9-11

poor georgie’s almanack: 

While most who yearn for the good old days have bad memories, it is worth noting that much of the world thinks 9/11 was in the old days.

 photo life.com

THE MEANING OF LIFE

poor georgie’s almanack:

ONE MINUTE READ … THIS MAY BE IMPORTANT 

In The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams revealed that “42” is the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything.  While Mr. Adams might have been right, I have developed an equally implausible, answer.  

“PIZZA” (please read on) 

The somewhat flat disc starts out as a small ball of matter. 

It is tossed around and flattens out.  

Eventually it looks a lot like our very own universe. 

And our galaxy, The Milky Way, which is like most other galaxies.

To us, The Milky Way looks like this because we are in the galaxy’s suburbs and see it’s side.  The same angle as a the picnic ant crawling up to a pizza slice. 

The invisibly small atoms that hold all of this together are teeny-tiny pizzas with cheese and sauce in the middle only. 

Therefore, I have concluded, PIZZA is the meaning of life. 

Alternative to Trump's Wall

poor georgie’s almanack

Are we ready to talk about a cheaper Central American immigration solution? 

Many, if not most, US foreign aid projects are created to appeal to domestic voting groups.    

Are we ready to talk about a cheaper Central American immigration solution? 

Many, if not most, US foreign aid projects are created to appeal to domestic voting groups.   

That was the big reveal during the first few weeks of my 1963 assignment to publicize a “feeding” program for poor kids in Latin American.  Its was part of the “Food For Peace” effort.  The name was revealing.

For decades American policy has been to spend a minuscule amount of our tax money to fund foreign aid projects run by US firms and nonprofits.  We also would do whatever seemed necessary to keep just about all of those desperate people out of US territory.  

Meanwhile, Dept. of Agriculture programs boosted farm production with subsidies that raised production levels.  Then, the foreign aid agency would get rid of surpluses like grains, milk and butter, hopefully before they spoiled.     

I was not an expert in any of that.  I was a flack (press agent) … but, a flack with journalistic and broader public relations experience and with a drive to do good, if possible.  Figuring out what really was happening was important to me.  It still is. 

So, now fast-forward to the current Trump proposal that would pay billions of tax dollars to US contractors (his industry) to build a very long southern wall.   

The wall undoubtedly would involve bribes and payoffs of other kinds to the constructors, the mafias behind some of them, local governments on the north side of the structure, plus huge tax-funded grants to politicians’ favorite projects.  But, that would help keep the tax money and jobs in the USA.

Thus, I suggest somebody, or some body such as a think tank, start discussing a policy to pay well-thought-out bribes directly to the Central American and Mexican gangs to stop the terror behind the mass exodus to the southern bank of the Rio Grande River.  Maybe we could throw in a few jobs for the unemployed gang members.

A program to fight the problem where it begins has worked before.  As president of The Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) board of directors, I played a small supporting role in in the bribe-like process during the mid-1990s.  PADF is one of those Washington, DC nonprofits mostly funded by money from governments.

At that time southern politicians and many of their constituents feared a tsunami of desperate dark skinned Haitians willing to get on rickety, drowning-worthy, boats and seek asylum along the beautiful beaches of Florida.  Just like lighter skinned Cubans had done.  PADF was chosen to run a project that, as I recall, paid tens of thousands of unemployed Haitians to do real work, like fixing roads and cleaning up trash.  While it existed, we were the largest employer in the island country. 

Don’t be a silly goose … of course the obvious bribery was controversial.  But, in hindsight, it seemed to have worked just as US policy makers hoped, until the funding ran out.

In a nutshell, politicians and other policy makers thought it would be a lot cheaper to provide some benefits to alleviate the problem at its core, in Haiti, than to create some kind of a long barrier around the US southern border … maybe building hundreds or thousands of Coast Guard ships, and manning them?  The Haitian bribes, aka workers pay, served a controversial political purpose, just like a Trump wall would serve an equally, or more, controversial political purpose.  

But, much, much cheaper.  

(cartoon michele paccione)

Madam Secretary

poor georgie’s almanack:

At lunch today Theodore said he hoped Stormy Daniels lawyer Michael Avenatti would run for the presidency so he could name her Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Dr. Seuss

poor georgie’s almanack:

Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904 - 1991) is best remembered for his children's books written under the pen name Dr. Seuss.

He spelled his first name funny.

For two years before WWII he was a political cartoonist.

In tense

 poor georgie’s almanack:

We live in both the present tense and the pretense?  

poor georgie’s almanack:  

Humans, all of us, no matter what our skin and hair may look like, make up the largest species of apes.  

99% of our DNA matches Chimps, and we pretty much act like them.  

Certainly we have evolved better razors, toys and tooth whiteners, but we are just apes.  

Kinda makes one think more of us should be in cages.