Putin passes on playing diplomatic expulsion poker

US unilateral sanctions on Russia for alleged hacking lasted a single day before Russia hinted at retaliation, matching Uncle Sam's ouster of 35 Russian diplomats with 35 Yankees, before Russia's Putin declared he wouldn't play the diplomatic tit for tat game. Get real. Nations hack like they spy and lie, relentlessly. But nobody matches US mendacity when it comes to regime change; hundreds of thousands dead in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Ukraine. And yes, the next big target, Russia's Vladimir Putin. The warmongers and neocons infesting our government and media, having failed in every regime change venture, would love to add Russia as a failed regime change target. Does even 1% of Americans know Putin saved our bacon twice in three years; first by using diplomacy to derail imminent US bombing of Syria over likely false claims Syria used sarin gas on rebels, then facilitating the 5 plus 1 Iran nuclear agreement which likely prevented war with Iran. Putin's help preventing further regime change in those two countries is precisely why the neocons want him out as Russian leader, oblivious to the reality any successor may be less inclined to assist our 240 year old Uncle safely across the street, as Putin gallantly did. To the neocons, disfavored regimes are like underwear...to be changed daily. 

$123 million degrades democracy, good governance in Illinois

With some ignominious competitors, such as 758 dead and thousands more shot in Chicago, the most ominous and disturbing Illinois story this year was Gov. Bruce Rauner surpassing a hundred million Washingtons in his anti democratic (that's small d democratic) campaign coffers. Counting the 27 million he dropped on his election, 46 million more to unseat Democrats in the mid-term, and the cool fifty just deposited in his re-election vault, Billionaire Bruce's personal piggy bank to debase Illinois hit 123 million this year. Toss in the millions from his Forbes branded billionaire buddies Ken Griffin, Eli Broad, Joe Mansueto, Tom Siebel and Nick Pritzker II, Rauner's assault on Illinois politics sours over $150 million. 

That must be shouted from the Sears Tower and the John Hancock. That must be placarded and held high at every event Rauner insults with his presence. It must be mentioned at every political gathering of decent folk seeking the most basic state services Rauner has defunded, delayed, denied to achieve his billionaire business agenda. Refusing to implement a state budget for two years is an assault on Illinoisans not capable of insulating themselves from that harm with obscene wealth. 

While Rauner shells out $123 million to buy Illinois, a working single mom can't come up with $123 to pay for child care services Rauner's cut; a student losing state aid can't come up with $123 to pay tuition; a ex-con can't come up with $123 to pay for rehabilitation services whose funding evaporated.

With Governor Rauner it's not 'After moi the deluge'; it's 'During moi the deluge'.  

Roskam fights campus anti-Semitism but ignores that in Trump phenomenon

My congressman Peter Roskam (IL-6) has proposed legislation, The Anti-Semitism Awareness Act, designed to broaden the Dept. of Education's anti-Semitism criteria. Read a summary and it's likely the bill is part of the campaign to de-legitimize any criticism of Israel's massive settlement construction in occupied Palestinian land which is rapidly foreclosing the creation of a Palestinian state. College campuses are in the forefront of efforts to end these illegal and immoral settlements which inexorably spell doom for the basic humanitarian rights of Palestinians in the West Bank and justice for Palestinians under economic blockade in Gaza. The legislation includes vague, catch-all phrases like "harassment of Israel" and "requiring of Israel a behavior not demanded of any other nation" which are utilized to quash legitimate protest of undeniable inhumane treatment of Palestinians.

If Roskam were truly concerned about rising anti-Semitism, we'd expect him to focus his efforts on disturbing trends unleashed by hate wing of Donald Trump supporters, including speech by The Donald himself. Evidence? Trump stirred up the haters with traditional anti-Semitic code talk of 'international banks', 'global power structures' and 'those who control the levers of power'. This provocative and disturbing pattern flows directly from the anti-Semitic alt-right playbook of Trump advisers like Steve Bannon, who referred to Trump critics Bill Kristol as a 'renegade Jew' and Anne Applebaum as a 'Polish, Jewish, American elitist.' Roskam not only ignores such hate speech, he embraced Trump as a 'wild card' who deserved to be president. 

Could it be that Trump's unconditional support for the extreme right wing Israeli government's Palestinian policy caused Roskam to totally ignore the anti-Semitic strain in the Trump phenomenon? Illinois Sixth District voters should get informed....and make up their own minds. 

US still No. 1 in selling weapons of mass killing

One reason our stock portfolios keep rising is our war loving Uncle Sam keeps leading the world in arms sales. 2015 was another banner year with $40 billion racked up, fully half of the entire world's output. And $25 bill of that went to Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the only two countries in the world whose state religion is Wahhabism and which fund its activities worldwide to the detriment of us all. Hey, so what if Saudi Arabia has its fingerprints all over the 911 attacks. They pay in cash.

Peabody Coal, black lung both up with Trump

Within days of his election the stock of bankrupt Peabody Coal shot up 50%. Guess what else shot up lately and likely to go even higher? Black lung disease. The NY Times reported today black lung has recently seen a dramatic increase of a new virulent strain called PMF (progressive massive fibrosis) caused by thinner coal streams more infectious coal dust. Of course the recent increase is not related to Trump's election, but his vow to put thousands of miners back breathing that dust bodes ill for the poor folk of Appalachia. What also looms for those afflicted? Loss of special help current sufferers receive from the Affordable Care Act Trump lambasted as a disaster and vows to repeal. All those Trump supporters in Appalachia didn't realize Trump's campaign motto was actually 'Make America gasp again.'