Chicago, August 2016: Shootings and Killings off the Charts, Hopes Still Float

...going back to 1997. The local papers, Tribune and Sun-Times,
differed widely on the numbers: The Chicago Tribune quoted
some 60 died in Chicago shootings, whereas the Chicago
Sun-Times claimed about 49. All sources I've checked say
this is the bloodiest month since 1997.

But hopes still float, to recur back to 2008 and the first
Obama for President campaign. Lori Lightfoot, a heavy
weight attorney at Mayer Brown and head of the Chicago
Police Board said on PBS Channel 11's "Chicago Tonight"
she believes Chicago's City Hall (--Emanuel) does care
about the woes wending their way through communities of
color. Activist Pastor Jedidiah Brown, appearing with her,
respectfully disagreed. (--However, I don't support the rev's
acting out this past March when he threw punches at an
attendee during a Chicago rally for Trump.)

I back the Pastor's view: if the city as a whole cared more
about the South and West Sides, we would see more and
better efforts emanating out of the  Mayor's office. A few
appearances after tragedies and "heartfelt" remarks in front
of the press don't do it for me. Results count; the rest are
excuses, drivel, and obfuscation.

Any solution is complicated, must occur on many levels:

--Bring back CAPS (Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy)
to ALL CPD Districts, as only about half still hold Beat
Meetings where police directly interact with locals;
--More police deployed to known hot spots and troubled
areas, particularly on foot;
--More libraries and parks for the young in such areas;
--More official (and helpful) interaction with parents,
especially with those known to be troubled and IN
trouble.

Then there are the parents, teachers and neighbors:

You all must do your part as well. I am not certain
you actually ARE, being distracted by money and
relationship problems. The kids must come first!

Meanwhile, the November 2016 Election's
"unique" hijinks roll ever forward, to the
detriment of ALL...

But I too will float some hopes.

P.S.: As of September 1st, today, NBC TV
local Channel Five quoted 90 homicides
this past August...how horrifying! Even though
I've lived west of Chicago for eight years, I
care a great deal about Chi Town, where I
spent more years than anywhere else.
Please resolve this complex social dilemma
and fatality-prone violence.

PLEASE.

Trump, "Treason" and Republican Members of our House and Senate

Apparently, treason is what you can make of it:

(A) Some U.S. members of Congress have released
some of Hillary's email documents containing the
notation (C), meaning said document is Classified,
which I question, as I'm familiar with a large stamp
clearly, fully, stating "Classified" across the first page
of any such document; BUT if that is true, why on
Earth would such Republican officials release supposed
Classified materials to the world at large?
That, to me, IS treason, not forgetting STUPID.

(B) Donald Trump has asked Russian hackers to
delve into our national affairs, particularly purported
"missing" thousands of Ms. Clinton's emails formerly
on her private server at her home in NY. THAT,
unambiguously, IS TREASON--requesting another
nation's criminals to inspect our private documents.
--TSK!!

There is no doubt more I could cite and recite, but
all this dangerously illegal ignorance/stupidity just
shows the psychotic nature of  Trump and his rabble-
roused/aroused. Yes, I'll stick to my guns employing
this term, will continue to do so unless/until the behavior
of these people changes.

Meanwhile, the charge of Treason will be bandied
about, betraying the savage lust for power at any
cost certain U.S. right-wingers readily display.

All About the Money, Honey: The Authorites Allow Faulty Ferris Wheels to Turn Again

According to the Chicago Sun-Times' USA Today's August 14th
inclusion, the State of Tennessee allowed an amusement ride
company to move on to four other county fairs there, even after
an accident caused by said company's equipment failure, which
can't have had time to be adequately inspected OR repaired.

At least Greene County, where the accident occurred, canceled
the contract for this amusement ride operator; meanwhile, the
Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development
last Friday renewed the operating permit for Family Attractions
shortly set to expire.

Family Attractions and the state obviously care more about the
rides bringing in the bucks than they do about children's safety.
Briley Reynolds, 6, and her sister Kayla, 10, along with a 16
year old unnamed girl were injured last Monday by the ride's
bucket tipping, tossing the girls 25 feet to the ground. Their
injuries ranged from serious head trauma to a broken arm.

Thumbs up to Greene county, thumbs DOWN to the state
for their telltale actions in this sad scenario, which is
not unique in the USA...

--"Family Attractions"? Sure, if a real life horror show is
what you're after, and if risking a child's life and/or limb
is an acceptable trade-off in the ever-frenetic search
for fun.

Donald Trump: Long Gone Over the Hill, Hasn't He, Asking "Why Can't We Use Our Nuclear Weapons?" But DID He Actually Ask?

As one retired general has commented recently, the military
probably would not allow Trump to detonate a nuclear bomb
without an EXTREMELY compelling reason. But Donald,
obviously as abysmally ignorant as he is undeterred, reportedly
asked, why not? This alarming story involves an amount of hefty
hearsay, as MSNBC's Joe Scarborough won't reveal the name of
the person who "heard" Donald Trump ask, not once but three
times, we have nuclear  weapons, why can't we use them?
The unnamed security expert was queried with these questions
a few months ago, but "Morning Joe" brought it to the public
only on August 3rd.

Trump has denied the story, which won't gain credibility without
the "anonymous" source coming forward. Anyone can cowardly
hide while making accusations; where exactly IS this security
adviser? P.S.: why won't the media stop using anonymous
sources? They really don't contribute to any of us becoming
reliably informed, but inflaming us IS working, while increasing
media anchors' bank accounts. (Many TV stations are doing
quite well too.) Still, the Donald has made similar remarks in
public, so Joe's expose' might be right after all.

A psychotic, egocentric individual whose business acumen, in
spite of his three billions, is seriously open to question (four
bankruptcies, a NOT-accredited Trump "University", etc.)
has snared the Republican Party's nomination for president
in 2016. The moderates in the party didn't know how to rise
up forcefully or articulately enough to counter the ignoramuses,
hence, here's Trump.

The rise of the rabble is a current scenario predicted by renowned
psychiatrist Carl G. Jung in a little paperback, The Undiscovered
Self. From page 93: "... The accumulation of individuals who have
got into this critical ( upset) state starts off a mass movement
purporting to be the champion of the suppressed...the cry goes up
for political and social changes which...whenever this demand is
fulfilled, political and social conditions arise which bring the
same ills back again in altered form." Published in 1957, the good
doctor's context is a larger admonishment, advising each person
to try to deal honestly with his or her true nature (instincts), not
just the one constructed via the strictures of society ("civilization").

For those belatedly attempting to dethrone Donald from the
ticket before November 8th, I have an encouraging note:
The U.S. Constitution is silent regarding political parties,
even if the Federalist Papers isn't, warning everyone about
the "dangers of factions" --parties. (Yes, political parties
existed well before 1776.) Whatever mechanism can be
brought to bear to unseat Trump should shortly engage...

Unless the rest of us are willing to follow Trump and his
rabble over the hill into oblivion.