All posts by Hutchins AAron

Born in Deutschland 1965, hometown was Bütthart, parents were not U.S. government employees. However, when father was tricked into joining the U.S. Air Force Civil Service, in 1969, with the promise that we could remain in Germany, we were promptly shipped off to Iran. Due to one of my Iranian educators being disappeared, along with her husband, by the U.S. ally Shah of Iran's Israeli & U.S. created Savak (for the then official terrorist act of promoting the idea that women can vote), and due to my U.S. citizen mother being placed on Savak's Terrorist Arrest List (for supporting the idea that women should vote, at that time the U.S. ally Shah of Iran did not allow women to vote, now they can) we left Iran for the United States in 1973, literally in the middle of the night. At the U.S. Embassy airbase the CIA operated Gooney Bird (C-47) was so packed with other U.S. citizens fleeing our ally Iran (because the Shah gave the OK to arrest any U.S. citizen for such terrorist acts as promoting the concept of voting) that we were turned away by the Loadmaster and had to take a chance on a civilian flight out of Tehran's airport. My father told me he and my mother had three culture shocks; first when they arrived in Germany as civilians, then after being shipped off to Iran as U.S. government employees, then again returning to the United States as unemployed civilians (because so much had changed in the U.S. while they were gone, their only news source was the U.S. Armed Forces Radio & Television Service which heavily censored information about the home front). Since I graduated high school in 1982 I've worked for U.S. government contractors and state & local government agencies (in California), convenience store manager in California, retail/property management in Georgia, California and Idaho. Spent the 1990s in the TV news business producing number one rated local news programs in California, Arizona and Idaho. 14+ years with California and Idaho Army National Guard and the U.S. Air Force. Obtained a BA degree in International Studies from Idaho State University at the age of 42. Unemployed since 2015, so don't tell me the economy has recovered.
Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: U.S. job losses & store closings 02 October 2013. More ObamaCare trouble! Hundreds of jobs lost!

Incomplete list of announced closings and layoffs:

International news source, Thompson Reuters, warned of layoffs in the United States.

Video game maker Sega laid off an undisclosed amount of employees in the United States.

Alabama: In Jasper, the Christian god couldn’t stop non-profit Missions Unlimited from shutting down their thrift store.  Their main office is moving to Prattville.

Arizona: In Phoenix, Second Hand Rose antiques shutdown.

California: In Modesto, Save Mart grocery store shutdown. The family owners blamed it on the bad economy.  In Stockton, decades old La Maison women’s clothing store shutdown.  The owner blamed the bad economy.

Connecticut: In Brookfield, Germany based Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics closing down over the next two years.  256 jobs lost!  The company is consolidating its medical diagnostic device factories, possibly due to the new Obama Care tax on medical devices.

Georgia: Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital warned of more layoffs, on top of the 33 management personnel rendered unemployed! Hospital officials blamed it on Georgia refusing to expand medicaid payments under Obama Care.  In Albany, a Piggly Wiggly grocery store shutdown.  The company finally went bankrupt.  50 jobs lost.

Idaho: In Nampa, Farm and City Supply shutdown.  “There’s not enough sales to make it work right now. It’s been a struggle the whole time!”-Carl Woodburn, owner

Indiana: The Indiana University Hospital laid off another 100 people! That’s on top of the previously announced 800 layoffs!  It’s blamed on reduced reimbursements as a result of Obama Care.

Michigan: In Warren, Too Big to Jail Asset Acceptance laid off 73 people.

Minnesota: In Avon, Aunt Annie’s Quilts shutdown.

Kansas: Complete Landscaping Systems now bankrupt. Company owners blame it on the loss of a major contract with Too Big to Jail Bank of America.

New Jersey: Legal drug pusher, Warner Chilcott, laid off 88 employees.  It’s blamed on the takeover by Actavis.

New York: In Schenectady, tax sucker General Electric (GE) laid off 200 people!  This despite a $2.7-billion USD deal with Algeria!

North Carolina: Lenoir Memorial Hospital warned of layoffs if enough employees don’t voluntarily quit!  Officials blame it on North Carolina refusing to expand medicaid payments under Obama Care.  Locopops gourmet frozen treats shutdown several outlets statewide! Company officials said the economy is forcing them to change their marketing model.

Pennsylvania: In King of Prussia, Synergetics medical device maker shutdown. 24 jobs lost.  It’s consolidating production, possibly because of the new Obama Care tax.  In Montgomery Township, Pizzeria UNO Grill shutdown.

Tennessee: Legal drug maker GTx laid off 53 employees.  It’s having trouble with its lung cancer drug Enobosarm.

Texas: In Beaumont, PaceSetter Lounge shutdown.

Vermont: Tax sucker Dynapower laid off 33 workers.  It’s blamed on military spending cuts.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

“Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security……..That’s what makes America different. That’s what makes us exceptional.”-Barack Obama, 10 September 2013

Influenza

Influenza: Deadly H7N9 makes a comeback! Allied with H9N2! Warning for pregnant women!

11 January 2014 (21:35 UTC-07 Tango 10 January 2014)/09 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/21 Dey 1392/11 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

A 38 years old man in China died today, the same day it was confirmed he was infected with H7N9.  So far this year there are at least ten human infections (150 human infections since the beginning of 2013, 45 deaths) involving a virus that is still considered a bird only flu.

At least four of the latest human cases had contact with poultry.  Six are in critical condition.

Chinese researchers have discovered that not only are poultry infected with H7N9, but they are infected with H9N2 as well.  Further research resulted in their conclusion that H9N2 (duck flu) is playing a role in the evolution of H7N9.  Genetic testing showed H7N9 genes containing genes from H9N2.

Restaurants, as well as poultry markets, are found to have the virus and massive cleaning is being undertaking.  A restaurant in Guangzhou Province was shut down and 27 employees are now under medical observation.

The Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention is warning pregnant woman: “Our findings suggest that pregnancy might be a risk factor for clinically severe influenza in young women infected with H7N9 subtype virus.”

The Jiangsu CDC reported that a pregnant woman almost died from H7N9, having to undergo intensive anti-viral treatments.  They also pointed out that she had no contact with birds!

At least two people died from H7N9 in Hong Kong.  The Hong Kong Department of Health reports three new cases, for a total of 149 cases.

Taiwan reports two human cases of H7N9.  Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council issued a Yellow Travel Alert for anybody going to Shanghai.

The University of Melbourne, in Australia, found that some people are immune to H7N9.  It has to do with the lymphocyte CD8+ T.  Some people have it, some don’t.  Those that have it can fight off influenza better than those who don’t.

International, U.S.

World War 3, Asian Front-Afghanistan, 22-25 December 2013: Russia wants U.S. to stay (and die?) in Afghanistan!

Helmand Province: A USMC Sergeant from Massachusetts was killed by “direct fire”.  His family said it was his third tour in Afghanistan, and he served in Iraq.

Kabul Province:  A Red Coat British Army captain was shot and killed.  In Kabul City, four cops were wounded while trying to diffuse rockets. Apparently the rockets were just a trap as a remote detonated bomb exploded in the same area.  In Qarabagh District, Mujahideen say they fired rockets at a helicopter that landed in the area.  Also, two rockets hit the U.S. Embassy compound, but Mujahideen say they launched four rockets in total: “All Americans are accounted for and no injuries were sustained.”-U.S. Embassy statement

Laghman Province: In Alingar District, Mujahideen say they ambushed a U.S. led Afghan National Army Israeli style home invasion, killing eight people.  Mujahideen say the battle lasted five hours and two Mujahideen were also wounded.

Logar Province: In Pul-i-Alam City, a bicycle bomb exploded killing six people and wounded at least 13.

Russia’s Lower House Speaker, Sergey Naryshkin, told Afghan officials that U.S. led forces were still needed for the security of Afghanistan.

Army National Guard’s 819th Engineer Company, from the U.S. state of Arizona, returned home from Afghanistan.  They were based in Zabul Province.

Army National Guard’s 198th Expeditionary Signal Battalion, from the U.S. state of Delaware, returned home from Afghanistan.  They kept their return a secret to surprise their families.

Army National Guard’s Detachment 47, from the U.S. state of Oregon, returned home from Afghanistan.  However, it was revealed that in Spring 2014 Oregon’s 41st Infantry Brigade Combat will deploy to Afghanistan. (But wait, back in November 2013 the 41st was told they would not be deploying to Afghanistan! Maybe the local news media is confused?)

Army National Guard’s 850th Horizontal Engineer Company, from the U.S. state of Minnesota, returned home from Afghanistan.

Army National Guard’s 235th Military Police Company, from the U.S. state of South Dakota, returned home from Afghanistan.

Army National Guard’s 149th Vertical Construction Company, from the U.S. state of Kentucky, returned home from Afghanistan.

Fukushima

More Fukushima Fallout: Radioactive cars showing up in…Jamaica, mahn! United States secretly monitoring radiation levels in Caribbean?

10 January 2014 (15:05 UTC-07 Tango)/08 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/20 Dey 1392/10 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

Not only has Russia rejected another shipment of used cars from Japan, because they are emitting radiation, but all the way on the other side of the World Jamaican officials are reporting radioactive cars showing up in their ports!

Russian officials announced that for 2013 they rejected 165 used cars and spare parts from Japan, because they are radioactive!  When it comes to fish from Japan, officials say so far they pass muster.

Now, officials with the Caribbean country of Jamaica say they have quarantined at least two shipments of Japanese cars because of radiation contamination.

The first shipment was in November 2013, and involved second hand mini-buses for sale in Jamaica.  The second case was in December 2013, and involved used car parts destined for Guyana.  Both shipments are now detained by the Jamaica Customs Agency.

Jamaican officials are now demanding urgent meetings with Japanese officials.

Jamaican Customs officials also revealed they were able to detect the radiation because the United States Department of Energy has quietly begun monitoring radiation levels in the Caribbean, and is training various Caribbean governments in how to conduct radiation checks on products coming from Japan!

Velma Ricketts, Assistant Commissioner of Jamaican Customs revealed that her country’s radiation checks are being done in participation with the U.S. DoE, and that the U.S. DoE also provided the detection equipment (at U.S. taxpayer expense) as well as the training.

 

U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Proof your elected officials are getting richer, and your paying for it! Record number of millionaires in Congress, slashing services and jacking up your taxes!

10 January 2014 (14:33 UTC-07 Tango)/08 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/20 Dey 1392/10 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

Reports of a decreasing U.S. unemployment rate are being tempered with the fact that not only did the number of people applying for first time unemployment assistance (IT IS NOT A BENEFIT!) go down, but so did the number of people finding jobs, and so did the number of people still looking for jobs.

That’s the real reason for the unemployment rate going down; yet again hundreds of thousands of people quit looking for work!

In December 2013, 347-thousand unemployed people gave up on finding a job!  That is represented by the Participation Rate, which hit 62.8% the lowest since 1978! When you factor the Participation Rate just for men, it hits the record low set back in 1948!

Compare the 347-thousand people who gave up finding a job to the measly number of people who found a job; only 74-thousand in December!  And that’s way down from what job ‘experts’ expected.

A CNNMoney survey of employment ‘experts’ said 193-thousand jobs were going to be created in December.  USA Today said their 37 ‘experts’ predicted 205-thousand to 238-thousand new jobs would be created in December.  Now those USA Today experts say the bad news is just an “aberration”, and blamed bad weather (damn that climate change).  Those silly ‘experts’!

Oh yeah, out of that 74-thousand jobs created in December, most of them were end of year temporary holiday/seasonal jobs!!!!

There’s good reason for long term unemployed (who are mainly men) to quit wasting their time and money looking for a job.  According to U.S. Bureau of Labor March 2013 data, if you’ve been unemployed for more than one year your chances of getting hired drops to 9%!!!!!!!!!!

Now comes your friendly neighborhood political representative, who seems to be making big money despite the suck ass economy.  According to Center for Responsive Politics (CRP), they are making big money!

For the first time in U.S. history, more than half of your elected officials in the U.S. Congress are net millionaires!

Now realize those ‘elected’ officials voted to end unemployment assistance for 1.3 million people, and are slashing and burning government services, and are stealing money from Social Security, Medicaid/Medicare and the U.S. Postal Service, and they keep jacking up the taxes you pay!

Officials at the CRP blame you the dumb voters for the situation: “Despite the fact that polls show how dissatisfied Americans are with Congress overall, there’s been no change in our appetite to elect affluent politicians to represent our concerns in Washington…”-Sheila Krumholz, executive director CRP

And don’t forget the 1.3 million unemployed who lost their federal assistance this month!  That’ll probably make the unemployment rate for January 2014 go down too, makes things look real gooood!

It’s almost like a conspiracy to rip off the average worker of the United States so the 1% elites can get richer by cutting government services while raising taxes?

“Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security……..That’s what makes America different. That’s what makes us exceptional.”-Barack Obama, 10 September 2013

International, U.S.

Norovirus: Sandwich shop confirmed as source! People getting confused! Connection to influenza? Hospital officials beggin’ you to stay away! Royally incompetent doctors kill woman!

10 January 2014 (05:36 UTC-07 Tango)/08 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/20 Dey 1392/10 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

British Columbia, Canada: Catholic Providence Health Care reported seven cases at its Saint Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver.  Visitors who insisted on entering the affected wards had to wear gowns and gloves.

Taiwan: The Taiwan Centers for Disease Control reports 246 Taiwanese tourists got sick in South Korea, with norovirus!  Taiwan complained to South Korea, saying the tourists got sick from meals arraigned by the travel agencies.

England, U.K.: An outbreak of vomiting bug has closed three wards at the Warwick Hospital.  All other wards are under visitor restrictions.  Officials at Leeds Teaching Hospitals report increasing number of people coming in sick with “winter sickness bug”.  Because there is no real treatment for norovirus hospital officials are telling people sick with it to just stay home!  A report showed that in the 2012/13 financial year the George Eliot Hospital had a total of 352 days of ward closures, blamed on norovirus!   The Musgrove Park Hospital reports an outbreak and asks that children under the age of 11 stay away from the hospital. Medway Maritime Hospital closed two wards.

Northern Ireland, U.K.: The BBC reporting that the Royal Victoria Hospital was backed up with a flood of sick people.  The scene was described as chaotic and hospital staff were “at their breaking point”.  The BBC says don’t blame it on norovirus outbreak, blame it on massive government health care funding cuts and layoffs, which resulted in other Northern Ireland hospitals rerouting new patients to Royal Victoria Hospital.

Scotland, U.K: Incompetent doctors at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary killed a retired woman by misdiagnosing her blood clot as vomiting bug!!!  The 77 years old woman went to the hospital for help twice.  She died after they sent her home the second time.  Despite what the Royal screw job doctors said she did not have norovirus, she had a blot clot in her bowel!  Health Protection Scotland is reporting that 70% of new hospital cases, in December 2013, were norovirus infections.

Kansas, U.S.A.: The Department of Health and Environment confirmed that a recent outbreak of norovirus was caused by a Jimmy John’s sandwich shop.  The shop was closed for two days of cleaning.

Minnesota, U.S.A.:  Health officials reporting coinciding increases in norovirus cases and influenza cases.

New Hampshire, U.S.A.: Health officials are noting a coinciding rise in norovirus cases, as influenza cases rise.  No hard-n-fast numbers given.

New York, U.S.A.: A local NBC affiliate reported that hospital ERs are filling with people sick to their stomachs.  The NBC affiliate didn’t give any hard and fast numbers.

Texas, U.S.A.: Health officials in the Dallas-Fort Worth area report coinciding cases of norovirus and H1N1, and people are getting confused: “You could be fooled, thinking that you have one and have the other. As far as norovirus goes, there’s really not anything we do for it other than supportive treatment, giving IV fluids if necessary.”-Glenn Hardesty, Arlington Memorial Hospital

Washington, U.S.A.: At least 11 people sick at a Fairhaven nursing home.  Nursing home officials are blaming it on a visitor, whom they think was sick with norovirus.

Wisconsin, U.S.A.: In Fox Valley, 16 people at a nursing home got sick.  Just like in Washington, nursing home officials blame it on a sick visitor.

The U.S. CDC says norovirus accounts for as many as 800 deaths in the United States, every year.

Norovirus is a surface contact bug, meaning you pick it up by touching or eating it.  It is not influenza and there is still no vaccine for fast evolving RNA norovirus.  The only ‘treatment’ is to keep the sick person hydrated.

Exotic anti-biotic soaps can’t kill norovirus, or any other virus for that matter, because anti-biotics are only for bacteria.  Despite that, even hand ‘sanitizers’ made with alcohol can’t totally get rid of norovirus.   Guess what apparently works?  According to the U.S. CDC old fashioned hand soap is best.  Consumer Reports says to leave the soap on your hands for a minimum of 20 seconds.  Also, in public restrooms use a paper towel to turn off the faucet and to open the door, do not touch surfaces with your bare hands after washing them.

Wash household surfaces with bleach.

The worse thing is that you can be infected and not have any symptoms.  An infected person can spread norovirus, yet not feel sick themselves. If you think you might be infected do not cook food for other people. People recovering from traditional symptoms of norovirus can continue spreading the bug for days after feeling better (some reports say weeks).

Fukushima

More Fukushima Fallout: Japan to conduct nuke meltdown, on purpose! Overall radiation levels rising at Fukushima Daiichi, throwaway workers now in danger! 1400% radiation increase in California?

10 January 2014 (04:22 UTC-07 Tango)/08 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/20 Dey 1392/10 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

Japan Times reporting that the Japan Atomic Energy Agency will conduct a full meltdown of nuclear fuel in March!  The crazy bastards at the JAEA want to observe the meltdown “….to figure out how meltdowns occurred at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in 2011”!

The meltdown will take place at the Nuclear Safety Research Reactor in Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture.  It will involve one fuel rod.  The test is being done because, still, nobody knows what’s really going on at Fukushima Daiichi, three years after at least three GE designed reactors melted down!

Remember, between reactors 1,2 & 3 there are at least 1500 fuel rods!  And don’t forget they’re still having problems with reactor Unit 4!

Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) reporting that overall radiation levels at the boundaries of the Fukushima Daiichi radiation factory have risen to 8 millisieverts in December 2013!  In March 2013 it was at 1 millisievert.  Currently, Japanese nuke throwaway workers can be legally exposed to 1 millisievert per year, the latest reading is eight times that limit!

NRA officials blame the build up of beta ray contamination in the leaking water storage tanks.  They claim that the inflow of beta radiation contaminated water into the tanks is actually crowding out the other isotopes, pushing them right through the thick metal walls of the tanks!  Officials at the NRA are now holding meetings to figure out what to do!

The inflow of beta radiation into the storage tanks can be partly blamed on the failed Advanced Liquid Processing System.  Tokyo Electric Power Company, apparently, finally gave up on their failed ALPS filtration system.  ALPS was supposed to be used to filter the hotter isotopes from water before being stored into the tanks.  I’ve been following the implementation of ALPS, and it never worked right. TEPCo had so many problems with it that it seemed they couldn’t go three weeks without shutting down for repairs.

On 08 January 2014, TEPCo shut down all three ALPS filters.  This time they blame it on the 14 containers used to store the filtered material, saying they are packed full.  They also said it will be some time before they can get empty containers and re-start the filtration.  (Update: 10 January 2014, TEPCo re-starts ALPS.  Says the problem was the massive crane used to move the containers.  They fixed the crane, and moved new containers in place.  However TEPCo stated that ALPS is still officially in test run mode, since they’ve had so many problems it’s been difficult to asses its effectiveness.  Really?)

The Half Moon Bay Review interviewed an electrical engineer who’s worked with geiger counters for 40 years.  His own radiation checks of Surfer’s Beach, in California, showed a 1400% increase in radiation: “It’s not normal!  I’ve never seen 400 CPM [counts per minute] when I just wave my geiger around!  There has to be something radioactive for it to do that.”-Steve Weiss, radiological analyst

The Half Moon Bay Review also reported increasing amounts of cesium-137, radium and thorium on California beaches.

After California officials denounced the independent radiation monitoring by residents (one video showed a 500% increase in radiation on California beaches), the alternative news source InfoWars deployed a squad of reporters to the U.S. west coast to take radiation samples for themselves.

For their first rad check, the InfoWars radiation squad reports they found high levels of radiation outside the famous Redwood Forest; more than 80 CPMs at some points leading up to the entrance of the famous Drive Thru Tree.

Despite the geiger counter evidence of increased radiation, University of Southern California professor Daniel Stram said “There’s no danger from Fukushima with the fish that we eat.”

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: U.S. job losses & store closings 01 October 2013. Another data storage spy company bankrupt! Honey maker turns out to bee a big fraud! Thousands more lose their jobs!

Incomplete list of announced closings and layoffs:

U.S. legal drug pusher, Merck, laying off 8500 people, and that’s on top of the 7500 jobs they’ve already eliminated!!!

JCPenney shutting down at least 15 JC’s Five Star Outlet stores across the U.S., 1400 jobs lost!!!

Northeast Utilities laid off 160 people in its IT ops!  The job cuts are connected to the merger with NStar.

Cloud data storage company, Nirvanix, now bankrupt “…to preserve its assets and to pursue all potential options to maximize value for its creditors….”.

Groeb Farms now bankrupt.  U.S. Department of Justice says the honey maker is bee-hind the biggest case of food fraud in U.S. history!  It involves illegally  importing Chinese honey.

Alabama: What automotive industry recovery? In Tuscaloosa, tire maker BF Goodrich laid off as many as 110 people! The local union boss says tire sales have been going down.

California: Paramount Pictures laid off 110 people!  Company officials blamed it on “..an increasingly competitive environment…” NBC Digital laid off four employees, and refused to explain why.  In Corona, Activis laid off 19 employees.  In Los Angeles, DTT laid off 64 people.  In Santa Clara, French-Italian STMicroelectronics laid off 52 workers.

Illinois: What automotive industry recovery? Once again, Caterpillar laying off more employees.  This time Caterpillar officials are not saying how many are going to become unemployed. In Machesney Park, JC’s Five Star Outlet (formerly known as JCPenney) shutdown (see above).

Indiana: In Fort Wayne, Nyloncraft shutdown.  111 jobs lost! Company officials blame a shrinking “customer base”.

Kansas: LaRocca’s Pizza shutdown.

Kentucky: In Madisonville, Goldenrod Dairy shutdown after 80 years in business. 140 jobs lost!  Company officials are consolidating operations.

Mississippi: Non-profit United Blood Services shutdown in Meridian.  It’s part of their adjustments to Obama Care, which they warned about back in 2012!

New York: The State Thruway laid off another four employees. Officials would only say it was a personnel matter.  In Buffalo, Will Poultry on William Street shutdown, ending 113 jobs!  In Wappingers Falls, Southeastern Container finally shutdown, letting go the last 15 employees.

North Carolina: What automotive industry recovery? In Salisbury, Performance Fibers laid off 16 workers, and blamed it on crashing sales.  The company makes fibers used in products like vehicle seat belts.

Ohio: In Marietta, the Christian god can’t stop the Salvation Army from shutting down their thrift store.  Salvation Army officials said sales at the thrift store had crashed so much they couldn’t pay the utilities!  In Salon, Aclara shutdown, 79 jobs lost.  The electronics company is up for sale.

Pennsylvania: Beiter’s shutdown its furniture, appliances and electronics store in Wilkes-Barre.  Store owners said because of the bad economy they were hoping for a break in the rent from the landlord, but the landlord refused.

Tennessee: The Oak Ridge National Laboratory is asking 475 employees to voluntarily quit!  It’s blamed on federal spending cuts.  Sears announced it will close its Hickory Ridge Mall Towne Centre store.

South Carolina: In Berea, after 42 years the Apollo King Restaurant shutdown. It’s blamed on family health problems.

Wisconsin: In Portage, PolyOne shutdown, 86 jobs lost.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

“Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security……..That’s what makes America different. That’s what makes us exceptional.”-Barack Obama, 10 September 2013

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Proof the rich are getting richer, and your paying for it! After decades of throwing money at education, don’t blame it on lack of education!

09 January 2014 (15:17 UTC-07 Tango)/07 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/19 Dey 1392/09 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

Several newly released studies and books show what many in the main streamer news media have discounted for decades: The rich just keep getting richer, and the poor stay poor.

The City University of New York’s Graduate Center says their research shows people who live in New York City are fools, at least the ones who aren’t rich are fools.

The bottom 20% of people working in the Big Rotten Apple saw a pathetic $1,028 USD increase in the average incomes from 1990 to 2010.  In the same 20 years time period the top 1% saw an increase of $264,210!!!

The study also showed the Middle Class continues to lose ground to the elites.

Steve Murdock, a former state of Texas demographer and former director of the U.S. Census Bureau and current director of the Hobby Center for the Study of Texas at Rice University, has published a book called Changing Texas: Implications of Addressing or Ignoring the Texas Challenge.

Murdock warns of a growing income gap between those who got a good education and those who did not.  He predicts by 2050 the poverty rate in Texas will be at 17.7%.  As of 2010 it was 14.4%.

Once again the academic and socio-politcal elites harp on lack of education.  That’s bullcrap after decades of ever increasing spending at the expense of taxpayers, resulting in a decrepit educational system!

It’s been proven that since the 1980s most tax money has gone to the administrative side of public education, and then to bogus school security programs.  But I know (after helping my three kids to navigate the joke of an education system) that the actual quality of education went down since I graduated in 1982!  And I thought it was bad when I was in grade school, having to actually correct some of my High School teachers and realizing at least half of them knew nothing about the subjects they were supposed to be teaching!

By the way, I attended both public tax funded schools, and private parent funded Christian schools, and I found the quality of education lacking in both!  Most of my grade school education was done at the local library in Hesperia, California, and every now and then at the library in Victorville when my mom took us there.

My parents actually had two sets of encyclopedias (remember, this before the invention of personal computers and the internet), Britannica and World Book.   They probably don’t know it but I actually read those books, and when I wasn’t satisfied with those expensive investments my parents made, I rode my bike the few miles to the library. Self taught I was!  That’s how I knew, by the time I hit High School, that most of the teachers were BS artists! And that’s how I knew that my most of my children’s teachers were BS artists! And now I’m even college edumacated with a BA in International Studies from Idaho State University.

Here’s another story: In the late 1990s I knew a Junior High school coach and math teacher who taught at a now closed down Junior High school in Pocatello, Idaho.  He admitted to me that he knew nothing about Algebra.  He said he was forced to become a math teacher or lose his coaching job when the Administration decided all teachers had to teacher two different subjects.  The only position open at that particular Junior High was Algebra.  He admitted he winged it for years before actually learning Algebra from the students.  He did it like this; he would pose questions to the class to find out which student seemed to know the subject.  Then he would have that student demonstrate solving Algebra problems (meaning the smart student actually taught the class).

Unfortunately for me I never had a smart student in my grade school math classes, let alone a smart teacher. I remember having many problems with the math books because the answers in the back of the book didn’t jive with the formulations in the main part of the book, and when I asked my teachers about it they always responded “read the book” (that’s clue number one that your teacher is a dipschtick).  I latter found out from a competent math teacher at ISU that most math books are wrong, and he was right as I discovered while helping one of my daughters with her math class at Highland High school. I used his tips to see if the book was wrong and it was.  It left important steps out of the Algebraic formulas.  When I pointed it out to her math teacher he was stupefied.  Her mother and I immediately transferred her to Pocatello High school where, at the time, they had a very competent math teacher.  By the way, that math teacher at ISU was the best math teacher I ever had, and he got fired that same semester!  The dean of the math department said his teaching style went against her philosophy regarding math.    Her philosophy is “If you don’t understand math, it’s because you don’t love it!” 

Until the quality of education is addressed, which means getting rid of massive tax sucking administrative bodies, getting rid of tax sucking Orwellian police state school security systems, and make the teachers prove they know what they are teaching and can teach it, it’s only going to get worse!

But those changes aren’t going to happen because the administrative bodies have become too powerful, the incompetent teachers protect themselves with corrupt and powerful unions, they also find political support in the politicians who spout the need for education improvement, and as long as the general public is kept in a paranoid schizophrenic state the police state school prisons are here to stay.

It’s almost like a conspiracy to dumb down the average worker of the United States so the 1% elites can get richer by creating a slave wage labor state?

“Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security……..That’s what makes America different. That’s what makes us exceptional.”-Barack Obama, 10 September 2013

PS: When I was a student at ISU, in one of the many history classes I took there was gaggle of education students.  One of them was going on about how she failed her Teacher Certification test, for the third time!  She said ‘no worries because I’ll just get my husband to pay for another one. I’ll eventually pass’.  Yeah, there’s no hope for our education system when education students have that attitude!

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

High blood pressure drug maker, Novartis, in trouble for lying about its products and bribes! Novartis wants out of vaccine business?

09 January 2014 (07:20 UTC-07 Tango)/07 Rabi ‘al-Awwal 1435/19 Dey 1392/09 Gui-Chou (12th month) 4711

Swiss based Novartis is being sued by the United States, and under investigation for criminal charges in Japan!

Novartis makes Diovan (aka Valsartan  or Angiotan), and Exjade.

The U.S. state of New York accuses Novartis of bribing pharmacy company BioScrip regarding patent rights on the drug Exjade.  BioScript has already agreed to pay a fine regarding the patent fraud case.

In Japan, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor say Novartis bribed Japanese universities to doctor studies on Diovan.  The university studies actually concluded that Diovan does not do what Novartis claims it does.

Novartis admitted they had a corporate spy at one university, working to falsify one study.  Japanese hospitals stopped using the drug.

All this comes as the U.S. FDA is considering approving the Novartis drug Serelaxin.  Also, U.S. drug pusher, Merck, is in talks with Novartis to make a $5-billion USD ‘swap’.

The swap involves trading Novatis’ animal/human vaccine program for Merck’s over-the-counter health-products unit at the Research Triangle Park area of North Carolina.