America in 12 words

 Insane man kills 9 in Roseberg
 Insane country kills 19 in Kunduz

Students, taxpayers gain from new College of DuPage Board reforms

I'm gonna save about $25 next year because the reform COD Board of Trustees just cut my COD taxes 5%. That's money I don't need so I'll probably donate it to my favorite 2016 candidates. But what's really significant about the 2016 budget passed Monday was the $5 per hour drop in hourly tuition, from the current stratospheric $140, which will put a cool $150 per year in cash strapped student pockets. That's m...oney saved by ending the gravy (actually lobster and wine) train enjoyed by suspended President Robert Breuder, his administrators, and incredibly, the former Board members, at the money pit vanity restaurant Waterleaf, and other horrifically wasteful practices of Breuder and his enabling Board. One of the three holdover Board members voted against the streamlined budget; the other two didn't even show up to vote. But when Breuder was spending like Charles Foster Kane at Xanadu (or was it William Randolph Hearst at San Simeon?) they showed up with bells on to feast at the students' expense before enabling more goodies for their money obsessed employee who played them like a symphony. It's been six months since the voters said "Enough" to the gluttony of Breuder and the old Board. The three holdovers need to consider their legacy in their remaining time on the Board. Their endless "NO" votes to reform measures are purely symbolic at this point. Participating in further reform will remove some of the tarnish they leave behind from the sorriest chapter in COD's history.

Come to think of it, I may donate my $25 to Bernie Sanders, since one of his loftiest goals in $0 per hour tuition at public colleges. Come on new Board, only $135 to go.

Finally, one in a million

Always wanted to be one in a million. Finally achieved that status...as one in a million contributors to Bernie Sanders. Come to think of it, Sanders truly is one in a million...as far as being a brilliant, articulate, honest, progressive, wise and extremely rare politician.

Students, taxpayers gain from new College of DuPage Board reforms

I'm gonna save about $25 next year because the reform COD Board of Trustees just cut my COD taxes 5%. That's money I don't need so I'll probably donate it to my favorite 2016 candidates. But what's really significant about the 2016 budget passed Monday was the $5 per hour drop in hourly tuition, from the current stratospheric $140, which will put a cool $150 per year in cash strapped student pockets. That's money saved by ending the gravy (actually lobster and wine) train enjoyed by suspended President Robert Breuder, his administrators, and incredibly, the former Board members, at the money pit vanity restaurant Waterleaf, and other horrifically wasteful practices of Breuder and his enabling Board. One of the three holdover Board members voted against the streamlined budget; the other two didn't even show up to vote. But when Breuder was spending like Charles Foster Kane at Xanadu (or was it William Randolph Hearst at San Simeon?) they showed up with bells on to feast at the students' expense before enabling more goodies for their money obsessed employee who played them like a symphony. It's been six months since the voters said "Enough" to the gluttony of Breuder and the old Board. The three holdovers need to consider their legacy in their remaining time on the Board. Their endless "NO" votes to reform measures are purely symbolic at this point. Participating in further reform will remove some of the tarnish they leave behind from the sorriest chapter in COD's history. Come to think of it, I may donate my $25 to Bernie Sanders, since one of his loftiest goals in $0 per hour tuition at public colleges. Come on new Board, only $135 to go.

Pope visit more hits than misses

This non-theist for half a century feels we finally have a Pope likely doing more good than harm. The petty, unfounded criticism from the climate deniers, the one per-centers, the munitions and war proponents, and the capital punishment fanatics is proof Francis is hitting the right notes on improving mankind. Even his refusal to come to terms with the progress afforded mankind by contraception, abortion and LGBT rights was muted; alluding to these advances as hurting the family structure rather than attacking them outright.

He was weakest on the worst aspects of church structure; male priests only (dogma), priestly celibacy (regulation), and the clergy sexual abuse of children; matters that continue to prevent the Church from becoming a true institution of human progress. While the Pope did meet with several sex abuse victims, David Clohessy, director of The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, the nation’s most prominent support and advocacy group for clergy sex abuse victims stated, dismissed the pope’s actions stating “Is a child anywhere on earth safer now that a pope, for maybe the seventh or eighth time or ninth time, has briefly chatted with abuse victims? No.”

On the subject of celibate priests, Francis offered this bit of nonsense: “A good pastor renounces the love of a family precisely in order to focus all his energies on ministering to his flock." Francis, continues to be blind to the fact that umpteen thousands of priests have focused that energy on something much more nefarious since celibacy took hold in 1139, early in the Church's second century.

It's taken 228 years for Congress to be addressed by a wise Pope. Hopefully, it won't take that long from now for it to be addressed by a wise non-theist.

Roskam's plan for new GOP House Speaker; ME!

My congressman, and insatiably ambitious career politician Peter Roskam (IL-6), called for a meeting Saturday of House Republicans to discuss the leadership vacuum left by Speaker John Boehner's resignation. Saying the Republicans needed "a plan, not a person", Roskam's dip, once again into the battle for leadership among greatly divided House Republicans, is clearly designed to derail the anointment of Kevin McCarthy (CA-23), current House GOP Majority Leader, as Boehner's replacement. Roskam alluded to the dysfunction which has paralyzed the House GOP majority from accomplishing anything of worth and sent Speaker Boehner fleeing for his sanity, saying that without Roskam's leadership, "we won't heal the fractures in a leadership...that is unleadable...stymied by disunity and dysfunction." Roskam belongs to the merely 'do nothing, obstructionist' wing of the House GOP caucus, voting 55 times to prevent Obamacare, voting against every job creation measure, championing trickle down economics with tax cuts for the greedy rich while granting nothing to the needy, supporting every senseless, criminal war the war party can promote, and opposing Planned Parenthood and reproductive health measures for women. But he shies away from the crazed, 'shut down the government' wing which drove Speaker Boehner into retirement. Roskam claims that "merely reshuffling the deck won't serve our members...and this effort of mine "isn't about me." Roskam lost his No. 4 leadership spot in the GOP House hierarchy last year when he tried to move up to No. 3 upon the defeat of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, another 'do nothing, obstructionist' stalwart. Roskam has shuffled the deck, and in his endless political career, every card comes up, 'ME, ME, ME'.