Current Events Write-Up: 12/1/2018

Time for this week’s Current Events Write-Up.

Former President George H.W. Bush Dead at 94.

I have had ambivalent feelings about this President throughout my life. When I was a conservative, I thought he wasn’t conservative enough, yet I rooted for him in the 88 and 92 elections. I even read his 1988 autobiography, Looking Forward. He came across as a decent, down-to-earth person, a gentleman, a grandfather, one who fought in World War II. But he was part of the political and governmental establishment and the elite, and people claim there is behind-the-scenes and even not-so-behind-the-scenes dirt. I was thinking earlier this week that Gulf War I was phony. “This act of aggression shall not stand.” Yet, the U.S. allows plenty of acts of aggression to stand and may even support and participate in them.

Thom Hartmann program.

On November 27, I was flipping through channels. I don’t watch TV during the day since I have work to do, but I was briefly seeing what the programs that evening would be about. I came across Thom Hartmann’s daytime call-in program. I have followed him off and on, mostly off, during the years. I have somewhat mocked progressive talk radio as an unsuccessful attempt to imitate Rush Limbaugh, only from a left-leaning perspective. But I kind of liked what I heard. Hartmann lucidly and calmly took apart Trump’s tariff policy: it is based on a national security provision, so it is temporary, and that is why jobs are not flocking back to the U.S. I won’t be taping his program every day and watching it, since three hours a day is quite a commitment. But I subscribed to his free newsletter to get updates.

“If Patterns Hold, There May Indeed Be Terrorists Inside the Border Caravan,” by Todd Bensman.

“Middle Easterners do travel the same routes as Hondurans to the U.S. southern border, and rising numbers of suspected terrorists have been apprehended at the border in recent years.”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Dishes It Right Back To Lindsey Graham In Twitter Tiff.

I ordinarily am not the sort of person who gleefully says “SNAP!” But I said it this time. Maybe it’s because I like it when someone refuses to let someone else set the narrative and to be condescending to her. The same thing appeals to me about Trump. He fights back.

“Is Putin the Provocateur in the Kerch Crisis?”, by Pat Buchanan.

Pat has written columns like this before, but this is an interesting read if you are interesting in Putin’s perspective on Crimea and the Ukraine.

“Mission Agency Clears Away Some False Assumptions about John Chau’s Missionary Work,” by Denny Burk.

Explores the depth of John Chau’s commitment and preparation.

Taki: “In Defense of Franklin Armstrong,” by Jim Goad.

I am not agreeing with this site, but I liked aspects of this article. It defends Charles Schulz from accusations of racism, while telling the story of why Schulz created the character Franklin Armstrong.