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From: Gregory Brown To: undisclosed-recipients:; Bcc: jeevacation@gmail.com Subject: Greg Brown's Weekend Reading and Other Things.... 09/08/2013 Date: Sun, 08 Sep 2013 08:17:04 +0000 Attachments: Experts_Fear_That_U.S._Plan_to_Strike_Syria_Overlooks_Risks_Anne_Bamard_&_Alissa Rubin)NYT_August_30,2013.pdf; Experts_to_Obama,fiereis_What_to_Do_in_Syria_Daniel_Halper_The_Weekly_Standard August_27,2013.pdf; these_Are_The_36_Countries_That_Have_Better_Healthcare_Systems_Adam_Taylor_and_ Samuel_Blackstone_Business_Insider-June_29,2012.pdf; David_Frost_Deadjegendary_Broadcaster_Dies_At_74_AP_September_l ,_2013.pdf; Syria_Vote_Complicates_Congressional_Fiscal_Debate_David_Lawder_Reuters_09_01_20 13.pdf; Obama_Budget._Whats_Inside_Sam_Stein_Huff_Post_04_05_2013.pdf; Microsoft_To_Acquire_Nokia's_Mobile_Phone_Business_For_$7.2_Billion_Reuters_Septe mber_02,_2013.pdf; Verizon,yodafone_Agree_On_$130_Billion_DealiCate_Holtottllainaionas_Reuters_ September_02,2013.pdf; The_Hardest_and_Most_Productive_Workers_in_Europe_Floating_Path_Feb_27,_2012.pdf; 10_hardest_working_countries_CNN_Money_September_2,_2013.pdf; The_5_most_competitive_countries_in_the_world_CNN_Money_September_2,_2013.pdf; The_Twenty_Most_Productive_Nations_In_The_World_Douglas_McIntyre_24- 7_Wall_St._.pdf; US_manufacturing_expands_atfastest_rate_since_July_2011_Dominic_Rushe_The_Guardi an_September_3,2013.pdf; World's_shortest_work_weeks_CNN_Money_September_2013.pdf; On_the_Edge_of_Poverty,_at_the_Center_of_a_Debate_on_Food_Stamps_Sheryl_Stolberg_ NYT_September_4,2013.pdf; Brutality_of_Syrian_Rebels_Posing_Dilemma_in_West_C.J._Chiviers_NYT_September_5, _20I3.pdf; What_the_intelligence_on_Syria_shows,_in_one_graphic_Sean_Sullivan_TWP_September_ 6,_2013.pdf; If_Congress_Says_Not_On_Syria,_What_Happens_Nextiason_Linkins_Huff_Post_Septe mber_6,_2013.pdf Inline-Images: image.png; image(1).png; image(2).png; image(3).png; image(4).png; image(5).png; image(6).png; image(7).png; image(8).png; image(9).png; image(10).png; image(11).png; image(12).png; image(I3).png; image(I4).png; image(I5).png; image(16).png; image(17).png DEAR FRIEND EFTA01133557 In the early 196os I met James Baldwin in New York when he was meeting with my father. Being a young teenager he was pleasantly surprised that I was a fan of his writings, and later on when he wrote The Fire Next Time and Blues For Mister Charlie, I began to really understand why. In the early 197os I reconnected with James and he and legendary raconteur and bar/club owner Johnny Romero, both became my godfathers in Paris. I still treasure the many times that I spent with Baldwin in the South of France, Paris and in New York, surrounded with the likes of Marlon Brando, Charlton Heston, Yves Montand, Paco Rabanne, Alvin Ailey, Beauford Delaney, Josephine Baker, other prominent writers, artist, philosophers along with a host of colorful characters. Two weeks ago on PBS's AMERICAN MASTERS they rebroadcast — The Price of the Ticket which is a wonderful video biography based on a is a collection of essays spanning more than 4o years by James Baldwin that was published in 1985. The film was originally broadcast August 14, 1989 on PBS. Video Website: http://video.pbs.org/video/2365066093/ James Baldwin (1924-1987) was at once a major twentieth century American author, a Civil Rights activist and, for two crucial decades, a prophetic voice calling Americans, Black and white, to confront their shared racial tragedy. James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket captures on film the passionate intellect and courageous writing of a man who was born black, impoverished, gay and gifted. Please also feel free to look at the attached review of the book review by Terry Teachout in December 1985. One of the most wonderful things about being with James Baldwin was that you were always surrounded by interesting people discussing engaging things, usually in corner of a Parisian cafe or in the cave of the Relais Bison (Baldwin'sfavorite Parisian hotel back in the day) or the veranda of his and other friend's homes in the South of France, over drinks, coffee and in a haze of smoke from endless cigarettes. EFTA01133558 And the video, James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket uses striking archival footage to evoke the atmosphere of Baldwin's formative years - the Harlem of the 3os, his father's fundamentalist church and the émigré demimonde of postwar Paris. Newsreel clips from the '6O's record Baldwin's running commentary on the drama of the Civil Rights movement. The film also explores his quiet retreats in Paris, the South of France, Istanbul and Switzerland - places where Baldwin was able to write away from the racial tensions of America. Writers Maya Angelou, Amiri Baraka, Ishmael Reed, William Styron and biographer David Leeming place Baldwin's work in the African-American literary tradition - from slave narratives and black preaching to their own contemporary work. The film skillfully links excerpts from Baldwin's major books - Go Tell it on the Mountain, Notes of a Native Son, Another Country, The Fire Next Time, Bluesfor Mister Charlie, If Beale Street Could Talk - to different stages in Black-white dialogue and conflict. Towards the end of his life, as America turned its back on the challenge of racial justice, Baldwin became frustrated but rarely bitter. Still he kept writing and reaching in the strengthened belief that: "All men are brothers - That's the bottom line." Please enjoy and I hope that The Price of the Ticket touches you as much as James Baldwin inspired me. ****** This poem, written by an African child was nominated for the Best Poem of 2005. Colour When I born, I black;When I grow up I black;When I go in sun I black; When I scared, I black;When I sick, I black; And when I die, I still black; And U White fellows; When U born, U pink; When U grow up, U white When U go in sun, U red; When U cold, U blue; When U scared, U yellow; When U sick, U green; When U die, U grey; And U call me coloured Clever Typographic Posters That Visualize The Meanings Of Words Website: http://designtaxi.comffiews/360214/Clever-Typographic-Posters-That-Visualize-The-Meanings-Of-Words/ EFTA01133559 ****** A week ago Saturday, famed British journalist, comedian, writer, media personality and TV host Sir David Paradine Frost, OBE (7 April 1939 — 31 August 2013), died at the aged 94, on board the cruise ship Queen Elizabeth, on which he had been engaged as a speaker. After graduating from the University of Cambridge, Frost rose to prominence in the UK when he was chosen to host the satirical program That Was the Week That Was in 1962. His success on this show led to work as a host on US television. He became known for his television interviews with senior political figures, among them The Nixon Interviews with former United States President Richard Nixon in 1977, which were adapted into a stage play and film. Frost was one of the 'Famous Five' who were behind the launch of ITV breakfast station TV-am in 1983. For the BBC, he hosted the Sunday morning interview program Breakfast with Frost from 1993 to 2005. He spent two decades as host of Through the Keyhole. From 2006 to 2012 he hosted the weekly program Frost Over the World on Al Jazeera English and from 2012, the weekly program The Frost Interview. I first meet David Frost setting next to him on a Concorde flight when he was doing weekly television shows in both New York and London and commuting each week between the US and UK. And then in 2001 we met again when I dated one of his wife's (Carina) closest girlfriends and on a number of times found myself with their other girlfriends husbands (when the girls went out on a hen nights) who included the likes of Sting, Andrew Lloyd Weber, Maurice and Charles Saatchi and Frost. Like James Baldwin, he was an interesting man who surrounded himself with amazing people and many stories entertained me and others time and again. Prior to his marriage and settling into domesticity with Carina and his young children, Frost was known for dating some of the most glamorous women in the world, including (black) American actress Diahann Caroll. Website: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-207 162-57600899Jsir-david-frost-famed-for-nixon- interviews-dead-at-74/ In a television career that spanned half a century across both sides of the Atlantic, Frost interviewed a long list of the world's most powerful and famous, including virtually every British prime minister and U.S. president of his time. He also was a gifted entertainer, a born TV host, and his amiable and EFTA01133560 charming personality was often described as the key to his success as interviewer. "Being interviewed by him was always a pleasure but also you knew that there would be multiple stories the next day arisingfrom it," former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said. Blair's former communications chief, Alastair Campbell, added on Twitter that Frost was "one of best interviewers because his sheer niceness could lull you into saying things you didn't intend." Frost, 94, died of a heart attack on Saturday night aboard the Queen Elizabeth cruise ship, where he was due to give a speech, his family said. The BBC said it received the statement from Frost's family saying it was devastated and asking "for privacy at this difficult time." The cruise company Cunard said its vessel left the English port of Southampton on Saturday for a io-day cruise in the Mediterranean. Frost, the son of a Methodist preacher began television hosting while still a student at Cambridge University, and soon after graduation was approached by a BBC producer to front "That Was The Week That Was." He went on to host a sketch show called "The Frost Report" and became a regular figure on U.S. television. Behind the camera, Frost also co-founded two television companies, London Weekend Television and breakfast station TV-am, churning out a prolific amount of programs. Over the years his interviewees included a wide-ranging roster of politicians and celebrities, from Russia's Mikhail Gorbachev to Pakistan's Benazir Bhutto to leading entertainment figures such as Orson Welles and the Beatles. He was the only person to have interviewed the last eight British prime ministers and the seven U.S. presidents in office from 1969 to 2008. Besides the Nixon interviews, one of the more memorable moments included a tense interview with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher over the sinking of the Argentine warship during the Falklands conflict. "He could be -- and certainly was with me -- both a friend and a fearsome interviewer," Cameron said. In later years Frost kept up his probing questioning of political leaders, although some came to criticize him for being "too nice" to his subjects. Somewhat incongruously, he also hosted a game show called "Through the Keyhole" that spied on the homes of celebritiesfrom 1987 to 2008. "His sense of humor shone through everything he did," Richard Brock, a producer who worked with Frost at Al- Jazeera, told the broadcaster. "He wasn't all heavyweight, political interviews. He really got a kick out of some of the lighter stuff" Frost, who wrote about a dozen books, won numerous awards and was knighted in 1993. Most recently he was hosting programs for Al-Jazeera English, where he had worked since its launch several years ago. As a young man from modest means, Frost was the victim of snobbery by the blue-bloods in Cambridge, which sparked both his ambition and helped him hone the skills that made him almost impossible to dislike. But the biggest laugh that he made have left on those Cambridge snobs, is that this unassuming British version of Dick Cavett left a $200 million estate and became an icon of his generation. "Unless African Americans put together a coherent educational and economic strategy, they risk becoming a permanent underclass within 20 years. Black business people will have to lead; you must build an alternative economic and educational system as soon as you can. For 400 years, we've been in the lowest levels of a real-l(fe Monopoly game. You do not have enough wealth and power to be competitive. And time is running out on you." Dr. Claude Anderson THE FIVE STORY BUILDING PLAN EFTA01133561 First Floor: Economics Second Floor: Politics Third Floor: Law Enforcement, Police Departments, Court and Judicial Systems Media Fifth Floor: Education System "One had better diefighting against injustice than die like a dog or a rat in a trap." -Ida B. Wells You can substitute (African American) with Gay, Hispanic, Women, Native Americans, Immigrants, Disabled, Iraqi Veterans and Elderly, and like the Civil Rights Movement in the 195os and 196os taught a whole generation that you can go out and take charge of your own history with thesefive building blocks are essentialfor advancement and societal change. ****** Last Monday was Labor Day, which is a holiday celebrated on the first Monday in September. It is a celebration of the American labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of their country. Labor Day was promoted by the Central Labor Union and the Knights of Labor, who organized the first parade in New York City. After the Haymarket Massacre, US President Grover Cleveland feared that commemorating Labor Day on May 1 could become an opportunity to commemorate the affair. Thus, in 1887, it was established as an official holiday in September to support the Labor Day that the Knights favored. In 1888, Matthew Maguire, a machinist, first proposed the holiday while serving as secretary of the CLU (Central Labor Union) of New York. Others argue that it was first proposed by Peter J. McGuire of the American Federation of Labor in May 1882, after witnessing the annual labor festival held in Toronto, Canada. Oregon was the first state to make it a holiday on February 21, 1887. By the time it became a federal holiday in 1894, thirty states officially celebrated Labor Day. Following the deaths of a number of workers at the hands of the U.S. military and U.S. Marshals during the Pullman Strike, the United States Congress unanimously voted to approve rush legislation that made Labor Day a national holiday; President Grover Cleveland signed it into law a mere six days after the end of the strike. The September date originally chosen by the CLU of New York and observed by many of the nation's trade unions for the past several years was selected rather than the more widespread International Workers' Day because Cleveland was concerned that observance of the latter would be associated with the nascent Communist, Syndicalist and Anarchist movements that, though distinct from one another, had rallied to commemorate the Haymarket Affair in International Workers' Day. All U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and the territories have made it a statutory holiday. EFTA01133562 To truly celebrate this tradition, I suggest that everyone see the powerful documentary "Inequality for All" which was an unexpected hit at the Sundance film festival earlier this year, arguing that US capitalism has fatally abandoned the middle classes while making the super-rich richer. Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, a noted economic expert, is featured in this new documentary. The film looks at the American economy through the lens of widening income inequality—currently at historic highs—and explores the gap's effects on the economy and democracy. "When you're living in it day-to-day, it doesn't hit you with the sameforce as when you step back and see that this has been growing and wideningfor a very long time,"Jacob Kornbluth, the movie's director, said on the show. The federal minimum wage is currently $7.25 per hour. Reich has argued in the past for the wage to increase to $9 per hour. Strikes involving thousands of fast-food workers across seven cities launched earlier this week demanding a base wage of $15 per hour and the right to form a union. But there isn't one specific factor to close the gap. Education, structural infrastructure investments, tax reform, and capital markets all contribute to the problem, Reich said. "These structural problems are endemic around the world, but it doesn't mean we've got to throw up our hands and say, 'We can't do anything about them,' "he said on Morning Joe. "If we don't actually get to work dealing with these really savage inequalities, we are going to have an economy that's not working." Infant mortality rates are worse in the United States than in other industrialized countries, and Americans' median wage decreases instead of increases. INEQUALITY FOR ALL Trailer Website: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIONaFG2B_kttt=138 Robert Reich, the Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration and the subject of the upcoming documentary "Inequalityfor All," shares a Labor Day message about how we can do better by workers. In the video, he announces a petition campaign to pressure McDonald's' and Walmart's CEOs to pay their workers a fair wage of $15/hour. I. Living Wage 2. Larger Earn Income Tax Credit (E.I.T.C.) 3. Universal Affordable Childcare 4. Good Schools and access to College or Technical Schools 5. Universal Affordable Health Insurance 6. Union Rights, so that workers can have a voice at the table and bargaining power EFTA01133563 Synopsis A passionate argument on behalf of the middle class, INEQUALITY FOR ALL features Robert Reich —professor, best-selling author, and Clinton cabinet member—as he demonstrates how the widening income gap has a devastating impact on the American economy. The film is an intimate portrait of a man who's overcome a great deal of personal adversity and whose lifelong goal remains protecting those who are unable to protect themselves. Through his singular perspective, Reich explains how the massive consolidation of wealth by a precious few threatens the viability of the American workforce and the foundation of democracy itself. In this INCONVENIENT TRUTH for the economy, Reich uses humor and a wide array of facts to explain how the issue of economic inequality affects each and every one of us. BY THE WAY: The United States is the only developed country in the world without a single legally required paid vacation day or holiday. By law, every country in the European Union has at least four work weeks of paid vacation, with Austria and Portugal workers receiving 35 (22 vacations and 13 paid holiday days a year). At just 4.5% in 2012, Austria had a lower unemployment rate than any other country in the eurozone. Possibly helping to keep unemployment so low, Austria has a long-standing apprenticeship program that helps find employment for much of the country's youngest workers, although the popularity of the program has faded in recent decades. ****** As a result of my researching the origin of Labor Day and income inequality, I starting looking at how Workers in the U.S. compared with their counterparts in Europe and elsewhere around the world. Of any industrialized nations, U.S. workers ranked #7 as the hardest workers, compared to the average workers of #1 Mexico, who work 519 more hours per year and earn less than a fifth of their pay. Still four out of five American employees work at least 35 hours a week, and the country is the only developed nation not to guarantee workers a right to some vacation time each year. And unlike most European countries, U.S. labor laws also don't guarantee workers access to paid sick leave or maternity leave. Finally workers in the mining and logging industry tend to work the longest hours, averaging 44 hours a week. On top of this, a new survey reveals that nearly all employed Americans-91 percent—do work-related tasks during their personal time. And U.S. workers are much more likely to work longer hours during personal time than counter-parts in Australia and Great Britain, according to the Harris Interactive survey sponsored by social business solutions provider Jive Software. A total of 37 percent of employed Americans work to or more hours per week during their supposed personal time, compared with 27 percent of Australians and 18 percent of British workers, according to the survey of 2,034 workers. However, around 90 percent of all Aussies and Brits reported doing some work in their personal time, albeit to a lesser degree than U.S. workers. Half of all American and Aussie workers said they do some work while on vacation, while just 34 percent of British workers do. About 14 percent of workers in all three countries reported they do not take vacations at all. Some 63 percent of Americans said they would spend more time with family and friends if they had to more hours a week, while 43 percent said they'd use that time to exercise. Things are not always as they seem. Conventional wisdom would dictate that Germany has the hardest workers due to their booming manufacturing industry and economic growth. Not all statistics appear in Germany's favor though. It turns out that Greeks work the most hours out of all the European countries, and Germany doesn't even crack the top to. In fact, Germany ranks second behind only the Netherlands in least hours worked. BBC News put together this table of the hardest and most productive workers, and the other end of the scale. EFTA01133564 Europe's top 10 and bottom 10 Most hours Most Fewest Least worked productive hours productive worked 1 Greece Luxembourg Netherlands Poland 2 Hungary Norway Germany Hungary 3 Poland Ireland Norway Turkey 4 Estonia Belgium France Estonia 5 Turkey Netherlands Denmark Czech Rep 6 Czech Rep France Ireland Portugal 7 Italy Germany Belgium Slovakia 8 Slovakia Denmark Austria Greece 9 Portugal Sweden Luxembourg Slovenia 10 Iceland Austria Sweden Iceland The UK ranks 14th both in terms of hours worked and in terms of productivity Source: OECD So is this table indicative of the efforts exerted in European countries? Not exactly. Greece contains many workers who are self-employed fanners and are not taken into account for these statistics. Farmers generally work very long hours and if included would drive up the average. Another reason is that part-time workers are included here, and Germany has many people who are in the labor force but only employed part-time. This brings down their average number of hours worked. Americans work an average of 38 hours a week, even after factoring in part-time jobs. While the Dutch have the shortest work week of any industrialized nations — averaging 29 hours a week. Dutch laws promote a work-life balance and protect part-time workers. All workers there are entitled to fully paid vacation days, maternity and paternity leave. A law passed in 2000 also gives workers the right to reduce their hours to a part-time schedule, while keeping their job, hourly pay, health care and pro- rated benefits. To my surprise the average hours per week in Germany is 35, as part-time work is becoming increasingly common. Germany has had work-sharing programs in place for decades, but made a special push amid the global economic crisis to persuade more employers to reduce hours, as an alternative to laying off workers. As part of the policy, known as Kurzarbeit in German, the government partially reimburses workers for their lost wages. Work sharing is partly credited with saving jobs and lowering the country's unemployment rate. Germany's unemployment was recently around 5%, whereas it remains above 7% in the United States. Also to my surprise is that workers in Italy work on average 36 hours per week and like Germany the Italian government has encouraged work-sharing for decades. Meanwhile, the maximum work week for full-time employees is 4o hours, and overtime is limited to 8 hours on top of that. Employers can EFTA01133565 face fines if workers exceed that amount. Workers are also entitled to at least four weeks of paid vacation each year. ******* The 5 most competitive countries in the world The U.S. has regained its standing as the world's most competitive country, according to the latest rankings from Swiss business school IMD. 1. UNITED STATES The United States has regained top billing in the IMD world competitiveness rankings, after losing out in 2012 to Hong Kong. This year's strong performance was attributed to a rebounding financial sector, a wave of innovation and an improved corporate outlook. According to business executives surveyed by IMD, doing business in America is an attractive proposition due to the dynamism of the economy, access to a skilled workforce, easy financing and a strong research and development culture. There are, however, plenty of areas for improvement. Executives panned the U.S. tax code, and "competency of government" ranked very low on a list of factors that are important to business. 2. SWITZERLAND Switzerland, ranked third last year, is prized for its policy stability and predictability. Along with Sweden and Germany, IMD says that Switzerland is part of a group of European powerhouses that rely on diversified, export-driven economies and fiscal discipline to gain an edge. Surveyed executives were less enthusiastic about cost competitiveness, the quality of corporate governance and the competency of government. 3. HONG KONG Formerly top-ranked Hong Kong has fallen to third place this year. But the financial and shipping hub still has plenty of attractive features. Survey respondents said the city's low taxes are a big draw, as is the former British colony's effective legal environment. But the city got poor marks for research and development, labor relations and policy stability. 4. SWEDEN Sweden has risen one spot in the rankings to claim 4th place. While competitiveness across Europe is declining, this Scandinavian country was called a "shining success" by Professor Stephane Garelli, director of the IMD World Competitiveness Center. EFTA01133566 According to IMD's survey of business leaders, the country is attractive because of its political stability, skilled workforce, reliable infrastructure and effective legal environment. But the country's tax regime is considered a clear weakness. 5. SINGAPORE Singapore, second in Asia only to Hong Kong, is a city-state that owes much of its business activity to effective governance. The four top reasons to do business in Singapore? According to survey respondents, they are government competency, reliable infrastructure, an effective legal environment and policy stability. According to IMD, Singapore can improve its competitiveness by strengthening assistance to people on low and middle-incomes, as well as helping firms to keep cost pressures under control. ****** Rachel Maddow To Iraq War Architects: 'You Can Go Now' (VIDEO) Web-link: http://www.huffingtonpost.corn/2013/09/05/rachel-maddow-syria-iraq-war- architectsn3872722.html Last Wednesday night, Rachel Maddow hammered the former Bush administration officials who have sounded off on Syria in recent days. The MSNBC host said that she was "heartened" by the public debate about whether the U.S. should intervene in Syria, but noted that Iraq provided strong reason to not trust the White House's call for military action. "The Bush White House made a case for war that was not true... they lied our country into war," she said. She said that was exactly why °barna is having a hard time making his case on Syria: "because of the way the other guys broke that argument by misusing it, by lying when they made it" EFTA01133567 Maddow turned her attention to cable news, where she said that Donald Rumsfeld and other former Bush administration officials were staging a "real time reunion" to weigh in on Syria. After saying that FEMA chief Michael Brown is not asked to comment on hurricanes and Lance Armstrong is not asked to comment on steroid use, Maddow continued: "If you're an architect or a conspirator or one of the primary actors in the Iraq War—in arguably the grandest and most cravenforeign policy disaster in American history, your opinion is no longer required on matters of war and peace. Please enjoy painting portraits of dogs or something. Painting portraits of yourself in the bathroom, trying to get clean. Please enjoy the loving comfort of yourfamily and loved ones, and your god. But we as a country never ever need to hearfrom you about war, ever again. You can go now." I so agree with Rachel Maddow. One of the reasons why we have lost the trust of our government is because of hypocrites like Rumsfeld and Cheney who obfuscated the truth, distorted evidence and manipulated the intelligence organizations, other government officials, public, press and the international community into supporting their efforts to start a war against Iraq, a country whom had not attacked or even threaten us. And unlike Rand Paul who I truly believe is a serious isolationist, I call "out" hypocrites like Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz whose primary opposition to attacking Syria, is because it was proposed by President Obama and hopefully they will be able to use it in their 2016 Presidential election bid. I am torn in my own support for the US attacking Syria, based on Assad's regime using chemical weapons "WMDs"that killed approximately a thousand people, when more than 100,000 have been killed during this civil war and more than 1 million refugees have fled the country -- especially when it made no sense, as the government military were on the verge of destroying the rebel forces. — But then dictators often over-play their hands, example; Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and Hitler's attacking Russia, both blunders, creating two-flank wars. When making decisions like this, I often urge leaders to ask themselves, "what would Nelson Mandela do?" And somehow when I pose this same moral question, my feeling is that his decision wouldn't be a military solution. Still, if given the current situation, I support attacking and destroying Assad's command & control centers, chemical weapons facilities, military air bases and other strategic targets, so that Assad and others know that there is a price that that will be extracted for any systematic killing by anyone, government or rebels. ******* War is ugly. People who kill or being threaten by death often are killers. War is not humane. This past week the New York Times showed pictures of rebels executing a group of unarmed men whom they said were government soldiers. Currently in Syria there are a number of different factions, you have hard line Islamic fighters, ethnic fighters, secular fights, former loyalist who have joined the rebel efforts to overthrow the Assad Regime and then there are the crazies, who no matter what faction prevails will find a reason to continue fighting, as both power and killing can become intoxicating, so it will be difficult for a number of current warlords (rebels) to give up their arms and relinquish power. Syria is in the middle of a civil war and there are atrocities on all sides. So to believe that we can do anything surgical or easy without being drawn into an untenable situation, where our friends today may end up becoming our foes tomorrow is naive. I respect our President but I think that he made a serious mistake supporting a "red-line" in an effort to win re-election last year. Now having crossing the Rubicon of the red-line, President Obama has to do something and it looks like it will be military. At the same time, John McCain forced language into the Senate Resolution (Section 5) which is so vague that it gives the US latitude to do whatever it wants to affect regime change — which is the ultimate goal for McCain and other hawks, even though they have no solution for stopping the conflict between the rebel factions, who will then fight each other for power and supremacy, after the Assad regime is ousted. Web-link: http://nyti.s/_sr7Q1d7p1 EFTA01133568 If things aren't confusing enough on Thursday, the New York Times published an article by C.J. Chivers titled — Brutality ofSyrian Rebels Posing Dilemma in West, while simultaneously releasing a video of Syrian rebels standing over a group of seven prisoners whose faces pressed in the dirt, and red marks on their back as their rebel commander (Abdul Samad Issa, 37) recited a bitter revolutionary poem. The moment the poem ended, the commander, known as "the Uncle," fired a bullet into the back of the first prisoner's head. His gunmen followed suit, promptly killing all the men at their feet. This scene, documented in a video smuggled out of Syria a few days ago by a former rebel who grew disgusted by the killings, offers a dark insight into how many rebels have adopted some of the same brutal and ruthless tactics as the regime they are trying to overthrow. As the United States debates whether to support the Obama administration's proposal that Syrian forces should be attacked for using chemical weapons against civilians, this video, shot in the spring of 2012, joins a growing body of evidence of an increasingly criminal environment populated by gangs of highwaymen, kidnappers and killers. The video also offers a reminder of the foreign policy puzzle the United States faces in finding rebel allies as some members of Congress, including Senator John McCain, press for more robust military support for the opposition. In the more than two years this civil war has carried on, a large part of the Syrian opposition has formed a loose command structure that has found support from several Arab nations, and, to a more limited degree, the West. Other elements of the opposition have assumed an extremist cast, and openly allied with Al Qaeda. Across much of Syria, where rebels with Western support live and fight, areas outside of government influence have evolved into a complex guerrilla and criminal landscape. That has raised the prospect that American military action could inadvertently strengthen Islamic extremists and criminals. Mr. Issa's father was opposed to President Hafez al-Assad, the father of Syria's current president . He disappeared in 1982, according to Mr. Issa's accounts. Mr. Issa, the aide said, believes his father was killed during a 27-day government crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood that year, known as the Hama massacre. By the time he was a young man, Mr. Issa was vocally anti-government and was arrested and imprisoned twice for a total of nine months, the aide said. When the uprising against Bashar al-Assad started two and a half years ago, the family saw it as a means to try to settle old scores. At first, people who know Mr. Issa said, he was a protester, and then he led fighters in small skirmishes. By last year he was running a training camp in the highlands near Turkey. By this year, EFTA01133569 the aide said, he was gathering weapons from relatives and Arab businessmen he knew from his work as a trader and, at least once, from the Western-supported Supreme Military Council of the Free Syrian Army, the rebel forces. By the spring, his group had taken a resonant name: Jund al-Sham, which it shares with three international terrorist groups, and another group in Syria. Mr. Issa's former aide and two other men who have met or investigated him said he appears to assume identities of convenience. But, they said, one of his tactics has been to promise to his fighters what he calls "the extermination" of Alawites — the minority Islamic sect to which the Assad family belongs, and which Mr. Issa blames for Syria's suffering. This sentiment may have driven Mr. Issa's decision to execute his prisoners in the video, his former aide said. The soldiers had been captured when Mr. Issa's fighters overran a government checkpoint north of Idlib in March. Mr. Issa declared them all criminals, he said, and a revolutionary trial was held. They were found guilty. Mr. Issa, the former aide said, then arranged for their execution to be videotaped in April so he could show his work against Mr. Assad and his military to donors, and seek more financing. The video ends abruptly after his fighters dump the soldiers' broken bodies into a well. One of the participants, a young man wearing a purple fleece jacket, looks into the camera and smiles. There has been much concern among American officials, focused on two groups that acknowledge ties to Al Qaeda. These groups — the Nusra Front and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria — have attracted foreign jihadis, used terrorist tactics and vowed to create a society in Syria ruled by their severe interpretation of Islamic law. They have established a firm presence in parts of Aleppo and Idlib Provinces and in the northern provincial capital of Raqqa and in Deir al-Zour, to the east on the Iraqi border. While the jihadis claim to be superior fighters, and have collaborated with secular Syrian rebels, some analysts and diplomats also note that they can appear less focused on toppling President Bashar al- Assad. Instead, they said, they focus more on establishing a zone of influence spanning Iraq's Anbar Province and the desert eastern areas of Syria, and eventually establishing an Islamic territory under their administration. Other areas are under more secular control, including the suburbs of Damascus. In East Ghouta, for example, the suburbs east of the capital where the chemical attack took place, jihadis are not dominant, according to people who live and work there. And while the United States has said it seeks policies that would strengthen secular rebels and isolate extremists, the dynamic on the ground, as seen in the execution video from Idlib and in a spate of other documented crimes, is evidence that things are more complicated than a contest between secular and religious groups and regime change. A couple of days ago I read an op-ed in The Huffington Post by Gavin de Becker — Fooling Ourselves Into War — that made me again question my support for the US attacking Syria, based on its use of chemical weapons (sarin gas), which coined as a WMD ("Weapons of Mass Destruction') under the Bush Administration. Without a doubt chemical weapons cause unneeded suffering, but so are bullets and bombs. Much reference is being made to the various Geneva Conventions and their prohibition on the use of chemical weapons. Treaties have identified and carved out some forms of killing as distinct from others, taking the position that it makes a profound difference whether people die from bullets, bombs, chemicals, or fire. The distinction most frequently cited is that chemical weapons are indiscriminate. Observers all over Iraq and Afghanistan would say the exact same thing about bombs and missiles, and particularly cluster bombs, delayed-action cluster bombs, and all the "bomblets" that didn't explode until a curious child picked up one of the many small silver orbs found on the ground.' Our best intentions aside, these results are indiscriminate. Another fair objection to chemical weapons is that they cause unneeded suffering, and we can all of course agree that chemical weapons are inhumane, but so are bullets and bombs. Either way, it's all about tissue damage. Between Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, hundreds of thousands of people have suffered and then died from accelerated metal (bullets, shrapnel), and from accelerated gasses (bombs, blast, heat, fire). Chemical weapons happen to damage tissue another way, but it's all about tissue EFTA01133570 damage nonetheless. Chemical weapons conjure (and some can cause) gasping, choking, dying. Bullets, bombs, and white phosphorous often cause the exact same experiences, and the exact same results. The act of identifying one type of lethal weapon as being unacceptable carries with it the implicit endorsement of the other lethal weapons as acceptable. Visible bleeding is hardly the mark of moral or humane killing, and from a moral point of view, is the use of chemical weapons worse than killing thousands of the wrong people some other way? Nowadays, we call those deaths collateral damage, and explain them as a necessary evil. It's a clever phrase, necessary evil, one that acknowledges the pure wrongness of an act, immediately made acceptable by the circular logic that is necessary. Let's be honest here, the U.S. has itself been a persistent presence in the history of alleged war crimes, and as with all such allegations, there are accusers and defenders, evidence and witnesses, denials and admissions (more denials than admissions, perhaps naturally). There are famous examples, such as the intentional mass killing of civilians at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the intentional mass immolation and asphyxiation of civilians during the firebombing of Tokyo and Dresden, the use of napalm, and the more recent abuse and killing of prisoners at Abu Ghraib. There are also less widely-known examples, such as our current use of depleted uranium ammunition, which most countries of the world perceive to be a violation of international prohibitions on "poison or poisoned weapons." Not surprisingly, there are countries that defend our use of depleted uranium ammunition (four of them) -- and countries that oppose it (155 of them), and without trying to prove either case, it's fair to conclude that something the U.S. and its allies use in battle isn't healthy for the civilians who are fortunate enough to survive the intended consequence of contact with munitions. The use of depleted uranium in Fallujah, Iraq in 2004 by American forces led to a huge increase in deformities, cancers and other serious health problems in the local population.... Again.... Collateral Damage.... Drawing an imaginary line in the sand, as the pretext of attacking government forces in Syria, without a defined objective other than regime change is just plain stupid. As Gavin de Becker pointed out in his article, "revolutions succeed when enough of a population has the will to make them succeed. Egypt and Tunisia are both examples in which the relatively unarmed public had the will and the numbers toforce regime change. The public wishfor change was overwhelmingly clear and widespread (in Tunisia,for example, 95% of the country's 8000 lawyers went on strike as a demonstration against the government). In both countries, the governments resisted, there were demonstrations, beatings, tear gas, shootings -- and yet regime change happened nonetheless." And yes chemical weapons are repugnant, but so are almost all conventional weapons too. It's tragic when civilians are killed by their own countrymen. It's tragic when foreign civilians are killed by our countrymen. It's tragic when our soldiers are killed. It's tragic when their soldiers are killed. But none of those tragedies will be influenced by the political posturing this week. Hence we are fooling ourselves into another war, instead of doing everything that we can to come up with a diplomatic solution, or at least a solution where U.S. finger prints are not on the trigger. The conflict in Syria is a civil war. And trying to weaken one side in favor of others, without knowing how the scenario will eventually play out, is really stupid.... I once asked a former head of a major intelligence organization, why one government attached another, his response was because it helped both countries to obfuscate their domestic problems, by playing the morality and patriotism cards. We can see this same scenario being played out today, as Republicans are trying to box the President into a corner, whatever he does. And as a result, the President has to attack Assad's forces to demonstrate his strength internationally, if he wants both Republicans and Democrats in Congress to take his domestic programs seriously. Whether it is an illusion or distraction, the debate today about chemical weapons, does not speak to the core issues that Syria is in a civil war and when the Assad regime is toppled, the conflict will continue until one of the factions prevail. And therefore the debate today should be about seeking a solution to this eventual outcome. • r . ir TT 4• M ....., TT • ••••••• T.& ••• fl 411 EFTA01133571 frith Wht:Ic'S KLADIINU As Arianna Huffington wrote — This week, the White House sought to thrust the nation into military action in the Middle East, claiming that its "high confidence" in our intelligence obviated the need to allow MI. inspectors to complete their work. Sound familiar? It's like a bad summer sequel, with many of the same actors. But like the original, there are many holes in the plot. If "there is no action," the president proclaimed, "that is a danger to our national security." But he didn't say how. Also unexplained: What happens after we strike? Since the decision has been made not to take out Assad, how exactly are we "holding him accountable"? By killing innocent people who had nothing to do with the attack? That actually does affect our security. This time, however, the Coalition of the Unwilling -- one that goes beyond left vs. right — is much larger. Urging action, John Kerry cautioned: "It is directly related to our credibility." On that he is loo percent right. Please feel free to read the attached articles — Experts Fear That U.S. Plan to Strike Syria Overlooks Risks in the New York Times and Experts to Obama: Here Is What to Do in Syria, which was in The Weekly Standard. Mindful of a war weary American public and without the support of America's closest ally the British, Arab League and the United Nations, last week both President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry engaged but Congress and the American people to get their support and approval. What is interesting is seeing Conservatives like Bill Kristol and Liberals which include Secretary of State John Kerry both supporting the use of force against the Assad regime. Bill }Cristo], "It may be that the president believes he ought to get congressional approval before acting against Assad. There is merit to this view. The solution is to ask Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Harry Reid to call the House and Senate back to Washington as soon as possible. Aft!! debate in Congress would be appropriate and desirable. It wouldfocus the American people on what is at stake, instead of leaving the public a bystander watching media commentary on the administration's rhetorical zigs and political zags. We suspect at the end of the day Congress would pass legislation authorizing the use of militaryforce against the Assad regime." Kristol continues: Now those of us who believe that the U.S. must act, and must act decisively, in Syria and beyond, have a two-fold task. We need to persuade the Congress and the country to pass a resolution authorizing the use of force; and we need to persuade the administration (against its predilections) to take strong and decisive action. Both may be difficult. But, as Churchill once remarked, "difficulties mastered are opportunities won." The problem with this is that engaging into the civil war in Syria is a no-win situation for the President, America or the West, as the risks far outweigh any possible outcome, including regime change, which most Middle East experts will end in another civil wars when the different factions now fighting Assad, begin fighting each other in a power grab. And even if regime change ended up in democracy, what kind of democracy and government would form. Will it be corrupt, like in Afghanistan or a theocracy or with a leadership close to our enemies in al Qaeda and Iran. The only other good news this past week for the President was when French President Francois Hollande said that he wants a 'proportional and firm action' and last Sunday, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal called on the international community to take action against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, giving a boost to President Barack Obama's goal of assembling a multinational coalition to intervene in the conflict. Al-Faisal said Saudi Arabia would back a U.S. strike on Syrian government targets, provided the military intervention was "the will of the Syrian people." Think about it, the Royal Family is a dictatorship run by a family, and they are supporting the attach against Assad.... These types of situations create strange and interesting bedfellows... And the Syrian conflict is no different. EFTA01133572 Also last week a big group of foreign policy experts, from across the ideological spectrum, called on President Obama to impose "meaningful consequences on the Assad regime" for their use of chemical weapons. "At a minimum, the United States, along with willing allies and partners, should use standoff weapons and airpower to target the Syrian dictatorship's military units that were involved in the recent large-scale use of chemical weapons. It should also provide vetted moderate elements of Syria's armed opposition with the military support required to identify and strike regime units armed with chemical weapons," the experts write. "Moreover, the United States and other willing nations should consider direct military strikes against the pillars of the Assad regime. The objectives should be not only to ensure that Assad's chemical weapons no longer threaten America, our allies in the region or the Syrian people, but also to deter or destroy the Assad regime's airpower and other conventional military means of committing atrocities against civilian non-combatants. At the same time, the United States should accelerate efforts to vet, train, and arm moderate elements of Syria's armed opposition, with the goal of empowering them to prevail against both the Assad regime and the growing presence of Al Qaeda-affiliated and other extremist rebel factions in the country." The signatories on the letter addressed to President Obama inlcude Senator Joe Lieberman, Bernard-Henri Levy, Karl Rove, Bill Kristol, Elliott Abrams, Leon Wieseltier, and many others. Right now, 66 experts have signed the letter. The problem is that the only true way out of this impossible is through a negotiated diplomatic settlement which currently is in none of the parties' interest, as the rebel forces are only interested in weakening Assad, President Assad is only interested in keeping the status quo, Israel would like to see the US arm the Free Syrian Army who they see are moderate, while at the same time Iran is backing The Nusra Front who are sympathetic to Hamas and al-Qaeda and the Russians just want to mess with us, as it appears that Putin believes that any distraction in the Middle East takes pressure off of him. As Travis Smiley pointed out last Sunday on The Week With George Stepahanopoulos, "why is it that Americans feel that the only way to respond to these types of conflicts is with more aggression/violence?" Obviously there is a solution somewhere between John McCain who is advocating a total military overthrow of Assad and Rand Paul who prefers that the US ignore the Syrian civil war and allow whatever happens to happen. Yes, the Syrian civil war is both a political and moral issue in a region that doesn't go for nuisance and both tests our core principals and willingness. But we have to stop talking about Red Lines and Triggers. Again we have to ask ourselves why violence and military intervention is the first and only answer to every problem that we have, because as Tavis Smiley pointed out mass doses of violence do not solve our problem. Look as Afghanistan and Iraq. More than 100,000 people have died in Syria as a result of the civil war and more than 1,000.000 Syrian children are living as refugees in camps in neighboring countries, so why is the use of chemical weapons the Rubicon that once crossed, demands a military response. By now everyone in the world knows that the United States has to and will attack Assad's forces, if only because President Obama has to save face and so friend or foe doesn't interpret our reluctance of enter this no-win fracas as weakness, which could lead to unintentional consequences outside of diplomacy and the Middle East. But again we have to ask ourselves why do we always reach for the stick before offering the carrot both here and abroad? EFTA01133573 Barack Obama has to be one of the luckiest politicians ever. During his senatorial primary campaign in Illinois in 2004 the campaign of his most-feared opponent imploded spectacularly just a few weeks before polling day. Unsealed divorce papers revealed that Blair Hull's former wife had detailed several allegations of verbal and physical abuse. His ex asked for a restraining order because Hull had threatened to kill her. In a field of eight, Obama won 53% of the vote. In the general election that year, Republican candidate Jack Ryan seemed like a viable challenger for the senate seat until his divorce papers were also unsealed. Ryan, it was alleged, had pressured his ex, Jeri, to go to clubs where people had sex in public. One had "cages, whips and other apparatus hangingfrom the ceiling"; another had mattresses in cubicles. Then John McCain threw several "hail Mary" passes, when he offered to suspend his campaign in order to deal with the country's debt crisis, followed by his selection of first- term Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, nullifying his experience edge. And then Mitt Romney, who as a compromised candidate couldn't inspire the different factions in the Republican Party, even with the help of Clint Eastwood and an empty chair. Now a vote in Congress over whether to launch U.S. attacks against Syria is expected to wreak collateral damage - leaving too little time on Capitol Hill to deal with fast-approaching fall deadlines to fund government agencies and raise the debt limit, increasing the likelihood that U.S. lawmakers will agree to a short-term government funding measure to get them through the fall, postponing for another day any broader deal or big showdowns. Attempting to politically box the President in a corner, the House of Representatives had previously scheduled only nine legislative days in September after they return from summer recess on Sept. 9, prompting analysts to view this as barely enough to pass government funding legislation in time to avoid a federal shutdown as the new fiscal year starts Oct. 1. But now much of that time is likely to be eaten up with a contentious debate over authorizing the use of military force to punish Syria, analysts say. With Republicans and Democrats still deeply divided on how to shrink U.S. debt and federal deficits, the odds for a comprehensive agreement that replaces "sequester" spending cuts and lifts the debt ceiling have fallen dramatically. "Syria has really scrambled an incredibly crowded calendar," said Chris Krueger, a political analyst with Guggenheim Securities in Washington. "I think you have to say that the chance of a short-term extension has increased." The U.S. Treasury said last week that an increase in the $16.7 trillion federal borrowing limit will be needed by mid-October to ensure that the government can continue to meet its payment obligations. Many House Republicans have pledged to use the need to increase the debt ceiling as leverage to demand cuts to federal benefits programs and for delays or the withholding of funds from "Obamacare," President Barack Obama's signature healthcare reforms. But now that Obama has asked Congress to approve limited strikes against Syria, the fiscal questions will have to wait, at least for a while. EFTA01133574 PROVIDING COVER FOR DISAGREEMENT The focus on Syria, however, could provide a convenient excuse for Republicans to agree to short-term extensions that provide two or three months' worth of government funding and borrowing capacity. "Ironically, this crisis over Syria could give everyone a little cover because we're not close to a deal to kill sequester or to raise the debt ceiling. Lawmakers could claim, with justification, that they've been preoccupied with Syria," said Greg Valliere, chief political strategist at Potomac Research in Washington. "On the budget, it increases the likelihood of stop-gap stuff," he added. Denying government funding or borrowing could send a confusing message to U.S. allies and financial markets, analysts say. The bruising debt-limit fight of summer 2011, for instance, caused steep stock market falls and prompted ratings agency Standard and Poor's to strip the United States of its top-tier credit rating. While stop-gap government funding measures have become routine in recent years, markets have also become unnerved by disruptions to government programs and agencies prompted by last- minute decisions. With this brief reprieve lets revisit President Obama's budget as the White House has chosen to stake claim to the middle ground, offering up a mix of modest tax hikes to go along with spending cuts and entitlement reforms that Democrats have long warned against and Republicans have demanded. Off- setting the compromises the President's budget includes several major provisions favored by Progressives. The specifics of the budget are as follows: • The budget would reduce the deficit by $1.8 trillion over ten years -- $600 billion of this reduction would come from revenue raisers, and $1.2 trillion would come from spending reductions and entitlement reforms; • It would change the benefit structure of Social Security (chained-CPI); • It would means test additional programs in Medicare; • All told, it would include $400 billion in health care savings (or cuts); • It would cut $200 billion from other areas, identified by The New York Times as "farm subsidies, federal employee retirement programs, the Postal Services and the unemployment compensation system; " • It would pay for expanded access to pre-K (an Obama priority) by increasing the tobacco tax; • It would set limits on tax-preferred retirement accounts for the wealthy, prohibiting individuals from putting more than $3 million in IRAs and other tax-preferred retirement accounts; • And it would stop people from collecting full disability benefits and unemployment benefits that cover the same period of time. Obama had proposed these policies in various offers in the past and recently were discussed as part of replacement options for the sequester. But as a political tactic, this is a bit of a gamble for the administration. Instead of staking out a progressive plank and starting negotiations from there, the White House is trying to lay claim to the middle ground. Obama is helped here by the fact that the Senate has passed a Democratic-authored budget that is more progressive than theirs -- one that the president supported. Immediately Congressional Republicans trashed the Obama budget. And to the delight of Progressives the White House held firmed with the President saying that he would not accept entitlement reforms without Republicans agreeing to revenue. Please feel free to read the attached articles: Syria Vote Complicates Congressional Fiscal Debate and Obama Budget: What's Inside. And with this new reprieve, I urge everyone to take a second look at President Obama's budget proposal, which with its flaws is still a moderate compromise for both Conservatives and Progressives, and probably the best deal for the country, that can get through this partisan Congress. EFTA01133575 These Are The 36 Countries That Have Better Healthcare Systems Than The US As a follow up to last week's readings I revisited this article in Insider Business by Adam Taylor and Samuel Blackstone — These Are The 36 Countries That Have Better Healthcare Systems Than The US, whereby 12 years ago, the World Health Organization released the World Health Report 2000. Inside the report there was an ambitious task — to rank the world's best healthcare systems. The results became notorious — the US healthcare system came in 1.5th in overall performance, and first in overall expenditure per capita. That result meant that its overall ranking was 37th. The results have long been debated, with critics arguing that the data was out-of-date, incomplete, and that factors such as literacy and life expectancy were over-weighted. So controversial were the results that the WHO declined to rank countries in their World Health Report 2010, but the debate has raged on. In that same year, a report from the Commonwealth Fund ranked seven developed countries on their health care performance — the US came dead last. So, what can we learn from the report? - France Expenditure per capita rank: 4 The French system combines private and public sectors to provide universal health coverage to all. Most citizens receive their insurance through their employer and almost everyone has supplemental private insurance. The majority of medical bills are paid for by the government (funds from payroll and income taxes) and the remainder is footed by individual's supplemental private insurance. EFTA01133576 2 - Italy Expenditure per capita rank: n Italy provides universal health care to the whole population with the 20 regions exercising control and the central government providing regulatory assistance. 3 - San Marino Expenditure per capita rank: 21 San Marino is home to a compulsory, state-funded healthcare system with the option for private coverage. 4 - Andorra Expenditure per capita rank: 23 The Andorra system is very similar to the French system. Run by the government, funds are provided by employees and employers. Only about 8% of citizens do not participate in the state-run system. 5 - Malta Expenditure per capita rank: 37 The Malta system is funded by general taxation through weekly national insurance contributions and offers free coverage for all. 6 - Singapore Expenditure per capita rank: 38 A government-run universal health care system coexists with a private sector in Singapore. The private sector provides most care while the government controls prices. 7 - Spain Expenditure per capita rank: 24 Spain guarantees universal coverage in its constitution and there are no out-of-pocket expenses — aside from prescription drugs. 8 - Oman EFTA01133577 Expenditure per capita rank: 62 Oman's health care system is largely based on local districts, with universal health care offered to all citizens and to all expatriates working in the public sector. 9 - Austria Expenditure per capita rank: 6 Austrian citizens and residents enjoy free access to basic health care, as do as tourists and people staying in Austria on a temporary basis. Everyone must pay into the system, levels of payment determined by an individual's income. io - Japan Expenditure per capita rank: 13 Health insurance in Japan is mandatory, either through an employer-based system or through the national health care program. ii - Norway Expenditure per capita rank: i6 Norway has a universal, tax-funded, single-payer system. All citizens and residents are insured but some pay out of pocket for private and out of state care. 12 - Portugal Expenditure per capita rank: 28 Portugal has a very centralized health care system, with the state-run, single-payer National Health System covering most citizens. An employer based scheme is offered and used by many Portuguese though. ig - Monaco Expenditure per capita rank: 12 The Caisses Sociales de Monaco controls health services in a nation where all citizens are entitled to equal access. Private options are available. - Greece EFTA01133578 Expenditure per capita rank: 3o Greece's national health insurance program is provided by the state through a universal heath care system. Private options are available. 15 - Iceland Expenditure per capita rank: 14 The health care system of Iceland is under complete control by the federal government and every citizen qualifies for health care regardless of their contribution to the system. There is no private sector. 16 - Luxembourg Expenditure per capita rank: 5 Luxembourg has a state-funded, compulsory system with care available to all citizens. Private care is also available. 17 - Netherlands Expenditure per capita rank: 9 Holland's universal health coverage is achieved not through the government, which is used primarily as a regulatory body, but through private insurance companies. This system is based on private insurers competing for business. i8 - United Kingdom Expenditure per capita rank: 26 The government, through the National Health Service, provides the majority of health care. Free at the point of service, the program is funded by taxes. Moves to privatize certain areas have been discussed recently. 19 - Ireland Expenditure per capita rank: 25 Primarily tax funded, the Irish system is free (excluding the taxes citizens pay), offering differing types of coverage depending on one's income. The option of private insurance is available, which offers quicker response rates/less waiting periods. EFTA01133579 20 - Switzerland Expenditure per capita rank: 2 In Switzerland, health care is guaranteed to all citizens. Citizens must buy health insurance and in return, private insurers must offer coverage to all citizens. 21 - Belgium Expenditure per capita rank: 15 The Belgian health care system is mandatory is a mixed public-private system. There are private providers with state-organized reimbursements. 22 - Colombia Expenditure per capita rank: 49 A dual system is used in Colombia, citizens using either the private or the public, subsidized health care system. A little over 6096 of Colombians use the public system. 23 - Sweden Expenditure per capita rank: 7 A decentralized and tax payer funded system, Sweden offers health care to every citizen and will soon extend health care to illegal immigrants as well. 24 - Cyprus Expenditure per capita rank: 39 Cyprus's Ministry of Health provides the government funded health care while private health insurance and care is also offered, with quicker response times and wider selection of personnel and facilities. 25 - Germany Expenditure per capita rank: 3 Germany has the world's oldest universal health care system. Almost 90% of Germans use the public system and the remaining io% use the private system. EFTA01133580 26 - Saudi Arabia Expenditure per capita rank: 63 Saudi Arabia's health care system is mostly run through the government, with the Ministry of Health and other governmental bodies providing 8o% of services. The private sector provides the remaining 20% of services. 27 - Dubai Dubai's exclusive Palm Jumeirah development Expenditure per capita rank: 35 The UAE has a government-funded health care system with a private sector that is small but growing at a considerable rate. The UAE is a hot spot for medical tourism. 28 - Israel Expenditure per capita rank: 19 Universal and compulsory health care typifies Israel's health insurance system, with health care providers consisting of public, private, and semi-private entities. 29 - Morocco Expenditure per capita rank: 99 The Moroccan system includes a public and private sector. The public sector is much larger and offers basic care while the private sector is split between non-profit and for-profit bodies, the latter providing more specialized care and testing services. 3o - Canada Expenditure per capita rank: to Canada has a national health care system with a centralized body setting standards and specifications for the 13 provincial bodies to follow. The provinces provide services and must follow national guidelines to receive funding. 31- Finland Expenditure per capita rank: i8 EFTA01133581 Finland offers universal coverage mainly through its decentralized public health care system although a small private sector does exist. 32 - Australia Expenditure per capita rank: 17 Australia offers a dual system of public and private health insurance. Wealthier individuals are encouraged to use the private system by enforcing an additional i% tax if an individual over a certain income chooses to use the public system. 33 - Chile Expenditure per capita rank: 44 Chile utilizes a dual health care system, offering public care through the National Health Insurance Fund, or private care by private insurance companies. 34 - Denmark Expenditure per capita rank: 8 Denmark's public health care system is decentralized, with local authorities making and executing local health care policy. The Ministry of Interior and Health issue rules and regulations that the authorities must follow. 35 - Dominica Expenditure per capita rank: 70 Dominica's health care is administered by the state run Ministry of Health. Private health care is available however, usually offered as an employee benefit to expatriates. 36 - Costa Rica Expenditure per capita rank: 5o Costa Rica's public health insurance system is available nation-wide to all legal residents and citizens. You would think in the richest country in the world, that it is unacceptable being ranked #37 in the world -- in providing healthcare to its citizens. Especially when we have both Democrats and Republican leaders saying today that we will lose face (prestige) if we don't bomb Assad's forces in Syria because he crossed some imaginary red line, even though more than 100,000 civilians have been killed in the current civil war in Syria and more than 1,000.000 Syrians are living outside of the country as refugees. Like good infrastructure, personal security, education and free speech, a great EFTA01133582 society should make sure that every citizen has adequate healthcare, if not the best healthcare possible. If every major country in Western Europe, several the countries in Central & South America, Israel, Singapore, Australia, Japan, Morocco, Iceland and Canada can, then why can't we? Maybe this embarrassing statistic helps change this ugliness. ****** Among the many problems in the U.S., one of the biggest is hunger, now diplomatically referred to as, "food insecurity." Almost 5o million Americans who live on the edge of poverty, endure food insecurity, often skipping meals and rationing food. Many are the "working poor", who shop for grocery bargains, cooking budget-stretching stews, spaghetti and limiting their families to one meal a day. They buy discounts meats and canned vegetables, cheaper than fresh. Many are single parent families, resulting in an estimated 15 million children going to bed every night hungry. And although this sounds like vignettes in a poor Third World country, we are describing people who are trying to survive day-to-day in the richest country on the planet. When Congress officially returns to Washington next week, the diets of families like those described above will be caught up in a debate over deficit reduction. Republicans, alarmed by a rise in food stamp enrollment, are pushing to revamp and scale down the program. Democrats are resisting the cuts. No matter what Congress decides, benefits will be reduced in November, when a provision in the 2009 stimulus bill expires. Yet as lawmakers cast the fight in terms of spending, nonpartisan budget analysts and hunger relief advocates warn of a spike in "food insecurity" among poor Americans. Surrounded by corn and soybean farms — including one owned by the local Republican congressman, Representative Stephen Pincher — Dyersburg, about 75 miles north of Memphis, provides an eye- opening view into Washington's food stamp debate. Mr. Fincher, who was elected in 2010 on a Tea Party wave and collected nearly $3.5 million in farm subsidies from the government from 1999 to 2012, recently voted for a farm bill that omitted food stamps. "The role of citizens, of Christianity, of humanity, is to take care of each other, notfor Washington to stealfrom those in the country and give to others in the country," Mr. Pincher, whose office did not respond to interview requests, said after his vote in May. In response to a Democrat who invoked the Bible during the food stamp debate EFTA01133583 in Congress, Mr. Fincher cited his own biblical phrase. "The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat,"he said. Experts say the problem is particularly acute in rural regions like Dyersburg, a city of 17,000 on the banks of the Forked Deer River in West Tennessee. More than half the counties with the highest concentration of food insecurity are rural, according to an analysis by Feeding America, the nation's largest network of food banks. In Dyer County, it found, 19.4 percent of residents were "food insecure" in 2011, compared with 16.4 percent nationwide. Over all, nearly 48 million Americans now receive food stamps, an $8o billion-a-year program that is increasingly the target of conservatives. Robert Rector, a scholar at the conservative Heritage Foundation, (funded by billionaires) argues that the food stamp program should be overhauled so that benefits are tied to work, much as welfare was revamped under President Bill Clinton. He advocates mandatory drug testing for food stamp recipients — a position that draws support from even some of the poor, who themselves are irritated by people who they feel "mooch off the system." In the article - On the Edge ofPoverty, at the Center of a Debate on Food Stamps — this past week in the New York Times, journalist Sheryl Gay Stolberg, puts faces on this issue offood insecurity in America, as the debate in Washington should be about more than numbers and budgets. Hunger in America is a disease that we should treat aggressively, because in the richest country in the world no one should go to bed hungry, especially our children, elderly, disabled and the working poor. If we are willing to house and feed serial killers, (and even force-feed, Guantanamo detainees) we should be more than willing to feed honest God fearing Americans whose only crime is that for economic reasons, (many beyond their control) have fallen through society's economic safety net. If our politicians spent as much time trying to fix the underlying economic problems, as cutting budgets and giving tax breaks to the rick and corporations, we might be able to reduce food assistance as it is currently structured by making sure that people make a living wage or receive sufficient assistance, so that they are not subject to these current demeaning programs and the misguided wrath of insensitive politicians and lobbyist who use food assistance and other social programs as smokescreens so that they can advance legislation favorable to their sponsors "We have a poverty problem, lets solve it by cutting the budget and giving more tax breaks to the rich and corporations" It is as stupid as it sounds... This week there were two huge telephone deals. Two years after hitching its fate to Microsoft's Windows Phone software, Nokia collapsed into the arms of the U.S. software giant on Tuesday, agreeing to sell its main handset business for 5.44 billion euros ($7.2 billion). Nokia, which will continue to make networking equipment and hold patents, was once the world's dominant handset maker but was long since overtaken by Apple and Samsung in the highly competitive market for more powerful smartphones. Nokia's Canadian boss Stephen Elop, who ran Microsoft's business software division before jumping to Nokia in 2010, will return to the U.S. firm as head of its mobile devices business - a Trojan horse, according to disgruntled Finnish media. He is being discussed as a possible replacement for Microsoft's retiring CEO Steve Ballmer, who is trying to remake the U.S. firm into a gadget and services company like Apple before he departs, though it has fallen short so far in its attempts to compete in mobile devices. "It's very clear to me that rationally this is the right step going forward," Elop told reporters, though he added he also felt "a great deal of sadness" over the outcome. In three years under Elop, Nokia saw its market share collapse and its share price shrivel. EFTA01133584 In 2011, after writing a memo that said Nokia was falling behind and lacked the in-house technology to catch up, Elop made the controversial decision to use his former firm Microsoft's Windows Phone for smartphones, rather than NoIda's own software or Google's ubiquitous Android operating system. Nokia, which had a 40 percent share of the handset market in 2007, now has a mere 15 percent share, with an even smaller 3 percent in smartphones. The sale of the handset business is not the first dramatic turn in the 148-year history of a company that has sold everything from television sets to rubber boots, but it was taken as a hard blow in its native Finland. For many Finns, the fact that a former Microsoft executive had come to Nokia, bet the firm's future on an alliance with Microsoft, laid off tens of thousands and then delivered it into Microsoft's hands, was a galling snub to national pride. Nokia is still the world's No. 2 mobile phone maker behind Samsung, but it is not in the top five in the more lucrative and faster-growing smartphone market. Sales of Nokia's Lumia series have helped the market share of Windows Phones in the global smartphone market climb to 3.3 percent, according to consultancy Gartner, overtaking ailing BlackBerry Ltd for the first time this year. Still, Google Inc's Android and Apple's iOS system make up 90 percent of the market. Nokia said in a statement it expected that, apart from Elop, senior executives Jo Harlow, Juha Putldranta, Timo Toikkanen, and Chris Weber would transfer to Microsoft when the deal is concluded. It did not say what roles they would take there. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014, subject to approval by Nokia shareholders and regulators. On Monday, Verizon Communications agreed to pay $130 billion to buy Vodafone out of its U.S. wireless business, signing history's third largest corporate deal to bring an end to a decade-long corporate stand-off. The two firms said Vodafone would get $58.9 billion in cash, $60.2 billion in Verizon stock, and an additional $11 billion from smaller transactions that would take the total deal value to $130 billion. The British group will return 71 percent of the net proceeds to shareholders. All the stock will go to shareholders, plus $23.9 billion in cash, after the deal is finalized, likely to be in the first quarter of 2014. "This has been a highly productive partnership in a business with excellent momentum," Vodafone Chief Executive Vittorio Colao told reporters. The boards of Verizon and Vodafone unanimously approved the sale. EFTA01133585 verimn The deal will give Verizon full access to the wireless unit's cash, handing it fresh firepower to invest in superfast mobile networks and fend off challengers in a U.S. market expected to grow more competitive in the coming years. Verizon said it expected the transaction to be immediately accretive to earnings per share by about 10 percent, excluding any one-time adjustments. While Vodafone will lose its best asset, it will get a war chest that it can use to reward shareholders and bolster its European operations, which are under pressure from recession and tough regulation. The British firm said it planned to plough 6 billion pounds ($9.3 billion) into improving its mobile and broadband networks over the next three financial years. It said the investment program dubbed Project Spring would help it boost growth to underpin its increasing dividend payments to shareholders. The deal is likely to be the defining event in the careers of Colao and Lowell McAdam, the congenial chief executives of Vodafone and Verizon, who rebuilt relations between the two sides to such an extent that they could complete the deal that long eluded their predecessors. The move to sell out of the joint venture doses a heady expansionist chapter for Vodafone, one of Britain's best-known companies, which grew rapidly over the last 20 years through a spate of aggressive deals, taking its brand into more than 30 countries across Europe, Africa and India. ****** We have to wonder why two tech giants missed the mark when they joined forces to develop a smartphone. Despite their earlier dominance in desktop computers and cellphones, Microsoft and Nokia are both struggling to stay relevant in the smartphone age, so far with little success. Late to offer a competitive alternative to the iPhone, and by then also facing pressure from Google's Android operating system, Microsoft's share of the worldwide smartphone market has dropped to a paltry 3.3 percent, from ii percent in 2008, according to the Gartner Group. Nokia, a brand once synonymous with cutting-edge gadgets, has likewise lost its hold on consumers. And as Jordan Weissmann wrote this week in The Atlantic; "Nokia was a dumbphone companyfor a smartphone world." EFTA01133586 The issue people have with the phones has little to do with their design or how they're marketed, two areas Microsoft has promised to prioritize following its Nokia deal. Instead, buyers will often try the Lumia smartphones, then abandon them, wondering why they can't access Instagram, play Candy Crush or download thousands of other apps readily accessible on Android and Apple phones. Microsoft's Windows Phone platform offers just a fraction as many apps as its rivals: There are 160,00o Windows Phone apps, while Apple offers iPhone owners over 850,00o and Android more than 700,000. Microsoft and Nokia are now trying to convince the world that uniting two companies that missed the mark in mobile can somehow yield a company capable of chipping away at Apple and Google's dominance. So far, that numbers game hasn't worked in Microsoft's favor. The tech giant is confronting the Catch-22 it has grappled with unsuccessfully for several years: People will only buy Microsoft's phones if the phones have access to apps. And app developers will only build those apps if enough people buy Microsoft's phones. In the most recent quarter, Microsoft shipped 8.7 million phones running its Windows Phone software -- a third as many phones as Apple, and a twentieth the number of phones shipped with Android, according to IDC. An AT&T sales associate observed that in his experience, the Lumia has so far sold best among first-time smartphone buyers and older individuals, both of whom seemed less concerned with having apps. By Microsoft's logic, the acquisition of Nokia will "accelerate phone share" by allowing the Redmond, Wash., giant to refine its marketing message and innovate more quickly. In combination, those efforts should drive sales, which should in turn motivate app developers, according to Microsoft's chief executive Steve Ballmer. "The key is to drive volumes. Driving volumes will activate the software and the hardware ecosystem," Ballmer told The Verge in an interview. "We do see an ability to speed our agility in hardware and software innovation. We do think that making the brand and the product line simpler and easier to acquire and being able to invest with greater agility should do a lot to help us continue to improve our market-share and position, which certainly will help our apps." Marketing might not be Windows Phone's biggest problem. Though it doesn't enjoy the name recognition of the iPhone or Galaxy S4, sales associates at AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile said their customers are familiar with the Windows Phone brand, and frequently come in asking to see Lumia phones. A 2011 survey of mobile phone users who owned a smartphone or planned to purchase one found that 44 percent were considering devices running Windows Phone 7. The larger issue may be that Microsoft and Nokia still think of their phones as phones. The phones' owners now expect them to be pocket-sized computers. While the two tech giants have focused on building feature-filled smartphones that can hold their own against the best from Samsung, Motorola, Apple and others, the people buy those phones now take all those bells and whistles for granted. Intuitive design and high-quality cameras have become a given. The phone that wins isn't so much a phone as it is a convenient portal to services that offer instant gratification of every conceivable lifestyle demand, whether ifs editing photos, streaming movies, finding dates or hailing taxis. All those capabilities rely on apps. Though Microsoft has bought itself a smartphone maker, the all- important developers -- and their apps -- aren't included. And as someone who bought a Samsung Galaxy 4 last month (after looking at everything in the market) and 15 years on Blackberry, Nokia was not even in the running.... Microsoft, this is going to be a uphillfight.... US manufacturing expanded in August at the fastest pace since June 2011, according to a closely watched poll of the sector. Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded for the third consecutive month, according to the Institute of Supply Management (ISM). The ISM poll of purchasing managers rose to 55.7% from 55.4% in July — readings above 5o% indicate growth in the manufacturing sector. The poll was better than forecast and comes before the latest monthly job EFTA01133587 figures are released by the Labor Department on Friday. Of the 18 manufacturing industries measured by the ISM, 15 reported growth - including textile mills, food and beverage, computer and electronic products and transportation equipment. Only one industry, miscellaneous manufacturing, reported contraction in August. However, respondents to the survey remained cautious, one calling improvements "slight" in a remark quoted by ISM. "Tight government spending still affecting business," reported one transportation equipment executive. "Military slowdown affecting business," said a computer and electronics executive. The ISM report comes amid concerns about the Federal Reserve's plans to pull back on quantitative easing, its $85bn-a-month bond-buying program aimed at encouraging investment. "Following any economic report these days, all roads lead to the effect, or lack thereof, on Fed asset purchases. So in that regard, today's report does nothing to dissuade the Fedfrom pulling back on purchases. Asfor the broader economic impact, today's report is entirely consistent with the moderate expansion we've been experiencing," Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at broker BTIG, wrote in a note to investors. The next big test of the strength of the US economy comes on Friday, with the release of the latest non-farm payroll report. US employers slowed the pace of hiring in July, adding 162,000 new jobs — down from 188,000 in June. But the unemployment rate continued to fall, reaching 7.4%, its lowest level in more than four years. See attached article from The Guardian by Dominic Rushe - US manufacturing expands atfastest rate since July 2011. TRULY STUPID Republicans Offer Syria Strategy: "We Must Defund Obamacare" WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report) — As the debate over Syria moves to the United States Congress, a leading Senate Republican said today that the only way to resolve the crisis in the war-tom Middle Eastern country is by "defunding Obamacare at once." Appearing on the Fox News Channel, Sen. Ted Cruz (A-Texas) told host Sean Hannity, "If we're trying to send a strong message to (Syrian President] Bashar alAssad, I can think of no better way to do that than by defending Obamacare." Elaborating on his strategy, Sen. Cruz added, "By defunding Obamacare, we would basically be saying to Assad, This is how we attack our own President, so just imagine what we'll do to you. ' That would make him think twice before he pulls another one of his stunts." "You canfire off as many Tomahawk missiles as you want," said Sen. Cruz. "But they won't have the same impact on Syria as defending Obamacare." Shortly after his appearance, Sen. statements drew a sharp rebuke from a fellow Republican, Arizona Senator John McCain, who called the prospect of bombing Syria "the only thing I have to live for." "Look, I've been in a very dark place since the 2008 election," Sen. McCain told reporters. 'There have been a lot of mornings when, quitefrankly, I haven't had a reason to get out of bed. It's all well and goodfor people like Ted Cruz to criticize Tomahawk missiles, but hitting Syria is all that's keeping me going." Think about it this is one of the people that Republican Conservatives describe as the Future Of The Party OMG SCARBOROUGH: 'SEND IN THE CLOWNS' Joe Scarborough derided members of the Republican party for alienating their colleagues for not being 'conservative enough.' These actions, according to Scarborough, are making the Republicans 'so EFTA01133588 irrelevant.' Weblink: Mtp://www.thedailybeast.cornkideos/2013/08/27/searborough-send-in-the-clowns.html#comments Weblink: http://shar.es/ingfN For those who didn't listen to the President's weekly radio address, this week he told a war-weary country on Saturday that America needs to use limited military force in Syria to deter future chemical weapons attacks, but said he did not want to enter into another costly and protracted war. Web link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCrCujWIgUYitt=5fi 'This would not be another Iraq or Afghanistan," Obama said in his weekly radio and internet address, previewing arguments he will make in a nationally televised address on Tuesday. "Any action we take would be limited, both in time and scope - designed to deter the Syrian government from gassing its own people again and degrade its ability to do so," Obama said. A week ago, Obama said he felt limited strikes in Syria were needed, but added he wanted to ask Congress to authorize the use of military force. For those who didn't listen to the President's weekly radio address, this week he told a war-weary country on Saturday that America needs to use limited military force in Syria to deter future chemical weapons attacks, but said he did not want to enter into another costly and protracted war. Web link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCrCujWIgUYn=5¢ "This would not be another Iraq or Afghanistan," Obama said in his weekly radio and internet address, previewing arguments he will make in a nationally televised address on Tuesday. "Any action we take would be limited, both in time and scope - designed to deter the Syrian governmentfrom gassing its own people again and degrade its ability to do so," Obama said. A week ago, Obama said he felt limited strikes in Syria were needed, but added he wanted to ask Congress to authorize the use of military force. What the intelligence on Syria shows As Congress weighs whether to approve a military strike against the Syrian government in response to the alleged use of chemical weapons against its own people, lawmakers are expected to scrutinize all of the intelligence — both classified and unclassified — as they zero in on decisions. Thanks to the information below compiled this week in The Washington Post from Darla Cameron and Anup Kaphle, you can also take a look at some of what the U.S. intelligence shows, compared to that of Britain and France. 16..p rd try Britain EFTA01133589 Britain's Joint Intelligence Committee released a report on Aug. 29. Sources include "intelligence reports plus diplomatic and open sources." Parliament voted against action in Syria later that day. CASUALTIES ON AUG. 21 350 "Unlike previous attacks, the degree of open source reporting of CW use on 21 August has been considerable. As a result, there is little serious dispute that chemical attacks causing mass casualties on a larger scale than hitherto (including, we judge, at least 350 fatalities) took place." CHEMICALS USED Nerve agent Britain's Joint Intelligence Committee said the attack is consistent with the use of a nerve agent, such as sarin, and is not consistent with the use of blister or riot control agents. PRIOR ATTACKS 14 "We have assessed previously that the Syrian regime used lethal CW on 14 occasions from 2012." U.S. The White House released a declassified intelligence summary on Aug. 3o. Sources include "human, signals, and geospatial intelligence as well as a significant body of open source reporting." CASUALTIES ON AUG. 21 1,429 "A preliminary U.S. government assessment determined that1,429 people were killed in thechemical weapons attack, including at least 426 children." CHEMICALS USED Sarin On Sept. 1, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said new laboratory tests showed traces of sarin, an extremely toxic nerve agent, in blood and hair samples collected from emergency workers who responded to the Aug. 21 attacks. PRIOR ATTACKS No specific number given EFTA01133590 "We assess with high confidence that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale against the opposition multiple times in the last year, including in the Damascus suburbs." I I France France's president, foreign ministry and defense ministry released a declassified report, maps and videos about the Aug. 21 attack on Sept. 2. Their sources include lab tests from previous attacks, social media reports and videos taken after the August attack. CASUALTIES ON AUG. 21 281 281 were confirmed from 47 videos studied by the French, but their report acknowledges up to 1,500. CHEMICALS USED Sarin French analysis confirmed that sarin was used in previous attacks. Their report also said that Syria has "a thousand tons of chemical warfare agents" including mustard gas, sarin and VX, a nerve agent. PRIOR ATTACKS Two France analyzed biological samples from 2 April attacks, Saraqueb & ,Jobar and found evidence of sarin. This week in The Washington Post as Congressional support for attacking Syria continued to evaporate under growing pressure from constitutes, Jason Linkins wrote — If Congress Says 'No' On Syria, What Happens Next? - Especially if the President chooses to go with the will of Congress, as U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron did. His conclusion are: First, there will be a boatload of whining. If you recall, many of the soft and slackened armchair generalissimos of Sunday Morning Punditry reacted with a strong howl of derision when Obama announced that he was seeking Congress' approval in the first place. "This isn't a civics lesson, lives are at stake," bellowed Chris Wallace, who later complained, "But nothing's going to happen for 10 EFTA01133591 days!" Over at "Meet The Press," David Gregory, believing that Secretary of State John Kerry's case- making on Syria essentially made a new war a fait accompli, asked Kerry if Obama's decision to go to Congress made him 'feel undermined." If Congress does say No, and if Obama listens — I see no reason to expect he won't — it will set in motion a very interesting experiment. The roar of Obama-is-weak punditry — casting Obama as a lame duck who can't get Congress to do anything, with grave consequences for the rest of his agenda — will be deafening, with few willing to point out that heeding Congress' word is the right thing to do for the country. (Many are currently discussing the decision to go to Congress only in terms of motive and "optics" while refusing to comment on the substance of the decision itself.) Needless to say this will be viewed in the terms of "winners" and "loser", with the President being cast as the biggest loser. So, basically, the first thing that happens is that you get a red tide of media bullshit in every newspaper and every television. Assad will probably crow about Congress returning a "no" vote. Yeah, if you are an American who can't sleep at night because you are just so frightfully concerned about what brutal madman Bashar Assad thinks about your country, you are probably in for a rough ride. Chances are, if Congress opts to not grant Obama the authorization to use force, Assad will do a lot of triumphal yargling, and maybe preen for his Instagram account, in celebration. This is sort of inevitable. Any such pronouncement from Assad will also contribute to the aforementioned "red tide of media bullshit," as cable news people and Sunday morning hosts throw Assad's rhetoric in the face of White House spokespeople. It's actually very amusing to me to listen to political reporters take what is essentially "Iraqi Information Minister" style propaganda, or playground taunts, and treat it as if it should be the prime mover of American foreign policy, but this is what happens. Chris Cillizza will probably write a blog post about how Assad had the "best week in Washington." The mitigating factor here is that if Congress grants Obama its authorization, and we carry out our narrow, targeted, bombing campaign, there is still a likelihood that Assad will survive this, and he will just go right ahead and make the same triumphant yargles that M make if we don't end up doing anything, so this is basically a wash. Of course, in the event that he survives a bombing campaign to do further strutting, the media will treat it in the same way, making the implicit demand that more has to be done because we're not gonna sit here and take these taunts from Assad, are we? Are we?!? And this is how pointless escalation and quagmires happen! Events on the ground will continue to shape the debate. If Congress eventually opts to not grant an authorization to use force, all is not lost for those hungry for war. Assad will continue to murder his own people, and perhaps even deploy chemical weapons to do so. And depending on what happens, Obama will always have the option to come back and take a second shot. And there is an argument that Obama would be in a stronger position a second time around. One of the things you have to remember is that Obama, as commander in chief, is pretty much on the hook for any action taken in Syria. But the point of this authorization vote, at least politically, is to put Congress on the hook for the consequences of inaction. So, if Congress votes no and a few thousand Syrians die in brutal fashion, Obama gets to come back with an '7 told you so," and ask again. And he might prevail. Neil Irwin, who sees a lot of similarities between this authorization ask and the 2008 vote on the Troubled Asset Relief Program, recalls that TARP "initially failed in a House vote before being approved in slightly modified form a few days later." What helped that along was the continuing argument about the direness of the situation and enough modifications to elicit a slightly greater amount of trust in the elites making the case. Of course, the seedy underside to this is that in order for the political calculus to change, a whole bunch of human beings halfway around the world have to die first. EFTA01133592 There's always the chance that Obama will just say "piss it," and launch a military campaign against Syria anyway. The White House's semi-official line on what happens if Congress doesn't endorse a military strike is that there is no semi-official line on what happens if Congress doesn't endorse a military strike. But just as Blinker, on Friday, "left the door open," Kerry has as well, saying that the White House reserves the right to act unilaterally "no matter what Congress does." Should he do so, Obama will probably receive a hearty helping of valentines from the people in the media who would have otherwise defamed him for accepting Congress' verdict. At least up until things go sideways, that is, after which the chorale of criticism will return: "Those bombs would have hit their targets better if Obama had shown more leadership... Assad remains in power because the White House has bungled the 'narrative,' et cetera. The thing to remember, of course, is that if Obama goes it alone, he won't just be breaking with Congress -- he'll be breaking against the will of the American people, who oppose a military strike in Syria in large numbers. This is why Obama will attempt to make his case for military intervention in a primetime address this coming Tuesday night (remembering as always to not interrupt Monday night football to ask if it's okay with everyone if we go to war). And there would be consequences for going alone resulting in the President losing the trust both home and abroad, as well as setting off an effort in the House to impeach him, which even if it went nowhere could be distracting and draining. With this said, the President is between a rock and a hard place, because no matter what happens he will be castigated by foes here and abroad, with Putin and Rand Paul claiming that the President was wrong and Sunday pundits, dissecting how he blew it. Yet none of these concerned parties will offer any solutions on how to resolve this ugly quagmire that is killing dozens (if not hundreds) of innocent people every day and could ignite civil unrest elsewhere in the region. THIS WEEK's QUOTE "If your actions inspire others to dream more,learn more, do more and become more you are a leader" - John Adams AMAZING VIDEO his is truly an incredible video. Hard to believe this Osprey got 5-6 fish at a time and then got a flounder under 3 feet of water and made off with what looks to be a 5+ lbs. steelhead. Have you ever seen a bird shake water off like a dog does?!!! Wouldn't want to get in its way when its eyes are locked onto you and his talons in the "load" position! Its talons are amazing! EFTA01133593 There are 3 sequences in this one video: 1st sequence - catches half a dozen fish in one strike. 2nd sequence - plunges talons into deep water to grab the prey. 3rd sequence - captures a big old fish that looks as if it weighs more than he does! This is incredible to watch! Weblink: http://www.youtube.com/embedinA3LtXnNIto?feature=player embedded SAYINGS OF CONFUCIUS Confucius said all that? Confucius Say. It's ok to let a fool kiss you, but don't let a kiss fool you. Confucius Say. A kiss is just shopping upstairs for downstairs merchandise. EFTA01133594 Confucius Say. It is better to lose a lover than love a loser. Confucius Say. Man with a broken condom is called a Daddy Confucius Say. Man who mix Viagra and Ex-Lax, doesn't know if he's coming or going. Confucius Say. A drunken man's words are a sober man's thoughts. Confucius Say. Marriage is like a bank account. You put it in, you take it out, and you lose interest. Confucius Say. Viagra is like Disneyland ... a one hour wait for a 2-minute ride. Confucius Say. It is much better to want the mate you do not have than to have the mate you do not want. Confucius Say. A joke is like sex. Neither is any good if you don't get it. THIS WEEK's QUOTE EFTA01133595 "If your actions inspire others to dream more,learn more,do more and become more you are a leader" - John Adams THIS WEEK's MUSIC After finishing this week's readings, I am too spent to really concentrate on any "one" musician or music genre, finding myself listening to my iPod and finding solace in some of my favorite Hip Hop songs, as they had nothing to do with Syria, Obamacare, Congressional Debates, latest economic news, Sunday Morning Pundits, George Zimmerman wife's divorce announcement, John McCain's latest rants and President Obama being snubbed by Vladimir Putin. No matter what happens next week, pundits will try their best to identify winners and loser instead of looking for solutions to the many problems facing mankind. There is no rhyme or reason for this selection other than I love these songs, the luck of the draw and hope that you will enjoy them too. With this said, please enjoy this week's mucid selection Sugarhill Gang — Rapper's Delight -- Grandmaster Flash — The Message -- Slick Rick & Doug E. Fresh — Children Story -- and Kid Frost — Ain't No Sunshine -- Big Daddy Kane — Smooth Operator -- Grandmaster Flash — White Lines -- Heavy D & The Boyz - Is It Good To You -- LL Cool J — I Need Love -- Aerosmith & Run DMC — Walk This Way -- Whodini — Friends -- and Young MC — Bust A Move -- Rob Base and DJ E Z Rock — It Takes Two -- Ghostface Killah & Ne-Yo — Back Like That -- Eminem — Real Slim Shady -- Warren G & Nate Dogg — Regulate -- 2Pac — So Many Tears -- Tone Loc — Wild Thing -- I know that this week's offerings are heavily weighed around Syria, but it was impossible to ignore the many contradiction as this civil war its testing the moral integrity of both EFTA01133596 America and the rest of the international community. This week or two will be extremely interesting and what will be will be or as Doris Day sang back in the 1.95os, Que Sera, Sera With this said, I wish you a great week Sincerely, Greg Brown Gregory Brown Chairman & CEO GlobalCast Partners, LLC EFTA01133597