Notations From the Grid (W-End Edition): On Venezuela; Turkey; @realDonaldTrump & Other Thoughts

It has been quite a few days around our World.    There was some good news as Venezuelan Opposition Leader Leonardo Lopez was released from Prison to House Arrest and joyfully reunited with his children:





There was the March for Justice led by the key opposition leader in Turkey.   Some compared it to the Gandhi March to the Sea to Make Salt:

  

What the Turkish President does will be interesting in this regard. 

Our team was also continuing its' on-going assessment of the latest dispute between Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt as the dispute seems to continue for at least a while yet.  The Secretary of State is slated to visit the region Monday.   Saudi Arabia, a member of the G20, is slated to host the next G20 Summit as the  G20 in Hamburg  is now in the history books.  The United States, though, was isolated--although Trump Administration Officials were putting a positive spin on it from the President Onward.     One of the most devastating assessment was made by Australia Broadcasting:

What did we learn about @realDonaldTrump at this #G20? @CUhlmann explains. #Insiders pic.twitter.com/TGOXdiFWhB

— Insiders ABC (@InsidersABC) July 8, 2017

This is as there were reports of hacking of US Energy Infrastructure by Russians and as reports of another Russian meeting set up by Donald Trump Jr. emerged in the aftermath of the Meetings--and the Trump team blamed Democrats.  This is as the "stories of action and ideas" courtesy of the Guardian of London took center stage: 

The resistance now: it's recess week, but Republicans are hiding from constituents

Elected officials traditionally engage with constituents during their seven days off, but unhappiness with the healthcare bill has the GOP avoiding voters

Americans have not been happy with the Republican healthcare plan. Photograph: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Adam Gabbatt  @adamgabbatt

Hide and seek... It’s Republicans’ least favourite time of the year: recess week. GOP senators have marked their seven days off – traditionally a time for elected officials to engage with constituents – by almost universally hiding from their constituents. It’s because of that Senate healthcare bill, you see. Not many people like it. As of Wednesday only four Republicans had either held or planned to hold public town hall events. And two of those events – step forward Texas’s Ted Cruz and Pennsylvania’s Pat Toomey – were hardly public.

People protest as Pat Toomey holds an invite-only town hall. Photograph: Marc Levy/AP

Toomey appeared in a Harrisburg television studio with an audience that had been invited by ABC 27. The number of audience members? Eight. Cruz held an event in his safe space of a Koch brothers-backed Q&A. Still, protesters outside Toomey’s gig – and hecklers inside Cruz’s – served to let the pair know what they thought of the Better Care Reconciliation Act. ...but you can’t hide forever Meanwhile, more than 1,000 activists staged sit-ins at senators’ offices in 21 different states on Thursday – demanding that they vote no on the Senate bill. The demonstrations were organized by Our Revolution, Democracy Spring, Ultraviolet and more, and targeted senators including Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell – the brains behind the healthcare bill – as well as Rob Portman in Ohio, and Bill Cassidy in Louisiana. Just as a reminder: that Senate bill would see 22m additional people lose healthcare, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Healthcare activists in New York City. Photograph: Erik McGregor/Pacific/Barcroft

WTF? Two Silicon Valley billionaires – specifically Mark Pincus of Zynga and Reid Hoffman of LinkedIn – launched a new online platform called Win the Future(hence WTF) this week. It’s intended to form as a platform for crowdsourcing ideas to move the Democratic party in a different direction. So far, so good. Except the direction they appear to want to move the Democratic party – hardly a bastion of liberalism as is – further to the right. Pincus told Recode the party was “already moving too far to the left” and that he would like to make it more “pro-business”. According to the Huffington Post, the tech moguls have “sunk $500,000” into Win the Future. The idea is not picking up much traction with progressives.

To the right, to the right: Mark Pincus of Zynga. Photograph: Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty Images

No dogs allowed A group of animal rights activists “were taken into police custody” at the infamous Nathan’s Fourth of July hot dog eating contest this week, according to the Washington Post. Five people had attempted to unveil an anti-meat banner. They were released without charge. Joey Chestnut won the contest by eating 72 hot dogs and buns. It was his 10th victory.

Hot dog-eating champ Joey Chestnut is on the right. Photograph: ACE Pictures/REX/Shutterstock

What we’re reading “Rural progressives” is not an oxymoron, writes Anthony Flaccovento at Blue Virginia. Flaccovento ran for congress in 2012, and says his message that “attacked inequality and trickle-down economics” appealed to people in the rural areas of his state. So why isn’t the left doing better in the red parts of states like Virginia? Because “the Democratic party and the progressive movement both have, for the most part, written off rural America”.

View of the Week (Special Friday Edition): ON the #G20

We received the following courtesy of the team at Mauldin Economics which we are pleased to feature for this special Friday edition of View of the Week as the meetings in Hamburg begin of the 20 Largest Economies in the World:

Hostages to History at the G-20 Summit

By George Friedman

July 5, 2017

Leaders overstate how much their relationships define national agendas.

Anyone who has ever been to a meeting knows that meetings are often confounding, frustrating affairs. Most of them are designed simply to be held. The people who attend them are unlikely to agree on anything except maybe the date the next one will convene, and the possibility that they accomplish something gets smaller as the meeting itself gets larger. The G-20 summit, which will be held July 7, is no exception. But that’s only because the people who attend it, the leaders of the countries with the world’s 20 largest economies, think of themselves as decision-makers when really they are hostages to history.

In fact, the dynamics involved at a meeting such as the G-20 are indifferent to the people who attend it. Personalities are interesting but ultimately indecisive in power politics. World leaders may not like Donald Trump – in fact, many do not – but since they cannot avoid dealing with the United States, still the world’s only superpower, they cannot avoid dealing with its president.

The United States is inextricably linked to three major issues that will be addressed but probably not resolved at the G-20 summit. The first is the progression of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, an issue the United States and China simply cannot ignore or fully resolve without at least talking to each other. On July 4, Pyongyang tested a missile it claims was an intercontinental ballistic missile. The North Koreans may be exaggerating, of course. The missile still needs guidance systems and a configured payload, but as U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis said, the United States can’t wait for North Korea to have a functional ICBM.

Here again, personalities matter less than imperatives. The Trump administration had planned for an economic confrontation with China, at least if statements from the campaign were to be believed. The reckoning has been postponed now that Washington needs Beijing to persuade North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program. So far the talks have been futile, and it’s unclear if China even wants them to succeed. If the United States attacks North Korea, China could get what it wants – North Korea without a nuclear weapon – without lifting a finger, superbly positioned thereafter to play the role of peacekeeper against the belligerent United States. In the meantime, Chinese President Xi Jinping will promise to try harder to disarm North Korea because it strengthens his case if the U.S. attacks while he is “negotiating.” Washington probably sees the trap China is trying to set but can’t really get around it; it will simply remember this later, after the North Korea issue has been resolved one way or the other, when it turns its attention back to Beijing. After all, the U.S. can damage the Chinese economy far more than China can harm the American.

The second issue is Russian interference in the domestic affairs of other countries – a hot-button issue that elides some obvious facts: Nations interfere with other nations all the time, and the Russians have a long history of agitation and propaganda. Moscow has, in no uncertain terms, interfered in the domestic affairs of other countries, particularly former Soviet states that lay west of Russia. The government claims, albeit quietly, they are justifiable responses to meddling in the “color revolutions” of Eastern Europe in the 2000s, funded as they were by U.S. nongovernmental organizations. Whatever may or may not have happened in the 2016 U.S. presidential election is beside the point. The bigger issue for Russia is that its oil is cheap, and that cheap oil will continue to hurt the Russian economy. Nothing from the meeting will change that.

The third issue is U.S.-German relations. The party of Chancellor Angela Merkel no longer uses the word “friend” to describe the United States in its platform. But in fact, Merkel has blamed Trump for a rupture he has little to do with. At issue are the national interests of both countries. Germany needs for the European Union to be economically healthy enough to buy the exports on which its economy depends, but the United States, which has little leverage or stake in the European Union, sees its disintegration as a European problem. And so Washington has been working with countries like the United Kingdom and Eastern Europe states on a bilateral basis to contain Russia rather than going through Brussels. Germany, moreover, wants to be in NATO and the EU, but both organizations have a hard time instituting policies that benefit all its members because none of its members have identical national interests. And then there is Russia. The last thing Germany wants to do, in light of its other problems, is confront Russia, but blocking Russia is central to U.S policy, and it needs Europe united in that regard. The divergence between the United States and Germany has been growing since 2008, and there is little Trump could have done to change things.

World leaders take their relationships with other world leaders very seriously. To them, their relationships with their peers define their national interest. Though this line of thinking is misguided, it has its advantages, given Trump’s apparent unpopularity. Xi will blame Trump for disrupting a nearly successful peace process in North Korea. Putin, in an effort to dispel rumors of collusion, will blame Trump for conspiracies against Russia. Merkel will blame him for disrupting U.S.-German relations. Trump’s personality, however, will no more define what happens at the G-20 summit than his healthcare views will define what emerges from Congress

Notations On Our World (Special Mid-Week Edition): On Press Freedom and a Salute to Al Jazeera

Our team just concluded listening to live broadcast from Cairo on the aftermath of the meetings regarding the Qatar Blockade.    As we feature Sky News of the UK in our "Broadcast Pod", we wanted to headline Al Jazeera with a tribute to an organization that over the last 20 years has done more to transform the landscape of knowledge around the Middle East:

Thought For the Week (Special #July4 Edition)

It is July 4 where we in America celebrate America's Independence, families get together and then go out and enjoy the fireworks that would light up the skies throughout America. As we continue our strategic review, we hope all enjoy these compilation of thoughts:

The end does NOT justify the means.
Freedom cannot be gained by sacrificing the freedom of others.
Free speech cannot be gained by limiting the free speech of others.
Human rights cannot be secured by trampling the human rights of others.
Viciousness in others cannot be fought by becoming vicious oneself.
Neither individual nor nation can long survive by meeting hatred with hatred,
injustice with injustice, prejudice with prejudice.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Give to every human being every right that you claim for yourself.
- Robert Green Ingersoll

Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
- Emma Lazarus - written on the Statue of Liberty in New York harbor

They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety,
deserve neither liberty nor safety.
- Benjamin Franklin

We hold these truths to be self-evident:
that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights,
among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
- Thomas Jefferson [Declaration of Independence, and inscribed in the Jefferson Memorial]

The best way to enhance freedom in other lands
is to demonstrate here that our democratic system is worthy of emulation.
- Jimmy Carter

The only thing necessary for evil to triumph
is for enough good men to do nothing.
- Edmund Burke

On the Eve of #4thofJuly: A Powerful Tribute to Immigrants....

As 4th of July is at hand here in the United States, we wanted to share this as we wish all a great and joyous 4th of July: 

As We Gear Up For Our 3rd Quarter of Service.....

   

  

It is the eve of Canada Day on July 1 and Independence Day here in the United States.   We will be going dark for the next two weeks to gear up for the new Quarter.   Our Twitter Channel will be updated daily with our Nuzzel and Paper_Li Updates which is a compilation of updates as we look forward to being of service.   

Happy Canada Day to all Canadians.    We also wanted to take this opportunity to wish all a fabulous Independence Day Week-End and a fabulous July as we leave you all with this Thoughts: 

When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. - Lao Tzu Follow what you are genuinely passionate about and let that guide you to your destination. - Diane Sawyer Fear is the cheapest room in the house. I would like to see you living In better conditions. - Hafiz

Notations From the Grid (Special Mid-Week Edition): On the Effects of Climate Change

It is the eve of the July 4 Holiday Weekend here in the United States.    We wanted  to feature our team curated late last night California time on the effects of Climate Change that underscores the gravity of what we are facing with.   There are profound voices around the World that understand that including the current Governor of California, Jerry Brown and the Former Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger along with President Macron of France who has reminded us all that as far Earth is concerned--there is no Planet B--this is as the US Secretary of Energy touted how they are again going after fossil fuel exploration white touting what he viewed as a "balance"--while bashing the Paris Agreement:  

10 incredible effects of climate change https://t.co/MLE5Nm2oyX @中国日报 pic.twitter.com/ZnVtGPatIU

— DailyOutsider (@ordinaryfaces) June 28, 2017

View of the Week (Mid-Week Edition): On the Virutal Prowl In Our World....

Please enjoy courtesy of Global Citizen: 

 

Global Citizen Stories

12 Photos of News You Might Have Missed Last Week

These stories didn’t dominate the headlines, but every Global Citizen should know about them. From deadly wildfires to vigils in England, here’s what happened in last week in pictures.

Read

 

James Corden Sent Trump 297 Copies of This Movie

The late night host is sending the movies to Trump’s Florida estate for a very important reason – and he’s asking viewers to send Trump their copies of the 1993 film, too.

Read

 

Why People Are Freaking Out Over This Photo

When Nicholas Cardello and Kurt English posted photos of them at gay pride celebrations in 1993 and 2017, the internet simply couldn’t handle it. Here’s how people reacted.

Read

 

Canada Is Finally Renaming National Aboriginal Day

This week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the Canadian government intends to rename the day honoring indigenous people with this more appropriate title.

Read

 

Starbucks Is Keeping Its Promise to Refugees

Despite ongoing threats of a boycott, Starbucks isn’t backing down on its commitment to refugees around the world. Here’s the latest on what they’re doing now.

 

Read

 

ICE Is Now Targeting Human Trafficking Victims

As immigration officials tried to detain a human trafficking victim in court, in a sanctuary city, one NYC official responded by saying ICE has sunk to “new lows of moral depravity.”

Read

View of the Week (Special Mid-Week Edition): Kansas, Sam Brownback, and the Trickle-Down Implosion

Kansas, Sam Brownback, and the Trickle-Down Implosion: The Kansas governor’s attempt to create supply-side nirvana in Middle America not only failed to grow the economy—it created a crippling crisis of government that led to a statewide rejection of his politics.

Notations From the Grid: On Who owns London?

As the diplomatic tug of war continues between Qatar, Saudi Arabia and its' satellites, this very interesting graphics underscores the mighty reach that Qatar has had in London:



Who owns London?: Property Week teamed up with Datscha to reveal which companies own the biggest chunks of land in the capital - and the results may raise a few eyebrows.

Notations On Our World (Special Tuesday Edition): On the #Obamacare Repeal

The Congressional Budget Office released its' recommendation yesterday.  We have released the entire news release for all as the push continues to get a vote in the US Senate before the July 4 recess:

H.R. 1628, Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 CBO and JCT estimate that enacting the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 would reduce federal deficits by $321 billion over the coming decade and increase the number of people who are uninsured by 22 million in 2026 relative to current law.  It must be noted that this is yet to be settled as opposition in the US Senate continues from Republicans--with no Democrats on Board to Support it.