"Border Crisis"

   What is presently called a border crisis is actually a crisis in problem solving.  It is not an immigration problem.  It is actually a problem of economics south of that border.  Thousands of people are not walking a thousand miles with their families to live in The United States.  They are enduring this hardship in hope of improving the living conditions of their families.  They are in search of food and shelter (economic opportunities).  Survival!

   Today’s "border crisis" is an effect, not a cause.  If one attempts to cure an effect, rather than the cause, at best you have a short term solution.  We all know that, but pay little attention.  The people of Mexico, Central or South America would rather stay where they are than walk to The United States.  Their first language is the language of their homeland.  The weather is fine, unless challenged by flooding and Global Warming.  Move to the US and your language becomes the language of an economic underclass.  You or I would walk too if it were a matter of survival for you and your family.

   China built a wall to keep the world out centuries ago.  We have a political party led by a madman seeing this as today’s answer to a problem.  The other party is going along with them with a border security scheme.  The better answer is: cure the cause.  Build a strong economic engine in all of the land south of our border.  All of the resources are there.  All but for adequate capital and a real desire to improve living conditions for all.  The Maquiladora Program failed because it stood for US investment in cheap Mexican labor and profits taken back to the US.  A successful program would benefit the Mexican Nation and its people, driven by a reasonable return on investment.

  Here is my simple solution to the “crisis.”  Convince the two most famous idiot savants in the world (Elon Musk & Jeff Bezos) to combine their net worth of $294 billion (37^th annual Forbes list for 2023) and give birth to The Great American (both continents) Economy.  I refer to them as idiot savants because as wealth producers they are both genius, but for having any empathy for humanity, idiots.

   These two bozos could make the world a better place rather than participating in the childish competition to reach close to space (a competition that the US and the USSR entered into and completed over a half century ago).   When two financial monsters such as Musk & Bezos enter into such a contest, no one benefits. If instead they financed The Great American Economy, south of the border, they would forever have a place in history as great men.  They would be curing the cause of a problem not trying to lessen an effect.  If they continue on their present trajectory they will have the momentary fame of two wealthy dingbats.  If you are reading this Jeff and Elon … REPENT!  (and help good people stay home).

   The economic engine described could be powered solely by Solar Energy, Musk’s field.  The distribution of goods & services produced would be the Bezos expertise.  Solar powered American Continents would reverse climate change (with the aid of solar desalinization watered forests).  Simple.

Cheers, Old Buz          03/21/2024

 

The Solutions:

“There are no perfect solutions to the problems of our imperfect world.”

(But, it is nice to keep searching.) – Old Buz 

WET ROAD

 

 WET

ROAD

   I was driving home, about to cross a bridge, on concrete pavement.  It was raining.  To the right, just off the roadway, mounted on a temporary barricade, was a sign that read, “WET ROAD.”   How are you to react, when driving in the rain, when a sign by the road says that the road is wet?  My first reaction was a slight chuckle.  I had already reacted to the rain by driving a bit slower and allowing a greater gap between my car and the car in front of me.  I was aware that driving in the rain slightly reduces visibility and tire adhesion to the pavement.  Is there anyone driving a car that is not aware of that?  If such a clueless human exists, how would that road hazard sign effect their driving habits?  I would suspect very little.

   The government of Pima County, Arizona not only bought the signs, but they sent out road crews (in the rain) to set them up.  This expense comes out of my county property taxes as does education, public health and public safety.  We build and maintain the roads with those funds.  Someone or some folks decided to spend money to inform the public that the road is wet … when it is raining. 

 

Cheers, Old Buz    02/18/2024

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The Curse of Questioning

 

The Curse of Questioning

   Questioning the truth of the propositions being daily proposed to you will put you at odds with many of the folks that surround you.  You will find yourself living in a different world.  This morning a breakfast experience pointed this out to me.  The milk bottle proudly displayed:

 

                                    “2% Milk*

                        * 37% Less Fat Than Whole Milk,

            2% Milkfat, Vitamins A&D, Grade A

                        Pasteurized, Homogenized”

 

   A question entered my mind when I read the above on the milk bottle.  “What is the fat content of whole milk?”  Apply a little algebra and the answer is: whole milk fat = x/.63, or 3%.  That is to say, “When one buys 2% milk they are reducing their fat consumption from 3% of the glass of milk to 2% of it (A one percent reduction in fat consumption).  I believe that “37% Less Fat Than Whole Milk” gives the reader a different image.  This is an example of the questioning curse.  Asking questions will put you in a different reality.

   Successful advertising makes great use of this lack of questioning mind set.  A perfect example (mentioned in a previous blog) is Liberty Mutual Auto Insurance.  A successful ad of theirs tells you that you can customize your coverage to fit your needs and what you can afford.  I started buying auto insurance in 1956 and have been able to customize my auto policy coverage from every company I have ever insured with.  It’s not a competitive advantage.  They all offer it.  We know that … and yet Liberty has run this ad consistently on TV for over a decade.  Someone must think it is quite an advantage.  You can fool a hell of a lot of people for a very long time.  When money rushes in … truth rushes out.

   One of my favorite examples of not questioning what you see is not questioning how those two buildings that fell on 9/11, in the manner that they did, without the aid of demolition.  You saw that they fell nearly as fast as a freely falling body and did not tip, but landed directly on their foot print.  Would the steel beams that support the structure have allowed that?   My first question in viewing that event was where are the beams?  The government answer is they melted.  My question from that answer is, if an aircraft can fly from Los Angeles to Hawaii burning the same fuel, yet not melting its engines (made of pretty much the same material as the beams) how the hell did the beams disappear?  And if melting of beams was involved, how could they have melted evenly on all sides of the buildings at the same moment thereby allowing the building not to tip during its fall, but land on their own footprint?  One building would be a miracle.  Two would be impossible.  A little research on the happening, not simply using reason, reveals that kerosene (jet fuel) burns at 1800 degrees and the beams melt at 2800 degrees.  The beams did melt.  Yet they had to; requiring modern demolition.  If you would like to see samples of modern demolition, watch the demolition of Trump Tower in Atlantic City or the demolition of the second half of the townhouse tower in Surfside, Florida.  They have the same signature of demolition as the Twin Towers.

   When you see one ex-football coach Senator hold up the promotion of over 300 military officers, do you question what rule of the Senate allows that?  When you see the majority leader of The Senate not allow any bill passed by the opposing party’s majority House (over 300 bills) not brought to the floor for discussion or a vote, do you wonder if our democracy is functioning.  Both houses of congress must pass a bill before it is signed into law.

  If you would like some alone time, question the prevalent world view.

Cheers, Old Buz          1/12/2024

Iambloggerbuz.blogspot.com

“He who knows all the answers has not considered all the questions.” – Confucius

"Presidential Immunity"

“Presidential Immunity”

   The Presidential Campaign for 2024 seems to be centering on Presidential Immunity.   Democracy seems to be secondary, but perhaps it is the basic issue.  The Ex-President, Donald Trump and his law team seem to be arguing that a president should not be held responsible for his illegal acts during or after his presidency.  The man Trump will run against in 2024, Joe Biden, would argue that a President is responsible for his acts in office and that the Legal Branch of the government is responsible for judging the legality of those acts.  Which position would best guide the Nation forward?  Only Hope will protect the Nation if Trump is elected.  I would rather rely on logic and history.

   Mr. Trump stated in 2015 that a “star” such as him could grab a woman by her private parts, if he found her appealing, and that he could shoot a person on 5^th Avenue, with impunity.  He demonstrated this attitude throughout his time in office and beyond.  It is his guiding light.  He said yesterday that a depression in our economy before the 2024 election would help his campaign.  It is true, but what will it do for you?  Are you going to vote for your and your neighbor’s benefit or for the benefit of Donald Trump?  That has always been the question.

   Mr. Biden has a history of favoring large dollar interests.  That is the guiding force of Our Government as well.  When as a senator he argued against Harvard professor, Elizabeth Warren, Joe was on the Bank’s Team and Elizabeth sided with The People.  Senator Biden won that Senate vote and later Senator Warren lost a Presidential Primary against Biden, while withdrawing from the election and throwing her support to Biden.  Gold Rules!  This putting dollars ahead of people is a small amount helpful to people (you).  But Trump’s philosophy of “Me First” (Presidential Immunity) is only possibly advantageous to you if you are a criminal.

   That is why Biden will win the independent vote.  Those folks are not locked in.  Hopefully their vote will be based on history, reason and a realistic view of the future.  The independent vote hopefully will carry the election.  The independents are a large (about a third of the electorate) and growing group.  They are fueled in their independence by the childish partisan acts of elected officials.  Joe Biden is not the perfect candidate.  His guiding stars are the economy and its people.  Joe is too old for the job.  Donald Trump is not the perfect candidate either.  His sole guiding star is Donald Trump.  His star isn’t very bright and he is also too old for the job.  Biden has empathy.  Trump is a pompous ass.  Who are you going to vote for?

   In the previous post I quoted Albert Einstein saying in satire, “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the universe.”  If Trump wins in November, Einstein has something there and perhaps a democracy is not the best way to govern.

Cheers, Old Buz           January 9^th, 2024

Iambloggerbuz.blogspot.com

 

“It is far easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled.”     

     - Mark Twain 

Einstein on Human Stupidity

 

Einstein on Human Stupidity

   In reading quotes in goodreads.com/quotes, I came across this quote of Albert Einstein, “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the universe.”  I’m not sure that I see this as a compliment, but I am certain that Einstein said it satirically.  I know this as surely as Einstein did because if the statement were true no human would be smart enough to accurately assess the data available on the subject.

   That infinite stupidity is certainly applicable to certain large groups of humans.  Especially to those who place loyalty above reason.  Loyalty to flag, loyalty to religion, loyalty to science, loyalty to skin color, loyalty to family these are the main drivers away from individual logic and reason.  A good example of faith and loyalty in The Holy Land can be observed by watching the daily news.  The Holiday Season is a good time to keep this in mind. 

   I realize that few of you reading this are potential Trump voters.  No independent thinking woman would vote for an admitted and convicted rapist, but I did ask a Republican female friend if she intended to vote for him and she said, “Yes, I don’t respect him, but I do believe that he will be good for my 401K.”  Albert may have something.

   We on the American continent speak of the Greek belief of gods fathering offspring with human females as Greek Mythology.  Yet when we speak of this improbable mating we call it Religion.  Is this a valid example of loyalty to one’s religion?

  Now for the Holy Grail, Science.  Ask a friend in the scientific field if he or she believes in the Big Bang Theory (the theory of something from nothing).  I have found that most will say that they do.  Question them further and if honest, they will admit that they don’t fully understand it.  Their belief is based on faith in Science.  I then propose my Infinite “Big Plop Theory” and am laughed at.  Big Plop will be the next belief by the scientific community and they will probably be wrong again.  I admire scientific inquiry since it questions its own findings and admits when previous conclusions appear to be errors.  Science involves itself in a never ending search for truth.  Along the way it finds some answers.  As an agnostic, I understand that.

   At this point in time my greatest fantasy wish would be to join Albert Einstein during his lifetime for a cup of coffee and a conversation about his love of satire.

Cheers, Old Buz                         12/18/2023                                                                                             

Iambloggerbuz.blogspot.com

“The loyalists follow the under tail scent of the lemmings in front of them.”                       – Old Buz

Draconian Pharma

Draconian Pharma

   I live by the grace of a drug marketed by AbbVie Pharmaceuticals.  You and your children will die by their hands.  The vehicle that will be your demise is called greed.  It is the driving force behind many other drug companies as well.  Here is my and your story.  I told the story in a previous blog, Golden Goose Economics, but I employed satire to tell the tale.  Satire is a language not understood by some, so here is the threat without satire.

   In 2009 my annual blood tests showed that I had CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia) a deadly malignancy.  It remained in the “wait and see” stage until in 2019 the lymphocyte count went up to stage three.  At that time my oncologist recommended a drug called Imbruvica (the generic name is Ibrutinib) at a cost to Medicare of 195 thousand dollars/year/patient.  It required that I pay a three thousand dollar a month copay.  I don’t have three thousand dollars a month over and above my living costs.  So, I turned the offer to extend my life down.

   Soon after my turn down I received a call from a foundation ready to pay my required copay.  The young woman asked me what my annual income was, and then said that I had qualified for the assistance.  I have applied for many financial programs in my life and have never had one approved without income verification.  This fact prompted me to ask, “Who funds this foundation?”  She confirmed my suspicions by answering, “The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers.”  I understood that the Pharmaceutical (AbbVie) had priced the drug so high that the bulk of the potential patients could not afford the copay.  And, they would receive their donation back from the foundation when the copay was returned.  This draconian plan was probably engineered by Richard Gonzales, CEO of AbbVie.  The CLL organization estimates that there are presently, approximately two hundred thousand Medicare patients with CLL.  With this number of clients AbbVie would recover its investment of twenty one billion dollars for the patent rights of Ibrutinib in about a year and a half.  This is an excellent return on investment and spells out the end of Medicare.  There are other pharmaceuticals joining the program.  The financial success is no secret among them.

   Who is to blame for this egregious future ending of Medicare?  Let’s start at the bottom.  I am.  I am willing to participate in this scam so that I may live longer.  Next up, my oncologist.  They do not prescribe the drug without knowledge of the preceding events.  They could try to change it with their powerful AMA lobbyists.  But, in the short run, if they like being willfully blind, the drug offers effective patient care.  Next up, the pharmaceuticals and their lobbyists, they fully understand the game.  The CEOs like Gonzales are so infected with greed (the malignant form of self-preservation) that they are willing to sacrifice the lives of their children and their children’s children.  At the top of the corruption are your elected representatives.  They are the folks that create and enforce patent rights.  You elected them to serve the people, not the soulless wealth of the nation.

   What are patent rights?  They are designed to protect the rights of the creator of a desirable product and to reward the toil of a creator.  When Celera Pharmaceutical sold Ibrutinib to Pharmacyclics for three million dollars it was probably for a fair profit and to a company capable of logistics required to produce and distribute the product.  Then Johnson & Johnson paid Pharmacyclics for its patent rights $975 million.  Are you starting to smell a foul odor?  The next transaction has AbbVie paying $21 billion for these patent rights.  A billion is a thousand millions.  Twenty-one of them is going to result in a very high price for a lifesaving drug.  Are we dealing with greed now or protecting an inventor?  The purpose of any law is a shield for those in need of protection, not a sword for the greedy.  A well written patent law would protect the creator and perhaps a distributer with the purchase at perhaps 15% over the book value of the company, but no protection to a third purchaser.  This would be fair and effective.  With the large dollar influence on those who govern us, fair and effective is rare.

Cheers, Old Buz                   December 4^th, 2023

Remember:

“One cannot fool all of the people all of the time … and that is why we have two political parties.” - Anon                                                                                                                                             

A Black Santa !?

A Black Santa !?

   Today I watched an advertisement for a Disney film featuring a Black Santa and Black Elves.  After spending my entire life as a Honky (a Fade) I was shocked and offended by having a white mythological figure portrayed by a black mythological figure.  The Santa myth is ours, not theirs, just as the Jesus myth is ours.  Ask yourself, “What will it take to Make America Great Again?”   

   There is an assault taking place on white privilege.  It must be stopped at any cost.  Even the election of Herr Drump, Verminemeister to the office of President, is not too much of a mistake.  Those who run Disney are WINOs (White In Name Only) and must be eliminated.  The previous words are my view of MAGA (Morons Against Government, Association), of those still on the Trump Train.

   There is no valid reason for the mythological Santa to be a white man.  He represents the imaginary Christmas gift giver to small children.  But, small Black children actually get their gifts from a Black Santa.  My children got their gifts from Mrs. Clause, since my wife has always been the parent to shop for gifts in our family.

   So Santa can be black or white or of color or a man or a woman or a Christian or a Jew or a Muslim.  The Santa mythology can be owned by any of us, as can the Jesus mythology.  Jews and learned theologians will say He was a Jew, born of a married Jewish virgin and the Creator of a Universe, 47 Billion Light Years in diameter and growing at the exact same rate as the power of our telescopes.  Right Wing Christians may claim Him as theirs and people of color may do the same.  I don’t know where Mary and The Creator met, but their serendipity meeting sure changed the future of the Western World.  Realizing that this story is mythology should take place at about the same age that a child learns who Santa actually is, but somehow in some, the delusion persists throughout their lives.

   Why is this important?  Because belief in religion can lead to love and joy or it can lead to hate and murder as it presently does in The Holy Land.  As an agnostic, I can live without it.

Cheers, Old Buz        11/15/2023

Iambloggerbuz.blogspot.com

Biblical Wisdom

 “Live by the foma* that make you brave and kind and healthy and happy.” – The Book of Bokonon I:5 – Translation by Kurt Vonnegut

*foma = harmless untruths