U.S., Russian relations key to global stability

U.S. , RUSSIAN NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN

POSSIBLE CLASSIC WIN, WIN DEAL

 

In the last few days we have seen polite saber rattling by Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. Talk of a renewed cold war and an escalation of nuclear arsenals is a very unlikely result. While there are some in the U.S. establishment, and I am sure in the Russian as well, who long for the glory days of the cold war, it is not really on the agenda of Vladimir Putin or Donald Trump. Putin needs to increase the economic viability of the Russian economy, Trump wants to stimulate the real economy of the United States. A cold war would not be in the best interest of either.                                        

 

We can expect to see tweets and speeches that will make many on both sides anxious, We can expect to see the anxiety level in the Ukraine be increased. Then we can expect to see a deal were the Ukraine situation will be solved, probably with guarantees by the Ukraine to respect the rights of Russians in eastern Ukraine, a right to join the EU, even though they may be having second thoughts about that, a monitored referendum vote  by the citizens of Crimea, a pledge by the U.S. of not accepting Ukraine into NATO or any further expansion of NATO. This of course is all open to negotiation, but it is in the best interest of the Ukraine, Russia and the U.S.

 

The result of such a deal will allow the sanctions on Russia to be removed by the U.S. and the EU. This could result in the opening of the vast resources of Russia to be developed with the help of European and U.S. companies. This would be a plus for the U.S., EU, and Russia. The normalization of relations with the Ukraine is a must for the Ukraine as Russia was its largest trading partner. It is also dependent on energy from Russia. Both Russian and the Ukraine has suffered from the conflict and both should be ready for a new normalcy.

 

What is needed is the type of respect that was shared between the U.S.and Russia during the Reagan era. It was a pragmatic type of respect that has been lost by harsh words by many in the U.S. continually attempting to humiliate Putin and the Russian people. Putin and Russia should be afforded the same kind of respect that our politicians are willing to give to Fidel Castro and the leaders of Saudi Arabia and China. While having disagreements and accepting differences in cultures, the U.S and Russia have many more parallel interests than conflicting interests.

 

If such a deal could be made, many more things could be possible, such as a unified attempt to settle the Syrian civil war and the elimination of ISIS,  increased leverage in negotiations with Iran and China, and a more prosperous Russia and the United States.

While the difficulties with the Ukraine situation are complicated and difficult, it is in the best interests of all to find a solution.  New players and open minds may be just what is needed.

Effects of psychological warfare

HOW TO COPE WITH POST ELECTION STRESS

MORE DISCUSSION IS NEEDED, NOT LESS

 

 

Now that the election is almost 2 months in the past and all the recounts, electoral college votes, scapegoating are over, it is time to move on. Many will now be coming together with family and friends for the holidays, often having voted for different candidates in the election. Are you going to avoid speaking of the election or discussing anything of substance for the foreseeable future, is it just too painful to deal with? What is really needed is more discussion, not less, but there should be a few ground rules beforehand. The candidates and their personalities should not be discussed, labels need to be thrown out,  judgments on the character of voters should not be made. What does need to be discussed are the issues and how to accomplish the things that more people may be in agreement than they realize.

 

It is true that this election has been the most contentious, entertaining, emotion arousing election of out lifetime, so far. Whether you like it or not, issues that have been simmering for decades where brought to the surface. All voters have been subjected to psychological warfare, by the campaigns and the media like never before. These tactics have an emotional effect that does not end with the election. It was primarily an election of voter suppression, not an honest debate about issues. Many voters are still suffering from this onslaught. Both sides are equally guilty. The actual vote count is actually lower than some previous elections, voter suppression was successful.

 

I believe that if people of good faith, decide to discuss the issues that are important to America we will find that we may agree in more areas than we think. We may disagree on how to accomplish our goals. We are all Americans and we should be able to see what has not been working, and what has. We need to put aside self interest and make an effort to listen to and understand both sides of an issue. We see where the media and some political operatives want to continue to stoke the flames of division, this will not help any of us or the nation. There will be some issues where there will be disagreement. It is healthy that many of these debates have been brought out into the open, without debate there will be no solutions. Nothing should be off limits. We often hear from some that we need a discussion about this or that, but as soon as someone voices opposition to the political correct point of view, the labels are applied and the discussion ends. If you are old enough to vote, you should be old enough to have an honest debate.

Payback is a bitch!

WHY WOULD FOREIGN COUNTRIES INTERFERE IN U.S. ELECTIONS?

WHEN YOU PLAY THE GAME SOMETIMES YOU LOSE

Obama, the Democrats, and the Clinton campaign are outraged that a foreign government may have interfered in the U.S. election by hacking e-mails of the Democratic committee and the Clinton Campaign and forwarding them to Wikileaks. They claim they believe it to be the Russians and their motive was to help Donald Trump win the election. Well, if you want to start talking about foreign governments interfering in the election process of other governments, you don't have to look any further than the Obama administration and also the state department under Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry..

You can start with the U.S. government support of the ousting of  Victor Yanukovych, the elected leader in the Ukraine in 2014. The Ukraine situation is a complicated matter, The EU led by Germany would like the Ukraine to align itself with the EU. The U.S. would like to have the Ukraine as a member of NATO. The Russians oppose this set up. The Ukraine also has not been able to pay for the energy that it is dependent on from Russia. The U.S. Assistant Secretary of state Victoria Nuland arranged for the investment of $5 billion of support through the National Endowment of democracy to fund 65 projects for the training of activists, journalists and business groups to support the EU, U.S. position. The U.S. also had activists oppose the secession of Crimea from the Ukraine in the same year.

It was also a fact that starting in 2008 the U.S. government funded the training of Egyptian activists to assist in the overthrow of the Mubarak government of Egypt in 2011. They also supported the election of  Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim brotherhood that followed. Many of these people were eventually detained by the Egyptian Military and their release was negotiated by the U.S. government.

Then, of course, there was the 2015 Israeli election, where Jeremy Bird the National field director of the 2012 Obama Campaign, through a U.S.funded non-profit group One Voice, attempted to defeat Benjamin Netanyahu as leader of Israel.

So these are just some of the examples of U.S. attempts to interfere in the elections of foreign countries in the Obama/Clinton years. This has given many players the motive to pay-back the Obama administration for their activities. These countries all have the ability to perform these activities. It is doubtful any would know for sure that the Trump administration will be beneficial to them, but they did know that an extension of the Obama Administration would not be in their best interest. It is not unusual for hackers, scammers and political operatives to rent servers in Russia and the Ukraine to hide the identities of the real players. It is true that good hackers are never found out, only amateurs.

Reorganization, Student achievement, taxes

NORTHWESTERN LEHIGH SCHOOL BOARD DEC. 7 MEETING

 

 

The Northwestern Lehigh school board stayed with the present President, Willard Dellicker and Vice President, Paul Fisher for the 2017 term. No other changes of board duties were decided at this meeting.

 

There was a presentation on Student achievement, it showed  a positive increase in achievement in the middle school and high school. This information can be viewed by clicking on the link for the school at the right of this page and clicking on Board Docs and then on the Dec. 7 meeting, then agenda, and then on student achievement.

 

Mr. Fisher suggested that the board consider preserving all videos and audio recordings of meetings. He also asked that Berkheimer Ass. would be asked to report on the Earned Income Tax receipts on a quarterly basis and also to broaden the analysis to have a better view of the status of the taxpayers of the district.

 

Former board member Joe Reiter brought to the attention of the board that a recent article in the Morning Call concerning the proposed building project misstated the effects of the proposed tax increases. It stated that the increase would be around $60. a year. But the reality is after 3 years, taxes on a $200,000 home with a 2% increase for 3 years would be an additional $195.00 a year. This would raise the present tax of $3192.00 to $3387. per year.  He also suggested that the Senior citizen and low income tax rebate be tied to the Act 1 Index, as after a few years of tax increases the rebate would be eaten up by the tax increases.

All citizens are welcome at all meetings held at the school, see the school webpage for the dates.

Every Matador needs a bull, the angrier the better

COME Onnnnnnnn, CALIFORNIA

TRUMP HASN'T EVEN WAVED THE RED FLAG YET

 

 

President-elect Trump most likely is ecstatic. California has now volunteered to be the first major foil for his presidency. They are attempting to pass legislation that states they will not cooperate or assist in the deportation of any illegal immigrants on a statewide basis. It doesn't  matter if they are career criminals or not. This amounts to making California a sanctuary state. The California bull is snoring and pawing the ground, but we will see if more reasonable heads prevail. California in their puffed up, out of touch, better than everyone attitude is about to embark on a game they cannot win. While this may not be the first item on the Trump administration agenda it will be addressed. They are a bull without horns. The rest of the states, who don't view them in the same light as they view themselves, will more likely watch and cheer as the matador proceeds to stick this bull with banderillas, one after another, until they realize they cannot win this contest and cry uncle or should we say, Donald.  Of course the bull will in the end be spared and welcomed back into the fold. The Matador will be a hero to the rest of the country and the precedent of Federal power as it pertains to immigration will be preserved.

I am a states rights advocate.  I believe if we would have left many issues up to the states we would have a more united country. The framers in their wisdom knew that not every state would see everything the same. The 10th amendment would be a restraint on the Federal Government and a relief valve that allowed people to live in a state that represented them. However, there is a clear constitutional right of the federal government and the congress to set the laws and standards for immigration. Not long ago, the federal government sued Arizona to refrain from enforcing immigration law, even when they were abiding by the rules set in Federal law. California cannot set up its own immigration laws. The FBI has records of every arrest and conviction, they have the information they need to deport illegal criminals. Will California refuse to send arrest and conviction records to the FBI?, I don't think so. All background checks in the country use these records, child care facilities, schools, employers, government of all types. It will be possible for the federal government to send in hundreds of Border Patrol, Immigration, Homeland Security and the FBI to implement immigration law. California can also loose billions in federal dollars tied to their law enforcement cooperation. The court can not save them, as they don't have a leg to stand on.

It is amazing, that the largest state in the union would attempt to test this new President in this way. It is just the type of confrontation that will play into the showmanship of Mr. Trump.

Northwestern Lehigh is Trump country

TRUMP WINS NORTHWESTERN LEHIGH BY 68.8%

MIRRORS OTHER RURAL AREAS

 

Donald Trump won the 6 voting districts in the Northwestern Lehigh area by an impressive 68.8% to Hillary Clinton's 30.9%. Total votes were 5402 for trump. 2413 for Clinton. 244 for Johnson and 48 for Stein.

                                                    TRUMP               CLINTON           JOHNSON          STEIN

Lynn Township New Tripoli       853                       420                        40                       14

Lynn Lynnville                            283                       122                        14                         1

Lynn Jacksonville                        381                       140                        10                         0

Lowhill                                         833                       416                        36                         7

Weisenberg                                1885                       823                        90                        13

Heidelberg                                 1167                       492                        54                        13

 

Total                                           5402                      2413                      244                       48

 

 

Everyone should be proud to have cast their vote, whether for a win or loss. Everyone's vote does count.

 

 

Yes, all votes should be counted

THERE SHOULD BE ELECTION AUDITS FOR EVERY ELECTION

LETS CHECK REGISRATIONS

 

 

So there are recounts in Michigan Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. This is to see if the machines are correct and the absentee votes counted. This is a good thing. Is this really just a distraction, when real opportunity for voter fraud is in the registration of ineligible voters.

 

I think it would be a good thing that after every election, particularly for the even year federal elections, that there should be an election audit in every state. This could be decided when polls close on election day by a random pick of districts in different parts of the state. It could be performed by volunteers from both parties. They would hold all the machines and records in those districts selected. They would check the machines, the books, and all the registered voters in those districts. It would only need to be 12 or 20 districts or whatever should be decided. It would go a long way to instill confidence in the election system. If mostly volunteers are used, it would not be a major cost to the state.

 

Everything else is audited, why not a random spot check of elections?