Blog Update, 11.20.09

Apologies. Unable to blog for a while because of a broken elbow.

H1N1 (Swine) Flu Update No 59, in Today's News 11.13.09

H1N1 (Swine) Flu. Apparently the number of deaths from swine flu is not enough to please the Center for Disease Control. The CDC felt that the 1,200 reported deaths was insufficient. So back to the drawing boards and ...wallah, all of a sudden 3,900 have died!!! It announced the new numbers with great fanfare today.

How do they do it? Easy. The CDC is the world's preeminent manipulator of data. In this case, they decided to include cases where the patient's death appeared to be brought on by the flu (not swine flu, just the flu)(and 'appeared' to be brought on, as opposed to being directly caused)!! And just like that the count increases 300%.

And by the way, these numbers are not an actual count. No, the CDC is estimating how many are ill. They have a nifty computer program and all they do is throw in some numbers and out comes the estimate they want. Amazing.

Also of interest: the CDC says 22 million people have been sickened by swine flu. This number has about the same credibility as the above number. But if you accept their number of deaths, it comes to less than one-half of one per cent of those who have been ill. Some pandemic!

Also of interest: the November 9th edition of the American Free Press reports that CBS news claims that the number of swine flu cases has been grossly exaggerated. "Only one percent to three percent of suspected cases have actually turned out to be the H1N1 virus. When samples of patients were actually tested, it turned out that the overwhelming majority -- nearly 86 percent in some states -- did not even have a more common strain of the flu. Instead they had a cold." (!!!)

Does anyone remember the days when the Soviet Union political bureau set a goal of manufacturing so many widgets under the five year plan? And before long, the numbers would be produced to prove the leaders right, even to be geniuses. 

Does this practice sound at all familiar to this country's experience with swine flu?

The CDC said there was going to be a pandemic, and, by golly, here are the numbers to prove it!

Health Care, in Today's News 11.10.09

Health Care. Headline in today's Wall Street Journal (page A4): "Catholic Church Emerges as Key Player in Legislative Battle." The 'news' article is a puff piece on the Church leaders attempting to flatter them into becoming shills for the complete health care legislative package.

Unfortunately the stance the Church leaders have put themselves in lends itself to precisely this political maneuver. Spokesmen for Catholicism have in essence become a one-issue lobbying group on the abortion issue in the health care debate. They have neglected to even try to comprehend the overall picture of what the health care legislation means, and instead have tried to bring their weight to bear on the abortion and a couple of other issues. And in so doing, they leave in silence the noble history and teaching of Jesus and the Church on compassion towards all.

No one doubts that the Church leaders influence on abortion has been a commendable undertaking, but by concentrating on the issue without regard to the context of what the cryptocracy is trying to do with this legislation, the Church leaders let themselves be positioned to support the legislation in return for an amendment on no abortion spending.

The key quote in the WSJ article is, "They [the Catholic leaders] actually wanted to pass the bill. That's why they had status. Other groups that had similar views on abortion weren't interested in passing the bill," Representative Mike Doyle (D, Pa).

In other words, 'you support our bill and we will give you a little on abortion and complement you.'

But to repeat for the umpteenth time: this legislation is designed to kill the idea of compassionate health care and replace it with government-control under cost-cutting guidelines. 

The Church brought Jesus' teaching to the world on compassion toward those who are ill. The Church founded the first hospitals. These hospitals treated all regardless of circumstance and 'cost-effectiveness'. These great institutions lived in a world where insurance protocols and medicare guidelines would have seemed barbaric, which they are.

The legislative leaders and the media are hyping their 'reform' as 'health-care for all.' But all their blather is just misdirection for what is really happening: a fundamental change in the way medical care is performed.

One wants to cry out when it is realized that the Church leaders actually take the legislative leaders at their word. Believing these thieves-called-legislators is always a mistake, but in the case of something as central as health care, believing what they say is a colossal mistake bordering on criminality. It certainly is a betrayal of the centuries of compassionate charity toward the ill by the Church.

Will the Church leaders take the cryptocracy bait and actually formally endorse the legislation? Time will tell. But, be prepared. They have certainly given the impression that that is precisely what they plan to do.

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The Church leaders try to chalk up their support for health care for immigrants as continuing the Church teaching on compassion. Of course, such support is in keeping with the Church, but it falls so short of what is needed in this situation where the compassionate health care of all is jeopardized. 

H1N1 (Swine) Flu Update No 58, in Today's News 11.09.09

H1N1 (Swine) Flu. What is there to say about swine flu?

The directors of the swine-flu scare campaign set out to have a massive inoculation and public training event. But, they so mis-managed their ambitious plan that they actually managed to increase the suspicions of the American people regarding the safety of vaccines. The directors are now reduced to squabbling among themselves over whom is to blame for the mess-up and over whom is going to receive the vaccine. Even a congressional hearing has been scheduled. And these are the people who think they should rule the world.

As for the 'pandemic' itself: What we are seeing is the result of swine flu, but also seasonal flu (whose effects are the same as swine flu), media determination to have a public panic, some hysteria, and psychological suggestion.

Health Care, in Today's News 11.09.09

Health Care. The deed is not quite done yet. The health-care legislation still has to clear the Senate and a reconciliation with the approved House version. But, we are very close to the death of compassionate health care in the interests of government control and cost-cutting policies.

Thus, one of the great accomplishments of humanity stemming from the teaching of Jesus and the practice of the Church for centuries, is about to pass away.

Most astonishing in this development is the fact that those who ought to be defending the legacy of the Church do not have the faintest clue about the issues and the disastrous effects the legislation will have for the faithful and the rest of humanity.

Hillary Clinton, in Today's News 11.09.09

Hillary Clinton. The repercussions from Clinton's foray into the middle east politics continue to pile up.

First, shortly after Clinton positioned the United States as giving some support to the Israeli settlement policy, the various political forces in the middle east went into uproar. Clinton, the State Department, and the White House had to go on a special footing to spin her remarks into 'no change in the American position of non-support to the settlements.'

Next, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas announced that he would not seek re-election in protest over the US bias in favor of Israel. 

And now Obama has to scramble to assure Israel of the United States' real position. A meeting between the two has been scheduled.

Clinton is so used to having her big-mouth remarks explained away by the media and her team, that she can't quite seem to adjust to the world of diplomacy where every word counts.

Clinton is now finished as a politician. Her frequent mis-steps as Secretary of State, starting with her "reset" fiasco in Moscow, will haunt any future attempts by her to achieve the presidency, or any other office.

"V", in Today's News 11.09.09

"V". Is it accidental that the leader of the lizard-aliens in "V", the new TV series, bears a striking resemblance to Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, probably the most influential of the Hindu 'Gurus' operating in the western world?

Afghanistan, in Today's News 11.09.09

Afghanistan. President Obama resolutely refuses to commit to a course of action in Afghanistan. He has adopted this stance because he has no viable alternative that doesn't result in defeat.

But the longer he waits to make a decision, the worse the consequences will be.

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The Obama people lost in their attempt to get rid of Afghan President Karzai in the recent elections. But that doesn't stop them from continuing to try. Articles in the media have steadily appeared 'reporting' on the corruption under Karzai. Even the Brits got into the act with a major denunciation of the corruption and a threat to withdraw support.

Fort Hood, in Today's News 11.09.09

Fort Hood. Why is it that Major Nidal Malik Hasan reminds one of the Jeff Bridges' character in the 1999 movie, Arlington Road?

For more on the Fort Hood situation, see Michael Hoffman's blog, On the Contrary.

Afghanistan, in Today's News 11.02.09

Afghanistan. Obama's gambit to solve his problem in Afghanistan has resulted in zip. Now he is right back to the alternatives he has been trying to avoid for months.

Obama thought he could convince the Taliban to forsake al Qaeda and join in some form of a reconcilliation government. He also thought he could move Afghan president Karzai out of the way to facilitate a settlement.

What happened? The Taliban said, "no thanks." And it would be silly to expect anything else from them when the tide is moving toward their objectives.

Second, Karzai proved to be much more difficult to get rid of than the Obama people thought. The US forced a run off election in the hope that his opponent could defeat him. That little maneuver came up empty today when the opponent dropped out of the election. 

And so, Obama is left with nothing. Trying to make the situation look good, he telephoned Karzai and promised to work for a better Afghanistan.

Obama is back to his three alternatives: declare victory and get out, stand and fight, or send in lots of troops. He desperately wants to avoid sending in more troops, but the other options mean defeat relatively soon.

What Obama does next will be extremely interesting.

Hillary Clinton, in Today's News 11.02.09

Hillary Clinton. She's done it again. Another disastrous trip as Secretary of State to foreign lands. Clinton is proving to be one of the worst Secretaries of State in the nation's history.

1). Clinton made her first official trip to Pakistan to, as the Wall Street Journal put it, "to smooth relations strained by terms of an American aid package for the key South Asian ally."  WSJ: "Clinton said she will seek to clarify issues related to the aid during her meetings with Pakistani officials...while also working to forge closer economic, diplomatic and cultural ties."

And so, what happened?  "A stream of people grilled Mrs. Clinton on the merits of a new multibillion-dollar US aid bill for Pakistan that they claimed was tailored to constrain Islamabad's military and nuclear programs. Lahore university students argued that the Pentagon's drone strikes against Taliban and al Qaeda militants in Pakistan's tribal regions were increasingly causing violence to spill out into their country's major cities and urban areas."

Of course, Clinton took the bait, lost her cool, and insulted her hosts. "In a particularly blunt exchange, Mrs. Clinton told a gathering of newspaper editors that the US didn't believe Pakistan's government had done all it could to hunt al Qaeda leaders...whom Washington believes are still hiding in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan."

In other words, Clinton succeeded in doing just the opposite of her stated goal of smoothing relations.

In her defense, it is possible that Clinton was set up by the Obama team. Obama's people were surely aware of the Pakistan discontent with the new aid package. They could have reasoned, 'send Clinton and let her take the heat.' It's a lose-lose situation for her, and a winner for the Obama people.

2). After the Pakistan debacle, Clinton travelled to mid-east for two days "aimed at getting the Palestinians and the Israelis to return to peace talks..." (WSJ). To which one can only comment, 'you got to be kidding!!'

Clinton thinks that she can swoop in for a couple of days and the forces who have been battling for decades will suddenly recognize her superior wisdom and return to negotiations.

Even so, she managed to screw things up a bit further. She positioned herself closer to the Israeli policy of settlements, and as a result the Palestinians strengthened their resolve to stay away from negotiations.

In other words, Clinton achieved just the opposite of what she set out to do.

The media, of course, gives her every break. But, the Obama team knows all the better why it is crucial to keep her away from the administration's key foreign policy discussions and actions.

One other comment: in reading Clinton's various statements on these trips, it becomes clear that her knowledge of the situations is no greater than what one would get from reading the New York Times and the Washington Post.