FROLITICKS

Satirical commentary on Canadian and American current political issues

Oct 29

Well, Mr. President, Where Is Your Economic Boom Going Now?

by bcurry

On October 28th, the S&P 500 Index fell 3.5 percent, the biggest drop since June, amid a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, especially in the U.S. Midwest.  There was also a significant drop in European stock values where there have been rising coronavirus infections and even tougher lockdowns.  In addition, American lawmakers failed to agree on an economic aid package before the Nov. 3rd election thereby eliminating any stimulus in the very near future.  The West Texas Intermediate crude sank 5.6 per cent to US$37.36 a barrel because of fears that additional economic restrictions will have a further negative impact on the already hard hit travel industry and daily commuting. 

The timing of this significant downturn could not be at a worst time for Donald Trump, less than a week before the election.  Trump has consistently used the stock markets as an indication of an economic recovery.  The problem is that the markets do not necessarily reflect what’s actually happening on main street.  For one thing, the U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics showed that the unemployment rate declined to 7.9 percent in September 2020 from 8.4 percent in the previous month.  However, this was below market expectations of 8.2 percent, as fewer people were looking for jobs.  The labour force dropped by 0.7 million to 160.1 million, with the number of unemployed persons falling only by 1.0 million to 12.6 million and employment rising by just 0.3 million to 147.5 million.  Moreover, the jobless rate remained well above pre-pandemic levels as the recovery from COVID-19 shock showed signs of slowing amid diminishing government stimulus and record spikes in new coronavirus cases.

The President’s campaign has put all his eggs in the one basket, that of the economy.  He continues to downplay the terrible impact of COVID-19 on the economy.  While Trump’s rich friends have benefited from the recent stock market gains, the average American continues to suffer from the loss of business and employment, not to mention the health care costs associated with the coronavirus.  The bottom may be about to fall out of the President’s campaign.  One can only predict that the U.S. has headed into a major recession, one which may be greater than that of the Great Recession and may last longer.  Whoever becomes the next president will have to deal with this economic mess, which can only begin by reducing the COVID-19 case loads and providing an appropriate economic stimulus package.

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Oct 26

Finally, the American Mainstream Media Got It Right

by bcurry

For sometime now, both in the U.S. and Canada there have been serious concerns about where people are getting their local, national and international news.  With the advent of social media and nebulous on-line sources of news, the danger of misinformation and disinformation has risen on a number of occasions.  This has especially been the case during national elections.  The confirmed Russian interference in the last American elections highlighted the ability of certain actors to attempt to insert bias and misinformation into news outlets and social media.

In any democracy, the media plays an important role.  In the past, journalism within mainstream media resources, be it in print, radio or television, was a key, reliable and important source of information for citizens.  There was a code of conduct for journalists to research and verify their sources of information before publishing or broadcasting their findings, hopefully based on facts gathered in their investigations.  I would like to think that, when I read articles in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the National Post and the Financial Post in Canada, etc., etc., the information has been thoroughly vetted to ensure as much accuracy and verifiable facts as possible.

Unfortunately, there are still attempts by some to plant misinformation for political gain.  This appears to have been the case among President Trump’s close advisors inside the White House who believed President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign needed a desperate last ditch rescue mission.  According to the New York Times, this included Arthur Schwartz, a New York public relations man close to Trump’s eldest son, Donald Jr., White House lawyer Eric Herschmann, and former deputy White House counsel Stefan Passantino.  They attempted to concoct a story concerning to Hunter Biden’s work in the Ukraine and the involvement of then Vice-President Joe Biden.  They were hoping that mainstream media would pick up the story and go with it prior to the November election.  However, following further investigative journalism, news outlets such as the Wall Street Journal wouldn’t buy it.  Good for them!

While some unreliable social media sources and right-wing publications love to pursue such stories in an attempt to influence their supporters and possibly some voters, at least the mainstream news media shed light on the President’s attempt to promote “fake news” for political gain.  Trump even tried to raise the unconfirmed collusion story about Hunter and Joe Biden’s involvement in the Ukraine during the final presidential debate.  However, without substantive proof, the attempt was a weak and dishonest one aimed at manipulating public opinion for political gain.  Hopefully, voters will acknowledge Trump’s unfortunate effort to deflect the debate from other important and real issues such as his administration’s absolute failure to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Oct 15

Entering Critical Stage In The Battles Against COVID-19

by bcurry

In North America, we have entered a critical stage in the battles against COVID-19 which some are referring to as the “second wave”.  We have only to see what is happening as part of the second wave in Europe.  With an average of more than 100,000 new infections per day over the past week, Europe now accounts for about one-third of new cases reported worldwide.  Countries such as Britain, France, Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, and even Russia have had to reintroduce restrictions on travel among regions and various forms of lockdowns and curfews.  European leaders are now confronting an evident surge in coronavirus cases that is rapidly filling hospital beds.

In U.S. federal elections, the surging rise in coronavirus cases across the country, especially in the Midwest, has taken front and center stage in the campaigns.  The public health crisis could reach new levels of urgency by Inauguration Day.  Recent projections show that, if current trends hold, as many as 400,000 Americans may have died from Covid-19 by then.  Unfortunately, President Trump and his allies continue to downplay the virus, arguing that the country is “turning the corner”.  Trump and Vice-Presdent Pence are holding campaign events with thousands of supporters in attendance, even as cases are increasing rapidly.  In Canada, coronavirus cases have risen in the last month to surpass levels above those seen at the height of COVID-19 last spring.  Provincial governments across the country are reintroducing numerous restrictions on travel between regions and varying degrees of lockdowns.  The Prime Minister has declared that the border with the U.S. will remain closed to non-essential travelers as long as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to increase in Canada and the U.S.

With governments’ restrictions on businesses and gatherings in the U.S., Canada and in Europe, there are complaints by some as to their impact on the economy and employment.  However, unless people once again take the situation seriously and are no longer complacent after the past summer of fewer restrictions, countries will find it harder to effectively confront the surge in coronavirus cases that is rapidly filling hospital beds and subsequently driving up death tolls.  Health care systems and workers are being stretched to their limits now, although the seasonal flu season has not yet begun in earnest.  More schools will be required to close and more people will be forced to withdraw from their work to provide child care and home schooling. 

Various precautions have to be taken such as: limiting our social activities to our immediate households, wearing masks in public, physically distancing wherever possible, washing our hands frequently, getting the seasonal flu vaccine, traveling only for essential purposes and avoiding contact outside the household with persons having underlying health conditions except when providing an essential service.  Folks: to undertake this sacrifice is not asking too much under the circumstances and will benefit the community at large.  Unless each of us takes such measures, the second wave of this pandemic will only get worse.  As our leaders and public health officials often reiterate, we are all in this together, whether you like it or not!

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Oct 13

Heading Towards Another Nuclear Arms Race?

by bcurry

During the so-called Cold War in the early sixties, the U.S. and former Soviet Union (USSR) had enough nuclear warheads to devastate every major city in both countries and more.  In the late 1960s, it was estimated that the U.S. had more than 30,000 nuclear weapons, and the Soviet Union by some accounts had at least 40,000.  Fortunately, a Cold War-era pact, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, occurred whereby nuclear nations pledged to reduce their arsenals in exchange for non-nuclear nations not pursuing nuclear weapons.  As a result, the U.S. and Russia today each have more than 5,000 nuclear weapons, according to the Federation of American Scientists — more than enough to still do plenty of death and destruction.  Unfortunately, there is no follow-on agreement between the U.S. and Russia to limit strategic arms.  Instead, one has both countries proceeding to increase their arsenals — this time with even more deadly and sophisticated weapons.

In recent decades, we also have had former non-nuclear nations joining the nuclear arms race.  It started covertly with India in the mid-seventies and Pakistan in the late seventies.  Now we have countries such as North Korea, Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia moving to expand their missile capabilities and to develop nuclear weapons.  Then of course there is China which is pursuing a full nuclear triad that can launch nuclear warheads from air, land and sea.  As a recent article in the Washington Post noted, the threat from nuclear weapons and missiles has grown since Trump entered office.  Indeed, one must conclude that we are in a full-blown arms race.  As the article concluded: “… after nearly four years in office, he hasn’t signed any significant new treaties to regulate the world’s most devastating weapons and has populated his administration at times with arms-control skeptics, such as John Bolton, the former national security adviser.”

In addition, the Trump administration’s on-going verbal attacks on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is alienating allies in Europe, at a time when the U.S. needs the full support of NATO in dealing with Russia and Iran.  Trump’s three meetings with Kim Jong Un of North Korea did nothing to slow down that regime’s continued development of intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclearization.  Obsessed with media coverage, these meetings were all show and had no substance except to legitimize Kim’s regime in the eyes of the world.

The general stance of the Trump administration to stand alone and isolate the U.S. from the broader multilateral issues affecting global issues has done a great disservice to American leadership on the world scene.  With both Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin bragging about the modernization of their respective nuclear arsenals, one can only conclude that we are witnessing another nuclear arms race.  With numerous other nations now having nuclear capabilities, the threat of such weapons being used is increasing every day when no new non-proliferation treaties are in place.  The only way that the world can come to grips with this reality is through meaningful dialogue and multilateral negotiations involving all the affected countries.  No one country can tackle this issue on its own.

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Oct 8

Politics and the Tragic Story of U.S. CDC in Tackling COVID-19

by bcurry

On October 7th, it was reported that U.S. coronavirus cases surpassed 7.5 million with most states seeing a rise in cases and a startling nine states setting ominous, seven-day records for infections.  Even these numbers may not reflect the reality given that the nation’s patchwork pandemic response has led to wide disparities in data reporting.  There are apparently even differences in definitions for basic medical concepts.  In the absence of federal standards, states have also adopted divergent and sometimes scientifically questionable approaches to disease control.

Where has the leadership role of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) been in all of this during the past nine months?  William Foege, a renowned epidemiologist who served under Democratic and Republican presidents, detailed in a recent private letter to CDC Director Robert Redfield (obtained by USA TODAY) what he considered as the White House’s meddling in the agency’s efforts to manage the COVID-19 crisis.  He reflected what a number of Director Redfield’s predecessors at the CDC strongly believe have been serious failures in the administration’s coronavirus response. Dr. Foege expressed how many scientists and experts feel about the CDC’s failure.  Moreover, Dr. Foege’s letter lamented that “the CDC’s scientific experts have been rendered impotent during the most significant health crisis in a century while decades of experience have been ignored.” He concluded: “This will go down as a colossal failure of the public health system of this country.”

Here in Canada, the CDC has had an excellent reputation for its work in the past and government bodies such as the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada have interacted on health issues with the CDC on numerous occasions.  Now, the CDC’s scientific reputation has unfortunately been tainted because of the administration’s actions and its failure to provide national science-based standards in addressing COVID-19 issues and to help develop applicable national policies. 

In a virtual event held by American University, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious diseases expert, recently said that as many as 400,000 Americans could die from COVID-19 if action isn’t taken in the fall and winter.  Dr. Fauci acknowledged that there was the decreasing trust in him as a public official, especially in light of mixed coronavirus messages coming out of the CDC.  President Trump’s frequent attacks on the CDC’s integrity and several renown scientists have done nothing to help matters.  In direct contradiction of the experts and the CDC, Trump persists in stating that a vaccine will be available in the very near.  However, experts and researchers have asserted that a vaccine will probably not be available to most Americans until next summer or the fall at the earliest.  Once again, Trump is attempting to undermine the expert advice of the CDC and others for political reasons to the detriment of all Americans.  What a shame!

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Oct 6

Mr. President, Airborne Transmission of COVID-19 Has Been Known for Sometime

by bcurry

This week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) finally acknowledged that the coronavirus can spread through microscopic respiratory particles known as aerosols that float in the air for minutes or even hours before being inhaled.  The CDC added a warning against frequenting crowded, poorly ventilated indoor spaces.  As a result, the CDC has long recommended that masks be worn when near others and are useful both indoors and outdoors for preventing the spread of the virus.

Why is this message important?  One has only to look at the big news of the week wherein it was reported that President Trump had tested positive for COVID-19, along with his wife and over a dozen of his top advisors and White House staff.  There was a lot of speculation about how the coronavirus was spread, given the number of events where the President and his entourage were involved in over the last month.  Some believe that airborne transmission may have occurred at the Sept. 26th White House Supreme Court nomination ceremony for Judge Amy Coney Barrett.  The event included a large gathering outside in the Rose Garden and a smaller indoor reception.  As was the usual White House scene, photographs show that in both locations few people wore masks and that social distancing guidelines were not widely followed.  There were also reports that the participants were really close to each other, they were hugging each other, and they were shaking hands.

Wow, why would anyone be surprised that the President, his wife and others, including reporters, tested positive after such events!  Talk about a total disregard by this administration for the health of others.  For months, the CDC and researchers have been advocating various precautions that need to be taken to avoid becoming infected with the coronavirus.  Most leaders in other countries, including here in Canada, have implement stringent guidelines to ensure the health and safety of their families and senior staff.  Those who did not introduce precautionary measures such as masks, like the U.K.’s Boris Johnson back in March, saw the consequences.  The virus ripped its way through the top levels of the U.K. government — infecting ministers and senior advisers.  Like Donald Trump, Mr Johnson was admitted to hospital — although Downing Street stressed this was “a precautionary step”.  Shortly after his hospitalization came the shocking news that his condition had “worsened”, and the Prime Minister had to be moved to the intensive care unit.  Fortunately, he survived.

While President Trump is now out of hospital, some expert medical practitioners have stated that he is not yet out of the woods.  Unfortunately, the same prognosis could be true for the infected White House staff and reporters.  Meanwhile, much of his administration is in quarantine for up to ten days or more.  Still, Trump has arrogantly declared that people shouldn’t fear the coronavirus.  Maybe, he would like to tell that to the over 200,000 Americans that to date have died from this virus!

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