placed on the November ballot. Conyers nee not have worried. A recent Obama appointee to the federal bench reviewed the case and ordered Conyers's name placed on the ballot. Not exactly leadership by example.


Memorial Day.  What is today's purpose for the day? Remembering our fallen warriors or, rather, a celebration of war? Other than our far distant struggle for independence, how many of our wars have truly been waged against a real security threat? When has our two ocean security blanket not been adequate?  

Deadly floods in southeast Europe. Unfortunately, the recent floods have brought more than just the usual problems. In some areas, the high waters have also unearthed thousands of  deadly land mines buried during past conflicts. This new danger confronts anyone venturing off the beaten path, residents and tourists, alike.

UN and the Roman Catholic Church. The article from Foreign Policy delves into background information gathered for the UN's upcoming report on the Roman Catholic Church's acknowledged problem with sexual misconduct and abuse by pedophile priests. As a signatory to the UN "Convention Against Torture," the Church could be held legally accountable for the crimes committed by its priests.

     The author notes, sadly, that the recently sainted Pope John Paul II chose not to meet the problem head on. Sad, because John Paul did so much good for both the Church and the world in his many other endeavors. He was the first world leader to use the word genocide in conjunction with the horrors played out in Rwanda.

World War I. There are several new books out about The Great War (WW I), its causes and consequences. Unrestricted submarine warfare produced enough domestic public pressure to force our entry into the conflict, even though the continental United States was never at risk. Those who debate our involvement here or there today, might do well to remember Lord Balfour's caustic comments about the eminent dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire following WW I. He ruminated to the effect that he did not care who was given nominal sovereignty -- so long as Great Britain controlled the oil. 

Minimum wage. There are other ways to set minimum wages besides one-size -fits-all, across-the-board congressional fiat. A story in USA Today notes some approaches used by other nations as they set their minimum wage laws. 

Prisoner exchange.  The predictable rancorous dialog between Congress and the administration has begun over the re-patriation of Sgt. Bowie Bergdahl in exchange for five Taliban prisoners held at Guantanamo. Prisoner exchanges, as the  Brits say, are a "bit of a sticky wicket." When does a humanitarian-motivated exchange become bargaining with terrorists? Even some members of the military are divided about how to consider Bergdahl: unfortunate POW or deserter? 

Mega-earth. A discovery by the Kepler Space Telescope has sent astronomers a-tizzy wondering how to classify this new "mega-earth" (Kepler 10-c)? Its size is between the Earth and larger so-called exoplanets. “Nature will do what she wants, regardless of Earthling theorists,” said M.I.T. planetary scientist Sara Seager, who was not involved in the discovery.