Another day, another picture of Olga. This is around the corner from our flat, next to the Roche Bobois furniture shop (the window with the funky vases at upper left) and across the street from the tennis club. We had just a hint of sunrise on the horizon, below the clouds, but most of the greenish light is coming from a streetlamp.
I promise I am not going to complain a lot about Donald Trump today. But I've been struck by the irony of his recent moves to destabilize the Agency for International Development (USAID). Trump makes so much noise about illegal immigration, and he's allegedly taking forceful steps to stop it, yet he is targeting an agency that could play a critical role. If we want to stop or slow immigration, we need to give people reasons to stay home, and that means developing the economies of their home countries. Which is exactly what USAID does. It's a tiny fraction of the federal budget (and ought to be a lot more) and it makes a real difference in providing jobs and developing industries for people overseas.
As a former Peace Corps volunteer, I am curious to see what Trump will do with that agency. I can't imagine it will prosper under his inwardly-turned worldview. (The Peace Corps is separate from USAID.) The Peace Corps is less expensive, so it's probably lower on his hit list.
Trump has done at least one thing that I think was a good idea, and that is ordering the declassification of all the information about the JFK, RFK and MLK assassinations. There's apparently not much classified material left, and it still may not all be made public, but I think it's past time to be as open about those events as possible. Anyone involved is almost certainly dead by now, or at least very elderly, and perhaps doing so will quell the endless conspiracies that continue to circle about JFK in particular. It's probably just political showmanship, as the Kennedy family has said, but I'm all in favor of anything that could help foster the open flow of information.
USAID is 1% of the budget, a lot of money relatively speaking, but a lot of bang for the buck. China will be happy to fill the gap. Love the greenish light.
ReplyDeleteIt's true -- the big winners here are the Russians and the Chinese.
DeleteI read about the USAID somewhere, maybe my local newspaper and other things he is doing, and since it is all happening quite fast I can't help wondering just who in the background is pulling all the strings? surely he isn't thinking of all this on his own and barely two weeks in?
ReplyDeleteIt's all part of the Project 2025 squad, the conservative think tanks and the billionaires and the evangelicals who have been mapping this out (and fantasizing about it) for years.
DeleteIt is just awful..mine host here watches fox all the time and it is excruciating hearing all the falsehoods being peddled and pushed...
ReplyDeleteMind you it was ironic having the Village People at his inauguration...
I KNOW! It is so surprising that Trump and his minions are fans of the Village People, considering their roots in the gay '70s.
DeletePerhaps they just don't "get it"....so one up to the Village People and one in the eye for the politics?!
DeleteIt's not a "Green Sunrise" for America under that nasty old bigot, it's a dark grey one or maybe a bloody one. Take your pick.
ReplyDeleteThe exact nature of the horrors remains to be seen.
DeleteI don't disagree with the logic of what you said. But some things about USAID do bother me and were in need of having some action. (Note, that doesn't imply that shutting it down completely was the right action.) According to non-governmental watchdog agencies, about 40% of USAID's budget goes directly into the pockets of U.S. corporations. Basically, USAID hires out all work to private contractors, the bulk of those of US origin and comes right back to those company's bottom lines. USAID also has a very storied history as being used as a political weapon through the years. Bush II especially did this a number of times.
ReplyDeleteI believe there is a need for aid for the reasons you mentioned. But like just about all examples of government run agencies, it is rife with fraud and abuse. Saying that however, I'm not anymore optimistic that had we given the same money to other non-governmental organizations, it would have been run any more efficiently.
Thus my view for such things is that we need to stop creating organizations dedicated to such funding. Permanence leads to inefficiency and fraud. Instead, we need to infuse the money quickly and locally at the source of need. Assign a responsible group or person to doll out that money given once and then when it is spent, move on. Eliminate the guarantee of continual funding through any one company or group.
My example would be much like how we have done with FEMA in the past for natural US disasters. Set up a person and a fund and doll the money out until it is gone and then re-evaluate. Abuse will still happen for sure, but I have to believe it would be less than it is right now with 40% of every dollar going into the pocket of U.S. corporations.
But even if 40 percent of the funds go to US companies, that doesn't automatically make it "fraud and abuse." I assume a lot of government contractors do work or make products on behalf of USAID, for the ultimate benefit of people overseas. What percentage of the defense budget goes to US companies?
DeleteAnd I don't assume that money goes into the profit coffers. The people who do the work of getting that aid distributed or make the products used by USAID need to be paid.
DeleteI don't know the answer Steve but would assume you are correct in your statement that the 40% isn't all fraudulent other than in the sense that it is staying in America when the bulk of the public believes it is all spent overseas. But the number of well credentialed critics that point out the inefficiencies of USAID do make me wonder if there isn't a better way. There might not be a better way as we might soon find out with USAID shuttered. My hope in all this is that we go back to earmarking money towards specific causes instead of the current system of just giving USAID a budget and letting them decide which cause is worthy. It will bring a bit more transparency back to our government which I think is always in the best interest of its citizens.
DeleteI like the hint of sunrise, and Olga enjoying a sniff, reading the peemails.
ReplyDeleteI can't engage in politics today . . .
"Peemails" -- LOL!
DeleteI find him all fake showmanship and lunacy, and that's not presidential. I also find him incredibly stupid which is dangerous when you have Leon Skum around.
ReplyDeleteWell, you're not wrong on your second point. Between Musk and Putin there are a lot of scary manipulators out there.
DeleteMeanwhile Venezuela has agreed to take "American illegals" and house them in jails there. Marco Rubio has threatened Panama over the Canal, and Musk is taking over the social security system and moving all the sensitive information onto private servers.
ReplyDeleteI think it's El Salvador, but yeah, just as scary and probably illegal.
DeleteIt is El Salvador ... just heard that this morning.
DeleteI remain terrified.
ReplyDeleteAs do I! I don't mean my faint praise for one action to diminish my overall feelings of dread.
DeleteI echo what Bob said in his comment. An incredibly stupid and narcissistic man.
ReplyDeleteHe is all about himself!
DeleteNews overnight: municipal funding will now be tied to marriage and birth rates. Higher rates, more funding. Lower rates, little or no funding. Today, I just feel numb, disassociated. Self-preservation, I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteWHAT?! I hadn't heard that. Good Lord.
DeleteI hadn't hear it either.
Deletehttps://www.newsweek.com/us-government-department-tie-funding-marriage-birth-rates-2025015
I wonder how many things are happening that we never hear about.
I remain horrified...
ReplyDeleteNice to see Olga!
DeleteI'm glad Olga is around to cheer us all up! LOL
DeleteI think he is just looking for dirt on JFK, RFK, and MLK so he can tarnish their images.
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't do anything for the public good.
Yeah, could be. I actually think he's probably looking for dirt on the government (CIA, FBI) in order to further disparage those agencies.
DeleteNothing will quell the conspiracy theories surrounding JFK. I'm more alarmed that an unelected billionaire is running rampant and doing this, just walking in and forcing employees out, locking buildings, taking control of the government computer systems with all kinds of information he does not have the authority or security clearances to have. This is a coup in progress and it's not by Trump.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with you. I'm astonished that Congress is allowing it. Even the Republicans should be alarmed by Musk having this much power.
DeleteCan't they all be charged with treason because of the horrible things they are doing? Musk is the one dealing with USAID! I didn't vote for that bastard!
ReplyDeleteExactly! Why is he running things?!
DeleteIt's just day after day of frightening news. Which I think is the purpose. Pound out outrageous things over and over so we don't have time to sort through it all. You know, create a big distraction over here and sneak in something truly scary over there. It's truly worrisome.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I wonder how much of that is happening. We're all paying attention to a few things but God knows what else is happening out of the spotlight.
DeleteMany of the wonderful things Trump thinks up have huge downsides . Trump looks at the dollar and nothing else.
ReplyDeleteThe "wonderful" things...LOL
DeleteI have fantasies of the entire administration being arrested for treason, Drumpf and Skum cuffed and led away. Complete fantasy, yes. Frightening times.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is, it wouldn't stop them. Trump's already been impeached and it just added fuel to the ardor of his supporters. Any arrest for treason would merely be seen as "lawfare." I don't know what we do if we have no respect for the rule of law.
DeleteYou’re so right. My real fantasy can’t be printed here.
DeleteI hope the people who voted for him are happy.
ReplyDeleteI think it's inevitable that they won't be, but whether they blame him is another matter.
DeleteI am distraught and terrified; there really isn't much more to say. He is a disgusting narcissistic idiot but those who are actually the power behind him are organized and are implementing their plan. More effectively than I had hoped.
ReplyDeleteIt is alarming. You are right to be afraid, as am I.
DeleteIt's so scary that I'm having trouble comprehending it.
ReplyDeleteI just feel like everything I learned in civics is out the window. I don't recognize the country and our ideals anymore.
DeleteMuy buenas las luces del amanecer. Debe de ser bastante temparano ya que solamente se ve un perro por la calle.
ReplyDeleteVeo que el tema de ahora es Donald Trump y la polÃtica que está llevando a cabo. Cada dÃa que pasa aumenta más sus detractores.
I ran your comment through Google translate (since I don't speak Spanish) and this is what I got: "Very good dawn lights. It must be quite early since you only see one dog on the street. I see that the topic now is Donald Trump and the politics he is carrying out. With each passing day his detractors increase more."
DeleteYes, it was very early -- about 6:30 a.m. Trump has a lot of detractors but his core supporters seem only more fired-up!
I don't get the USAID thing either? It seems like a bad one to pick on but Elon probably told him to. I'm glad about the JFK declassification too.
ReplyDeleteThese people hate international development. It's a very short-sighted attitude to take.
DeleteSo what is the criteria for when something can be declassified? All three of those events were more than 50 years ago, so it seems reasonable to me. Maybe it will finally put an end to the conspiracy theories.
ReplyDeleteThat's my hope, though no amount of information seems to dissuade a true conspiracy theorist!
DeleteOlga Girl Is The Best
ReplyDeleteOxoxoxO
She keeps me sane, even though she's a bit crazy. LOL
DeleteThat's a weird shade of light coming from the streetlamp, which I assume is not green. Cutting foreign aid plays nicely to the ears of the 'look after our own people first', folk, except then they aren't.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised to read that there is still classified JFK information.
Some light registers a certain color in photography even if it doesn't quite look that way to the naked eye. Fluorescent light often looks green, for example, even though it doesn't look that way in real life.
DeleteThe nightmare outlined in Project 2025 is underway.
ReplyDeleteUgh. It's true.
DeleteI couldn't believe that he was talking about America taking over Gaza, and suggesting the Palestinians leave, suggesting that nice homes in Egypt and Jordan would make them happy. So ironic that he's trying to coerce countries into taking refugees and immigrants, while physically deporting them from his own country.
ReplyDeleteSee my subsequent post!
Delete