The Hand-Bag 'Guys'

Over the past five years, I've come to be fascinated by stone carvings which display a guy, with a 'hand-bag'. 

People could point this out from carvings in Egypt and Iraq.  But as time went by, the carving showed up in the Americas, Asia, and even cliff drawings in Australia.  The bag scene even shows up in Turkey at the new site of Gobekli Tepe (oddly enough, just the bags....not the guy holding the bag).

So I've come to ask myself some questions.

First, why so many points around the Earth?  Maybe you could make up some excuse if this were just a 1,000-mile circle from Iraq....but to find this virtually every corner of the Earth? 

Could it be some guy who was just a traveler and made up some fake legend story, and convinced folks of important people existing with handbags?  I've contemplated this....mostly because it's so easy to convince folks of a hoax (like Bigfoot).  Oddly enough, no matter where you find the image in stone....it's always the size of a lunch-box. 

Stone characters being women with the hand-bag?  No.  So far, I've yet to find an image where it's a woman.  It's either men, or animal-creature men. 

What's in the bag?  The images never convey that part of the story.  It must be important to identify the guy carrying the bag, but the contents are not that important.

All made around the same time?  This is harder to say or prove.  In the case of Gobekli Tepe, it has to be less than 12,000 years ago. 

Did the stone-carver actually see these folks, or simply get a description handed down....maybe five to ten generations later?  So when folks talk about the bag....maybe it was originally a backpack, and the story got shifted around to identify it as a purse instead?  Well, that's possible. 

Are the bags ever seen just by themselves, and not carried by some VIP-dude?  Well, the only images I've seen so far is the Gobekli Tepe site where multiple bags are put onto a statue indicating great chaos, or on some Australian rock (drawn by an Aborigine). 

Are the bags even significant?  This is debatable.  Obviously, the stone-cutters thought they were.  But you never see an image where 'Joe' is removing something from the bag. 

If the size is realistic....what would the VIP-due carry in a lunch-box size bag?  A Snickers-bar, bag of peanuts, a Mountain Dew, and a deck of cards?  Maybe it was just some aspirin, band-aides, and bug-repellent?  Maybe his communications device, a laser-gun, and a bottle of gin?

So I come to the end of this essay.  It is rather odd that 500-odd stone-carving experts, across the globe, without the ability to send images....came to chip out these carvings....all with the hand-bag guys.  Accidental?  No.  That's the one element to this story that you can cross off....you couldn't have 500-odd guys performing the same accidental visual representation. 

It'll just remain a mystery until someone digs up the statue or image of the hand-bag guy pulling something out of the bag. 

Explaining This Missile Treaty Chatter

Back in November of 1987, the US and Russia signed a missile treaty.  Basically....short-range missiles were OK, and long-range missiles were bad. 

New missile programs came and went.  So in the past couple of years, the Russians came onto this new program (SSC-8)....a cruise missile, which they said only went about 480 kilometers (300 miles).  The US monitored testing....no one says how but they did.  In their mind, the cruise missile is capable of carrying nukes and going up to 2000 kilometers (1,200 miles). 

After a number of months of talking about this....President Trump finally said that the 1987 treaty is dissolved (will take six months for this to occur).

Naturally, this has hyped up the Europeans a lot (especially the Germans).  Russia?  They've warned the US about bringing in medium-range cruise missiles to off-set this.  So they are chatting about bringing in missiles to Cuba or Venezuela to play this game out.

Trump's game-plan?  Unknown.  But this might be an occasion where he tells the NATO folks (in particular the Germans) that he has zero intention of bringing in more missiles to Europe, and that if they have a serious worry.....maybe they should take care of it themselves.

You see, the chief method of Russia making Oligarchs wealthy and rich.....is by oil and natural gas sales to Europe.  I don't think any Russian Oligarch or billionaire has any desire to mess up this situation. 

So this is all fake 'worry'?  More or less.  They will spend hours and hours trying to do public TV displays about Trump screwing up.  Well....he's actually telling Germany and the others....it's your business to protect yourself, and we won't necessarily be paying for it or helping you. 

As for the SSC-8?  Somewhere in the next year or two, I expect the Russians to conduct some test and demonstrate to the Europeans that it can go 2000 to 3000 kilometers.  NATO will try to entice Trump to come into the picture, and he'll tell them that it's their situation to resolve. 

5th District Chatter

“Democrats aren't the only members of congress who represent districts of distress. Mo Brooks who represents Alabama five, right, they have a median household income which is less than Maryland seven where Elijah Cummings represents, they have a median home value that is less, fewer people with bachelor degrees and the poverty level is a little bit less than Maryland 7 but about in the ballpark. my question to you is this, so Mo Brooks spends a lot of his time defending the president, why should he do that by your logic and not go home and deal with the issues in your district?"

-- CNN's John Berman

My brother pointed out this comment by CNN's journalist.....trying to slam a district in Alabama.  So the district (5th district), is basically where I grew up as a kid.

I just started laughing.

First, he picked on bachelor degrees, which if he'd come to northern Alabama....he would have found out that a fair number of kids are in community college or trade schools, and don't see any value in getting into serious debt with a worthless bachelor degree.

Crime?  Crime in northern Alabama just doesn't compare to Baltimore.  Murder and assault just doesn't occur at the same rate like in Baltimore.

If I actually went to locals in Baltimore and offered up a way for them to move.....given the chances, I think more than half would agree that northern Alabama is a heck of a lot safer than Baltimore.

But lets go to the odd figures.  If you went into the 5th district and started to look at individual households.....a lot of those households have either an RV, or bass-boat.....more so than Baltimore's surroundings.  Cars able to pass a state inspection on a moment's notice?  I would take a guess that more than 95-percent of the 5th district cars could easily pass the inspection.....with Baltimore's collection of cars questionable.

Lets go to this one odd final factor.  If you gathered up 1,000 residents of the 5th district in Alabama and said....you can move, and leave.  There might be a hundred willing to talk about this idea (most wanting to move to Alaska or Wyoming).  But in the end, less than 25 would take the step of leaving the 5th district.  In Baltimore, with a 1,000 residents offered the chance to move?  I suspect that a minimum of 800 would discuss the matter, and maybe 600 of them agreeing to move (virtually anywhere but Baltimore).

'Dark Psychic Forces'

It was a great phrase expressed by Marianne Williamson at the debate last night.

It's an image in my mind from the X-Files series....'dark psychic forces'.  Something with demons, monsters, vampires, etc. 

She's trying to label Trump as a 'demon'.  I'm guessing Trump is sitting there and contemplating this.....because it's a curve that he can't come easily back on Twitter.  He might even admit that he is absolutely a demon. 

Putin standing there and grinning?  Oh yes.  He'll even go and tell Williamson in a personal way....that he's darkest psychic force on planet Earth. 

Do we need a President like this?  Well, it's just something to think about. 

Foreign Change in the US

So here's something to think about.

Back in 2017, Guatemala was thought to have around 16.9 million residents total. 

Back in 2010, the US Census detected around 1.04-million Guatemalans living either legally or illegally in the US. 

The odds that we've reached two-million Guatemalans in the US, and that Guatemala's own population has bumped downward (say losing a million over the past three years)?   Well, it's very possible.

But here's the other thing which you ought to think about.  If nothing changes in Guatemala over the next five years....we will probably have 3.5-million Guatemalans in the US. 

Where do they live?  Mostly in urbanized zones (NY City, Philly, San Francisco, central Texas, northern Virginia).  The odds that they could get onto voting lists, and be part of some 'change'?  Well, here'e the thing....it wouldn't take much for some GOP guy to find some hyped-up talker....a Guatemalan person....to lead focus groups in all of these areas, and shift votes from the Democrats to the Republicans. 

Just to suggest that you could find 150,000 votes in Houston alone....that you could convert over....would send a clear message on political change occurring. 

Rats, Rats, Rats

As a kid growing up in rural Alabama in the 1960s and 1970s....I have to admit....I just never saw a rat.  Never.  Mice?  Sure, but not rats. 

In fact, it wasn't until the mid 1980s....that I got to Panama, and really started to see rats (big ones). 

So this Baltimore thing on rats that President Trump hyped on....kinda interests me. 

Generally, when you get to an area where there's rats....there five key elements at work.  First, you have open trash or food to feed a growing rat population.  Second, you need homeless folks in significant numbers, which are tied into the open off/trash situation.  Third, you need heroin addicts or drugged-up idiots who simply don't care about sanitation.  Fourth....you need a city council and sanitation department which has zero interest in controlling the rats. Fifth and final, you need decent weather (unlike harsh Montana winters). 

The best way to handle an entire neighborhood of rats?  You put out a massive amount of rat-poison, and you dispose of the dead rats as quickly as possible.  On top of that, you dispose of the buildings that are unused or taken over by addicts.   

Why Baltimore can't take actions?  That's a question that only a local guy there can answer. 

The Trump Impeachment Scenario

I've spent a fair amount reading this week over the Johnson Impeachment of 1868, and it may lay out of some the problems, and the path that might occur if Impeachment for Trump were attempted.

For those who weren't aware....Johnson was left an enormous task as Lincoln was buried.  The Lincoln 'path' meant that forgiving was in order.  The behavior of the Republican House and Senate?  Less so....they wanted the President to punish the southern states as much as possible.

At some point, Johnson went on a national tour (using the rail network) to make speeches and ask the public to blast their representative/senators. That probably put Johnson on an enormous 'enemies' list.

Upon firing Secretary of War Stanton.....that was the last straw.  So Johnson was brought up on 11 charges for the Impeachment.

The charges:

1.  The Senate was not given a chance to concur with the firing of Stanton (a new act came prior to this which suggested that they had to approve of not only hiring Secretaries for the cabinet, but firing them as well).

2.  By firing Stanton, the President turned around and appointed a new Secretary of War when the vacancy simply didn't exist.  I know, it's a stupid charge but simply added to the burden.

3.  Act of conspiring.  Mostly with members of the House, and harming the jobs of the Senators.

4.  Another act of conspiracy.  Mostly by failing to carry out the law on the Tenure of Office Act.

5.  Another act of conspiracy.  Mostly to take or posses the property of the Department of War.

6.  Another act of conspiracy  Mostly the same thing as number 5 above except it was meant to violate the Tenure of Office act.

7.  Giving the new Secretary of War the ability to control disbursement of government funding for the war.

8.  Giving illegal orders to Major General Emory with the illegal intent to violate federal law.

9.  Giving three speeches 'insulting' the Congress (mostly the Senate and mostly Republicans).

10.  Acting in a disgraceful way to the Presidency.

11.  Hiring the new Secretary of War without consulting the Senate.

So when you look over the list, it looks like a lot.

So on day one with the Impeachment accepted....the Johnson team asked for 40 days to present their case....the Senate (by vote) said 'no', and gave him a total of 10 days to present the case.  They didn't really want to spend a heck of a lot of time talking about this or how the firing came about with Stanton.

Impeachment at that point required a two-thirds majority to vote on this and the magic number was 36 votes.  The Impeachment acts were divided into three votes.  As long as they reached 36 on any of the three, then Johnson was thrown out.

Well, this is the curious thing.  From the nine Democratic Senators in the Senate...they all voted NO, to all three acts.  For the Republicans, they were only able to muster 35 of the Senators to vote in favor of the Impeachment.  Nine Republicans voted with the Democrats (on all three acts).  Without that one single extra GOP vote....the measures were defeated.

The nine Republican Senators and their future?  All left office after their term ended.

As much as the 35 Republicans felt they'd have the votes to toss Johnson out.....they guessed wrong.

So you gaze at the way this might fit into the Trump scenario.  You'd have to write up charges.  There would have to be some details involved, with accusations and evidence.

The Senate might say 'fine' with the charges, and then Trump's legal team would ask for not just 40 days (like Johnson's team), but Trump's team might say that well over four months are required.  You can imagine the Senate in a lock-down situation....nothing to be accomplished for four entire months.  No trips to golf resorts....no trips overseas....no campaign trips.

Trump's team bringing out subpoenas in massive quantity?  I would imagine well over 150 subpoenas will be issued and some folks will be shocked at being dragged into this.  The potential that former President Obama being dragged in and forced to swear on what he said or did?  That threat exists.   The potential threat that one or two US Senators might be accused of being part of some counter-conspiracy effort.....forcing them to remove themselves from the Impeachment vote?  That might occur as well.

The threat of individuals have charges drawn up because of a false testimony?  That issue exists as well.

And at the end?  If the two-thirds vote doesn't occur?  It's more than likely.

Destruction of trust for the Democratic Party?  If this pee dossier is proven to be totally fictional, and paid by Democratic operatives, it opens up a big mess which Mitch McConnell would just stand there in glee....like a 8-year old kid in Disneyland.

Anyone saying or suggesting that this would only take ten days...hasn't read the Johnson history piece or tried to connect the dots on this whole entire anti-Trump effort.

Could the news media even survive four entire months of this process?

So, it's a curious thing to imagine.