“NATO expansion, as bad as that is, it’s the EU later, trying to force into the Ukraine… that would be the equivalent … of China coming here and signing a defense pact with Mexico … right on our border and up against our grille.”
The two men suggested that Putin’s action in Ukraine was fully understandable, given that Ukraine has indicated it wishes to join NATO (a “deadbeats” organization, according to Bannon). It’s also worth noting that Prince, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, had once planned to create a private army in Ukraine.
“The contract also calls for abolishing the Department of Education, making English the official language of the United States, banning federal funding for critical race theory teachings, and enacting school choice on the federal level so federal dollars follow the students to their school of choice, including private religious schools.”
“There’s no Team America for Trump. Not once did I see him do anything to put America first. Not once. Not for a single second.”
Fiona Hill, former Senior Director for Europe and Russia at the United States National Security Council, about the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis and her belief that former President Donald Trump exacerbated the tension
“All this did was say to Russia that Ukraine was a playground,” Hill added, noting Trump’s admiration for Putin and his disapproval of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). She also highlighted Trump’s longstanding pushback against Ukraine as he relentlessly tried to obtain incriminating information on President Joe Biden and his son, Hunter. The controversy surrounding Ukraine was a major component of Trump’s first impeachment trial.
“[O]nly Donald Trump could stand in that way. Only Donald Trump and what he says and how he says it could prevent Republicans from winning the majority. If he makes this about November of 2020 or January of 2021, that could cost the Republicans the Senate.”
Frank Luntz, Republican pollster, stating the Republican Party could regain control of both houses of congress during this year’s midterm elections, if Donald Trump doesn’t interfere
Luntz also said, “If you look at the polling data, and you do the focus groups, you talk to independents as I have done. I find it difficult to see any other conclusion than Republicans winning control of the House and winning control of the Senate in November. Now a lot of stuff can change. And I know that we don’t know what’s going to happen in Ukraine. But Republicans should win both of those based on what’s happening right now and what we know is going to happen in the coming months.”
The world’s sea creatures have enough to worry about with human overpopulation and the accompanying pollution. But, for a quarter century now, they’ve had to contend with a miniscule plague known as Legos.
While people have been collecting many of the Legos that wash up onto shorelines, scientists have used the calamity to study the impact plastic has on the world’s oceans.
Plastic can take years – perhaps centuries – to degrade in water, and releases a variety of chemicals as it deteriorates; chemicals that can disrupt oceanic ecosystems by disrupting the reproductive systems of some animals.
A 2020 study by Environmental Pollution found that, upon analyzing the structure of Legos with X-ray fluorescence, it could take up to 1,300 years for all of the pieces to degrade completely.
If there’s any proof that human birth control on a wide scale is necessary, this is it!
“Those who attack my initiatives and create the appearance of impropriety are quite literally dream killers. They have canceled the hopes and dreams of children by trying to cancel me.”
“So now his accountants have fired him and investigations draw closer to him and right on cue, the noise machine gets turned up. Fox leads the charge with accusations against me, counting on their audience to fall for it again. And as an aside, they’re getting awfully close to actual malice.”
Hillary Clinton, in a speech during the New York State Democratic Party convention
Clinton was apparently making a connection between the legal troubles of former President Donald Trump and the FOX News network’s repeatedly negative coverage of her.
“These nine families have shared a single goal from the very beginning: to do whatever they could to help prevent the next Sandy Hook.”
Adam Lanza had used a Remington firearm to kill 20 children and 6 educators at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut in December of 2012. Koskoff also noted, “It is hard to imagine an outcome that better accomplishes that goal.” The families went up against the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which made it nearly impossible for gun makers to be held responsible for the use of their products in criminal acts.
Remington Arms will pay the 9 families $73 million to settle the lawsuit. It is the first time a U.S. gun manufacturer has been held liable in a mass shooting and a legal outcome that could open the door to future lawsuits against gun makers.
As The Chief continues his technical writing pursuits, I periodically encounter some odd elements.
In the email below, for example, the recruiter either wasn’t familiar with the English language or they tried to be inspirational. But yeah! There are few things more exciting than looking for a job! I mean what reasonable person doesn’t enjoy the rigor of composing a perfect correspondence to a potential employer – especially if they’re desperate to find a job.
Then there’s this beauty below. While applying for another tech writing job last December, I had to complete a section which asked a question I’d never seen before.
Neurodivergent?! I actually had to look that up – and was offended they’d made such an inquiry.
For years companies have been taking people’s fingerprints and making copies of their driver’s licenses. I never had a problem with that and always acquiesced. It was just part of the hiring process.
I’ve also undergone drug screenings, which entail urinating into a plastic cup. I still find that more intrusive than anything and – after my last such screening a few years ago – vowed never to do it again. In that incident I inadvertently starting washing my hands after stepping out of the room, which I didn’t know was forbidden. I’d already handed the cup to the gloved associate who had been standing immediately outside. When she practically hollered at me for reaching towards the sink, one of her colleagues (they were both female) passed by and made some chicken-shit comment about men not being able to follow instructions. They began laughing to which I promptly responded, “Excuse you!” That seemed to upset them, but I will not be disrespected. Imagine if male associates had said something similar to a woman.
Now some employers are asking for proof of COVID vaccinations. And exactly what type of shot I received! And from where! That’s when I stop being conciliatory. I simply told one recruiter ‘NO’. I would not tell them exactly what type of anti-COVID vaccine I received, much less provide a copy of the card displaying my personal data. If it’s a remote position, who really cares if I’m vaccinated?! I received both shots, each of which made me ill.
Understand I’m not some right-wing extremist or a Canadian truck driver. I think the COVID hysteria has reached a crescendo.
But neurodivergent?! That’s a new one, which I find as intrusive as the cup thing.
Several years ago a human resources associate with the energy company where I worked asked if I’d had personality disputes with coworkers.
“Come on now,” I replied. “You’ve been around long enough to know, when you gather different people from different backgrounds in one location to work together, inevitably there’ll be some conflict.”
My elaborate answer seemed to surprise her. I surmise she was accustomed to hearing something like, ‘Oh never!’ Or, ‘Of course not. I get along with everybody. I’m a people person.’
But she had to concede I was right. A company never knows what they’re going to get when they hire someone new.
Neurodivergent?!
This moment came a few months after I’d had a heated text discussion with a long-time acquaintance who lives in California. He was involved with two younger men – a couple he’d met on a dating site. He described one of them as somewhat anti-social, adding that the guy’s mental aptitude fell along the autism spectrum. He went further, though, declaring that people who aren’t good in dealing with other people are borderline autistic.
It stunned me. I’ve never been good in dealing with other people. My parents could never understand why I had such a tough time making friends. But no one had ever deemed me autistic. To me autism is just one step above mental retardation. My California acquaintance tried to assure me he wasn’t insinuating I’m mentally retarded, but I remain unconvinced. He doesn’t really know me. We’ve never even met. So I found his cyber-assessment of me as autistic insulting.
I answered no to the “neurodivergent” inquiry, but I wished there had been another option: ‘Who gives a shit!’
Chief Writing Wolf 