CAN DONALD TRUMP CLINTON ?

OR IS HE OUT OF TRUMP?

I have laid off the Trump saga for some time - as promised, but the time has come to once again spill some ink on this very fascinating topic.

Why so, you may rightfully ask.

Because dear Mr. Trump and Ms. Hillary have now both wrapped up their respective leadership campaigns. 

This despite the apparent fact that Donald's main contender, Ted Cruz, still believes he can cut Trump off at this summer's Republican Convention.

He can't.

And he can't primarily because if Cruz were to be successful it would be thanks to the shenanigans of the Republican Hierarchy, and the Grand Olde Party would simply blow-up.

And an exploding Elephant is not a pretty sight.

No one would be stupid enough to set that in motion.

So Trump has got it as does Hillary and her nemesis too - Bernie Sanders, will hang on in the hope that Hillary's future is as a resident of the Big House and not the White House. And I would put the chances of that occurring at even money.

Simply stated the dear lady broke the law when, as Sec State, she installed her internet server in her laundry room. 

But for argument sake, say Hillary is protected by her cronies in high places and she skates on being charged for gross negligence - what is the likely outcome of a Trump / Clinton match-up?

Why a Clinton victory of course...let me count the ways:

• Blacks won't vote for him;
• Hispanics won't either;
• Neither will immigrants generally;
• Muslims fear him;
• Youth ridicule him;
• Women don't like him; and the 
• Educated believe him to be a dunce.

So that leaves only lower class white males in the Trump camp.

And Trump has the highest negative popularity of any main candidate for the White House in history - some 67%.  That is not to say that Hillary's is much better at 55 % but it is better and of course she has all of the above voting blocks on-side.

So it is Hillary Clinton in a walk as the Pundits are quick to point out.  The same pundits who predicted 6 months ago that Trump would be dead in the water within days or at the most, weeks of his announcing his candidacy late last year.

Or is he?

Trump is beginning to mellow - he really lost me when he crowed that NATO was not pulling its weight and the US should pull out of it.

In my Blogs I have always said that NATO is needed now more than ever - bearing in mind the state of the world and the fact that there are only 20 full fledged Democracies in the World.

I have also said that NATO members need to start paying their fair share and it can no longer expect the US to pay the lion share of the Organization's expenses.  NATO expects member countries to expend 2% of their GDP on Defence.  Only 4 countries do so - which includes the US and the 3 others do not even come close to America's 3.6% expenditure.

And now Trump is starting to focus - finally realizing the value of NATO and putting his finger on the real issue - the lack of commitment of most of NATO's Membership.

About time but at least he has sensibly come around.

If he continues to mellow I might very well change my mind and if I was an American - might just vote for the guy.

He is a voice for the silent majority - against the special interest groups, the elites, the politically correct.

After 8 years of decline where the US enemies no longer fear it and its allies no longer trust it - Trump brings hope that America will regain its superior position in the world.

America's economy has stagnated - manufacturing jobs have been lost in the millions - wages have seen little or no growth all the while the Obama White House worries itself sick about Climate Change and job destroying Obama Care. 

And if that is not enough - the Courts - right up to the Supreme Court are making laws not interpreting them which have the affect of radically changing the Social Fabric of the Unite States.

Trump has the refreshing ability to cut through the BS and tell it like it is.  If someone calls him fat - he counters by calling them stupid.  He always seems to one up them and in that regard I cannot wait to see how he deals with Sleazy Hillary.

The world is a much more dangerous place thanks to Hillary and Obama's reign of ineptitude. 

She takes millions of $ from despots around the world for the Clinton Foundation and expects the unwashed believe this money is given without strings attached. 

She fiddles while the US Ambassador and 3 colleagues in Libya burn.  Then she blames everyone rather than herself for this tragedy save for the Islamic Terrorists who did the dastardly deed.

I could go on and on but believe I have made my point.

Bottom-line is - Hillary should win in a walk but by the same token Trump should not even still be in the race.

So would I count The Donald out - not in a minute.

As I see it...

'K.D. Galagher'

IS PTSD ....

THE NEW LOWER BACK PAIN?

I, for one, am suspicious.  Anybody, whose Anybody seems to be claiming and receiving disability pensions based on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

There is the Military of course - but now Fire Fighters, Police, Para Meds, Nurses and others are getting in on the action.

And don't doubt that there is real money to be had.

The US Military is paying out $3,000 per month tax free for PTSD Sufferers.  And the diagnosis is usually based solely upon the claimant's assertion that he or she suffers from it.

Like yesterday, when the lower back pain scam was so prominent.

But more and more reports suggest that fraud is a big part of the surge in cases.

And boy have they surged.

In 1990, the US Military had but 34,000 PTSD cases.  In 2013 that number had climbed to 650,000 ... or by 20 times.

And by this time of course their big wars were well behind them - WWI, WWII and Vietnam.

I don't for one moment think that all or even the majority of these cases are bogus but it does cause you to reflect on why the numbers have risen so high so fast over the last decade or two.

There can be three reasons for this amazing growth:

a) ptsd is a disease of epidemic proportions; or

b) there is $ to be had and it is very difficult to prove fraud; or

c) we in the West are becoming nations of wimps.

I discount choice a) out of hand, re b) there certainly has to be a large amount of fraud involved, and with c) sadly there is also lots of evidence that more and more of us have become or are becoming Wussies. 

That said, I am not suggesting that we go back to the days during World War One when PTSD Suffers - called Shell Shock then - were simply put up against a wall and shot. 

But it does appear something - albeit much less drastic - should be done to stem the tide.

And now, like I say - others are climbing on board.  All have something in common re these newbies - they are all government employees and have the best salaries, benefits and working conditions to boot.  But another 3 grand - tax free $, no doubt comes in handy.

I remember once a veteran coming to me to say he had just been awarded a pension for something or other - and I said good for you...until - 

He told me he had entered the hearing room with a cane and bent over - but I said to him I did not know you needed a cane - I did know that he walked straight and tall - and he replied he did not but he thought it was guaranteed to get him sympathy from the panel.  

And it looks like it did.

But then there was my father who served in Italy and Holland in tanks - he was the gunner and in post war life he was hard of hearing - surprise.

I told dad why don't you apply for a hearing pension and he responded saying there is nothing wrong with my hearing.  I was shouting at him at the time.

A hearing specialist concluded dad did indeed have hearing loss caused by Loud Noise and since he worked all his civilian life at a desk - it did not seem likely the loud noise damage was caused by his typewriter.

He got his small pension.

So I am in favour of the truly disabled qualifying for legitimate pensions - even for fire fighters, cops and nurses but for heavens sake, let's be more vigilante in weeding out the chaff from the wheat.

At the very least - tax these PTSD Pensions.

As I see it...

'K.D. Galagher'