Good history

IN 1865, President Abraham Lincoln and First Lady Mary Todd, both of the New Democratic Party, signed an Executive Order ending enslavement of African-Americans in the United States. When signing the Order, Lincoln, whose great-grandfather was a Free African-American, said his decision would bring peace to the nation and prosperity to all, especially to those African-Americans freed by his hand. Todd, whose great-grandmother was an enslaved African-American in Kentucky, agreed.

Why African-Americans were enslaved in the United States is not known. Rumors abound of large numbers African-Americans held as slaves in a part of the country known as “the South,” but researchers have been unable to find documentation supporting those rumors. Likewise, researchers have not discovered, other than in rumored references, to a city called “Washington” in the area of Capitol City.

There are tales, too, of a great war in the middle of the 19th century, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 1 million soldiers. As with other reputed events of that era, researchers have found no proof.

State Department cancels plan to pay Pakistan to buy F-16s

Deal would have sent $699 million to Lockheed-Martin for up to eight aircraft and equipment. Congress pressed the State Department, which told Pakistan to “put forward national funds.” Guess – State or DOD will find $699 million in some other fund, and Pakistan, as well as Lockheed-Martin, will be mollified.

A State Department spokesman said “effective engagement with Pakistan was ‘critical’ to promoting democracy and economic stability in the country.” Sarcastic laughter was heard seeping up from other parts of Foggy Bottom.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/pakistan/2016/pakistan-160503-presstv01.htm?_m=3n%2e002a%2e1708%2eye0ao05v9c%2e1kiy

Crazy Ivan

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Best+of+Crazy+Russian&&view=detail&mid=81A461E272C29202FE1381A461E272C29202FE13&FORM=VRDGAR

Alcohol might have been involved.

The cat in the meat market around 2:50 was quite sober. And taking advantage of the situation.

Anybody who dies will be sent to a work camp

Kim Jong Un has “banned all weddings – and funerals – for the coming week as the reclusive country gears up to anoint him as their official leader at the first Workers' Party of Korea Congress in 36 years, Britain’s Sunday Times reports.”

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/kim-jong-un-issues-temporary-ban-on-weddings-and-funerals-for-security/ar-BBswOjq?li=BBnbfcL&ocid=HPCDHP

Shoe war, or, Obama’s Pentagon trips over trade pact

"Rob DeMartini, New Balance's president and CEO, said he agreed not to oppose the trade pact in exchange for assurances from Michael Froman, the Obama administration's top trade official, that he would ease the impact by helping the company get a Defense Department contract to produce up to 225,000 pairs of athletic shoes a year for military recruits and soldiers. That never happened, the company said, then unleashed its attacks on the trade pact after years of reluctant silence."
…
"Beyond the allegations that the Pentagon shops overseas to dress its servicemen and that it used a contract to bait a U.S. manufacturer on a political matter, the Pentagon also is accused of flouting the will of Congress on a major procurement issue."

http://www.military.com/daily-news/2016/05/02/new-balance-snub-latest-in-long-line-of-pentagon-miscues.html

You mean the command branch of the government would issue orders that negatively affect American companies?

What’s the reason for this?

At a local station: Unleaded regular: $2.15 9/10; Diesel: $2.15 9/10.

I have never seen gasoline and diesel priced the same. Before diesel became popular as an automobile and pickup fuel, the price was way below gasoline, but went way above gasoline with additional diesel-powered cars and pickups and the great increase in numbers of tractor-trailer trucks.

We don't need no edjukashun

You said there would be chicks … Uh, girls … Uh …

Peter Fricke, Investigative Reporter

“The University of Southern California cancelled an event for students in its game-design program last week because the panel of industry leaders did not include any women.

“Just hours before the ‘Legends of the Games Industry’ discussion was scheduled to begin on April 20, the USC Interactive Media & Games department announced on its Facebook page that the event had been cancelled ‘in the interest of promoting diversity and inclusion,’ and that a replacement event ‘with a balanced group of panelists’ will be arranged in the coming weeks.

“’The panel didn’t reflect the diversity within the USC community and the games industry at large,’ read an accompanying statement from Professor Anthony Borquez. ‘We regret presenting an all-male panel and are committed to a diverse and inclusive games industry.’”

Director of USC Games Tracy Fullerton told The Daily Trojan that ‘there was no perfect choice here,’ but maintained that she believes she made the right call by cancelling the event.

“’There was only the choice to stand for one set of values or another. So, I chose the path I believe in,’ she explained. ‘You all are free to disagree, but I think it is the right side of history.’”

http://www.campusreform.org/?ID=7538

There was a girl … uh, female participant, but something happened and she withdrew.

Majoring in Queer?

‘Schools such as Mizzou, Brown, Harvard, and the University of Wyoming will host lavender graduations, according to the Human Rights Campaign.’

Victoria Stroup, Missouri Campus Correspondent

“Over 100 colleges and universities will be hosting a separate graduation ceremony for LGBTQ and ally students this spring.

“According to the Human Rights Campaign, the ‘Lavender Graduation’ (a reference to the pink triangles Nazis forced gay men to wear) will take place on at least 124 college campuses in the United States in the coming weeks.

“The graduations are intended to ‘provide a sense of community for minority students who often experience tremendous culture shock at their impersonalized institutions.’

The HRC also says that the Lavender Graduation is often ‘the payoff for staying in school, and friends and families find the smaller, more ethnic ceremonies both meaningful and personal.’

“The ceremony is a ‘cultural celebration’ to recognize LGBTQ students of all races and ethnicities, and aims to encourage them to mentor their younger peers, as well as to recognize their contribution to their various universities.”

http://www.campusreform.org/?ID=7537

(I had to step away for a moment and find a trash can for use as an immediate barf receptacle. It’s OK. Breakfast was not as good coming up as going down, but I will survive.

(Now. What is LGBTQ “cultural celebration?” Used to, people sometimes mentioned “homosexual lifestyle,” which I figured meant a guy s****** another guy’s d***, or a woman e***** another woman’s p****. But now, all that is “cultural?” One guy s****** another guy’s d*** is cultural?

(I will survive for now, but whether American and Western society has a real future … Not so sure.)