Kirk in retirement still banging war drums against Iran

Darn...we thought we were done with Mark Kirk's incessant war mongering against Iran with his Senate defeat by the sensible Tammy Duckworth last year. Now we learn Kirk has joined the board of United Against Nuclear Iran, a new group made up of disgruntled neocons who can't accept that the 5 + 1 power Iran nuclear deal which likely avoided war by certifying the end of Iran's nuclear program, is working. That takes Iran regime change off the neocons' Christmas list, frustrating their decades long campaign to take over their most hated country. Kirk, who reveled in senseless US wars that killed hundreds of thousands during his congressional career, hasn't shaken his bloodlust in retirement. United Against Iran seeks to sabotage the Iran nuclear deal by having Trump de-certify it at the 90 day benchmark for re-certification required by a neocon congressional law. Then they want Mr. T to impose new sanctions all they up to a gigantic worldwide boycott till Iran yells 'Uncle', as in Sam. In furtherance of this campaign our intrepid warmonger Kirk has leapt back into the Iran debate by calling for Naperville telecommunications firm Coriant to cease doing business with Iran which they're entitled to do under the deal. Kirk ignores all the responsible, peace seeking leaders in the UK, France, China, Russia, Germany and the EU who are outraged by neocons like Kirk blowing up the world's best hope for peace with Iran. Apparently, being a war mongering neocon is a little like being in the Mafia: once you get in...you can never leave.

Not out of Africa

While mainstream media focuses on Trump's tone deaf handling of a widow grieving her soldier husband's death in Niger, along with three others, the American electorate is denied the real story: the war party's expansion of perpetual into Africa. The initial 100 soldiers inserted into Niger four years ago has grown to over 800. Hundreds more are fighting imagined bad guys in Mali, Chad, Burkina Faso, C.A.R., South Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya and Uganda.  America's Masters of War are asking for a whopping $5.2 billion next year to support the Africa wing of perpetual war. Why so much? A war party spokesman explained that Africa's vastness makes even relatively small amounts of canon fodder costly to support. Meanwhile back home, infrastructure, health care, education, the environment, consumer protection are all targeted for budgetary hits to support this expansion. Africa, like the Middle East, is becoming just another US Roach Motel....the US military goes in, but never comes out.  

How many must die on Trump's watch?

Every decent American should take seriously Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman’s charge that Trump’s actions to delay aid to Puerto Rico and degrade Obamacare administratively will kill thousands needlessly. It appears motivated by an infantile response to failing to overturn Obamacare in Congress and ignoring non-white Puerto Ricans to placate his racist, xenophobic base. It’s inappropriate to even call it Trump’s watch. It’s a death watch.

Trump playing Prez like a psychotic Ted Baxter

Remember Ted Knight as Ted Baxter, the inconsolably insecure, but lovable news anchor on the Mary Tyler Moore show? Baxter pouted, begged, cried and groveled for approval and validation like an hapless 5 year old. Knight's sthick was hilarious and entertaining since he caused no harm to anyone but himself as we doubled over in laughter. That infantile insecurity is on full display in the Trump presidency with two exceptions. Trump's Ted Baxter is real and sociopathic; leading to incalculable harm to people and the planet. Dropping out of the Iran nuclear deal and climate change agreement, defunding Obamacare, overturning LGBT protections, while threatening to nuke 'Rocket Man' in North Korea are not funny. They may end up dooming the entire planet. Come to think of it, Trump is also making us double over...from fear and loathing.

Are Ives', Breen's mindsets better suited to preaching, not legislating?

DuPage state reps Jeanne Ives (R-42) and Peter Breen (R-48) missed their calling. Both sit in the legislature voting on the critical concerns of millions of Illinoisans they care little about. Their focus stems from narrow ideological religious beliefs: opposition to full human rights for gays and transgenders, denial of reproductive health care to the poor, promotion of religion in the public square, and railing against their imagined view that secular society is at war with Christianity. While certainly entitled to those beliefs, it is totally improper and inappropriate to promote them as legislators responsible for the well-being of all 13 million Illinoisans. They would serve the people best by dropping their re-election bids and opening a church in DuPage to advocate for their beliefs before like minded followers. The rest of us Illinoisans deserve better.

Walt Zlotow
Glen Ellyn

Peter Breen, Peter Breen, why, oh why, are you so mean?

My state rep Peter Breen sure is mean. How mean? He started out mean in his first run for District 48 state rep in 2014, getting up before extremist Illinois Tea Partiers, and proclaiming well liked sixth term GOP incumbent Sandy Pihos a RINO, not inferring she was big and ugly, but something much worse...a moderate Republican who actually listened to and dialogued with constituents of all persuasions, leaving out the religious extremism Breen revels in. Meanness, tons of money and apathy by moderate voters propelled Breen to Primary victory. Along came Democratic challenger Marian Tomlinson and Breen turned on the mean, using his lawyerly skills to knock her off the Democratic ballot in an ugly swipe against giving voters a choice. Tomlinson, nice but tough, countered with a spirited write-in campaign, garnering several thousand votes in symbolic protest to the King of Mean on his way to the legislature.

On a meanness roll, Breen embraced the cruel politics of newbie governor Bruce Rauner, hijacking the budget process to extort a bizarre pro growth agenda which caused millions of students, state vendors and the needy endless pain. Not a word of sympathy in Breen´s many constituent emails for the needless suffering this failed and unprecidented assault on the public caused.

But woe to the revered governor when he finally stood on principle to help poor women seeking the same reproductive rights Breen and his class enjoy without a care or concern. When Rauner signed HB 40, extending those rights concerning abortion, Breen directed his meanness to his meanness mentor, vowing to derail a second gubernatorial term. Are visions of Governor Mean dancing in Breen's head?

Every week or two, as another screed from my state rep crawls across my screen, I ponder anew, 'Peter Breen, Peter Breen, why, oh why, are you so mean?

Roskam still talking in code on tax code

“By closing loopholes and lowering rates, we can create a tax policy that is simpler, flatter, and fairer for everyone,” said Peter Roskam, Congressman, of Illinois’ 6th Congressional District. 
Simpler, flatter, fairer is how my congressman Peter Roskam pitches the new Trump tax plan that will create trillions in deficits over the next decade while lavishing that transfer of the public treasure on Roskam and his wealthy base. 
Simpler, flatter, fairer ... because it will lop $27 billion a year from Uncle Sam and give it to the 1 in 500 who die with an estate over $5.69 million. 
Simpler, flatter, fairer ... because it will give the 400 richest families (are you listening Waltons?) an extra $5.5 million a year from a reduced top income rate. 
Simpler, flatter, fairer ... because it will raise the lowest tax bracket from 10 percent to 12 percent. 
Simpler, flatter, fairer … because it will incentivize corporations to pour more profits overseas in anticipation of a huge tax holiday in the works when they bring it back after tax reform passage 
Simpler, flatter, fairer ... because it will jack up taxes on blue state taxpayers who will lose their federal deduction for high state and local taxes. 
Simpler, flatter, fairer ... because it will end the Alternative Minimum Tax which mainly affects the wealthiest taxpayers. 
Sixth District residents seeking answers from Roskam on the devastating effects of the Trump/GOP tax reform plan already know how he’ll respond: “Flatter, simpler, Fairer.”

Walt Zlotow
Glen Ellyn