Women’s Day Celebrates Women

30 Quotes Celebrating Women

March 8, International Women's Day is a day we celebrate the accomplishments of women around the world.

30 Quotes Celebrating Women:

International Women’s Day

D. S. Mitchell

March 8th marks a wartime strike in 1917, when Russian women demanded “bread and peace”. Within four days of the strike’s start, the tsar was forced to abdicate and the provisional government granted women the right to vote. That is how and why March 8 became the date we celebrate Women’s Day.

The date is recognized world wide as International Women’s Day; a day to recognize the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. It is also a day to raise awareness of women’s equality and lobby for accelerated gender parity. I thought it might be fun to look at some famous quotes celebrating women, so here goes, be inspired:

3o Quotes Honoring Women

1.) “Here’s to strong women: May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.” –Unknown

2.) “To tell a woman everything she cannot do is to tell her what she can.” –Spanish Proverb

3.) “Well-behaved women rarely make history.” –Eleanor Roosevelt

4.) “The best protection any woman can have is courage.” –Elizabeth Cady Stanton

5.) “Where there is a woman, there is magic.” –Ntozake Shange

6.) “You were given this life because you are strong enough to live it.” –Unknown

7.) “Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world.” –Hilary Clinton

8.) “Feminism is for everyone.”-Bell Hooks

9.) “There’s nothing a man can do that I can’t do better and in heels.” –Ginger Rogers

10.) “Above all, be the heroine of your life. Not the victim.” –Nora Ephron

11.) “Girls should never be afraid to be smart.” –Emma Watson

12.) “Life is tough, my darling, but so are you.” –Stephanie Bennett-Henry

13.) “A strong woman looks a challenge in the eye and gives it a wink.” –Gina Carey

14.) “She wasn’t looking for a knight. She was looking for a sword.” –Atticus

15.) “A strong woman stands up for herself. A stronger woman stands up for everyone else.” –Unknown

16.) “Feminism isn’t about making women strong. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.” –G.D. Anderson

17.) “You can always tell who the strong women are. They are the ones you see building one another up instead of tearing each other down.” –Unknown

18.) “The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who’s going to stop me.” –Ayn Rand

19.) “I’m tough, I’m ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay.” –Madonna

20.) “A woman is like a tea bag: You can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.” –Eleanor Roosevelt

21.) “A woman should be like a single flower—not a whole bouquet.” –Anna Held

22.) “I know what I bring to the table… So trust me when I say I’m not afraid to eat alone.” –Unknown

23.) “Women are the real architects of society.” –Cher

24.) “When women wake, mountains move.” Chinese Proverb

25.)  “She’s a strong cup of black coffee in a world that is drunk on the cheap wine of shallow love.” –Unknown

26.) “Never be ashamed of a scar. It simply means you were stronger than whatever tried to hurt you.” –Unknown

27.) “I expect woman will be the last thing civilized by man.” –George Meredith

28.) “Women are made to be loved, not understood.” –Oscar Wilde

29.) “The age of a woman doesn’t mean a thing. The best tunes are played on the oldest fiddles.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson

30.) “In our society, the women who break down barriers are those who ignore limits” –Arnold Schwarzenegger

https://www.calamitypolitics.com/2017/03/29/quotes-on-courage/

 

John “Jack” Addison Babcock

Jack Babcock   6/7/1948-2/21/2022

Honoring the life of writer, poetic, Jack Babcock

Jack Babcock   6/7/1948-2/21/2022

“. . .And may you be in heaven half an hour before the devil knows you’re dead.” Rest in peace dear friend, you will be missed.

Editor: It is with deep sadness that Calamity News and Politics announces the death of our dear friend and contributor, Jack Babcock. Jack was a passionate and prolific writer and poet. He had a wonderful sense of humor that drew people to him and he had a very rich social life with many interests and hobbies. He loved birds and animals. He enjoyed playing the guitar, and reading T. S. Eliot. If you’ve visited CNP before you have probably seen some of his postings. Although Jack passed in late February his Memorial Service was held yesterday, 3/5/2022. So today is a good day to laugh a bit and look for the bright side of the situation; that was Jack’s way. You can find Jack Babcock’s books of poems on his Amazon site at this link:

You can find him at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=jack+babcock&ref=nb_sb_noss

POETRY MORSELS

By Jack Babcock 

the bird

the birds
wings cut the sky
another bird proud
has his own
way to fly
cutting the sky
hovering over his nest
as if to say
I am the best
His wings cut the sky
Amazing you and I

********

Bed

I saw on the tube
An ad for a bed
King sized

I’m single bed Jack

It would be nice to do things in two

doing things in one tho is nice
no petty quarrels
no intrigue no spice

one is just fine for now
two is too many maybe

my uncle used to say
that he was a lone angel

so be it. I’m an angel.

********

living

what’s the point of living
if you can’t
smoke a cigarette
drink a beer
blow some dope
or
drop some acid
what’s the point
Author’s note:
14 years of sobriety

********

baseball

illness

I have 3 illnesses

Schizophrenia
Diabetes
Acute kidney disease

3 strikes 3 strikes and you’re out

But I feel pretty well

Jack lived in suburban NE Portland, Oregon. In 2020 his suburban neighborhood was threatened by wildfires. They were on a standing Fire Evacuation Alert (Red Alert Level 3) for a week. It was pretty scary times here on the west coast. I remember the sky was a sallow yellow and the smoke was blinding. Totally unprecedented devastation.  I thought readers might enjoy Jack’s quirky take on that very dangerous situation.

fire

the red sun

peers thru the smoke

the news is near doom

I haven’t had asparagus in years

or a banana split

the president waves a flag

I hope for one last good meal

Red Alert Level 3.

Jack graduated from U of O with a degree in English and he went on to Lewis and Clark law school. Although his grades had been good enough to get him into law school, he became too sick with Schizophrenia to continue after his first year. Please enjoy Jack’s quirky take on life, and the deep pain of his mental illness. Being smart and doing all the right things doesn’t protect you from mental illness.

Brown Door

the brown door is shut……

I’m mentally ill. I smash the door, howl and scream.

Let me out of this madhouse quoth I.

and behind the brown door are lunatics.

drooling, sneezing, coughing, playing

with themselves.

what do they need?

just not to be put behind the brown door.

they need sunshine and music, laughter.

but, the brown door is shut.

********

Sweet Julia

i compared you

to a movie star

you balked

said you weren’t that attractive

is it possible

you don’t know how pretty you are

Julia

i told someone

i write you letters, poems

they thought that was sweet and kind

nothing of the sort

i do what i have to do

i feel i must write to you

looking at things

my aunt left me

an utrillo print

a few rings

a spode china set

all so pretty

so real, i love them, i loved my aunt

and there is you

my dear

i think i love you too.

********

Well

yotta yotta yata

so it goes

pornography or poetry

yadda yadda ya

whats the diff

it seems important to smile

death has no

yadda yatta

freedom and obscurity

yotta yotta ya

what now my love?

yotta ya.

 

https://www.calamitypolitics.com/2019/02/13/mental-illness-i-m-prism-by-jack-babcock/

https://www.calamitypolitics.com/2020/09/14/fire-by-jack-babcock/

What’s In A Name

What’s In A Name

Change isn't always a good thing, sometimes it gives us a new life

What’s In A Name

By Anna Hessel

 

A New Beginning…

As one of my milestone birthdays quickly approaches, my thoughts have wandered to my birth.  I was privately adopted as a newborn by an older couple that were never meant to be parents.  Through DNA testing and the state of Pennsylvania finally opening original birth certificate availability to adoptees a few years ago, I have been blessed with finding my biological family.  So far I am in contact with two lovely sisters, a beautiful niece, and a couple of cousins and their families, one of whom has become one of my dearest friends.  She has encouraged me to reach out to my other siblings and maintains our family tree with the accuracy of a brain surgeon – a truly amazing lady.

Oh Yeah, I Blend…

My adopted family was abusive and ashamed of my multi racial ethnicities.  I, on the other hand, am thrilled to be an Irish, Italian, Hispanic, Iraqi Jewish Christian.  I was cheated out of growing up with sibling camaraderie and arguments, but I do have dear friends that have become my family.  My spouse and I are truly blessed.

Choose Carefully

When I was adopted, my birth name was changed.  This angered me; a name at birth should remain through a lifetime.  Hopefully parents will take this into account before choosing overly unusual names.  Names are special, and should be treated with reverence.  When we adopted our most recent lovable Puggle, we kept her beautiful name Sasha.  In Hebrew it means defender of mankind.  I will admit we changed our younger cat’s name from Nala to Brioche when we brought her home, to go with our older kitty’s name Latte.  Now Nala is now her middle cat name.  They go together like peanut butter and jelly.

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Engineered Immune Cells Offer Promise

Engineered Immune Cells Offer Promise

Engineered Immune Cells Offer Promise

 

By D. S. Mitchell

 

Sending Signals

Scientists have genetically engineered immune cells cable of delivering anticancer-signals to organs where cancer may spread. Immunotherapy is a pillar of cancer treatment; strengthening the patient’s immune system and then directing the bolstered immune system to attack tumors. In this effort, Adoptive Cell Transfer is proving successful. With this immunotherapy treatment a patient’s immune cells are collected, engineered for the patient’s specific cancer and then reintroduced into the patient to treat their cancer. There are numerous types of Adoptive Cell Transfer and the most prominent one is called CAR T Cell Therapy.

Cancer Fighting Immune Cells

In 2010 two blood cancer patients received an experimental immunotherapy, and their disease went into remission. The cancer fighting immune cells used in the treatment were still circulating in their bodies,  ten years after the experimental dosing. It indicates that the treatment can be long lasting. Doug Olsen, a native Californian, was one of the patients, “From a patient’s viewpoint, when you are told you are pretty much out of options, the important thing is always to maintain hope. And certainly, I hoped this was going to work”, said Doug Olsen at a news briefing. The CAR T Cell Therapy used the patients’ genetically engineered immune cells to track down and destroy cells that cause cancer.

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OPINION: DeJoy Is No Joy

OPINION: DeJoy Is No Joy

OPINION: DeJoy Is No Joy

By Anna & Wes Hessel

 

Not Swift

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”  But what about Post Master Louis DeJoy?  We know our mail is being delivered slower and later in the day.  Some people are not receiving mail delivery for days.  I’m sure you can relate to this one; I received last month’s power bill in the same mail delivery as this month’s power bill. That has never happened to me before. So why, now? The U.S. Post Office has been delivering mail  for over two hundred thirty years, they are better than this. What do we really know about this Republican Trump appointee?

Something We Should Have Never Contracted

First, Louis DeJoy was CEO, as well as founder, of New Breed Logistics.  In 2014 New Breed merged into XPO Logistics.  DeJoy became chief executive over XPO’s contract logistics unit.  A year later he left this post to take a prominent position on XPO’s board, where he continued through 2018.  New Breed was a United States Postal Service contractor, and still is as XPO.  Louis is also known to be a major Republican fundraiser and contributor.

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Black History Is Everyone’s History

Black History Is Everyone’s History

The contribution of black Americans to this country is huge, and undeniable and deserves to be taught in American schools, north or south.

Black History Is Everyone’s History

Editor: As 2022 Black History Month ends it is important to acknowledge the contribution of black Americans to the arts, sports, science, technology, and innovation. Let’s celebrate their amazing contribution to our country and support the rights of all citizens to participate in the American Dream in all its promised dimensions.

By Wes & Anna Hessel

 A Black Mark Not On Our History

As Black History Month comes to a close, let us acknowledge those African Americans that have made a positive impact on the United States and the world.  We all recall as children eating peanut butter spread on crackers as we learned about George Washington Carver, but little other significant Black history has been taught in our schools.  African-American contributions to our society remain mostly hidden; not celebrated, or taught in schools.  Black history has little representation in curriculums, what a shame; it should be an integral part of  our education, just as it has been an integral part of life and history. History and culture of African-Americans needs to be taught, alongside other cultures, including the typical Western European WASP and Greco-Roman past. Nothing is done in isolation, certainly not improving the world.

Black History Is More Than A Month…

Founded by historian Carter G. Woodson to honor the attainments of black men and women, it originally began as a week-long celebration known as “Negro History Week” in February of 1926, a week in which the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass occurred.  Dr. Woodson was himself the son of a slave and although he did not begin his high school education until the age of 20, delayed by his need to earn a living in West Virginia coal mines, he went on to study at Berea College, the Sorbonne, and the University of Chicago.  He eventually earned his PhD at Harvard, only  the second African American to achieve this, his predecessor being none other than W. E. B. Du Bois.

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Dems Face Tough Battle in 2022 Mid-terms

OPINION:

Democrats Face Tough Battle In 2022 Mid-terms

High inflation may dim Democrats to hold onto congress

OPINION:

Democrats Face Tough Battle In 2022 Mid-terms

The U.S. mid-term  elections are less than nine months away. According to experts, painful political fallout is coming for the Democrats. Currently, the Democrats have a very small majority in the House, control the presidency, while a “fluid” position exists in the Senate. The 2022 midterm elections are crucial, because they’ll determine if  Mitch McConnell “gridlock politics’ returns or not.

By D. S. Mitchell

 

Poll Ratings Drop

Presidential approval ratings have dipped to dismal levels. The causes are many. The slow, painful, public  assassination of the social portion of the Build Back Better by enemy insiders, Sinema and Manchin was painful to watch on cable news. Biden’s persistent claim that he is a uniter, a consensus builder, blew up in his face when he and his team could not deliver their own caucus; a terrible embarrassment.

COVID Hysteria

The on-going COVID pandemic is driving normal people insane. You see it everywhere, in interactions between customers and clerks, between cops and citizens, between voters and officials. The anger is palpable. Besides anger; there is depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, rage-on-a-plane-madness, and of course, homicide, and suicide.

Desperate Means

I think there is growing proof that the fabric of civil society, worldwide, is coming apart. The isolation, the restrictions, mask mandates, no mask mandate,  vaccinate, don’t vax, the misinformation, the fear, the death, social media experts in white coats criminalizing their profession, have overwhelmed us all. People are ready to blame anyone for their troubles, all they need is someone with a megaphone to incite the crowd. A dangerous situation.

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Russian Cyber Attacks Targets and Purpose

Russian Cyber Attacks Targets and Purpose

Russian hackers are causing world wide problems.

Russian Cyber Attacks Targets and Purpose

By Joseph Wales and D. S. Mitchell

 

A Consistent Threat

Headlines linking Russia to a web of cyber attacks against a variety of sovereign nations has become daily bread for decision-makers and the public alike. Whether it’s the NotPetya attack, the recent shut down of the Colonial Pipeline, or meddling in foreign elections; Russia is a consistent and aggravating threat. Russia uses cyber operations alongside non-military and military methods to pursue its strategic goals. It views this as an ongoing information confrontation.

Back in Time

Russia began attacks on the United States in 1996 with the Moonlight Maze attack. The Moonlight Maze resulted in the theft of a massive amount of classified information from several U.S. government agencies. Those effected included NASA, the Department of Energy, the Defense Department, and numerous private sector entities and defense contractors. The attack caused a serious breach, compromising national security interests, strategies, and capabilities.

Ukraine Intimidation

Russian state-sponsored attacks are on the rise, most famously Russian cyber ninjas are behind the recent mischief in Ukraine. Several cyber events have  knocked out major government websites this month. This cyber-intrusion is aimed to intimidate society and destabilize the situation in the country, stopping the work in the public sector, and crushing citizens trust in the governing authorities.

What It Includes

Russia’s cyber warfare units employ hacker attacks, internet surveillance SORM technology, dissemination of  propaganda and misinformation, political trolling, and all means of social media manipulation. Most of these attacks, although not technically in house operations,  are still coordinated by the Russian FSB. The FSB replaced the notorious KGB, but a change in initials doesn’t change the mission.

How Many From Russia?

Over the past year, 58% of all cyber-attacks observed by Microsoft from nation-states came from Russia. Moreover, these attacks are increasingly effective, jumping from a 21% rate in 2020, to a 32% successful compromise rate in 2021. Russian nation-state attacks are increasingly targeting government agencies for intelligence gathering, which saw a hike from 3% to 53% in a year—these attacks target agencies involved in national security, defense, and foreign policy. The top three nations targeted by Russian cyber attacks were Ukraine, UK, and the United States.

Common Causes For Cyber Attacks

Most often, cyber-attacks occur because the attackers want something:

  • IT infrastructure
  • Clients’ lists
  • Customer database
  • Customers or staff’ email addresses and login details
  • Sensitive personal data
  • Customers’ financial details such as credit card data
  • Business’ financial details

Russian Motives

Putin’s motivation is different.  Putin life goal is to restore the territory lost with the collapse of the former Soviet Union. The Russian president views cyber-attacks as a natural extension for achieving his goals. For instance, how the Russian military hacked Olympic enemies for revenge, and how it hacked the Democratic National Committee to bolster Trump’s chances in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Russians are mainly interested in influence operations without physical manipulation.

Classic Influence Operation

What we saw in the 2016 U. S. elections was a classic influence operation. This was also Putin’s aim when hacking Russia’s perceived Olympic enemies. Russia wanted information it could use against these enemies in social media campaigns. Manipulation of the news, creating new mind sets, instigating social rifts.

China, A Different Animal

On the other hand, China has also been actively involved in passive cyber-attacks. However, in the case of China, their main focus seems to center on economic, technology both military and civilian. They are going after intellectual property and stealing it to improve their advantage in world trade. For instance, they infiltrated and copied the plans of the fighter jets F-35 and F-22. The Chinese now have the largest navy in the world, thanks to learning many western secrets. The issues of Hong Kong and Taiwan are just below the surface.

Any Cut Back Coming?

Evelyn Farkas, a former defense official for Obama, argued that the Russian government would not be stopping state-sponsored cyber-attacks against America or any other nation, unless the consequences  were so painful that continuation of such behavior would be unthinkable. Despite President Biden’s meeting with Putin recently, the Russians seem immovable, denying responsibility for their ongoing computer attacks. During their meeting, Biden argued that some crucial infrastructures such as energy and water systems should be off-limits to any type of attack. Unfortunately, I don’t think there is enough mettle in the whole of the U.S. government to go after Putin and/or Xi Jinping with a cyber sledge hammer. Unless Putin and his cyber ninja forces are caused real pain, the attacks will continue.

 

Patient Gets Genetically Modified Pig Heart

57 Year Old Gets Genetically Modified Pig Heart

57 year old American man gets genetically engineered pig heart in historic surgery.

57 Year Old Gets Genetically Modified Pig Heart

“It was either die or do this transplant. I want to live. I know it is a shot in the dark, but it is my last chance,” said the recipient of a genetically modified pig heart last week. 

By MAHINROOP PM and D. S. Mitchell

 

A Major Breakthrough 

American doctors have successfully transplanted a genetically modified pig heart into a desperately ill 57 year old patient. It is an unquestionable achievement, a breakthrough for medical science. The patient, David Bennet is doing well after the surgery. The organ transplant proved that a genetically modified animal heart can serve like a human heart without immediate rejection by the body. Bennet had been connected to Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation, a heart lung bypass machine, in order to remain alive. The patient was informed of the procedure’s risks and that the procedure was experimental with unknown risks before consenting to receive the heart transplant.

Emergency 

Because Bennet faced certain death without the Food and Drug Administration granted an emergency authorization for the surgery last week. The doctors at University of Maryland Medicine performed the procedure called Xenotransplantation.  Bennet had been on cardiac support for almost two months and couldn’t receive a mechanical heart pump because of an irregular heart beat. Neither could he receive a human transplant, because he had a history of treatment noncompliance.

Organ Shortage Crisis

“This was a breakthrough surgery and brings us one step closer to solving the organ shortage crisis. There are simply not enough human hearts available to meet the long list of potential recipients. We are proceeding cautiously, but we are also optimistic that this first in the world surgery will provide an important new option for patients in the future,” said Bartley P Griffith, Professor in transplant surgery at University of Maryland Medicine.

High Risk 

Although the process can potentially save thousands of lives, it comes with many risks including the chance of triggering a dangerous immune response. Such responses can trigger an immediate rejection of the organ, leading to the immediate death of the patient. A  new drug was combined with conventional anti-rejection drugs to suppress the immune system and hopefully will prevent Benet’s body from rejecting the foreign organ.

Ethical and Technical Hurdles

Doctors will monitor Bennet for the rest of his life to determine whether the transplant provides the hoped for lifesaving benefits vs complications. The ultimate focus of xenotransplantation research is on genetically modified pigs because of the physiologic similarities between pigs, human  and non-human primates. Revivicor, a biotechnology company located in Virginia provided the pig heart for the transplantation.

What The Future Offers

Transplant surgeons are hoping that recent advances will enable them to give more people animal organs. Physicians believe that the surgery will kickstart clinical xenotransplantation. As with everything, there are numerous ethical, as well as regulatory issues confronting the wholesale use of animal harvested hearts, and other organs, to sustain human life. Only time will tell.

Russian Mercenary Drama in Mali

Russian Mercenary Drama in Mali

Mali is a landlocked country in western Africa

Russian Mercenary Drama in Mali

By Nicholas Waithaka and D. S. Mitchell

Increasing Instability in Mali

Mali has been a hotbed of political unrest for decades, making it vulnerable to external interference from players like Russia and China. Over the past few months, reports indicate that the head of Mali’s military junta, Colonel Assimi Goita, has negotiated a deal that would bring approximately 1,000 mercenaries from the Wagner Group into the country. Mali has had escalating security and political problems, but a turn to international paramilitary actors may become the proverbial slippery slope.

A Spiderweb Of Interference

The Wagner group, first appeared in Ukraine in 2014, where it assisted the Russian military in the annexation of Crimea. Since then, a spiderweb of paramilitaries, mercenary organizations, and businesses interestingly linked to Vladimir Putin and Russian oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin have emerged under the general name; the Wagner Group.

Encouraging Instability 

In Syria the Wagner Group supported embattled President Bashar al-Assad while securing a foothold in the country’s energy sector.  In other unstable areas around the world such as Libya, Sudan, Madagascar, Mozambique and now Mali, a Russian paramilitary group is providing military support to unpopular, and undemocratic governments. The Wagner Group has become a shorthand name for a mostly opaque and extensive network of mercenary services. In fact, U.S. intelligence services caution the benign name may disrupt our ability to think about what they do and how they operate.

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