Here are my observations on some items in the news.
(Courtesy of arstechnica.com)
COMPROMISING WITH DEMOCRATS – I have often cited my thoughts on compromising with Democrats. Republicans always lose. Surely the president, author of the “Art of the Deal,” knows this, but why do I think Townhall columnist Kurt Schlichter, who writes, “Read My Lips: Schumer Is Playing You For A Fool, Mr. President,” agrees? I am reminded of the Charles Schultz’s Peanuts cartoon with Lucy pulling the football away after encouraging Charlie Brown to kick it.
WHAT TO DO ABOUT THE DREAMERS under DACA was on the table during the president’s dinner meeting with “Chuck and Nancy” (Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Wednesday night.
President Trump is opposed to DACA, but never said he would deport the estimated 800,000 Dreamers, and frequently spoke of their plight endearingly. He even recently Tweeted his assurance that he did not plan to deport them.
I found Mickey Kaus’ column, “Don’t buy all the PR about dreamers,” quite interesting, because I wrote about DACA qualification requirements several years ago.
While we are told that the Dreamers are innocently brought to this country by their parents through no fault of their own, and some were, that was not required to qualify as a protected Dreamer under former President Obama. You just have to have entered the country illegally before age 16. Often referred to as children, most are in their twenties today.
“We’re told Dreamers are collegebound high school grads or military personnel,” Kaus writes, but that’s an exaggeration. All that’s actually required is that the Dreamer enroll in a high school course or an ‘alternative,’ including online courses and English-as-a-second-language classes. Under Obama’s now suspended program, you didn’t even have to stay enrolled.”
Kaus reports that “Dreamers are not especially highly skilled. A survey for several pro-dreamer groups … found that while most are not in school, the vast majority work (at a) median hourly wage of $15.34, meaning that many are competing with hard-pressed lower-skilled Americans.”
THE HYPROCRITES AT MARS CANDIES – You know my feelings about climate change – yes, there are changes in climate, it’s cyclical, but we humans cannot do anything to alter the change. That’s why the headline, “Mars candy company promises $1 billion to combat climate change,” stopped me.
Mars, Inc. announced that it would be spending a billion dollars through the next few years to reduce their carbon footprint. While Mars signed-on to the petition in opposition to President Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris climate accord, Barry Parkin, Mars’ chief sustainability officer, said that wasn’t the motivation for the commitment; “We’re not interested in politics here – this is about policy.”
(Courtesy blogs.ubc.com)
WELL THEN, MR. PARKIN, within that policy, how do you explain Mars’ celebrated launch of a new M&M’s Caramel Chocolate Candies car in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series? How do you rationalize the sponsorship of a car that averages 4.5 miles-per-gallon with your goal of reducing Mars’ carbon footprint?
MORE CLIMATE CHANGE NONSENSE – Actress Jennifer Lawrence this week joined a long list of entertainment figures to speak on subjects which they have no scientific knowledge. During a recent interview about her latest movie, she strayed into comments about climate change. “You’re watching these hurricanes now, and it’s hard not to feel Mother Nature’s rage and wrath. Climate change is due to human activity.”
IT DOESN’T STOP THERE – The effects of climate change are playing out around the world every day,“ said Beyoncé during a pre-taped interview before the Hand in Hand benefit for hurricane relief, “Just this past week you’ve seen devastation in India, an 8.1 earthquake in Mexico, and two catastrophic hurricanes.”
Really, Beyoncé, climate change now causes earthquakes?
