Three Dangerous and Nearly Unbelievable Moves By Trump and Company

Bad as Donald Trump has been and shown himself to be during the campaign and even since, he and the Republicans, this week, in the last few days have made some additional really awful moves and statements that, again, portend horribly for the nation and for our foreseeable future.

The first.

Republicans threaten to subpoena ethicsdirector for daring to criticize Trump

To begin, this takes chutzpah, real nerve. The ethics director of the Federal Government merely calls out the President-elect, to say we have to stay within the law and the Republicans attack him? They threaten him? What? They don't want ethics in government? That would seem to be the conclusion to be reached. This is nearly inconceivable.

Two. Another attack, yet another near inconceivability.

'All Talk, No Action,' Says Trump, 

in Twitter Attack on a Civil Rights Icon

Donald Trump not only attacks Rep. John Lewis, in Twitter tweets, no less, but also calls him "all talk, no action."   Clearly, Mr. Trump knows nothing of even Rep. Lewis' work, let alone our own national history.

Fortunately, some good  came of this attack.

Rep. John Lewis's books sell out 

following Donald Trump's attacks

Trump slammed for attacking civil rights icon 

Rep. John Lewis

Lawmakers condemn Trump for attack 

on John Lewis

Unfortunately, however, the President-elect's Vice President-elect, Mr. Pence, doubled-down on this dumb.

Pence defends Trump calling John Lewis 

a failure to black people

I guess if you figure you can blame one person, one man, for the fact that Black people in the United States are still discriminated against and still impoverished, in education and finances and jobs and a lot of other ways, if you can do that, what he says would make sense.

To an ignorant, insensitive, outspoken, filthy-rich, extremely privileged, isolated white man it might make sense.

Then, there was this, just a few days ago.

Trump team to remove commander of D.C.'s National Guard in middle of inauguration

The President-elect is having the Commander of the District of Columbia's National Guard dismissed IN THE MIDDLE OF HIS, THE PRESIDENT-ELECT'S, OWN INAUGURATION.

To start, that makes no sense whatever and then it has to be asked, why is he doing this? Worse, is this the kind of "leadership" we can expect from this guy? It surely seems so, given all he's done and said since winning this election.

For those of us connected to reality and decency and national and world and human history, how are we supposed to anything but dread this coming presidency of Mr. Trump's, especially given what he and his Vice Presidential pick and his supporting political party have said and done recently?

An additional scary, recent move:

Trump attacks China in Twitter outburst

Fortunately, there is this and things like it--people trying to keep him, his Vice President and their political party in line:

Chief Ethics Lawyers: Trump Will Be In Violation Of Constitution When He Takes Oath Of Office

Entertainment Overnight -- On Mr. T.

"Rogue One" and Rogue One and Rogue Won

Notes On a Press Conference

So much to say about yesterday's first press conference and first in 167 days, from the new President-elect.

The first thing that occurs to me today, after yesterday's press conference from Mr. Trump is that it is going to be an extremely casual 4 years, beginning January 20, if he stays for the entire term, that is. If you read a transcript of the conference or see videotape of it, he uses a lot of "gonna" and "lemme" and at one point, even said "crap."  I tell you, folks, this is "a man of the people." Sure, he was given one million dollars once, by and from his father but he's a man of the people.

Second thing that occurs to me after yesterday is that clearly, we, we Americans, you and I, the US, owe Mr. Trump a lot. And I mean A LOT. Check this out:

Over the weekend, I was offered $2 billion to do a deal in Dubai with a very, very, very amazing man, a great, great developer from the Middle East, Hussein Damack, a friend of mine, great guy. And I was offered $2 billion to do a deal in Dubai — a number of deals and I turned it down.

I didn’t have to turn it down, because as you know, I have a no-conflict situation because I’m president, which is — I didn’t know about that until about three months ago, but it’s a nice thing to have.

He turned down A 2 BILLION DOLLAR DEAL just to be our President. So yeah, clearly we owe Mr. Trump. Already. At least in his opinion. And he's not even in office yet.

This next, third point made me nearly angry. Here's what Mr. Trump said:

I have a no conflict of interest provision as president. It was many, many years old, this is for presidents. Because they don’t want presidents getting — I understand they don’t want presidents getting tangled up in minutia; they want a president to run the country.

Wait. Wait right there.

It isn't that we Americans "...don't want presidents getting tangled up in minutia.." Not at all. It's that WE DON'T WANT OUR PRESIDENTS TO BE BOUGHT. We don't want them to be influenced by a money deal or by any billionaires across the planet who would want their buddy, the President, to do them a favor. We'd like very much to not be a banana republic, so to speak.

What's scary about this is that HE DOESN'T GET THAT. 

He then goes on to say:

I don’t like the way that looks, but I would be able to do that if I wanted to. I would be the only one to be able to do that. You can’t do that in any other capacity. But as president, I could run the Trump organization, great, great company, and I could run the company — the country. I’d do a very good job, but I don’t want to do that.

He only thinks we don't want him "getting tangled up in minutia."  Oh, hell, no. Everything, we know, with this guy, from his childhood, is about money. From birth to now, at his age of 70 years, has always been about money. Having lived a life like that, who thinks he wouldn't or couldn't be bought? 

Next note and this is important. Mr. Trump still thinks no one out here in the nation cares about or wants to see his tax returns.

You know, the only one that cares about my tax returns are the reporters, OK? They’re the only who ask.

Well, he's not just wrong on this point but very much so. We'd like to know a few things about him and his tax returns:

--We'd like to know he paid taxes
--We'd like to know he paid a reasonably fair share of taxes
--We'd like to know he's not in debt--deeply or otherwise--to even one, let along many people or organizations or, heaven forbid, governments in and of other nations

He goes on to admit he's got lots of foreign interests:

...my company is much bigger, much more powerful than they ever thought. We’re in many, many countries, and I’m very proud of it.
And that's just for starters. So yes, Mr. President-elect, we'd very, very much like to see your tax returns and know what's in them. You said you'd release them if you became president, anyway, not that truth or commitments mean anything to you.

He then brought out an attorney, one Sheri Dillon, to explain how Mr. Trump is going to handle business in the next four years and how he's not actually going to put all that business in a true "blind trust" while he serves as president because, hey, screw you, America. This is Donald Trump.  She also went on to defend Mr. Trump's keeping his hotels while serving in the White House. Or Trump Tower, he hasn't said completely yet where he'll be operating from. The White House is so dowdy, you know?

He seemed to knock BBC news. A reporter from the BBC introduced himself for a question and this was Mr. Trump's response:

BBC news. That’s another beauty.

The BBC? You knock the BBC?

He was asked what he'd do to reform the media. He said he'd recommend people that "that have some moral compass."

Really. That's rich. (no pun intended).

In fairness, not all of the press conference was bad. It seems Mr. Trump is speaking out for the people and against his own political party on at least one subject and that is on our nation's ability to negotiate lower drug costs from the pharmaceutical companies. Here's a bit of what he said:

We’ve got to get our drug industry back. Our drug industry has been disastrous. They’re leaving left and right. They supply our drugs, but they don’t make them here, to a large extent. And the other thing we have to do is create new bidding procedures for the drug industry because they’re getting away with murder.

Pharma, pharma has a lot of lobbies and a lot of lobbyists and a lot of power and there’s very little bidding on drugs. We’re the largest buyer of drugs in the world and yet we don’t bid properly and we’re going to start bidding and we’re going to save billions of dollars over a period of time.
Of course, he and the Republicans want to do away with the Affordable Care Act, the ACA, "Obamacare" and have no replacement for it or replacement plan but at least Mr. Trump has this one issue correct for us. It pales, in comparison, to doing away with Obamacare, but at least he has this right.

Final note:  In the next four years, if Mr. Trump lasts that long as President (shudder), get used to hearing the following words out of the White House. Oh, and out of New York City, apparently:

"..the best..."
disastrous
fantastic
great, greatest
gonna'
disgrace (and this will be used both by the President, in that time frame, as well as by others, describing him)
phony
crap
Putin, Vladimir Putin, Mr. Putin, President Putin
totally (sometimes I think I'm listening to an 80's or 90's "valley girl)
horrible (again, this will be used both by and about the President)
yeah (only used by the President)
The entire phrase: "Give me a break" (this will be used by both the President and teenagers, exclusively)
"Lemme" (as a substitute for "let me." Again, only used by the President)
brilliant
phenomenal
terrific
outstanding

We are in for a rough, rough four years, ladies and gentlemen. God and the heavens help us.

Links:

Trump, Sex and Lots of Whining

Trump's ethics lawyers won award for work in Russia

Fact Check: Trump's First News Conference Since the Election

Donald Trump's colossal error on jobs 

during his press conference

Paid staffers were on hand to cheer for Trump 

at his press conference

Highway to Hell

Republicans, swept into power, controlling all of Congress, now about to end Obamacare and supporting Russia's Vladimir Putin; know-nothing, emotional, insecure, vindictive Donald "The Chump" Trump wins the presidency; Right Wing, Eric "Pretty Boy" Greitens wins the Missouri Governor's office, still vowing and pressing to foist "Right to work" laws on Missourians so we can all work for less for the already-wealthy and corporations and they can further bust Unions and all the rest and now this.

Chargers are moving to Los Angeles 

after 56 years in San Diego

I tell you, the world is coming apart.

It's all going to Hell.

The common denominator in all of it is money. We are drowning in money. We're being bought. And sold. All over. Politically and in all other ways. I need to write a book. It would be titled "Money and Capitalism Are Smothering America."

Quote of the Day -- On Goodbyes

As we say goodbye to President Obama, the very bright to brilliant, educated and extremely talented Mr. Spacey has this so correct.

As President Obama Says Goodbye Today

For us.

For the people.



Yes we can.

Yes we did.

And we must do still more.

Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you and First Lady Michelle and your children and entire family. We have a nation of thanks.

Entertainment Overnight -- New

One of Ed Sheeran's latest singles.

Quote of the Day -- On Living

“You are capable of more than you know. Choose a goal that seems right for you and strive to be the best, however hard the path. Aim high. Behave honorably. Prepare to be alone at times, and to endure failure. Persist! The world needs all you can give.”

―Edward O. Wilson

Link:  E. O. Wilson

Entertainment Overnight -- Africa

Be patient at the start.

Quote of the Day -- Sunday Edition

“Unfortunately a religious group defines itself foremost by its creation story, the supernatural narrative that explains how humans came into existence. And this story is also the heart of tribalism. No matter how gentle and high-minded, or subtly explained, the core belief assures its members that God favors them above all others. 

It teaches that members of other religions worship the wrong gods, use wrong rituals, follow false prophets, and believe fantastic creation stories. There is no way around the soul-satisfying but cruel discrimination that organized religions by definition must practice among themselves. I doubt there ever has been an imam who suggested that his followers try Roman Catholicism or a priest who urged the reverse.”

―Edward O. Wilson, The Meaning of Human Existence

Republicans' Plan To Repeal Obamacare---With No Replacement

The media have been reporting that Republicans in Washington have every intention of repealing, at long last, "Obamacare", the Affordable Care Act, also known as the ACA.  They've wanted to for years, of course. They wrote and attempted to pass this repeal at least 60 times in Congress, literally, wasting all that time and energy and so, our American taxpayer dollars, in their efforts.

Meanwhile, more Americans have health insurance for the first time in the nation's history. There are a lot more successes of the program, too.

Obamacare: an unheralded success 

- The Boston Globe

Obamacare Is A Success After All, 

Report Shows Proof

Another Obamacare Success: 

It's Cut Premiums By 30-50%

The success of the Affordable Care Act 

is a hugely inconvenient truth

6 Years After Obamacare's Passage, 

Haters Refuse to Accept Reality

There are rumors out there that the Republicans won't wipe it all away, that they'll keep some of it. It's difficult to tell. What's clear is that, after all these years of not wanting the ACA, they did not have then, nor do they, today, a replacement for it. Likely more than 20 million Americans could, then, lose their health insurance.  Who knows? They surely don't.

What we do know is this, from the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. It was true then, when he said it and it's still patently, sadly true.

I've pointed this out before. We have, beyond measure, the most expensive, exclusive, killing health care system in the world, bar none.

Once again, US has most expensive, 

least effective health care system

It's the most expensive health care system in the world. So much so, it's killing us. We also have the worst, lowest mortality rates of the top 17 industrialized nations.

So yes, we need health care solutions, Republicans.

Please stop putting your political party, your careers and the already-wealthy and corporations ahead of the needs of the American people, the nation.

Link:

GOP launches long-promisedrepeal of Obamacare with 
no full plan to replace it

Medical Bills Are the Biggest Cause of US Bankruptcies: Study

Medical Costs is the Number One Cause of Bankruptcy

Republican Idiocy On American Health Care, Parts I and II

Idiocy, part I

I just learned, this morning, a bit ago, that the Republicans are claiming one reason they want to do away with the Affordable Care Act, the ACA, "Obamacare" is because health care is so expensive under it.

Really.

So health care costs are rising too high---actually, the percent of increased costs with this legislation is far lower than before it--so they want to do away with it.

The fact is, without Obamacare, if they do away with it, this will make it possible to go back the way we were prior to it, when corporations could and would and did raise our prices and costs to the outrageous limits they were already at. There will be no holding back the pharmaceuticals and health insurance companies and all of them, to whatever high amounts they want. The sky will be the limit, if even there. No restraints of any kind.

But they expect lower costs.

Idiocy, part II

The second thing I learned today about the new Republican push on health care, from the morning news programs, is that they want to put the power "back to the individual states." They want to give more "strength", if you can call it that, to the individual statehouses in each state.

Well, first, why wouldn't they? Since they've gerrymandered the voting districts in each state much as they could and put in more voted ID laws and everything else they've done, to disenfranchise as many Americans as possible, they now control more state capitols than the other political party.

Second, since they're the political party of the already-wealthy and corporations, this is magnificent for them and their benefactors, certainly. And it is so strongly.

We're all familiar with "divide and conquer."

Let's not let this happen, America. Let's not let them dismantle the one bit of health care help we've gotten in our nation in the last 50 or more years.

Links:

Obamacare: an unheralded success - The Boston Globe

Six years later, 'Obamacare' gets credit for successes

The success of the Affordable Care Act is 

a hugely inconvenient truth

Why Democrats need to speak with one voice on Obamacare

GOP launches long-promisedrepeal of Obamacare with 
no full plan to replace it

Entertainment Overnight -- Please Forgive Me

The unique and eminently talented David Gray.



Have a great weekend, y'all and keep warm.

To All the Middle- and Lower-Class Americans Who Voted Republican

Yes, to all the middle- and lower-, working-class Americans out there, all across the nation and here in Missouri and Kansas, all, thanks very much for your vote. You--and we--are already, already, in only the first few days of this new Congress in Washington and statehouses in Jefferson City and Kansas, seeing the results of your vote and their agendas.  Here you go, you chuckleheads.

GOP revives rule allowing $1 salaries 

for government employees

House Republicans revive obscure rule that allows them to slash the pay of individual federal workers to $1

You don't even have to read either of these two articles. All you have to do is read the headline and you can see the poor schlubs are going to be getting screwed by the Republicans in Congress just now. And this is just the beginning of their terror.

Then, of course, there are the Republican efforts in Jeff City, as I mentioned.

Right-to-work resurfaces in Missouri with incoming GOP

Yes, "Right to work" so they can weaken Labor Unions and have Missourians working for less.

Fantastic.

I'd love to know what these chowderheads in the middle- and lower-class, who vote Republican, think with, frankly.

Quote of the Day -- On Living

With Mr. Trump soon to be in office, and the Republicans in control of Congress in Washington and 32 of the 50 statehouses, we'll have to lean heavily on the "hate tyrants" part.

Have a great day, y'all and keep warm.

And So It Begins

The 115th Congressional session, this very Republican Party, Right Wing, ultra-Conservative Congress has begun...   And with a vengeance.  See for yourself. Here was their first move, famously, infamously, just before the session began.

With No Warning, House Republicans Vote to Gut Independent Ethics Office

Fortunately, the American people rose up, thanks to social media, raised hell and this was squashed. The cowards wisely backed off.

That's not to say they're done, however. Far from it. This is what they started two days ago, God help us.

Senate Republicans Pass Resolution That Begins ObamacareRepeal Process

And now, this. A pièce de résistance, really.

Republicans prepare legislation to 

defund United Nations

It's lead by that political and governmental rocket scientist Rep. Louie Gohmert, no surprise.

Our political world is coming apart with these chuckleheads. This is terrific. Just when nationalism is spreading around the world, nation by nation, these idiots want to tear down the one place we try to all get together, as a world, and solve international problems. 

Fantastic.

These banana-brains just want to get and stay more and more parochial, more and more, "me, first!" and "Leave us alone!"

Honestly, it really does seem like we're going to Hell in a nearly non-proverbial handbasket.

And The Donald isn't even inaugurated yet.

God help us. God save us from ourselves.

Link:  Republicans call Obamacare a 'failure.' 

These 7 charts show they couldn't be more wrong

After deriding it for weeks, Trump now claims to be a ‘big fan’ of the intelligence community

Trump's EPA pick sided with polluters – who gave millions

 to his political agenda

Trump's EPA pick rejects climate science, fights for fossil fuels

Paul Ryan: GOP will defund Planned Parenthood

House GOP rules change will make it easier to sell off federal land 

Senate Republicans introduce bill to slash security at US embassies

Two Surprising Results From Two Different Right Wing Sources

Two men, neither of which I voted for or would vote for or whom I hoped would become either our next president or Missouri state governor, Right Wing extremists as they are, have taken two separate political stands.  And I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprise by both.

Donald Trump took this one:

Shaming Firms That Export Jobs 

Has Worked For Trump So Far

And our "Pretty Boy" Governor-elect, Eric Greitens, this:

Greitens stands firm: No state funding 

for stadium project

So even though both men represent nearly everything I am against, at least we got these 2 very separate rays of sunshine.

Here's hoping this isn't the first and last thing we can be thankful for from these two.

America: The World's Warmonger

Proof positive. This, from the New York Times yesterday.

U.S. Sold $40 Billion in Weapons 

in 2015, Topping Global Market

Quote of the Day -- On Donald Trump

From a Right Winger, a staunch Conservative, a Republican himself.

And he's right, of course.

God help us.  

God help us all.

Scary News Breaking Last Night From House Republicans

Check this out. Breaking news from late last evening from two different sources.

House Republicans vote to eviscerate 

the Office of Congressional Ethics

With No Warning, House Republicans Vote to Hobble Independent Ethics Office

So much for being independent.  They just said to you and I, to the nation, that they didn't want to have to be held to or responsible for any ethics rules or laws or commissions.

Sneaky b*st*rds

This is yet one more perfect example of how Republicans put their political party first. Screw the nation. Screw the people. To hell with all that. It's how they got in the White House. It's why they control Congress still longer.

Screw you, America. It's "Us first!"

This is who's in charge just now, America. This is who's in charge of our government. This is what and who you voted for.

And they're doing their own work, for themselves, not for you and I or for the nation.

Entertainment Overnight -- The Way Life Should Be

Good luck out there, y'all.

Quote of the Day -- On Despots and Despotism

"If there is one fact we really can prove, from the history that we really do know, it is that despotism can be a development, often a late development and very often indeed the end of societies that have been highly democratic. A despotism may almost be defined as a tired democracy. As fatigue falls on a community, the citizens are less inclined for that eternal vigilance which has truly been called the price of liberty; and they prefer to arm only one single sentinel to watch the city while they sleep."

--G.K. Chesterton (1925)

Link:  G. K. Chesterton - Wikipedia

The Already-Wealthy Really Do Owe the Poor

I was reading the Sunday edition of the New York Times yesterday when I ran across this article:

Things We Learned in 2016

It listed 45 different items that readers of the newspaper might have learned in the last year. I thought number 22 very instructing and insightful:

Sixth graders in the richest school districts are four grade levels ahead of children in the poorest districts.

It was from this article:

Money, Race and Success: 

How Your School District Compares

This statement/fact has so many ramifications for people, individually, but for societies as a whole, it's difficult to know where to begin or end but I'll try.

First, it proves the idea of noblesse oblige quickly, firmly and completely. The idea that the wealthy, the already-wealthy have an obligation to help those with less is driven home here totally. The formal definition is 

"the inferred responsibility of privileged people to act with generosity and nobility toward those less privileged."

Since those "privileged" or again, wealthy have much, they rather "owe it" to the "less privileged" to assist. Part of that is just due to quantities---quantities of wealthy, of money, in our modern societies. If a person is "loaded" and has more than they could possibly spend, it seems easy, obvious and incumbent on them to help those who are of small means and struggling. This is especially true, it would seem clear, if that "struggling" includes being homeless, starving, sick or what have you.

This also seems easy and true if the person is both wealthy and either a moralist--as I'd think we all should be--or, more, a Christian or Jew or of any religion that believes in helping the poor. Sure, again, this seems easy and obvious.

But it's more than that. It's much more than that.

What becomes true, just from that one, brief sentence and fact is that the already-wealthy have many, many advantages--financial, social, educational, etc.--given to them, and from birth up, that if they didn't assist the less fortunate, the poor or what have you, it would only perpetuate horribly the divisions between the two groups of people, those "haves" and "have nots." This seems self-evident, too.

This makes it easy to see why those with money keep piling on more and more, frequently, if not usually, while those of lesser means get less, to begin with, but then also are able to save and keep less, over time. It's what makes the "1%" of a nation, of a society, grow and grow their wealth.

Offers and possibilities snowball up for the wealthy by virtue of money and education and contacts, at least, while the costs of being less fortunate snowball against "the little guy." It's a system built to go for the wealthy and against the poor. And sure, to an extent it's just human nature but it's not right and we need to acknowledge it and correct for it, each of us, let alone as a people, as a nation, again, as societies.

This isn't about the poor mooching off the wealthy or not pulling their own weight or their expecting, demanding easy things from those that have, either. As the old saying goes, if only work made people wealthy, African women would be the wealthiest of the world.

One of the great things about all this, though, about the fortunate helping the unfortunate is that, besides making one feel good, besides the fact that it is, as just one example, the "Christian thing to do", it also helps the society, too. Any person who is helped with some food, say, might well avoid going to a hospital later or, in another example, might not steal--and risk getting caught and arrested. They may not try to rob a store and should that happen, things get much worse for all involved right there.

Then there's helping a person with education. Or a job. Both certainly help the area, the town, the city, the region, the state, the nation. They help with the person's health, their expenses. Heck, they help the different government's tax coffers. The benefits here snowball upward, positively, as well.

So there's every reason in the world why the already wealthy should help the unfortunate, the poor, the sick. It's good for that person and their family, sure.  But it's also great for the society and those benefits come back to that wealthy person. The healthier, wealthier and stronger our societies are, the better it even is for the wealthy. Their own companies will likely do better. Their own city, county, state and nation will do better.  That, in fact, then is the "rising tides help all boats." Not tax cuts for the already-wealthy. That does nothing but make the rich, richer.

So, yeah, the rich owe the poor. Don't ever think they don't.  

They owe it to themselves to help.

Links:

It's expensive to be poor | The Economist

8 Ways Being Poor Is Wildly Expensive in America

It's getting more expensive to be poor - The Washington Post

It Is Expensive to Be Poor - The Atlantic

​The high cost of being poor - CBS News

How Expensive It Is to Be Poor - The New York Times

Being Poor Is Too Expensive - Lifehacker

Shockingly small 'crimes' that can land you in jail

Americans---and Kansas Citians--Need Better Imaginations

As a nation, as a people, we have some pretty significant problems not least of which is our outrageously, unaffordably high health care.

The rest of the world does not-for-profit health care but us? Here in the good ol' US of A?

We can't imagine a different system.

Further, we don't look at other systems around the world, most of us. In spite of the fact that, again, nearly, if not entirely the whole world doesn't tie health and health care directly to profit, we can't imagine doing it.

Let that sink in because it's true.

We can't imagine doing with our health care system, as a nation, what the rest of the world already does and has done for at least decades, if not a century or more.

And it's the same, more locally, with our airport, KCI, MCI, Kansas City International Airport.

Too many can't imagine saving the existing buildings and using them, using them well, revamping them and thereby being far more fiscally and environmentally responsible.

Like most "good Americans", all we can imagine is taking bulldozers to the entire complex and building new.

It doesn't have to be that way.  At all.

Almost completely a year ago now, a local architecture group, Crawford Architects laid out a plan to do just that. That is, to renovate and reuse the existing buildings, thereby, again, being more fiscally responsible--read:  saving money--and being far more environmentally responsible.

Another KCI renovation option surfaces

For a rough overview, here it is.

It would cost less, very likely, to renovate our existing buildings there than to walk away from them, from all of it and build a new, single terminal, first.  Heck, even if it cost the same, it's still far, far more responsible renovating and reusing than doing the tear-down/walk away.  Additionally, the new, single terminal design offers LESS GATES than our existing buildings.

Understand this. The proponents of a new, single terminal want to do it because we need to be able to grow but WE'LL ACTUALLY HAVE FEWER GATES FROM WHICH TO ENTER AND EXIT THE TERMINAL?

Really?

And that makes sense how?  And to whom?

And check this out. In this year just ended, 2016, we're already increasing the passenger numbers.

KCI Passengers Up 8.8 Percent in February

KCI Passenger Growth Continued 

in November

And that's with the Airport Authority not even doing their duty, taking care of our terminals out there and keeping all of them open.

So come on, Kansas City, Kansas Citians. Heck, everyone from the metropolitan area and region that uses this airport.  Let's show some imagination and do this thing right. Let's not do the good, old, wasteful American habit of tearing down, walking away and building anew elsewhere.  It's expensive, it's unnecessary, it's wasteful, and it's wildly, environmentally irresponsible.

For fairness and the love of all that's good and right and true and intelligent, everyone in the Kansas City metropolitan area and region who has any concern or question about this issue--and we all should because we're going to pay for it--should read this article over at Save KCI!

Resolve To Avoid Spaghetti And 

Ask More Questions in 2016

Read it, please.

And let's all use our imaginations.

Auld Lang Syne

Dougie MacLean and his Scottish accent.

Don't watch or read the lyrics.  Just listen.



Again, happy new year, everyone.

It's a New Dawn

It's a new day



And I'm feelin' good...

New Year's Day

Nothing changes...



...New Year's Day

It's A New Day

Why don't we turn the clock to zero honey?
I'll sell the stock we'll spend all the money


We're starting up a brand new day