DECEMBER 25 AND 26, 2018

NEWS AND VIEWS

THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER IS USING A DEROGATORY WORD HERE. THEY COULD HAVE SAID THAT MSNBC IS “CELEBRATING.” THAT STATEMENT SOUNDS LIKE JEALOUSY TO ME. I ALWAYS LOOK AT MSNBC NOT JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE LIBERAL, BUT BECAUSE THEY KEEP ON THEIR TOES ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE NEWS WORLD AND GIVE IN DEPTH REPORTS. THEY DESERVE CREDIT, NOT HOSTILITY. CONGRATULATIONS, TEAM!!

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/msnbc-brags-we-dominated-fox-news-cnn-in-key-ratings-category-for-first-time-in-17-years
MSNBC brags: We 'dominated' Fox News, CNN in key ratings category for first time in 17 years
by Daniel Chaitin
December 26, 2018 07:56 PM

MSNBC wants the world to know it beat Fox News in a critical area of the ratings game for the first time in 17 years.

In a press release from the network on Wednesday, MSNBC bragged about how it "dominated" during the sales day — 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. Monday through Friday — during the week of Dec. 17 through 21.

MSNBC averaged 1,558,000 total viewers according to Nielsen data while Fox News averaged 1,541,000. CNN averaged only 975,000 viewers.

MSNBC declared this was the first time grabbing the No. 1 position in these ratings since Sept. 25, 2000, near the end of President Bill Clinton's second term in the White House.

MSNBC's strong numbers came during a week in which Defense Secretary Jim Mattis resigned — reportedly in protest of President Trump's military pullout from Syria — and the run-up to a partial government shutdown which stemmed from a fight over border wall funding.

Fox News is a consistent ratings winner in the cable news world. Case in point: In October the network averaged more viewers than MSNBC and CNN combined.

MSNBC also noted in its press release that it led last week in the key ad demographic of viewers between 25 and 54 years old. MSNBC attracted 269,000 viewers in this group, compared to CNN's 268,000 and Fox News' 259,000.

"This was MSNBC’s largest viewer delivery in the daypart since the week of July 2, 2001," MSNBC said. "This was the 1st time MSNBC beat FOX News and the 1st time FOX News ranked #3 among the cable news networks in this daypart since October 8, 2001."

Among specific shows MSNBC touted was "The Rachel Maddow Show" which airs weeknights at 9 p.m. EST. That show finished the week as the No. 1 program across all cable news, beating out the competition with 3,213,000 viewers on average. Fox News, which typically airs "Hannity" at that hour, averaged 2,313,000 viewers, and CNN, which airs "Cuomo Prime Time," averaged 1,456,000.


I MUST BE A LIBERAL, BECAUSE BLATANT CRUELTY TURNS ME OFF COLD. UNNECESSARY HUNTING, COCK FIGHTING, DOG FIGHTING, BULL FIGHTING, BRUTAL HUMAN SPORTS SUCH AS HOCKEY, BOXING AND SOMETIMES FOOTBALL, ARE ALL DESTRUCTIVE OF OUR SOULS. IF THERE IS HUNGER, OR IF SOCIETY HAS BROKEN DOWN TOTALLY AND A FAMILY NEEDS A DEER SKIN TO WEAR, THEN KILL THEM, BUT DO IT IN ONE CLEAN SHOT IF POSSIBLE. FARM ANIMALS HAVE TO BE SLAUGHTERED, UNLESS THE EATING OF FLESH IS BANNED. WHEN THAT HAPPENS, THOUGH, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE THE BREAKING OF LAWS ON THAT ISSUE.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-42988354
Fox hunting: Review of how Cheshire Police upholds law ordered
By Phil McCann
Cheshire Political Reporter, BBC News
9 February 2018

JIMFENG
Image caption -- Police are investigating two alleged killing of foxes by hunts in Cheshire

A review has been ordered into the way Cheshire Police upholds hunting laws, amidst reports of foxes being illegally killed in the county.

Announcing the review, Cheshire's police commissioner David Keane said he had received a "huge increase" in correspondence about the issue.

In January, Chester MP Chris Matheson said since Christmas, "at least four foxes" were "killed by trail hunts".

Cheshire Police said it took all "rural and wildlife crime seriously".

A spokeswoman said the force understood that "strong views held by different groups mean there are frustrations with a perceived lack of police action".

She added that officers were currently investigating two incidents where it had been claimed foxes were killed by hunts - one relating to an organised hunt at Allostock, near Knutsford, on 26 December and the other to an incident in Beeston on 4 February.

Police are also investigating a number of allegations of assault, harassment and public order offences related to hunts.

Fox hunting: What is the law?
Image copyrightAFP/GETTY IMAGES

In 2004, it was made a criminal offence in England and Wales to hunt down and kill a wild mammal with dogs
In order to prosecute, a person must be shown to be intentionally hunting the animal
Pursuit of live animals has been replaced by trail hunting, which sees hounds and riders follow a pre-laid scent along an agreed route

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Matheson said that "in the four weeks since Boxing Day, at least four foxes in Cheshire have been illegally killed by trail hunts".

Agriculture minister George Eustice said fox hunting was "a matter for the police and the prosecuting authorities".

"Anybody who believes the law has been broken should report it to the police," he added.

Peter Jones, secretary of the Cheshire Hunt, said fox kills were "very rare" and that the hunts "didn't go out with the intention of killing foxes".

He added that the kills had "just happened, it was just an accident".

Weaver Vale MP Mike Amesbury, who asked Mr Keane to commission the review, told the BBC foxes were being "slaughtered".

"I want to ensure that the law is being applied and these crimes are being properly investigated", he added.

Mr Keane said some of the concerns he had received related to the way police investigations were carried out.

He said the review would begin in the next weeks.


I DIDN'T SEE IN THIS ARTICLE THE NATURE OF ANY "VIOLENCE" EXCEPT FOR SOME SHOUTING AND SCARING OF THE HORSES. HOWEVER, I AM SORRY TO SEE THAT THIS SUBJECT WOULD START FIGHTS. WHY DO PEOPLE CARE THAT MUCH ABOUT NOT BEING ABLE TO HUNT?

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-46687316
Newport Boxing Day hunt marred by violent clashes
DECEMBER 26, 2018 6 hours ago

CHRIS TINSLEY/WALES NEWS SERVICE
Image caption -- Some horses were startled by the jeering and cheering

Violence broke out at a traditional Boxing Day hunt between hunt supporters and protesters.

The annual Tredegar Farmers' Boxing Day Hunt was marred by clashes in Bassaleg, Newport, between some of the 200 or more people watching the start.

Onlookers, including a young boy, were almost trampled by horses that were startled by the noise outside the Tredegar Arms pub.

Gwent Police had to separate the sides but confirmed no arrests were made.

Image copyrightCHRIS TINSLEY/WALES NEWS SERVICE
Image caption
Rider struggles to control her startled horse

Image copyrightCHRIS TINSLEY/WALES NEWS SERVICE
Image caption
The hunt was following scent trails laid in advance

Riders in hunting pink and packs of hounds set out under cloudy skies to maintain a tradition going back hundreds of years.

The hunt was following scent trails laid in advance to comply with the 2004 Hunting Act forbidding the hunting of foxes with hounds.

Queen legend Brian May backs 'humane hunt'
Labour pledges tougher anti-hunting laws

However video footage has emerged of blows being struck between those clearing a path for the animals and anti-hunt demonstrators.

The horses appeared scared as they made their way between the crowds. One backed into the crowd as the rider struggled to keep control while another was seen to barge into a man and boy.

Image copyrightCHRIS TINSLEY/WALES NEWS SERVICE
Image caption
More than 200 people turn up to both support and protest against the hunt

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-46682660
Boxing Day hunts: Labour pledges tougher laws
26 December 2018

Labour is promising to toughen up the ban on hunting with dogs in England and Wales, saying it will consult on jailing those caught breaking the law.

Ahead of the Boxing Day hunts, shadow environment secretary Sue Hayman said jail terms would put penalties on a par with those for other wildlife crimes.

An unlimited fine is currently the most severe punishment available.

The pro-hunting Countryside Alliance says Labour's "obsessive pursuit of hunting... looks increasingly bizarre".

Some 250 packs are expected to meet for traditional Boxing Day hunts, with up to 250,000 people taking part or watching.

Did fox hunting disappear?
Alpacas 'viciously attacked' by hunt dogs
Call for fox hunt law change after ruling

Since fox hunting was outlawed in 2004, pursuit of live animals has been replaced by trail hunting, which sees hounds and riders follow a pre-laid scent such as fox urine.

Activists have claimed these events can effectively allow banned practices to continue, if trails are laid near where foxes are likely to be.

Ms Hayman said: "Labour's 2004 Hunting Act was a key milestone in banning this cruel blood sport, but since then new practices have developed to exploit loopholes in the legislation."

In order for a prosecution to succeed, a person must be shown to be intentionally hunting an animal.

Labour is considering a "recklessness" clause to stop trail hunts being used to disguise illegal hunting.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption
Hunting continues legally, with hounds encouraged to follow a scent

Separately, in Scotland, which outlawed hunting animals in 2002, Green MSP Alison Johnstone announced plans for a consultation on strengthening the nation's ban on fox hunting.

"The so-called ban has failed and urgent action is needed to close the loopholes that allow foxes to be chased and even killed by hunts," she said.

Up until 2017, more than 460 individuals had been found guilty of breaking the law in England and Wales.

However, earlier this month, Cheshire's police commissioner urged the government to change the law.

David Keane said a review had found "current legislation in the way it is drafted presents challenges to investigators and prosecutors". He had ordered the inquiry after MPs raised concerns.

In January, Chester MP Chris Matheson (Labour) told the Commons "at least four foxes" had been "killed by trail hunts" in the four weeks after Boxing Day last year. A hunt organiser had described the kills as "accidental".

'Narrow agenda'

Hunt supporters have consistently argued that the ban has done nothing to protect foxes, which they say are now shot by farmers to control the population.

The Countryside Alliance has called on supporters to lobby politicians to support hunts in the face of "misinformation" from animal rights groups.

Chief executive Tim Bonner said: "The Labour Party continues to focus on a narrow animal rights agenda, rather than issues that really matter to rural people.

"Labour's obsessive pursuit of hunting... looks increasingly bizarre to people in the countryside, as well as to those in towns and cities."

Prime Minister Theresa May has in the past declared her support for fox hunting. However, in January, she dropped a manifesto pledge to hold a vote on repealing the ban, telling the BBC there had been a "clear message" against it from the public.

Labour's promise came as a poll commissioned by the League Against Cruel Sports found only one in six of 1,072 rural residents questioned believed hunting with dogs reflected countryside values.

In the polling, by Survation*, only 4% said they ever participated in hunting, compared with 63% who observed wildlife at least once a month and 59% who took part in walking or hiking at least once a month.

A government spokesman said the 2004 Hunting Act set out tightly-drawn exemptions under which dogs may be used to hunt wild mammals, "subject to very strict conditions".

Those found guilty were subject to "harsh" penalties, including the possibility of an unlimited fine.

"We are also increasing maximum sentences for those who commit the most heinous acts of animal cruelty tenfold, to five years in jail."


THIS IS A SITUATION THAT IS UNDOUBTEDLY ALWAYS HAPPENING TO ONE DEGREE OR ANOTHER -- NOT JUST TO THE USA -- AND IT IS NOT “AN INVASION.” IT IS, THOUGH, IN SOME CASES A MIGRATION. TRUMP NEEDS TO SET UP TALKS WITH THE MAIN THREE CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICAN NATIONS AT LEAST, AND MAKE AGREEMENTS AND PLANS ON HOW TO HANDLE IT. IF THERE IS WORK TO BE FOUND, THAT’S WHERE THE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WILL GO. THEY AREN’T TRYING TO “BREAK LAWS,” BUT TO WORK. IF WE MAKE CITIZENSHIP TOO GREAT A HURDLE, MAYBE THEY WILL GIVE UP ON THAT AND JUST STAY, LIKE SQUATTERS IN A HOUSING SHORTAGE.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-46684399
Taiwan: 152 Vietnam tourists 'disappear' during holiday
26 December 2018

GETTY IMAGES
Image caption
The visitors arrived in Kaohsiung, population 2.7 million, over the weekend

The Taiwanese authorities are searching for 152 Vietnamese people who arrived on tourist visas last week and have since gone missing.

The tourists arrived in the southern city of Kaohsiung on 21 and 23 December, but all but one appear to have absconded, officials say.

Local media reports suggest they may intend to work illegally in Taiwan.

Taiwan has waived visa fees for certain visitors from Asian countries including Vietnam, in a bid to boost tourism.

This is believed to be the largest case of tourists disappearing ever since the visa programme began in 2015.

The National Immigration Agency said it had set up a taskforce to investigate the tourists and "the group behind them".

If caught, the tourists would be deported and banned from the island for between three and five years, the agency added.

Vietnam's foreign ministry told AFP news agency that it was in contact with Taiwan and would work to ensure that tourism and exchange programmes would not be affected.

Taiwan is one of Asia's big traders, and is ranked as one of the richest per capita economies in the region.

Related Topics
TaiwanVietnamTourism


I DON'T THINK THIS WOULD SOLVE THE WHOLE PROBLEM, BUT IT WOULD HELP.

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/17/elizabeth-warren-bill-drug-manufacturing-prices-1067916
HEALTH CARE
Warren bill would get feds into generic drug manufacturing
The Massachusetts Democrat, who's likely running for president in 2020, joins a recent wave of Senate legislation aimed at the pharmaceutical industry.
By ALEX THOMPSON and SARAH KARLIN-SMITH 12/17/2018 11:02 PM EST

PHOTOGRAPH -- Future bureaucratic hurdles may not deter Sen. Elizabeth Warren from campaigning on her proposal in 2020. | Andrew Harnik/AP Photo

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a likely 2020 presidential candidate, will release a bill on Tuesday that would effectively create a government-run pharmaceutical manufacturer to mass-produce generic drugs and bring down prices, several sources in her office told POLITICO on Monday in an exclusive preview of the legislation.

The bill, dubbed the Affordable Drug Manufacturing Act, is unlikely to pass the Republican-led Senate, but it signals that a future Warren White House could try to radically revamp the federal government’s role in the pharmaceutical market in order try to lower prices.

“In market after market, competition is dying as a handful of giant companies spend millions to rig the rules, insulate themselves from accountability, and line their pockets at the expense of American families,” Warren said in a news release that her staff shared early.

Warren is one of several senators eyeing White House runs who have introduced bills targeting the pharmaceutical industry. Just last week, Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Amy Klobuchar (D.-Minn.) introduced the CURE High Drug Prices Act, which would allow the federal government to block price increases on certain drugs. Merkley put forward separate legislation, the Low Drug Prices Act, weeks earlier. And Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced his own bill, the Prescription Drug Price Relief Act, in November.

The flurry of bills suggests that the powerful pharmaceutical industry will be a major populist target during the Democratic presidential primary and possibly the general election, as millions of Americans struggle with rising health care costs.

Prescription Pulse
A weekly briefing on pharmaceutical policy news — in your inbox.

President Donald Trump made drug pricing a big issue in his 2016 campaign, defying traditional conservative orthodoxy by endorsing government-centric solutions like federal negotiation of drug costs in Medicare. He’s continued to pursue populist ideas while in office, like a recent move to tie the cost of some expensive drugs to the lower prices paid overseas.

“I think the 2020 politics will keep weakening [pharma’s] stranglehold” on Washington, said Alex Lawson, executive director of Social Security Works, a left-leaning group that works to safeguard Social Security and is pushing drug-pricing reform. He said he believed that Democrats would continue competing to put out strong drug-pricing policy and that the issue would “become a litmus test for people who want to take on higher office.”

Warren’s bill would establish an Office of Drug Manufacturing that would be required to manufacture at least 15 different generic drugs in its first year where the agency determines there is a failure in the market. The senator insists that this would be the government trying to repair the system, not a takeover.

“The solution here is not to replace markets, but to fix them,” she said in the news release.

There would be three standards for determining a “market failure”: if no company is producing the generic drug; if just one or two companies are making the drug and there is a shortage or a recent price hike higher than medical inflation; or if the drug is on the World Health Organization’s “essential medicine” list and the price is deemed too high while being produced by only one or two companies.

Donald Trump
WHITE HOUSE

Why Trump still needs Obamacare
By SARAH KARLIN-SMITH, RACHEL ROUBEIN and BRIANNA EHLEY

While the vast majority of prescriptions are for drugs whose patents have expired, Warren’s bill ultimately addresses only a small part of prescription-drug affordability. There have been some high-profile cases of huge price spikes in off-patent drugs, but the bulk of the country’s drug-cost problem rests with high-priced branded medicines.

The Association for Accessible Medicines, the generic-drug lobby, came out firmly against the legislation.

“When generics provide Americans with nine out of 10 of their prescriptions at only 23 percent of total spending on drugs, it is hard to fathom why anyone would call this system broken or insist that the government commandeer the business of developing, manufacturing and distributing these medicines,” the group told POLITICO. At best, it said, “this legislation is an unrealistic distraction from policies that would meaningfully reduce drug prices, such as combating patent abuse and cultivating a robust biosimilars market.” Like generics, biosimilars are cheaper versions of drugs known as biologics — which are often very expensive.

Warren’s team pointed to a recently disclosed investigation by several states into alleged price-fixing of at least 300 generic drugs and at 16 different companies as a sure sign that her policy is needed. Joseph Nielsen, an assistant attorney general and antitrust investigator in Connecticut who has been involved in the investigation, recently told The Washington Post: “This is most likely the largest cartel in the history of the United States.”

State attorneys general in New Mexico and Washington also opened investigations in 2017 into whether Eli Lilly conspired with other companies to drive up the price of insulin.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer
HEALTH CARE

Schumer pushes for Senate vote on Obamacare case
By CONNOR O’BRIEN and ALICE MIRANDA OLLSTEIN

Insulin is a perfect test case for why an Office of Drug Manufacturing ought to exist, Warren’s team said. The drug is nearly a century old, yet the prices have skyrocketed in recent years. The cost tripled between 2002 and 2013, which is why Warren's bill requires insulin to be one of the drugs manufactured by the federal government.

Warren wants production on drugs to begin a year after the law is enacted. But health policy experts caution that government manufacturing of generic medicines would be an enormous undertaking that could take years to establish. Still, the future bureaucratic hurdles may not deter Warren from campaigning on the issue in 2020.

“I think it would take a lot longer to build a factory and get it FDA-approved,” said Erin Fox, an expert on drug pricing and drug shortages at the University of Utah.

There’s also not a one-size-fits-all drug manufacturing plant, so different products would require different machinery. Even if the government could get production up and running fast, it would also have to land contracts with players in the drug supply chain, including wholesalers, pharmacy benefits managers and health insurance companies.

The law could also lead some generic companies to pull out of areas where products are already in short supply because these drugs tend to have lower profit margins.

“Whether that’s a good or bad thing could depend on how stable the government supply is,” Fox said.


DO YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP?

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46678124
Trump to child: Do you believe in Santa?
25 December 2018

EPA
Image caption -- Children from around the US called to speak to the president and his wife on Christmas Eve

There are some questions no-one should ever ask.

"What does this red button do?"

"What do people say about me?"

"Do you believe in Santa Claus?"

Now we all know Santa Claus exists. But for some reason, the US president threw doubt on this when speaking to one child on Christmas Eve.

The scene was the State Dining Room in the White House.

Donald Trump and his wife Melania were taking calls from American children as the couple sat under two gargantuan Christmas trees.

All the children who called in had done so in the hope of getting through to Norad, the government agency that tracks Santa's movements around the world at Christmas (that is still operating despite a partial government shutdown).

Some of those calls were patched through to Mr Trump and his wife, and thanks to pool reporter Kevin Diaz, we know some of what the president said.

This is how Diaz reported the exchange:

Trump (in booming voice) to a kid named Collman: "Hello, is this Collman? Merry Christmas. How are you? How old are you?.... Are you doing well in school? Are you still a believer in Santa?"

Footage of the incident circulating on social media shows Mr Trump then telling the child: "Because at seven, it's marginal, right?"

"Collman", it now emerges, is a seven-year-old girl from South Carolina named Collman Lloyd, who told the Post and Courier newspaper she didn't know what "marginal" meant.

It is not clear why Mr Trump asked this particular question, because, of course, Santa's existence is beyond dispute.

These photos taken around the world over the past few hours provide overwhelming evidence he exists:

Image copyrightREUTERS
Image caption
Here he is in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico...
Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES
Image caption
...and here he is in Disneyland...
Image copyrightREUTERS
Image caption
...and here he is in Espoo, Finland
The rest of the calls passed without incident, with warm wishes from both Trumps to those who called in.

"I hope your dreams come true," Melania told one caller.


https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
MADDOW BLOG

THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 12/24/18
Democrats aim to build on historic 2018 win, overcome GOP skewing
Rep. Cheri Bustos, the first woman to chair the DCCC, talks with Rachel Maddow about how Democrats plan to solidify and build on their massive gains in the 2018 election against the electoral distortions of Republican gerrymandering. Duration: 19:18


THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 12/24/18
Shirley Chisholm had guts
Rachel Maddow looks at why former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm's legacy is as much about her fighting spirit as the fact that she was the first African-American woman elected to Congress. Duration: 6:35


THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 11/7/18
Underwood flips GOP seat in first-time run focused on health care
Lauren Underwood, newly elected to Congress from Illinois, talks with Rachel Maddow about what made her first-time candidacy a success and her focus on the health care issues that are a priority of her constituents. Duration: 6:09


HELP THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 11/8/18
Sharice Davids flips Kansas seat, makes history on many fronts
Representative-elect Sharice Davids talks with Rachel Maddow about her status as a groundbreaker, and what she'll focus on once she's sworn in as a member of Congress. Duration: 8:16


THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW 12/24/18
Thank you for watching The Rachel Maddow Show!
From the many people who work hard every day to bring The Rachel Maddow Show to air, thank you very much for watching our show. Duration: 3:45



https://imgur.com/t/critical_thinking/rnplS0K

Take a step back and learn something instead of following the herd
by majorpaine99 via iPhoneOct 26

BEAUTIFULLY COLORED AND FUNNY BIRD -- Take a step back and learn something instead of following the herd
by majorpaine99 via iPhoneOct 26