So Much Going On

Watching the news it's a busy time with the election and all the stuff in the EU - the New Year's Day attacks against women in Cologne, Germany and the resulting uproar over that. Then there's the Shanghai Index and China's intervention in its markets and everything else.

Me? I'm hangin'. Just chillin' in my little corner of the world. Paying attention to the headlines and assimilating what they mean or might mean but not really, if I'm honest, affected. Selfish? Perhaps, but what can I do about any of it, really?

With what happened in Germany on New Year's Day when reports have it that hundreds if not as many as a thousand men formed groups that surrounded and attacked young women, some of those women claiming they were raped, I am very glad some here in the US are calling for a slow-down in immigration from the Middle East. I never used to think that being soft-hearted directly correlates to being soft-headed but given what unfolded in Germany, perhaps it does. Of course the government can only do so much, then it devolves on the individual to behave respectfully toward their host and that host's 'family'.

Unfortunately for those young women, they're women, a lower form of life according to the Koran and Islamic teaching. If boys are taught from the time they're knee-high to a cricket that they, being male, are the superior being, that women have less value than a goat, and that any woman not 'properly dressed' head to toe in a burqa and hijab is a whore, what can you expect? As for those men, if they are from the Middle East and North Africa - bastions of Islam society - how can you expect better? They have never learned better because they were never taught better. That's why the same kind of group grope has taken place again and again against female journalists.

Unfortunately, it's often not 'just' a grope, which is demeaning enough in itself, thank you. In many cases it's a rape or a gang rape. Remember Lara Logan, the 60 Minutes journalist who was gang raped while covering the protests in Tahrir Square? That happened in 2011 and the after-effects of that assault have landed her in the hospital as recently as last year.

There have been others, she's not alone, because as a woman she is fair game to these * ahem * men. Although I have a hard time calling someone a 'man' simply because he has a penis and knows how to use it. A man does not take by force what he can gain by guile and as part of a mob of other vermin who are beating a woman into submission a scum with a penis does not qualify or rise to the level of a 'man'. He is less than vermin. At least the vermin are clear in what they want whereas the goal of the scum is cloudy, at best.

I hardly think the EU or the US will hold classes for all these migrants, requiring them to learn about Western culture, gender equality, and all the niceties of How to Behave in Polite Society. Like don't presume to think that a Western woman who wears her hair down, loose and uncovered is a whore, or has less value than a goat. After all, I think it's assumed that when one visits another person's home, one will behave and mind their manners.

Most of the immigrants do seem to get it, but some don't and it's the some who taint the most, which is regrettable. Perhaps those who do should take control of those who don't, take them aside and teach them proper behavior. That would solve a lot of problems.

Closer to home, Obie-One is punishing the innocent because of the guilty. Impugning the honesty, integrity and ethics of the law abiding while doing absolutely nothing about the criminal element. Does anyone with a brain for an instant think that the punks and hoods and vermin who commit gun crimes are going to pay attention to these new rules Obie-One has laid down?

Oh, yeah, I can see it now. All the gang-bangers of the Bloods, the Crips and MS-13 get wind of these new rules, they look at each other in surprise. "What were we thinking?" They'll all lay down their guns, throw open the doors to the arsenal so the police can come in and collect the hoard of weapons, and start attending Sunday school. Right.

Well, life goes on, the world continues to spin, and nothing else will change. The gang-bangers will still gang-bang, gun crimes will still happen and the new rules will have zero effect on anyone but the law abiding. Fortunately, I don't have any intent to do anything significant with my guns. I'll take them out and clean them this weekend, and then put them away again.

The jobs report came out and they're still spewing happy crap. Yes, the economy is chugging along and, perhaps, the number of gainfully employed is growing, but I have a hard time believing it.

What's reported in the news is the BLS's (Bureau of Labor Statistics) U-3 rate. That's the report of the new jobs created, jobs filled, and active workers and is around 5%. However! The rate they don't report is the more telling of the two. The U-6 is the data for the under-employed, the discouraged, and those people only marginally tied to the workforce.

If you're into 'bureaucratese', here's the blurb that describes the differences between the U-1 to U-3 and U-4 to U-6 datasets:

Alternative Measures of Labor Underutilization for States, Fourth Quarter of 2014 through Third Quarter of 2015 Averages

Six alternative measures of labor underutilization have long been available on a monthly basis from the Current Population Survey (CPS) for the United States as a whole. They are published in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly Employment Situation news release. (See table 15.) The official concept of unemployment (as measured in the CPS by U-3 in the U-1 to U-6 range of alternatives) includes all jobless persons who are available to take a job and have actively sought work in the past four weeks. This concept has been thoroughly reviewed and validated since the inception of the CPS in 1940. The other measures are provided to data users and analysts who want more narrowly (U-1 and U-2) or broadly (U-4 through U-6) defined measures...

The six state measures are based on the same definitions as those published for the United States:

• U-1, persons unemployed 15 weeks or longer, as a percent of the civilian labor force;
• U-2, job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs, as a percent of the civilian labor force;
• U-3, total unemployed, as a percent of the civilian labor force (this is the definition used for the official unemployment rate);
• U-4, total unemployed plus discouraged workers, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus discouraged workers;
• U-5, total unemployed, plus discouraged workers, plus all other marginally attached workers, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers; and
• U-6, total unemployed, plus all marginally attached workers, plus total employed part time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers.

If you care, or are at all interested, here's the link to Table 15, referenced above:

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t15.htm

As you can see, the official unemployment rate is 5% while the total unemployment rate is 9.9%. So what's real?

Looking at the further definitions below the linked chart, the honest-if-the-government-would-be-honest unemployment rate is about 6.1% - which is not that bad. Of course, that's assuming these data crunchers haven't massaged or fondled or played with the numbers. Which they may have done to give us a happy crap picture. After all, isn't that what good statisticians do, play with numbers to draw the picture they want to draw?

At the end of the day, though, since I'm on the bright side of the fence between employed and unemployed, I'll go with the better number. I'm working and, so far as I can see, will be for a while, and that's good for me. I'll take it.

And, speaking of that, it's past time for me to be getting ready to go to my job. I'll leave it here and wish you a happy day, free of anything remotely unpleasant. Keep your fingers and toes crossed for me - I have bought my first ever Powerball tickets today and hope to retire to Bedlam on Sunday morning after I check them against the draw.

Best~
Philippa

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PhilippaStories

Now This Is Interesting

I don't begin to pretend that I'm smart or a brain trust or anything. I am just a single individual who grazes across the plain of news, turning this and that into something and then exploring it. Then I spew it onto the virtual page and express myself.

Most of these entries are simple and quiet, like the letters I used to write to my Mom. News of the day, little goings on and so forth.

Some are more 'explosive' in that they are based on something that lit a fire under me. Like yesterday's post, and some of the posts I've written about economics and politics.

Yesterday I commented on Putin having a pair, probably something like these, if you were to ask him:

I think The Donald's would match given how much chutzpah the two of them persistently exhibit.

Both say and do stupid things and keep on going without looking back. Neither will apologize or back down, which is why I think the two of them would probably not like one another but would, when push comes to shove, respect one another as worthy opponents.

On the other hand, Obie-One doesn't have a pair of those. Well, okay. He would probably say he does but I don't believe it given his reaction to anything that requires a response with resolve.

Like that red line he drew in Syria. The one where he said that if Assad used his chemical weapons on the Kurds we would do "something". In exchange, Assad did and we didn't. A blatant sign of weakness.

Or like his "negotiations" with Iran in which he gave away every last thing but the recipe and equipment for making a nuke. Another sign of blatant weakness (the result of leading from behind).

Or any of the other in-your-face events of the past eight years on which he has either turned his back or laid down. However, giving him the benefit of the doubt, if he does have any, they probably look something like:

See? Non-existent because he hasn't any that can be found without a scanning electronic microscope.

That's why Iran is firing missiles and promoting terrorists and we're doing nothing. It's why we did nothing whatsoever after Benghazi or Fort Hood or any of the other attacks perpetrated upon American citizens by foreign actors. Law enforcement stepped in and took care of the Boston Marathon bombers and took out the San Bernardino shooters, but Obie One stood there, sucking his thumb and fondling the void between his legs while the cops did their job. Which is why I say he has none.

With all of what I've written in the past couple of weeks, about Donald and Putin and Obie-One and so on, I went and looked at my blog stats yesterday because there has been a spike in page views. That was interesting, so I looked to see where they're coming from.

Huh. As of yesterday afternoon Russia showed up with ninety-one views in the past week, and China showed up with twenty-two views. Germany, thirty-two and a scattering of views from other places.

Is this because I'm such a fascinating individual, so well read, well informed and erudite that nations are waiting breathless for my next expulsion? I hardly think so. But it is interesting to know that I am hitting something someplace. Whether it's a Vlad Filter or something else, this is being at least looked at.

Come on, Vlad! Step in and take over the Middle East. We won't stop you. We haven't the spine to try. Think of all that oil just waiting for you there. You think the Crimea has gas and oil? That's nothing! That's child's play compared to Saudi Arabia and Iraq and Iran and Kuwait and the rest of it.

Europe will scream bloody murder, but they're in no position to do anything about it. They're all tied up in their own cluster-fuck designed by their own inept approach to immigration and assimilation.

All those Muslims in Europe? Most are no doubt law-abiding and wanting to be there but we all know that some, probably a goodly proportion, are Jihadists waiting for a light. Remember Paris back in November? Those Muslim migrants are still invoking Shari'a law and perpetrating 'honor killings' and mutilating their women, and the Europeans are doing squat about it. So they won't look up from what they're doing to do more than protest if you send a real, honest-to-God force into Syria.

Besides, if you and your army does wipe out the Middle East, we'll at least be dealing with the devil we know v. the devil we don't. We'll be dealing with someone with whom we can (probably) negotiate rationally because it won't involve religious fanaticism.

You might not like us, and I frankly don't blame you given the weak sissies we have running this whorehouse, but I'd rather see you deal with those nut jobs head-on rather than continue watching the 'Aw, shucks, guys. Knock it off, wouldja?' approach of this administration and its minions.

Hell, enough strong words and a few shakes of your fist and most of the UN will cave because they're as weak as water, too.

So how about it? You up to that challenge? And, while you're at it, you can wipe the floor with ISIS or ISIL or whatever IS** those vermin are going by this week. Clean 'em up, clear 'em out, wipe 'em from the face of the Earth because we'd appreciate that. We're not up to it. We're sitting here doing the ol' Jackie Gleason 'huminah, huminah, huminah' and fumbling. You know, Obie-One and Hilliary and Herman might be so grateful they'll give you the keys to this kingdom.

You game? I'll be watching.

Philippa

Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PhilippaStories