The Ocean Cleanup Project

-5.9 million tons of garbage enter the ocean each year.
-$5.9 million in donations received by the Ocean Cleanup project in 2017 combined with $17 million in reserves from previous years
-The project is the expensive, untried brainchild of a 23-year-old Dutch college dropout named Broyan Slat, disgusted with the plastic waste he encountered while diving off the coast of Greece as a teen, he devoted his life to cleaning up the ocean.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/science/2018/08/07/giant-floating-trash-collector-heads-pacific-garbage-patch/831803002/

A HUSTLER In The Making

From USA Today for Monday July 16, 2018
     1968 The Year That Transformed The Nation

     Larry Flint, who began his career in a small-time bar in 1968 rose up to become a self-proclaimed porno king only a decade later, said God helped him. (pictured 1978 AP FILE PHOTO)

     While societal strictures were loosening. Larry Flint was busy promoting smut, in fact, he took it all the way to the Supreme Court. Larry Flint's dream was a modest one: buy a bar with a pool table. Cover the top of the table with plywood. Hire a some young woman to wear a bikini while she danced on the table top. No fancy delusions of respectability, only a safe bet that a lot of men would be willing to pay cash to drink cheap beer and watch attractive dancers. He opened the Hustler Cocktail Lounge based on this business model in early 1968 in Dayton, Ohio.

     He is quoted as saying that he just wanted to make money when he first opened up the Hustler. That was basically his vision. He would go on to become one of the most successful and reviled pornographers of America's twentieth century. The late 60's made it possible for such a career to propel Flint from a dirt-poor Kentucky boy to his later fame and fortune. Smut, smut, and more smut all in a day's work for Larry Flint. Still at it today, Flint is 75 and producing pornography which is adapting to the changing atmosphere of technology by producing video and using the internet to reach all of those porno hungry men. Flint is quoted as saying, "I think I started at the right time" and "there was a niche there that really worked for me."

     Read all about Larry Flint's HUSTLER here: (COPY AND PASTE THE URL)   https://amp.usatoday.com/amp/771604002 

read previous chapters at ' 1968.usatoday.com '

1968 Fight For Economic Justice

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

     A fresh discovery for me is this  11-part series from USA Today highlighting the year 1968 (which happens to be the previous Jubilee) with its events that mark a great period of advancement in civil, political, and economic rights of freedom. A full listing with review is available for viewing at  1968.usatoday.com   This is from part 5:

  

March 10, 1968 

Chavez had just completed a 25 day, water only fast to recommit the union to non-violent resistance during which he lost 35 pounds and was found to be in delicate condition. Kennedy had flown in from Washington, D.C. to the city of Delano, Ca to join thousands of farm workers at a Mass celebrating the end of Chavez' fast. Chavez was too weak to speakthat day, so Kennedy addressed the crowd. (It was a week after  the night of this event that Kennedy would  announce his candidacy for president, after winning the Democratic primary in June of 1968 he would be gunned down in the galley of the hotel where he had just delivered his acceptance speech)

The struggles of farmworkers and a belief in equality for all unified Cesar Chavez and RFK.

Danger Zones?

USA Today 5/17/18
     Article highlights concerns over how nuclear waste is stored as a safety concern as nuclear power plants shut down. This could turn into a years long process of cleanup and restoration in what has clearly been a Boondoggle of American proportion. A great blog post for sure as well as an informative study into nuclear power plants in U.S. history. 

The Boondoggles

     Those expenditures that seem to have no beginning and no foreseeable ending. They usually consume a considerable amount of funds and quite a lot of labor while not having near enough thought applied beforehand. Yea, we've all had one or two of them, and if you're fortunate the third one was the charm and blessed you with wisdom to avoid future boondoggles. Y'all be extra careful out there in the "REAL" world as those Boondoggles can be very costly, in health, wealth, and humility. Stay on the upside and don't look down! 

It's All About Those Boomers!

And You Thought The Millennials Were in Charge?

     A recent article in USA Today opens up the nasty details on a generation which appears to be swiftly sliding into the driver's seat of economics, politics, and perhaps 40% of most everything. I suppose it is sufficient to say that Love heals the separative wounds of war as well as binds the hearts through progeny for generations. WWII although fought on the front lines in Europe lead to an onslaught of childbirths at 'home' which in turn has produced the huge segment of modern society now known as "Boomers" and I mean HUGE! (Cartoon please)

     A REAL situation to be reckoned with, like a domino maze toppling down, the outburst of systemic problems arising from the Boomer epidemic will emulate through every corridor of society affecting all aspects of the economy, especially healthcare. Shopping for everyday consumables will not be the highest priority of these Boomers. They will be focused on more luxurious expenditures such as  travel and  entertainment. Boomers  currently comprise some 41.6% of the consumer spending market, up from 33.5% in 2007. Ten years more should fulfill the Boomer generation's impact on society, from a consumer standpoint, then there is healthcare and end of life preservation practices to consider. What will the REAL impact be and how is it possible to truly estimate the outcome of this affliction? One thing is for certain, a 'Boomer' economy is fast emerging which will have ripple effects around the globe.

     Retiring boomers are also leaving vacancies in the Blue Collar job market which are mostly being filled by existing White Collar workers falling back to a more comfortable position with increased quality of life when compared to the cooperate ride they were on. (From seperate article in Business section of USA Today for Monday, July 31, 2017) Boomers, as defined, are the folk aging from 55 to 65 plus, it being difficult to nail down a specific range without fringing over on either end.

     I believe we are looking at a prime case study of what to expect from the Gen X group and possibly the millenials as well. Future generations are however on the decline with birth rates lowering as many are choosing to opt out of child bearing as well as a variety of other complicating issues directly effecting the population. What does all of this mean for today's children? Imagine each consecutive generation bringing with it such an impact as the Boomers are about to force upon the World's forefront. Adjustments will be made in due time as the pressure increases while the younger generations are in constant search for 'greener' pastures employing methods of debt reduction and leaving lighter footprints on the already soiled rugs of this twenty-first century.

     Read Article Here. (Video also)