Monday, December 12, 2016

Diary 12/12/16, While America Slept, the hostiles take over.

My fellow Americans (and the Russians looking in), I appreciate that I’m just another no-count working stiff, but the messenger isn’t the point, it’s the message that matters.  

We have one week - and I at least want to create this little public record at this one irretrievable moment in time - when America has an oh so tiny window of opportunity.  A moment when nothing less than a huge public out cry is required for Democracy to survive as we know it.  

Looking at events from a historical perspective makes clear that our government is literally in a hostile takeover attempt by the oligarchs.  You know, the Kochs, Putins, Tillersons (check out the collection of articles at the end of this.) and Trumps with their mega-corporate obsessions, Too Much Is Never Enough, for them.  Now we are on their menu.  The concerns of regular citizens like us, don’t mean squat to them.  Think about itThis is for keeps.  

Look at the self-interested, self-certain people Trump is putting in charge of important agencies.  I mean people who are passionately hostile and have no desires but to cripple the agencies they are being putting in charge of - no good faith whatsoever.  What's that got to do with the American Way?  These agencies were created for a reason.  That’s more like treason than guidance!

We depend on healthy social and environmental protections, even if the greed blinded oligarchs can’t grasp that concept!

Why are we allowing this to go down?

Now, today, now is the time to demand our leaders Democratic and Republican act. 

DEMAND THAT OUR DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN LEADERS ACT AND RELEASE THE TRUMP AND RUSSIAN FILES - WE THE PEOPLE HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW HOW MANY FOREIGN OBLIGATIONS BIND THIS NEW PRESIDENT! 

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE HAS A RIGHT TO KNOW BEFORE IT CARRIES OUT ITS CONSTITUTION DUTY DECEMBER 19TH !   

WE HAVE THIS ONE BALANCE AND CHECK, THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE, THAT WE AMERICANS SHOULD NOT PASS UP !  OUR POLITICIANS NEED OUR VOCAL SUPPORT AND DEMANDS !
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

THEN ON JANUARY 3RD WE NEED TO DEMAND THAT THE DEMOCRATIC SENATE GIVE MERRICK GARLAND THE VOTE HE’S BEEN WAITING FOR, FOR THE PAST YEAR.  


In typical ruthless fashion Republicans will contrive every argument and implement any necessary dirty tricks.  I fear they will win.  After all they are ruthless bullies and we have been the meek.  One last chance, because after this next two year, you won't recognize your constituan rights anymore.  We will be on the way of becoming a White nation under a dogmatic Republican god - that is their goal.  

At this point only swift action by We The People will temper the coming vandalism of our nation. 

HIS JURIST CREDENTIALS ARE IMPECCABLE AND ACCEPTABLE TO BOTH SIDES OF THE ISLE.
  
EACH WILL BE EMBROILED IN SCANDAL AND DELAY, EACH IS MORE CONCERNED WITH SELF-INTEREST THAN IN GUIDING A SOCIETY.

SINCE THE REPUBLICANS REFUSE TO GIVE HIM HIS DAY, THE DEMOCRATS HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO TAKE COURAGEOUS ACTION.  

ONLY WITH THE WEIGHT OF TENS AND HUNDREDS OF THOUSAND OF CITIZENS CONNECTING WITH THEIR REPRESENTATIVES CAN WE HAVE A RIGHT TO EXPECT THEM TO ACT.  

THEY CANNOT DO IT WITHOUT WE THE PEOPLE’S VOCAL SUPPORT.

DailyKos is circulating a petition that I'm featuring in this post along with information and quotes from a number of article that offer greater detail for the curious.  


By David Dayen | November 16, 2016 |  NewRepublic.com


By Maya Parthasarathy |  December 7, 2016 | Bustle.com

By Alan Rapport  |  AUG. 19, 2016 | Washington DC | NewYorkTimes.com

Commentary by Mark Kende | June 21, 2016 | Fortune.com


Michael Bowman  |  March 30, 2016 | VOA News.com 

FYI  - This is for keeps - America, it's your move.  Democracy Use It Or Lose It !
Trump's 21 potential court nominees are overwhelmingly white, male and from red states
Richard Wolf | USA TODAY | December 2, 2016

President-elect Donald Trump's 21 potential nominees to the Supreme Court -- the people he has said he will choose from, not just to replace Justice Antonin Scalia but for any other seats that fall vacant -- are straight out of conservative central casting.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Sign the petition to Joe Biden and Senate Democrats: Confirm Merrick Garland to Supreme Court on January 3


Senate Republicans refused to give President Obama’s pick to replace Supreme Court Justice Scalia even the courtesy of a hearing. It was disrespectful, and historically unprecedented. But there is still something we can do to get Merrick Garland confirmed before Obama leaves office.

At 12:00 noon on January 3, 2017 (according to the Constitution), the terms of 34 U.S. Senators will expire. At that point, the Senate will briefly consist of 66 sitting senators—until Vice President Joe Biden, in his capacity as Senate president, begins swearing in the senators-elect.

=======

Will we rise to the occasion?  Last weeks don’t give much hope, still waiting for that massive awakening.   If We The People are to confront the coming horde of corporate vandals, this is our moment. 

Here’s the deal, I’ve grown up in the United States of America with a President that was 100% committed to our country.  The Russians helped trick us into electing a new form of government, with a president who has contempt for our government, which is nothing but an irritant to his corporate ambitions.  

I kid you not, this was explained to me by a career Navy guy: Instead of a President of the United States of America, we now have a CEO of the Corporation of Amerika, and US Armed Forces will be at his disposal.  This is for real.  This is for keeps!  Are we simply going to sit by and allow this transition?

We The American People, its our move.

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BOYCOTT TRUMP APP -  HERE or by searching "Boycott Trump" in the App Store.
_____________________________________

Trump Team Requests List Of Government Employees Who Worked On Climate Change
This has all the makings of “an illegal modern-day political witch hunt.”
Ryan Grenoble  | 12/09/2016

_________________________________________________
Contact FBI Headquarters
FBI Headquarters
935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20535-0001
(202) 324-3000

Note: At this time we do not have a national e-mail address for public questions or comments. Some of our local FBI offices, however, do have their own e-mail addresses.

Contact Federal Elected Officials

President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and the White House - Contact the White House by submitting your comments or questions online or by phone or fax.
Members of the U.S. Congress
U.S. Senators - Get contact information for your senators in the U.S. Senate.
U.S. Representatives -  Find the website and contact information for your representative in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Contact State Elected Officials

State Governors - Learn how to get in touch with your state governor.
State Legislators - Find the names and current activities of your state legislators.
Contact Local Elected Officials

U.S. Mayors - Locate mayors by name, city, or population size.
County Executives - A county executive is the head of the executive branch of government in a county. The county executive may be an elected or an appointed position.
Other Local Government Officials - This directory can help you find contact information for your city, county, and town officials in your state. 
________________

FBI Director Comey, the Dworkin Report, Hiding Trump's Cozy Russian Relationships
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Democratic National Committee's dereliction of duty, will they ever learn
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Response to DNC's Donna Brazile, Dworkin Report
http://citizenschallenge.blogspot.com/2016/11/responding-to-dncs-donnabrazile.html
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Phone conversation with DNC's Donna Brazile - Dworkin Report
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Why Not Protest FBI Comey Election Interference 2016? Dworkin Report
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
FBI Director Comey please discuss Trump's foreign entanglements
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Col. Tom Moe, US Air Force, Vietnam POW has a few words of warning for Patriotic Americans


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCQhBYEMRQI
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Case in point.
Rex Tillerson, CEO EXXON-MOBIL
This is for real and it's for keeps.
We The American People it's our move.
Our politician require our active encouragement!

Behind the deep ties between Exxon's Rex Tillerson and Russia

by Matt Egan, Julia Horowitz and Chris Isidore   @CNNMoneyInvest
December 11, 2016

In 2013, Vladimir Putin awarded ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson the Order of Friendship, one of the highest honors Russia gives to foreign citizens.
The silver badge underscores the close ties that have existed for many years between Russia and Tillerson, the leading candidate to be President-elect Donald Trump's secretary of state.

In fact, his close relationship with Russia is one of the major reasons Tillerson was selected to succeed Lee Raymond as CEO of Exxon (XOM) in 2006, according to Steve Coll's book "Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power.”

Once he became CEO, Exxon bet billions on Russia's vast but notoriously-elusive oil resources through a bold partnership with Russian oil giant Rosneft. Putin himself attended the 2011 signing ceremony for the deal with Rosneft, which is majority owned by Moscow. …
________________________________________

Who is Rex Tillerson, the ExxonMobil chairman who may become secretary of state?

By Philip Bump | December 10, 2016

So far, President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet picks have mostly been either multimillionaire and billionaire executives or retired generals. In that context, it's probably less of a surprise that Trump may be close to selecting ExxonMobil chief executive Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, …

Tillerson has no experience in the public sector, a first in modern history for a potential secretary of state. Tillerson, 64, joined ExxonMobil in 1975, after receiving a civil engineering degree from the University of Texas.  …
________________________________________

Will Trump Really Pick Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State?
He has close ties to Russia and has downplayed the effects of climate change.

KANYAKRIT VONGKIATKAJORN  |  DEC. 10, 2016

President-elect Donald Trump has reportedly chosen Exxon Mobil president and CEO Rex Tillerson as his secretary of state, according to NBC News.

Tillerson, whose consideration for the role only became public in recent days, has long had a contentious relationship with climate change. His company, for which he has worked for his entire career, has been accused of covering up research and misleading the public about climate change since the 1970s, according to two groundbreaking investigations by InsideClimateNews and the Los Angeles Times. The investigation led several attorneys general to launch a fraud inquiry into the company. Tillerson recently acknowledged that climate change has "real" and "serious" risks but has previously downplayed its effects.

Tillerson also has close ties to Russia: In 2011, he struck a deal with Russia that would have given Exxon Mobil and OAO Rosneft, a Russian state-owned oil company, exclusive access to Arctic resources, according to the Wall Street Journal. In 2012, he was awarded an Order of Friendship decoration by the Russian government. The deal was later blocked by sanctions following Russia's invasion of Crimea. …
________________________________________

The Ambassador of Exxon

Rex Tillerson has fought for Exxon Mobil’s interests abroad, putting him at odds with America’s. Is that what we want in a secretary of state?
By Daniel Gross | DEC. 11 2016


… What’s more, Exxon Mobil’s foreign policies don’t necessarily align with those of the United States. Tillerson is tight with Vladimir Putin, in part because Russia is such a significant player in the global resources industry. I can’t imagine he really cares too much about Russia’s annexation of the Crimea. Nor can I see his State Department rallying opposition to a Russian effort to exert its influence in the Baltics. 

Russia has oil and natural gas; Lithuania and Estonia don’t. Typically, we expect our secretaries of state to give hope to proponents of democracy wherever they can be found and stand up forthrightly for American values and interests. 

Nothing in Tillerson’s career suggests he would be capable of—or interested in—doing so. …
________________________________________

Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson's close ties to Russia make him a risky pick for Secretary of State

Reuters | 12/12/2016

The central question facing Exxon Mobil Corp Chief Executive Rex Tillerson if he becomes U.S. secretary of state is whether a lifelong oil man with close ties to Russia can pivot from advancing corporate interests to serving the national interest.

Tillerson, 64, got his start as a production engineer at Exxon in 1975 and has worked there ever since, running business units in Yemen, Thailand and Russia before being named chief executive in 2006. He was expected to retire next year.

Senior senators, both Democrats and Republicans, have expressed concern over Tillerson, who emerged this weekend as Donald Trump's expected pick for secretary of state, according to a source familiar with the situation. By choosing him, the president-elect would add another - and presumably highly influential - person to his Cabinet and circle of advisers who may favor a soft line toward Moscow.

Among these is Trump's choice for national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who raised eyebrows when he sat beside Russian President Vladimir Putin at a Moscow banquet last year and who has argued that the United States and Russia should collaborate to end Syria's civil war and to defeat Islamic State militants. …
________________________________________

What I Learned At ExxonMobil's Annual Meeting

Christopher Helman  |  MAY 25, 2016

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Steve Coll: 
Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power
June 4, 2013


2 comments:

john said...

You have points but no one is going to take any notice.
By no one i mean those elected i feel.

citizenschallenge said...

Yup, while America slept.

Although if you want to step back and consider the sweep of humanity and what what "old rich white guys" have done to fellow humans and this planet (that made and sustains all we have and love) - guess it's only fitting that we end it with pyrrhic shit show.

As they say, hang on it's going to be rough ride.