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Showing posts with the label America

Dealmaker? Peacemaker?: Trump and the Middle East

His name is a household word, and it is rare for people, both Americans and non-Americans, to be neutral. They either dislike him intensely or love him wholeheartedly. Yet, regardless of your opinion, Donald Trump is the most colourful man to occupy the Oval Office in modern times.   First elected as US President in 2016 on the coattails of Brexit, his first term in office (2017-2021) was eventful and turbulent. He worked hard and fought hard, and, unlike many career establishment elite politicians, the New York ‘blue collar’ billionaire, Donald Trump, related to everyday Americans, the working class, minorities, and Generation Z young people. That’s how he won two presidential elections, despite being a political outsider. Having left the White House after the disputed 2020 presidential election (one that he never conceded), Trump was considered politically dead. The obstacles to a political comeback were enormous: a second impeachment over the January 6th riot at the Capitol Buil...

‘Liberation Day:’ What The Trump Tariffs Are About?

  April 2, 2025, another day, another flurry of activity coming from the Oval Office. Yet, it wasn’t like any other day. After signing yet another Executive Order, US President Donald Trump declared it ‘Liberation Day.’ On paper, he had ordered ten per cent tariffs across the board on countries worldwide, friend and foe alike. In reality, he is shaking up the world's economic and political order, deliberately. Initially, there was great consternation around the world. The stock market and, more worryingly, the bond market dived. Dozens of nations queued up to negotiate a bilateral trade agreement with the American administration. Then, Trump announced a 90-day freeze on tariffs for those countries that had reached out to the Americans. Both stock and bond markets recovered; a correction came to what was overvalued, and life calmed down for the moment. While critics derisively called the ‘tariff freeze’ a ‘backflip,’ it was actually part of the plan all along. Liberation Day spawned...

The Shooting of Donald Trump: Who’s To Blame?

Part One of Two Parts It was only a matter of time. This dreadful event had been predicted and prophesied. Prayer alerts went out to pray for supernatural protection. Then, on Saturday night, July 13th 2024, at an outdoor campaign rally for Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, several shots rang out. Pandemonium briefly ensued, and three men in the audience were hit. One of the men, Corey Camperatori, 50, an ex-fire chief, an enthusUS Election,iastic churchgoer and a family man, was fatally wounded while using his body to shield his wife and daughter. The other two were seriously injured but expected to recover. A bullet hit Trump but grazed his right ear; he missed death by millimetres.   What was at stake was more than the life of a prominent politician. America’s future hung in the balance with the prospect of civil war not far away. Unfortunately, assassinations and attempted assassinations are not a new phenomena. Four US Presidents were assassinated: Abraham Lincoln (1865); ...

Roe No More - Part 02: What Does it Mean for the World?

  For some, it was like the dawning of a new day. For others, it was the end of the world. Both sides, looking at opposite ends of the telescope, are focused on a decision that will greatly alter the culture war, like the Supreme Court of the US (SCOTUS) decision of 1973 which started it in the first place. We’re talking about the potential overturning of the landmark decision called Roe v. Wade, which mandated abortion in all fifty American states, even if a state was predominantly pro-life. Justice Samuel Alito’s draft decision on Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (Mississippi), which was leaked to the press, has caused ripples nationally and internationally. Consider the following: The pro-abortion lobby has vehemently protested, including in front of the homes of the justices - which is illegal, because it is ‘obstruction of justice.’ Some have interrupted church services, like at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, where protestors stripped off their c...

AMERICA ABLAZE: Making Sense of the Senseless

It all started as a simple tragedy. George Floyd, age 46, a 6’ 7” African-American was arrested in Minneapolis for allegedly trying to buy cigarettes with counterfeit money. Mr. Floyd was handcuffed and pinned to the ground for 30 minutes. ‘I can’t breath’ said the gentle giant’ as the officer continued to place pressure on his body. He lost consciousness, was taken to hospital, and pronounced dead shortly thereafter. The four Minneapolis police officers involved in the incident were immediately fired. However, Devin CHAUVIN, age 44, a white former police officer, was charged with 3rd degree murder and manslaughter. For many in the African-American community, this arrest was not enough. Why did it take days to arrest the former police officer? Why only a 3rd degree murder charge, not 1st degree? Why weren’t the other officers charged with murder, at least as accessories to the crime? The perception that a black man under white police is in greater peril than a white, continues...