What will be Trump's Reichstag's fire?

The Electoral College, not the American people, elected a moral monster President Elect. Trump was trounced by Clinton by near two million votes and two percentage points; numbers sufficient to elect her in any other democracy on Earth.

Trump doesn't answer to the moniker 'fascist' so we can't call him that. Yet, he ignited his campaign of fear and loathing with the racist meme Obama was the 'other' from the black country of Kenya. He campaigned using many fascist tactics; stoking xenophobic fears of Mexican rapists, deporting the undocumented whose slave wages pump up affluent wealth, demanding a ban on Muslims; indeed even creating a Muslim registry. His vulgarity is breathtaking; egging on his supporters to beat protesters with promises to pay their legal bills; unconscionably referring to a hated reporter's menstrual cycle. He claimed the election was 'rigged' against him, refusing to abide by the most sacred American tenant of honoring the result should he lose; indeed promising to jail his opponent if victorious. On foreign affairs he's promised to bomb the shit out of imagined bad guys. At his first rally as President Elect, Trump tore into his bete noir, the media, as the "extremely dishonest press", lambasting an unnamed female anchor he claimed teared up over his victory.

Trump will fail; but he won't fail with a whimper. We should have no illusions he won't resort to an incident, be it massive civil disobedience or a terrorist attack, to abrogate the dwindling civil and political liberties left after the Bush Administration began America's descent from freedom with the Patriot Act after 911. Tyrants and wannabe tyrants have been doing that throughout history, the most famous example being Hitler's use of the Reichstag fire of February 27, 1933, to spiral Germany into tyranny just 28 days after being appointed Chancellor.

Trump supporters poo-poo these warnings, claiming Trump just used hyperbole and clever marketing to prevail in the Electoral College. But they along with us who comprehend his mendacity, ignore at our peril the ravings of a clearly disturbed, undemocratic, conscienceless charlatan who exploited our human and electoral weakness to gain the Presidency. It may not be engulfed in a conflagration yet, but Trump's America is smoldering; and the heat is becoming insufferable.

Roskam's anti UN BDS bill ignores Palestinian humanitarian catastrophe

My congressman Peter Roskam (IL-6) is co-sponsor of the Protecting Israel From Economic Discrimination Act. It opposes the United Nations Human Rights Council resolution calling for companies both within and outside Israel not to do business with illegal Israeli settlements within occupied Palestinian territory. Such settlements are illegal and immoral; being prohibited by UN Resolution 242 of 1968, in the aftermath of the 1967 Israeli Arab war. It called for return of occupied territories gained by war. It has been US policy since then to honor UN 242, return Palestinian land so occupied, end Israeli settlement building and create a Palestinian state with permanent Palestinian Israeli borders. But Israeli settlements continue apace with over 600,000 Israelis enjoying Israeli citizenship in the occupied territories while 4,500,000 Palestinians remain stateless under horrid, often inhuman conditions as Israel builds its one state solution nullifying, Palestinian statehood.

The current UN Human Rights Council resolution is a legal and constructive way to counter Illegal Israeli activity which has created one of the world's worst human rights violations. But Roskam positions his bill without ever mentioning the plight of the Palestinians; indeed without ever uttering their name. He only refers to the resolution as the UN "working to engage in politically charged economic warfare against Israel", designed "to strangle Israel’s economy and coerce Israel into unilateral concessions."

Would a Congressman Roskam of 1936 condemn similar efforts to engage in an economic boycott of Germany to lift horrid restrictions on their marginalized Jewish citizens? Would a Congressman Roskam of 1956 condemn similar efforts to mount an economic boycott of US southern states over their racist Jim Crow laws dehumanizing their marginalized black citizens? Yet, when it comes to weakening Israel's Middle East rival Iran, Roskam is all in for the most severe economic sanctions possible, even opposing the the 5 + 1 Iran nuclear deal which likely prevented war with Iran.

Congressman Roskam can surely see but refuses to acknowledge the brutal, inhumane treatment Israel imposes on arguably the most marginalized people on Earth. Instead of supporting a radical Israeli regime which may be self-destructing in its zeal to push the Palestinians into the sea, Roskam should support decades long US policy to return appropriated Palestinian land, end illegal, immoral settlements and work toward a viable two state solution. Enabling continuation of atrocious human rights violations is not noble governance. If Roskam really wants to help Israel thrive and proper, he should push the US to become the 138th country to recognize the state of Palestine. Supporting full worldwide recognition of Palestine may be Israel's best hope for true peace and security, and its support would make Roskam a true Friend of Israel.

A new first and new low in presidential conduct

"Trump Falsely Claims Millions Voted Illegally"

Monday, Nov. 28, 2016 NY Times No. 1 headline calls out Trump for the liar he is. Likely never happened before in history of anyone elected to highest office. For sure won't be last time a major media outlet identifies a Trump lie in their headline. A sorrowful day in American presidential history.

A few Fidel fun facts on his demise at 90

In 1959, I watched one of the most peculiar sports shows ever, 'Baseball from Cuba' on Channel 7, which broadcast Cuban baseball games, containing several future MLB stars such as Julian Javier. The announcer always pointed out Fidel, whose love of baseball was second to being a revolutionary, who reserved a primo box seat for himself.

Disintegrating actor Errol Flynn, working as a newspaper correspondent covering the revolution while making his bizarre last pic 'Cuban Rebel Girls' with co-star and 16 year old gal pal Beverly Aadland, scooped every professional journalist by getting the only US interview during Fidel's final push and rode into Havana during the January 8, 1959 victory parade.

My brother married a Cuban exile in 1974, who shared her first name Mirta with Fidel's wife.

On more serious note, America's obsession with destroying Fidel because he ended the Mafia's and United Fruit's half century long exploitation of Cuba, remains one of most shameful episodes in my memory of endless US interventions around the world. JFK brought us to the brink of nuclear war invoking the principle that only the US is allowed to put nukes on another country's doorstep. JFK spent his entire presidency trying to murder Fidel. and that obsession may have been a prime motivator in Oswald's murder of JFK. And here we are near sixty years on getting thousands killed changing regimes we don't like...BECAUSE WE CAN.

Why Mother Earth mourns

During the three media staged presidential debates not a single question was asked about global warming.