Could You Not Do Something About My C - Mark?

Apropos yesterday's Blog, I went on-line today to check the Sarasota newspaper for anymore gun-play articles and was not to be disappointed.

Two in particular:

The First deals with the State of Texas law that permits its university students to bring guns into the class room.

How Bizarre.   Bullet Proof Vests Anyone?

The Second is less cut and dry.

It reports that yesterday "four to seven, including the gunman, are dead and 20 to 30 people are injured after a series of shootings in south-central Kansas."

Police report that the killer had been served earlier in the day with a court order demanding him to stay away from his former girl friend.  This action apparently triggered a melt-down on the gunman's part which led him on a shooting spree ending with his arrival at his employer's place of business where he shot - killed and wounded more - this time his fellow colleagues before police were able to bring him down.

Now I would say this is a mixture of domestic / work place violence that the Second Amendment giving US citizens the right to bear arms never envisaged.

The NRA would likely say it is a classic case of ordinary citizens needing to be armed in order to protect themselves.

So dear Reader - you decide.  Who is correct here?

But one thing is very clear - whether you side with me or the NRA - the United States of America is plagued with a gun culture.

As I see it...

'K.D. Galagher'

Compared to Florida ,,,, The Wild West Was Tame

The Olde West is generally defined as the period after the American Civil War - 1865 to 1885 - some twenty years.  Estimates indicate that during that time less than 20,000 men, women and children were killed by guns... 1,000 per year.

Contrast that today with the 30,000 plus Americans killed annually by guns.

But first a reminiscence:

Several years ago, my wife and I visited Tombstone Arizona - the site of the West's most famous gunfight.... The Gunfight At The OK Corral. The fight took place in 1881 between the Earps / Doc Holliday and the Clanton / McLaury Gang.

While there, we visited the town's Boot Hill - similarly named to other olde west cemeteries. Two headstones in particular stand out in my memory - (not exactly word for word):

Here lies John Stead;
We hung him for horse thief;
He said he was innocent;
Turned out he was right;
But he is stoned cold dead nonetheless.

Here lies Billy John;
Thought himself the fastest draw in the West;
Turned out he was second best.

But those heady days have nothing on present day America as the above statistics confirm.

And yet in the face of these bleak numbers, the National Rifle Association (NRA) is giddy at the thought that the Second Amendment to their Constitution protects the rights of its citizens bear arms.

Countless ads by the NRA proudly ?? that this right enables Americans to protect themselves from the bad guys.

They conveniently ignore the fact though that it is the 'good guys' who are being killed by their own guns.

I spent some time in Florida recently and in the small city in which I stayed - the local paper recounted daily numerous local gun killings.  Indeed of the 50 or so which I read about, only - 1 fell within the definition of self-defence.  The rest involved domestic disputes, children gaining access to their parents weapons, family members being mistaken for invaders, suicides and so on.

Hardly anyone mentions the fact that when the second amendment was passed into law - in 1791, weaponry consisted of single shot flintlocks.

So today we see automatic assault weaponry protected by this amendment.  Why not include tanks and CF 18s?

In respect to the love of guns, it is a different world in America and is one that is most definitely not the envy of the world.

So I will close in the famous words of the late Charlton Heston - "I'll give you my gun when you pry it out of my cold dead hands".

And more likely caused because he accidentally tripped.


As I see it...

'K.D. Galagher'

Prime Minister David Cameron ...

Arguably today's Best Leader of a Western World Nation.

That said, he does not have much competition; in fact he is competing against only two others - Obama the a sad excuse for a US President and Angela Merkel - Chancellor of Germany.

But even Angela is flawed - perhaps fatally so - having led by her heart and not her head when she backed a plan to offer refuge in Germany to a million poor souls fleeing the war-torn Middle East.

Cameron though has gone from success to success but his major challenge may now be just before him:

First the successes.

In the 2010 General Election, Cameron failed to win a majority but successfully finessed a coalition with Nick Clegg - Leader of the Liberal Democrats.  The coalition held until May's 2015 Election when Cameron once again regained majority party status.

Next, on September 18, 2014 he faced down the Scottish Separation Vote winning by over 55%.

The big challenge now for Cameron is the upcoming Referendum on whether Britain will stay in the family of EU Nations. This vote is scheduled to take place this coming June 23rd which polling shows the outcome to be tight.

Cameron has deftly handled this issue demanding that Brussels grant concessions to Britain leading up the vote. In so doing, he has appeared as a tough negotiator for his Islanders but in reality, I believe he has always been an unabashed EU backer and is merely posturing to ensure the vote goes his way.

So the question is whether or not Cameron is right to support Britain's continued involvement with the EU?

Britain has had some critical advantages right from the beginning:  it did not adopt the EURO and thus retained governance over its own domestic economy and it did not adopt the Schengen Agreement which has allowed it to control its own borders which has become so important with the massive refugee resettlement from the Middle East currently rocking the rest of the E.U..

So of the 28 countries which make up the E.U., Great Britain already retains significant powers unto itself.

Moreover, the world is forming itself into large trading blocks from the Free Trade Agreement between the USA, Canada and Mexico to the recently negotiated Pacific Rim Agreement, it would be foolhardy for the UK to think it could strike out on its own.

And of equal importance is the issue of defence.  With Russia on the path of aggression and China flexing its new eco might - militarily - in the Far East, the EU is needed to offset these two belligerents.  This is especially true, more than ever, with the USA retreating into isolation.

So will Cameron be successful in this most recent test of his leadership?

My belief is that he will, but nothing is guaranteed.  I say this because the EU has been floundering on a number of fronts - some mentioned above - and indeed there is no guarantee this experiment will ultimately win out.  But the stakes are high and if Britain was to bail, it would add a nail to the EU Coffin and would go against their own interests..

So I am glad this very important issue is being led by Cameron and if he is ultimately successful it will go along to cement his reputation as one of Britain's Great Leaders.

Long Rule Britannia and the European Union.

As I see it...

'K.D. Galagher'

The Pope, The President and the Castro Brothers,

Is it not passing strange the great love that both Pope Francis and Barack Obama appear to have for the Castro thugs; you know, the Infamous Brothers who have kept Cuban Jails full of Political Prisoners since their successful revolution in the late 1950s.

The Pope was instrumental in getting Obama and the Castros together last year - with the help of Canada, which successfully ended with the States renewing relations with Cuba after a 50 plus year long estrangement.

I wrote a Blog at that time voicing my support of this effort realizing that the time had truly come for Cuba to join the world of nations and in so doing, enter into the age of the 21st Century. I pointed out though that sadly the agreement was one-sided in that the Castros did not commit to freeing its people from the chains of it's military state nor did it open its jails for it's political prisoners - imprisoned simply because they do not agree with the Castro Communist Philosophy.

Okay that was then.

Since then, the Pope has visited this island political prison camp not once but twice - most recently last week.  Neither time did I hear him condemn brothers Fidel and Raoul for their thuggery.  And neither time did I hear him ask the Castros to throw open their prison doors.

And now dear reader, the little guy in the White House just announced that he too will venture across to this star crossed island next month.

Unbelievable!!!

And in the midst of a very bitter and divided Presidential Election Campaign no less.

Cuban Refugees from the 50's and 60's still vividly recall the  horrors of living in and escaping from Communist Cuba.

And the Democrats are hoping for a strong Latino Vote come November.  Good luck to that.

I cannot wait to hear whether dear Hillary supports Obama in his bizarre decision.

The time will come when it is appropriate for a sitting President to conduct such a visit but it should await two things; first the deaths of both Castros and second, the freeing up of the good citizens of that country - i.e. freedom of speech, freedom of religion, open and free democratic elections -supported by the rule of law... and so on.

For Obama to do what he plans to do now only exacerbates a seriously divided US of A and reinforces why he so richly deserves the title of 'Worst President Ever'.

As for Pope Francis, I am prepared to cut him some slack since maybe, as the great Christian he is, he hopes that his direct involvement now with the Castros, will ultimately serve to free God's Children in Cuba. in the longer term.

Obama doesn't get nor deserve such a pass.

As I see it...

'K.D. Galagher'

Obama, Hillary, Trump, Bernie et al means .... I'M BaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccK.

I apologize for my long absence, let's just chalk it up to technology:

As you know, I remain in the age of the Quill and while I appreciate technology for what it can do, at the same time, I hate it.

But thankfully not much has changed since my last Blog - the same Characters then, remain front and center in the news now.

Obama is inept as ever, Hilary as devious, Trump as bizarre and Bernie...as far out.

And my hope remains that common sense prevails and Marco Rubio ultimately wins out !

And my home country Canada remains unworthy of comment....hence no comment.

The big story right now of course is the recent death of US Justice Scalia and the vacancy it creates on their Supreme Court.

Scalia was the one true conservative on the Bench and often instrumental in the majority 5/4 decisions of the Court.  If Obama is permitted to appoint a replacement - the Progressives will now have the edge.

This must not be allowed to happen since appointments are for life.

The US is the world's last bastion committed to the principle that hard work leads to riches and is exemplified in the writings of the late Horatio Alger Jr.

In recent times, the balance between the workers and the takers throughout the Western World has tipped decisively in favour of the latter and even in the United States there is evidence that the balance between the two groups is turning against the workers.


There is still some hope that, with the right candidate, the right may be able to at least delay this drift for a while longer.

That is why the Supreme Court is so critical - like other Rule of Law Jurisdictions, Courts have tread bravely into the arena of making law ... not just interpreting law.  In so doing, they have usurped the power of the Peoples' Legislatures.

Should Obama be allowed to replace the late Justice Scalia, it will be all the more difficult to keep the 'takers' in check.

Obama argues correctly that he has the constitutional power to make this appointment ... which he does.  In this it is interesting to see the little guy rely upon their Constitution rather than flouting it .. but I digress.

On the other hand, the Senate is obligated to screen his appointments for suitability so they can at least use their power to at least delay it.

But for me the over-riding factor to take into account is that this is an election year and Obama is a lame duck President.  Given the importance of this one Court appointment, it would behoove him to stand down on this matter and let the new President - Democratic or Republican make the appointment since he or she and the country will have to live with the result for years and years to come.

As I see it...now I am back..

'K.D. Galagher'

2016 … So What’s Ahead?

 With 2015 behind us, let’s look ahead to the New Year just beginning.

We’ll have some fun doing it since I have sworn off Canada and its inferior governments; just international issues of import for us now.

In no particular order, following are my predictions on a number of international fronts:

1.  Oil will begin to recover over the course of the year’s second half (i.e. up to $50 per bar);  it cannot go much lower and because low oil costs will eventually spur international markets which in turn will increase demand for the black gold;

2.  Speaking of Gold, it too will recover since the Western World continues to spend far too much – going further and further into debt while at the same time quite enamoured with monetary easing – that is to say – the printing of money without a corresponding rise in GDP to support it;

3.  Obama will continue his descent in the polls as more and more Americans come to the realization that he is a Charlatan;

4.  Trump will finally fade out and Marco Rubio will win the Republican nod;

5.  Hillary will take the Democratic crown assuming that she is not charged criminally for her cavalier treatment of top secret Government Emails.  (It is unlikely she will be charged but that is not to say – she should not be.  If it was you or me – you can bet charges would be laid);

6.  So who will win the US November Presidential Election? … you will have to await the end of this;

7.  Russians head for the polls in September to elect their DUMA – (Parliament) at which time Putin’s party will make substantive gains given his high personal popularity.  Shows you what military aggression can do for one’s popularity;

8.  Angela Merkel will see her popularity continue to decline due to the way she has handled the refugee situation – that is to say, Germans believe too many refugees are being admitted to their country.  Her re-election in 2017 is very much in jeopardy;

9.  NATO will keep Putin / the Russians in check along the Eastern European Border;

10.  He will continue to be active in the Middle East in support of Bashar al Assad thereby helping to ensure continued turmoil in that part of the world;

11.  ISIS will finally be pushed off the lands they now hold in Syria and Iraq.  The combination of air strikes and ground troop action is beginning to take a heavy toll on them which they will not be able to withstand much longer;

12.  ISIS will though be replaced by numerous other Islamic Extremist Groups throughout the Middle East and Many Parts of Africa. True peace will have to await the time of moderate Muslims taking control and that dear reader will not happen over the course of this New Year.  It means that Islamic Terrorist Attacks will continue unabated throughout the World;

13.  Even more problematic for the Muslim Countries is the fact that relations between their two major factions - the Sunnis and the Shiites, is breaking down.  This deterioration will continue over 2016 and if not brought under control over the next few years will have very grave consequences for that part of the world;

14.  An important aspect of this risk is the fact that Iran has been given clearance by the United States to complete the building of its atomic bomb.  It is hard to imagine that Israel and now Saudi Arabia will sit back and let that happen but I do not see any action on their part against Iran in 2016.  Saudi Arabia will though focus on arming itself as it now realizes it cannot depend upon Uncle Sam or should I say Uncle Barack; 

15.  In many respects, 2016 will appear like 2015 and 2014 before it;

16.  And the winner is …. Marco Rubio. 

As I see it ...

'K.D. Galagher'

+Pt 2 … My Specific Predictions for 2015

So let’s now review what I said specifically was likely to happen in 2015.  Again my self-graded comments appear in Bold Italics at the end of each major heading:
Ottawa
The municipal election is over so not too many entrails to paw over.
Gang Shootings are the big issue though – nearly 1 per week – an all time high last year and likely to continue for 2015. 
The Police say that if only they assign more officers to their guns and gang unit – the problem will lessen but as one distinguished defence lawyer said – to double down on what has not worked in the past will only insure continued failure in the future and he is correct.
So I predict the problem will persist.  I do have a suggestion for the City and the Police on how they should really be dealing with Gangs, guns et al and that will be the subject of one of my very next blogs.    A – in 2014 there were 47 shootings; as of the end of 2015 there were a couple less. So whatever the Guns and Gangs Unit is doing continues not to work.
Ontario
Again the election has passed so little to comment on.
And no doubt you are getting tired of my saying this is Ontario’s worst government in history but sadly I truly believe it and thus nothing of substance will likely improve in 2015.  Again not a prediction but a statement of fact.
One of the only predictions I will make is in regard to May’s Tory Leadership Vote – Christine Elliott will win but she would not be my pick.  With Elliott in place, Ontario will have 2 liberal parties – the Tories and the NDP and one NDP Party – aka the Liberals. 
I think the group of candidates is wanting but my choice from this meagre list would be Monte McNaughton if for no other reason than he is the only candidate of the 5 or 6 to come out strongly against Wynne’s pornographic sex education plan for our young public schoolers.
The Tories should have used this time to lick their wounds – give the Grits a chance to self destroy and beat the bushes for some really good candidates – John Baird anyone?
The only other prediction I will make in regard to Ontario is with respect to our economy.  With the drop in oil and the drop in our dollar – economic activity will pick up – (it cannot get any lower given the Grits’ devastating policies that have caused business to flee the Province). It will not though be as robust as it should otherwise be and it will not enable the province to escape its ‘have-not’ status.
C
– Brown, the only other candidate left running other than Elliott, won the PC Leadership and I voted for him but so far am not impressed . The Tories, like their federal counterparts should have waited to hold their Leadership Convention until such time as they had some real heavies available to run.
-  Over this past year, Oil and our Buck continued their steep decline but so far this has not had much of a positive effect on Ontario’s economy  i.e. employment growth since Nov. 2014 is a measely .05% so it would appear that the Province’s Green Energy Fiasco has just caused too much damage to business.
Canada
The big news here will be the upcoming Election.
I believe Harper will call it before the Duffy Trial this coming April.  
If he does not call it and awaits the statutory date in October I think there is a very good chance Harper will not even be at the helm then.  I will explain in a moment. 
By all accounts given that two-thirds of Ontarians lean to the left, Harper et al should have no chance of forming the next government.  That said, I predict he will win and by a slight majority.  I say this because neither the Dippers nor the Liberals have staked out policies that resonate with the voters and this coupled with my prediction of a March election should be enough to carry the Tories to victory. 
If the election is in the Fall, the dirt that comes out of the Duffy trial will plaster the Prime Minister and he will be lucky to personally survive let alone win an election.  I say that because I believe he mislead the public by saying he had no idea that his Chief of Staff paid out $90k to Duffy and if he did, it will all come out at the trial. 
The Keystone Pipeline will not get the okay from the little man’s in the white house.  Congress will need a two thirds vote to over-ride his veto and the chances of this happening over the course of this new year are about 50/50 and accordingly does not count as a prediction.
Oil will rebound this year – it cannot get much lower.
The Feds will have to slash even more in staffing and programs to keep its budget balanced – many because of the lost oil revenue. 
Harper will use his about to be introduced Bill to fight terrorism as an excuse to go the public early – i.e. an Election in March. 
Another C
Harper did not go to the polls in March as I had predicted, but had he done so, I fully believe he would have won. 
I was correct in saying that Obama would finally announce that the Keystone Pipeline would not be approved by his Adminsitration. 
I was wrong in thinking oil would recover and civil service employment declined only modestly.  It will now go into a period of growth under our new Liberal administration.
The World
Russia – Putin is wounded – e.g. falling oil prices is causing havoc to the Russian economy and thus he is more dangerous than ever.  That said, I think 2015 will see Russia withdraw back into its borders primarily because NATO has shown at last that it is  prepared to stand and fight him.
ISIS – too will continue to decline (but by no means disappear) in importance throughout the middle east - again because the West has called its bluff especially with its very successful air campaign.
The EBOLA scourge will finally come under control as Western Countries like Canada send the needed resources to fight it.
Greece will leave the EU with Germany’s blessings.
Iran will not be stopped in its ongoing efforts to develop and establish a delivery system for the Atomic Bomb.
Israel -  Netanyahu will win this coming March’s election.  His popularity is being given a big boost by the region’s terrorists.
Israel will sadly not though launch an attack against Iran despite Obama’s continued dithering.
UK – Cameron will win the May 17 General Election.  Like Netanyahu – he is being helped by the greater aggression on the part of terrorists.
So that’s it – otherwise 2015 will be business as usual – terrorists will continue to terrorize – innocents suffer, the USA will dither, China bully, the world’s economies will languish although cheaper oil will help somewhat.
2015 will be a replay of last year.
A – the only prediction that did not come to pass was Greece not leaving the EU otherwise I believe I was quite accurate.  You might argue that Russia did not retreat in Eastern Europe but from my perspective it did and did so only because NATO finally got involved.  It was quite different thing in Syria where Russia took the initiative but not because of NATO rather because the USA under its do nothing Prez continued to do nothing.   Good thing I am focusing on international matters.
Overall mark?  B or B- .  You decide.
As I see it…
‘K.D. Galagher’