Optimist, 16 December. Link to the section.
Basketball phenom. Fran Belibi is still learning, but she can play -- and dunk -- with the best. The young lady, a senior at Regis Jesuit High School (Aurora, CO), has settled on attending Stanford University, largely because it has a medical school on campus. Her parents are doctors and, at present, she has no plans to play basketball beyond college; she wants a medical degree.
Notable dates in US history.
12 December 2000. The Supreme Court's decision in Bush v. Gore effectively meant that George W. Bush had been elected president.
14 December 1799. George Washington, our first president, died at the age of 67 at his home, Mount Vernon, VA.
15 December 1791: The Bill of Rights went into effect with VA’s ratification.
16 December 1773: There was a "tea party" in Boston, MA.
18 December 1865: The 13th Amendment banning slavery was declared in effect. In 1917, Congress passed and sent to the states for ratification the 18th (prohibition) amendment.
Persons of the Year. This year Time magazine chose "Guardians of the Truth," including Jamal Khashoggi, other journalists, even newsroom staffs. Lately, being a journalist has proved hazardous occupation.
Russian intentions. The guilty plea of Maria Butina for illegally trying to influence US policy seems to indicate that the Russian government deliberately tried to set the stage for changes they wanted, in this case working through the GOP and the National Rifle Association. Ms. Butina agreed to cooperate in exchange for a lesser sentence. This is just one more bit of evidence in an evolving picture in which members of the Trump family and administration play a role, however unwittingly.
Antisemitism vs. freedom of speech. In Foreign Policy, Shibley Telhami notes, "The firing of Professor Marc Lamont Hill as a CNN contributor after his speech at a United Nations event commemorating the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People has generated considerable debate about free speech that goes beyond the case itself—what is legitimate criticism of Israel, and what constitutes anti-Semitism."
On 14 May 1948, America became the first nation to recognize the de facto existence of the State of Israel. (Official, de jure diplomatic recognition followed in 31 January 1949.) Ever since, criticism of Israel and its policies has been a touchy subject for American politicians. Something to which Professor Hill can now attest. The president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, will be well advised to pay heed and carefully walk that thin diplomatic line, because, as Telhami also notes, Americans' views are slowly changing. The situation is becoming more nuanced.
Prime Minister Netanyahu's problems. As if there were not enough problems in the Middle East, the PM finds himself, to borrow a phrase, in the midst of his own "witch hunt," a "raft of bribery investigations...a collision between political survival tactics and the rule of law in a democracy." Misery loves company, does it not?
An anti-Muslim campaign on Capitol Hill. Ola Salem reports that "Gulf Arab monarchies are using racism, bigotry, and fake news to denounce Washington's newest history-making politicians." Specifically, the two newly elected Muslim women elected to the US House of Representatives, Ilhan Omar (D, MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D, MI), are being targeted.
"On Sunday (past), Saudi-owned Al Arabiya published a feature insinuating that Omar and Tlaib were part of an alliance between the Democratic Party and Islamist groups to control Congress." Also, "American conservative commentator and pastor E.W. Jackson complained on a radio show that Muslims were transforming Congress into an 'Islamic republic.' ” This chart from the PEW Forum is instructive about the US Congress compared with the American population.
Pollution in your area? The Trump administration is rolling back safeguards against water pollution. Hopefully you will not be among those affected.
Poverty in your area? A new study by the CO Center on Law and Policy reports that more than one quarter of Colorado families cannot afford the basic costs to sustain themselves. Where you live in the Mile High state matters a lot: $19,175 in Huerfano county (CO's poorest) vs. $30,369 in Boulder county. Statistics may have changed dramatically in your state, too.
America's elderly. In a letter-to-the-editor in the Denver Post, Mr. Phil Nash writes, "The United States is at a demographic turning point.
Next year, we will be a nation with more people older than 60 than under
18. If our economy is to keep growing, competition for employees will
intensify....We’re a half century behind in our
thinking about the value of people over 60 who want or need to keep
working. The U.S. also lags behind other nations in recognizing the
opportunities to capitalize on older adults’ increased longevity....A thriving U.S. economy needs fresh thinking about human resources to
capture the nearly unlimited potential of older adults to contribute."
Gentrification -- it is everywhere. Marfa, in dusty, rural west TX, has become an arts city and destination for artists and tourists alike. Jeffery Brown's PBS Newshour "American Creators" segment highlights the gifts, drawbacks, and unintended consequences of "becoming." One takeaway: gentrification is not confined to America's urban centers. Higher prices for housing, food, taxes, etc. have hit home in Marfa, just as they have in San Francisco, Silicon Valley, etc.
Fond farewells. This CSM article relates some of what was said by various US senators as they departed Capitol Hill for the last time. Too many see troubled times in the future.
China. Michael Morell and David Kris think the US should be most concerned about China's use of technology "to steal information and the theft of technology itself." This is, they believe, a new kind of Cold War. Whether or not President Trump shares their view is unknown; for him it all seems to be a continuing trade and tariff tiff.
New Mexico Bowl. Just think, if all 49 states plus Washington, D.C. were to join forces 100 more less than lustrous football teams could hope to fill their sports coffers with bowl revenue.
An egg at Christmas? At the Dominion Diamond Mines and Rio Tinto Group, a mine in Canada’s frozen north, 'tis the season! A 552 carat yellow diamond was unearthed. In the late 1800's, in "North to Alaska," it was gold they sought.
Nuclear energy. Those two words do not elicit favorable thoughts/responses for many. None the less, the Idaho National Laboratory has restarted its nuclear waste processing operation. Discussions will reverberate throughout the energy and environmental community.
Russian rap. Some readers may remember the past when the Soviet government took a very dim view of American jazz. The leadership was astonished when Russians reacted to news that Louis Armstrong had cancelled his 1957 Moscow concert; how did Soviet citizens "know" jazz? The leadership was equally surprised when the Dave Brubeck quartet opened to sold out audiences. "How did they know?"
Now rap music is all the rage and President Putin seems to remember the past. He has announced that rap's components, "sex, drugs, protest," are a danger. He has pointed especially to "drugs," but the last, "protest," is the real target. Putin says “if it is impossible to stop, then we must lead it and direct it.” Good luck with that, Vladimir!
Singers, like Russia's beloved writers and poets, are not easily censored, nor banned. Do the names Pasternak, Solzhenitsyn, Yevtushenko, Bulgakov, Zamyatin, and Zamyatin not yet ring bells in the Kremlin? Even before the Berlin Wall fell and the beloved USSR were put in the rear view mirror, Russians and tourists alike flocked to the hill above Moscow to visit/mourn at Pasternak's grave at Peredelkino. Just as they now visit the monastery and New Donskoy Cemetery to visit/mourn Solzhenitsyn. No signs, no directions, none needed! As Dionne Warwick said, "...you know the way to..."
Sky diving with a purpose. What do you when you are 102 years-old Australian and want to help raise money to fight the motor neuron (ALS) disease killed your daughter? If you are Irene O'Shea, you use your cane to get to the aircraft that takes you up to 14,000 feet, and you jump out over Langhorne Creek; this was her second jump and may well garner her the designation as the world's oldest female skydiver.
Volunteer craftsmen, Santas all. The factory workers are older senior citizens, the painters are prison inmates, the young recipients around the world are thankful to both. The average age of the toy craftsmen is 80. Deliveries take many forms. One long-haul trucker stopped at the Tiny Tim's Toy Foundation in West Jordan, UT, and was given 5 boxes (575 toy wooden cars) which he distributed at children's hospitals along his route.
Thank you for reading. May your winter solstice be "merry and bright."
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