ResourcesForLife.com – News 201611 | 7 November 2016 | Monday
Dear Friend,
I hope you’re doing well. Welcome to the November newsletter.
Personal Update
My Personal Update for November is now available. If we’re not already connected on Facebook, I invite you to Like my page and also visit my AboutGregJohnson.com website.
U.S. Presidential Election
By this time tomorrow evening, those who vote in the United States will have determined who will be the next president — or perhaps better said, who won’t be the next president. This year’s election has been one of the most widely covered elections in recent history. Surprisingly, of the remaining 5 dominant candidates running for president, the two in the lead, who are most likely to win, have possibly the lowest approval ratings of any candidates in U.S. history.
Over the past year, the angst and fear have ratcheted higher among their opposing camps as each candidate gains increasing media attention for their respective scandals and corruption — in alternating news cycles, and sometimes simultaneously. From tabloids in the grocery store checkout lanes, voters learn more about the candidates: One candidate, who some compare to Hitler, is alleged to be a Russian operative working with Putin to overthrow America. The other candidate is under FBI investigation and is believed by some to be beholden to Wall Street billionaires and multiple foreign interests and oppressive regimes, taking bribes and payoffs for government access and favors. This has independent and undecided voters trying to decide which candidate is the “lesser of two evils.” Out of dread and fear, more and more people are getting involved in the election process to stop what they believe will be a disaster if the candidate they fear most wins.
There are millions of dissatisfied voters who supported the original 17 Republican primary candidates, and millions of progressives who were disappointed that Bernie Sanders lost the Democrat primary. This has given rise to significant support of third party candidates. Evan McMullin is a former CIA operative who is running as an independent Republican. Perhaps you’ve never heard of him. Well, he could actually win in Utah, and his support in other states is likely to surprise many. Gary Johnson is a Libertarian who was hovering at 8% to 9% from June through August, and is still at 5% in most polls which is signifiant. What’s really surprising is that he’s pulling equally from both dominant parties (Source: New York Times Aggregated Poll Data). Meanwhile, Jill Stein of the Green Party is focused on issues and positions that are popular among supporters of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. While the news coverage will be on the two dominant candidates, the real story is how third parties got a foothold in this election.
The photo below shows over 100 people waiting in line at just one of the early voting locations in Iowa City. These early voting locations were open for over a week, with people in line daily. Shown here are mostly young millennial voters ages 18 to 22 who typically grow impatient waiting for more than 2 minutes for a latte, and are thought to be somewhat ambivalent about the world around them. They are waiting in this line for 30 minutes or longer to vote. This image conveys the impact that the 2016 election is having. Tune in tomorrow for the results and a more comprehensive analysis.
Heart Songs
This month’s Heart Songs selection is “Annabelle” performed by Gilian Welch. This song is one of many American Folk songs popularized by share croppers, coal miners, and the working poor. The song begins with these words: “Lease twenty acres and one Ginny mule from the Alabama Trust. Half of the cotton, third of the corn. Get a handful of dust.” Normally music videos are offered here. This one has a still image. Note: There may be advertising preceding the videos that’s outside my control — it’s determined by YouTube and the user who uploaded the videos.
Thanks. I want to thank the global team of volunteers, contributors, and workers “behind the scenes” who help make all this possible. I’m very grateful to the many people who continue to uphold and advance the mission of Resources for Life. Thanks again for your support. Please let me know if there is any way that Resources for Life can serve you better.
Regards,
Greg
Greg Johnson, Director
ResourcesForLife.com
“Resources for Better Living”
Internet: https://resourcesforlife.com/g
E-Mail: g @ resourcesforlife.com (without spaces)
Postal: PO Box 2717, Iowa City, IA 52244-2717 USA
Phone: (319) 621-4911
Facebook: Facebook.com/resourcesforlife.page
Twitter: Twitter.com/resources4life
Monthly Newsletter: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/resourcesforlifenews/
Subscribe. Enter your email address below and click the Join Now button to be notified when the latest ResourcesForLife.com newsletter is available.
Copyright & License Notification. Until a better system is found or developed, this content and information on the Resources for Life website will be governed by the spirit and intent of the Creative Commons ‘BYSA 3.0’ license. This license provides for the rapid dissemination and adoption of information and concepts without restricting flow and by guaranteeing unrestricted flow down stream even after third-party enhancements or revisions are made. This license is described in more detail here:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Open Source. The writings, systems, content, media (video/audio), and inventions developed under the Resources for Life name are to be governed by the spirit and intent of the Open Source license agreement described here:
http://www.opensource.org/docs/definition.php
Transparency and Collaboration. To the greatest extent possible, every effort is made to maintain transparency in our operation. This allows for more effective public engagement, involvement, and collaboration.