It’s been a
while since I’ve posted here, partly because of my daughter’s visit, and partly
because of many problems posting and other technical issues, but here we are
again at long last, going through several news cycles. Lots here about guns and
death, because that’s what keeps on happening. Also, about abortion in light of
the leaked Supreme Court decision.
Although family members and friends are far away and not often seen in person, I do marvel that we can now communicate across vast distances. It was not always the case. I recall that once, decades ago, a Ugandan friend had sent me a US $5 bill with a letter to take to his wife, who had been arrested here for drug smuggling. I had been amazed at the time that a crisp $5 bill for her had actually arrived intact in an ordinary airmail letter. Yes, I did take that money and letter to her in prison, where we met for the first time. She was surprised and glad to have the money and to have me as a visitor, and knowing she had not been forgotten. Her husband had told their relatives and children back home that she was working in the US, a ruse that would have been nearly impossible to maintain today.
Now another
visitor has arrived, Alexander from Costa Rica, a country where I’ve spent considerable time at various
junctures in my life, starting in adolescence. So, I look forward to getting to
know Alexander. How do people from abroad find me? Much of the credit must go to
the internet.
Living here
on Capitol Hill, I personally witnessed the assault on capitol of Jan. 6,
2021, albeit from a safe distance of about 3
blocks. Even from 3 blocks away on East Capitol St., a raucous, rowdy crowd was
quite visible and audible. I dared not venture any further. I beg to differ
with those who said it never happened.
Several immediate neighbors are
planning to move away, perhaps worried that rising interest rates might thwart
their plans. Two houses on my block have sold recently and now one next door has
just sold, along with 2 others around the corner. But I am staying put.
Wash. Post, Putin likens himself to Peter the Great, links imperial
expansion to Ukraine war
The war in Ukraine continues to the
detriment of both sides. Vladimir Putin did not want Ukraine to leave his
political orbit and perhaps Ukraine would have done better by not announcing an
intention to leave. In hindsight, could it have waited until Putin was gone?
But because of Putin, it was felt that such protection was actually needed, as
indeed it has turned out to be.
A friend in Honduras,
a big TV fan of Dr. Oz, hanging onto his every word (as dubbed in
Spanish), will be happy that he has won his primary bid and I know she will be
rooting for him in November.
What is LGBTQIA+? Good question. It’s not enough to be plain old male or
female in a conventional role or even to just be gay, rather, now people have an
array of other choices. Apparently young people, in today’s more accepting
atmosphere, have become more eager to explore gender identities and expressions
than in past generations.
Queen Elizabeth II’s platinum
jubilee—70 years as queen--was a nice distraction
offsetting the bitterness of everyday news.
About the recent murders of Christians in Nigeria, my friend there, no fan of President Biden, says the following:
Good evening, madam Barbs.
It has been one gory tale after another here
in Nigeria since some months now. It's really a pity! You can see that Biden is
not a good leader, compared to Trump. Trump is an outspoken leader who had the
interest of humanity generally and Christians in particular at heart. But
unfortunately, Biden is not. It's a pity.
We really appreciate your concern. My wife
asked me to greet you specially.
But all is not gloom and doom. "First,
the bright spots. Nearly every year, and Freedom House documents this, even
amidst the worrying trendlines and the prevailing narratives about autocratic
ascendency, a peaceful, pro-democracy, anti-corruption movement emerges,
shaking the halls of entrenched power. Typically, that movement is violently
suppressed and cut down. We’ve seen that in Iran, we saw it in Syria, we
continue to see it in Belarus, and of course, in Cuba. Occasionally, that
movement breaks through, it establishes itself forcefully. We’ve seen that
happen in decades past in South Africa. South Korea. Indonesia." Samantha Power, Policy Address on Democracy and
Development, June 8, 2022
June is Gun Violence Awareness
Month. Are we now more aware? Or have we simply become
numb?
It turns out
that guns are dangerous! Imagine that! Some folks are just now coming to that belated
realization after a continuous series of mass shootings all around the US. Now
the majority of deaths for children and young people under age 18 are from gun
violence, surpassing even motor vehicle deaths.
"We need to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. And
if we can't ban assault weapons, then we should raise the age to purchase them
from 18 to 21, strengthen background checks, enact safe storage laws and red
flag laws. Repeal the immunity that protects gun manufacturers from liability,
address the mental health crisis," President Biden said in an address to the nation.
March for Our Lives, Terror
at DC Rally after Screaming Man Reportedly Claimed He was Armed
This just
happened on Saturday here in DC, really scary. The screaming man turned out not
to be armed, but was not arrested before panicking the gathered crowd, including
survivors of mass shootings.
Insider, House
Republican leaders told their members to vote against 8 gun-safety bills,
citing opposition from the NRA and Gun Owners of America
Republicans’
fealty to the Second Amendment and the NRA remains inflexible. Gun rights
supersede the right to life.
NBC News, At least 12 dead in another weekend of mass shootings across America
ABC News, At least 5
dead, 27 injured as wave of weekend mass shootings in US continues
Here’s one
close to home for us in DC.
AP,
Authorities: 3 dead, trooper wounded in Maryland shooting
Will you or
I be the next victims? Today, there are more guns in the country than people. With
all those guns in circulation, accidents and impulse killings are bound to
happen.
Might the
gun carnage in Buffalo, New York, the killing at a Taiwanese church in southern
California, and the massacre of children in Texas, all within days, have been
prevented by stricter gun laws? That’s a remedy that’s hardly been considered. Many
Republican lawmakers, beholden to gun manufacturers, don’t want to even discuss
that option. Instead, they call for even more guns, including armed
teachers, armed guards at schools, armed guards at shopping malls. Honduras is
a country with lots of armed guards, even in grocery stores, hospitals and
pharmacies, and with a higher gun death rate even than the US (though not yet a
tradition of mass killings). More guns mean more gun deaths. And the example of
someone like the Texas killer, though not often named, being splashed all over
the internet, incentivizes others to follow suit. In fact, some already have. Is this carnage what our forefathers
envisioned when in the second amendment they called for “a well-regulated
Militia”?
The
definition of a “mass shooting” can vary, but whatever measure is used, the
toll continues. Gun violence has become an epidemic in the US. Some are copycat
crimes, incentivized by reports of shootings in print, broadcasts, and social
media. Reports often avoid mentioning the shooters’ names or anything else that
might give them notoriety, even posthumously. We are getting kind of numb to
these ongoing reports; it’s hard to be continually shocked over and over.
(Would-be
refugees gathered at the US border apparently are not deterred by publicity
about mass murders across the border.)
Ashville
Citizen-Times Opinion: Now
that we have 400 million guns, are we yet safe?
The author,
John Owens, uses a wheelchair after being shot himself.
It’s
happening right here, too close to home.
Wash. Post, 10 dead after shootings in Philadelphia, Tenn., S.C. and Michigan
Where will
it happen next? Will it only hit home to us when we ourselves or our loved ones
are targeted? Another mass murder has occurred in Texas, the land of “open
carry,” ABC News, 'Bright, shining stars': Family of 5 killed in connection with
escaped inmate ID'd
Arizona
Republic, A mass shooting, and 2 more bodies: 3 Phoenix shootings in one
night leave loved ones reeling
AP, 4 killed in shooting at Tulsa medical building, shooter
dead
Since January, there have been 12
shootings where four or more people have been killed, according to The
Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University
mass killing database. Those shootings have left 76 dead, including 31 adults
and children in Buffalo and Texas, the database says. The death toll does not
include the suspects in the shootings.
U.S.
has experienced more than 230 mass shootings so far this year
USA Today, 'Beyond
devastating': 6 dead, 25 wounded in Philadelphia, Chattanooga club shootings
AP, Police fatally shoot Texas fugitive after family of 5 killed
Reuters, Three people dead after shooting in Iowa church parking lot
This latter may
not qualify as a mass shooting because “only” 3 people died.
And murders of spouses and other domestic partners have continued unabated,
usually carried out with guns, as in the following case. Rarely is an outsider
the actual perpetrator of a murder taking place at home.
LA Times, Nancy
Crampton Brophy Found Guilty for the Murder of Chef-Instructor Husband Daniel
Brophy A Multnomah County jury delivered its verdict
today, declaring Crampton Brophy — the author of the 2011 essay “How to Murder
Your Husband” —guilty of second-degree murder.
Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel, A teen held in a deadly shooting was freed without paying bail.
Then, police say, the 17-year-old fired another fatal bullet.
AP, NY
passes bill raising age to buy, own semi-automatic rifles
The age has
been raised only from 18 to 21, but still an improvement. Forty percent of mass shooters are men
between 18-29, with the deadliest shooters usually under age 21, so any
increase in the age for gun possession would certainly help.
Between 1982 and now, 124 mass shootings (defined as having 4 or more
victims) have been carried out by men and 3 by women, so there is a stark
gender difference, probably due both to hormones and cultural factors. (Even
male animals are more aggressive than females.) Ninety percent of those who
commit homicide are male, as are the majority of victims, and men also make up
most suicides, two types of killings done predominantly with guns. Both men and women are
more likely to be killed with firearms by someone they know than by a stranger. Though I oppose the death
penalty in principle, it’s hard to justify death penalty abolition in the wake
of the recent rash of horrible and continuing fatal crimes.
In
hindsight, many mistakes were made by law enforcement in recent killings,
especially in Uvalde, Texas, where, at first, no alert was sounded after the armed
shooter had shot his own grandmother; then when an outside school door was closed
by a teacher but was not locked; and, finally, when there was a long hesitation
by first responders about confronting the shooter, perhaps out of fear for
their own lives, while they gathered for over an hour outside a locked classroom
with the shooter inside. As children lay dying and bleeding to death, some
might have been saved if responders had gone in sooner; some parents tried to
go inside but were held back. Only reinforcements arriving from the border
patrol later took down the shooter. What was reason for the hesitation? First
responders need to overcome their personal fear to protect the community. Investigations
are certainly in order, but too late now to prevent lives lost and serious injuries
that will impact survivors as long as they live. The 50-year-old husband of one
of the teachers killed collapsed and died after leaving
flowers on a memorial to the victims. That
couple leaves behind 4 children, one a marine, another a college student, while
2 daughters are in 7th and 10th grades.
President
Biden was cheered when he visited the grieving town, while Governor Abbot was
booed, as he deserved to be. These terrible events do have an emotional impact
far from Texas, as I can personally attest when trying to fall sleep at night. There
seems to be no silver lining to this dark cloud. Only better gun control—fewer
guns--would provide that and that doesn’t seem to be in the cards so far. So,
we and our loved ones all remain at risk. Days after Uvalde, another mass
shooting occurred during an argument at an outdoor festival in Oklahoma, with
one death and several people injured. Shooters are incentivizing each other and
being armed makes it only too easy to pull out a gun during a fight. Both a
10-year-old and 18-year-old have been arrested in Florida since Uvalde for
making firearms’ threats. Now according to the Washington Post, there were
at least 14 more mass shootings--4 or more people shot-- in the US over the
Memorial Day weekend. Even raising the age for gun ownership from 18 to 21
would help, as young men seem particularly volatile. Raising it to 25 would be
even better, but is probably not feasible. Just banning assault weapons would
also help and not affect hunters and firearms used for personal protection,
though allowing fewer guns overall would be the safer course.
Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, What
happens when ‘good guys with guns’ don’t use them? In Uvalde, Texas, children
died
Police
know how to end a school shooting.
“Wait
an hour and then send in the Border Patrol SWAT team” is not the right way. One
of the worst days in Texas history is now a law enforcement outrage that
will last for years. Uvalde police, school officers, county deputies and state
troopers must explain why they guarded their own lives instead
of 19 children’s, and then face the eternal scorn of parents face-to-face
every day in that tight-knit ranching town west of San Antonio.
“Look,
they are the first line of defense — their job is not to wait for the SWAT
team,” said former Fort Worth police Chief Jeff Halstead, now a Las
Vegas-based law enforcement consultant.
The
House has passed a modest gun control bill in response to recent mass shootings
that would raise the age limit for purchasing a semi-automatic rifle to 21 and
prohibit the sale of ammunition magazines with a capacity of more than 15
rounds. The legislation, passed by a mostly party-line vote of 223-204, has
almost no chance of becoming law because insufficient support in the Senate.
AP, Senate
GOP blocks domestic terrorism bill, gun policy debate
No, absolutely
no debate or vote, as the “right to bear arms” is sacrosanct for many
Republican lawmakers, so it seems. Now, basic on shifts in public opinion, some
Republicans are rethinking their opposition.
Sky News, Ted
Cruz Storms Out on British Interviewer When Asked Why School Shootings Only
Happen in America
GMA, In
Texas and beyond, many politicians receive mega donations from pro-gun
supporters
Texas
Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, who represent the state where an 18-year-old
gunman carried out one of the nation's deadliest school
shootings last week, are among Congress' top recipients of
contributions from pro-gun donors, campaign finance records show. Cruz, in
particular, has taken in the most money from pro-gun individuals and groups of
anyone in the current Congress, amassing $442,000 over the course of his
career, according to an analysis of disclosure reports by the nonpartisan
campaign finance research group OpenSecrets.
Cornyn
ranks third among current U.S. senators and representatives, receiving a total
of $340,000 in contributions from pro-gun donors over his career, after Rep.
Steve Scalise, R-La., who has amassed $396,000, according to the analysis.
EJ Montini, in the Arizona Republic, Vilifying
Republicans over gun laws is a complete waste of time
Firearms
legislation meant to curb this kind of violence and save some lives will only
happen when all that money being pumped into the GOP’s coffers stops
translating into enough votes to keep Republicans in office. The most overused
cliches are sometimes the truest, and none is more true than the one that
goes: Money talks, BS
walks. How do we know for sure? Well, just look who was
invited to speak at the National Rifle Annual convention in Houston this
weekend. At the top of the bill is former President Donald Trump.
Ft. Worth Star-Telegram, NRA Texas
convention, a celebration of guns, 2nd amendment, bans weapons for Trump speech
Speaking to the NRA in Houston, Donald Trump called efforts to curb gun violence “grotesque.” He ended up his rambling address with his usual complaints about a “stolen election.” He cannot let losing that election go. He only won in 2016 by a rare fluke that allowed him as the candidate with considerably fewer votes to declare victory. The odds were against having that ever happen again. Is Trump’s star finally fading now? Or is that wishful thinking? Democrats don’t now have a strong candidate to run against him. Trump’s hardcore supporters are still with him, even more so now that he is on the defensive. But Melania seems to have checked out completely on Donald as she is nowhere to be seen these days.
Scheduled to join Trump in what the NRA called “a celebration of Second Amendment Rights” were Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. John Cornyn, Sen. Ted Cruz, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, and a number of other elected officials (all Republicans). Abbott later backed out of appearing in person, addressing the gathering only “virtually.” He lamely suggested that the Uvalde massacre “could have been worse.” While putting the blame on “mental health,” he cut money for mental health services from the state budget and seems in no hurry to restore it. Many other scheduled speakers found excuses not to attend the NRA event, even virtually. Most entertainers cancelled at the last minute. Outside the gathering, protesters vented their fury. In Uvalde, parents who had lost children expressed anguish and anger, both at the gunman and their own dithering officials. Some injured children might have been saved if “first responders” had just entered the classroom sooner.
Wayne LaPierre survived an effort to oust him from the NRA leadership despite presentation
of evidence of his unauthorized spending for personal luxuries. NRA speakers
invariably blamed “mental health” problems for various recent shootings,
including in Uvalde. It seems that “mental health” and “mental Illness” are
only invoked after-the-fact in a gun killing, to steer attention away from gun
proliferation, but never as a preventive measure. Does the NRA support more and
better mental health treatment? Would those planning to murder others subject
themselves to such treatment, assuming that their intentions were evident
beforehand, and what is the magic treatment actually available that would stop
them? The Texas school shooter committed mass murder only days after his 18th
birthday when he could legally buy firearms. Before that, he didn’t murder
anyone despite the urge to do so. Not yet possessing a firearm prevented him from
carrying out his murderous intentions any earlier. Not having access to
firearms subsequently would also have stopped him, as it probably stops likeminded
young men in countries with stricter gun laws.
In China, where guns are simply unavailable
to most citizens, a violent guy sometimes attacks others with a knife, but he’s
easier to overpower than a shooter, often before he does any major damage. Now
in Canada, fearing a spill-over from the example of US shootings, Trudeau wants
to freeze gun sales and buy back assault weapons. A shooting in Tennessee where
underage people were injured got almost no press coverage because no one was actually
killed. During the Memorial Day weekend, there were at least 12 shootings where
4 or more people were injured. Little has been reported about the 17 Uvalde
victims who were hospitalized after being shot, except that a few have been
discharged.
James Densley, a professor of criminal justice, and
researcher into mass shootings, has said, “The Republican narrative is that
we’re not going to touch guns because this is all about mental health. Well
then, we need to ask the follow-up question of what’s the plan to fix that
mental health problem. Nobody’s saying, ‘Let’s fund this, let’s do it, we’ll
get the votes.’ That’s the political piece that’s missing here.”
Conversely, is blaming recent mass shootings on “mental health” problems after-the-fact, as many gun-rights advocates are now doing, just a cop-out? Doing so tarnishes the reputation of all those coping with mental health issues, most of whom are not violent. And is any increased funding for mental health services being proposed by gun-rights supporters? Not hardly.
With about 14 million people in the United States having been
diagnosed with a serious mental illness, researcher Jeffrey Swanson, PhD, has emphasized
that the number of people with mental illness who commit a mass shooting is a
"very small contributor" to the rates of gun violence in the United
States. What drives mass casualty shootings and gun death, as Swanson has said,
is access to guns.
"Even if you were to do everything possible to eliminate
mental illness, you'd really only be addressing around 3% of the violence in
this country," Dr. Reena Kapoor, professor of psychiatry at the Yale
School of Medicine, has said.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, speaking at the NRA event, bypassed mental health arguments, strongly defending “second amendment rights” and blaming a “woke mob” for social ills. How did the second amendment get so distorted beyond what the Founders ever envisioned?
Newsweek, Just one day after the
mass shooting in Texas that killed 19 children and two adults at a primary
school in Uvalde, the National Rifle Association (NRA) promoted its
"Banned Guns Giveaway" raffle, with prizes including a similar model
of assault-style rifle to the one reportedly used by the 18-year-old shooter.
The Hill, More
than half of Americans want stricter gun laws: poll
Could the
tragic mass school shooting in Texas just days before an NRA convention in that
state finally break the hold of the gun lobby on Republican politicians there? What
is the tipping point that can overcome the economic strength of the gun lobby
and gun manufacturers?
Insider, Guns are now the leading cause of death for kids. Doctors say
they've had enough — and they're calling for 2 simple policy changes.
NBC News,
Florida mom charged with manslaughter after 2-year-old son shoots dad in back
Personal guns usually prove more of a risk than a protection to their
owners.
Holland
Sentinel, Ray Buursma: Can the number of mass shootings be reduced?
Here are a few of the facts highlighted in this article. Six
of the nine most deadly shootings during the last six years were committed by
men age 21 or younger. (Already, in most places, alcohol cannot be sold to
someone under 21.) Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and New York, with
stricter gun regulations, have 4 or 5 gun deaths per 100,000 people while Mississippi,
Louisiana, Wyoming, Missouri, Alabama, and Alaska, with fewer gun regulations, have
23-28 deaths per 100,000.
Bloomberg, Mitch
McConnell expressed support for a gun-safety deal
proposed by a group of bipartisan senators, particularly the expansion of
background checks on buyers aged 18 to 21. Some Republicans are
coming on board belatedly now on gun control, after being silent for so long. And
some from Trump’s inner circle, after not speaking up before, are suddenly questioning
his 2020 “win.” Politicians are chameleons.
HuffPost, States Set To Ban Abortions Offer Little Support For Parents
And Children
Some Texas
residents are asking why their politicians support fetal lives, but not the
lives of children already born? So, the abortion debate still continues, though
now overshadowed by the “gun rights” debate. “Rights” seems to be the magic
word in both cases. What about rights on the other side in either case?
Opinions on
animal rights seem mixed. I once had a vegan relative living with me who consumed
no animal products, no meat, milk, or eggs and avoided leather and even wool.
Miami
Herald, Video shows deadly abuse of an octopus, and a Keys stone-crab
fisherman is charged
Animal abuse
is not tolerated, but at what point does a human fetus deserve similar protection?
Might it be when the fetus can begin experiencing pain? How would that be
determined? Or is it only when the fetus can be sustained outside the womb? And
while a woman may march for “my body, my choice,” how about the earlier choice that resulted in a pregnancy?
Safety for the would-be mother is not always safe for the would-be
child.
I now disagree
with Amnesty International, an organization to which I’ve belonged for 41
years, whose motto is “safe abortion care is a
human right,” thereby supporting abortion up to 28 weeks of pregnancy, as first
envisioned in Roe a half century ago. Now “viability” can happen earlier,
reflecting medical advances, so 28 weeks is no longer valid.
Apparently, fathers have no rights before the child is born, only after
the birth and when paternity is established, with rights then almost the same
as the mother’s. A father has been able to thwart a mother’s plans to place a child
in adoption by stepping up to take custody himself.
Economic studies do show that early childbearing, especially during
teenage years and especially among black women, does have negative economic
consequences for mothers. Pundits supporting “abortion rights” have pointed out
that women who have an abortion instead of a baby do better in the workplace
and in terms of lifetime income than those who give birth. Is that any
surprise? Still, that seems like comparing apples and oranges. What is the
economic value—or loss—attributable to the birth and life of a new human being?
https://www.rtihs.org/publications/economic-burden-unintended-pregnancy-united-states#:~:text=CONCLUSIONS%3A%20Despite%20declines%20in%20unintended,factoring%20childcare%20and%20indirect%20costs.
CONCLUSIONS: Despite declines in
unintended pregnancy rates, the annual cost of unintended pregnancy in the US
increased from a 2011 cost of $4.6 billion to $5.5 billion in 2018. The true
economic burden is likely higher when factoring childcare and indirect costs.
Of course, abortion also has negative consequences for someone who is
never even born. Is that someone just a theoretical person? Recently deceased
actor Ray Liotta said he was grateful for “being born. For my parents that adopted me.” How about providing more
practical and financial help to mothers of young children in need? What are our
priorities as a nation?
No longer is unwed motherhood stigmatized, which may be why so many
single women now keep their babies and rarely relinquish them for adoption. It’s
possible to say that unwed motherhood in the US is actually being admired now as
a brave choice.
National
Review, Pro-Abortion
Terrorists Firebomb Oregon Pregnancy Center
AP, Amid
abortion debate, clinic asks: Who's caring for moms? Sisters in Birth, a Jackson Mississippi clinic caring for pregnant women, just opened in June 2021. It
hopes to expand to provide for births at the center itself.
LA Times, Harris unveils expansion of postpartum health program for low-income moms Bravo, Medicaid coverage for low-income women for a year after giving birth. (Babies are already covered.) This is very practical assistance, which is what is needed.
LA Times,
Progressive Cisneros requests recount in tight race against Texas Democratic
Rep. Cuellar
With Cuellar, a pro-life Texas Democrat, only 187 votes ahead of Cisneros in the primary, there has been a recount, but Cuellar is still victorious.
Vice
World News, They Come to
Give Birth in Secret. They Leave Without Their Babies. This is in Japan,
where abortion is illegal and single motherhood is stigmatized.
Birth control and abortion have been attempted throughout human
history, but only have become widespread and effective in modern times. In the
past, it was thought that a fetus did not become “human” until “quickening,”
that is, at about 16 weeks, when the expectant mother could feel movement. In
days gone by, wet nurses often fed and cared for babies produced by well-to-do
women. Bottle feeding was unavailable then and would have probably been
unsanitary in any case. Even in my day as the mother of 4 babies, I used cloth
diapers that had to be rinsed out in the toilet, then washed and dried at home.
I found caring for an infant fairly labor intensive, even though the child
slept quite a bit, gradually becoming more independent over time.
What is the proper line between being and non-being? Most
contraception, something not available to sexually active couples in earlier
times, blocks the uniting of sperm and ovum. Sometimes, a fertilized ovum can
be kept frozen in suspended animation. It does not start becoming a person
until implanted in a uterus, which is how the billions of people in the world today
and in uncounted past generations all started out. It’s rather amazing that so
many of us are now all here.
To be effective parents, people do need a minimum economic floor.
President Biden has recognized this, trying to provide parents with a basic
income. Any baby born also needs proper care and affection for quite a few years,
probably representing a financial loss (investment?) for most parents, at least
until they themselves reach old age when they may then require their
offspring’s assistance. And those without children still rely on the children
of others to support them after they retire. That includes increasingly
numerous DINK (double income, no kids) couples who, at various points in their
lives, will interact with and may need help from younger people birthed and
raised by others. After all, every person, including every DINK, who walks this
earth is part of our human family going back eons, someone who started out just
as a fetus, then as a baby and a child, whom someone had to nurture and raise. What
about the basic human relationship value of having kids? What about living and
interacting with them, with simply knowing and loving them? Is that measurable?
An adult couple’s relationship is not the only one of value.
Among my own kids, I have a DINK couple and 2 who are parents still
legally married, but not actually living with their spouses, and a
granddaughter who is a parent, but who has never married. My 2 kids with
children have produced a total of 3, so, on average, they have more than
replaced themselves. Their spouses actually have even more children, but not
with them. Does my family reflect a change in family configurations? Probably
so, since the traditional nuclear family, two parents producing and raising children
together is on the decline, now representing only 18% of US households. Yet, it
remains the ideal. My granddaughter, a single mother of mixed racial heritage
in her 30s with one child, says the only way she would consider having another baby
would be if she were legally married to a man who was a second bread winner and,
currently, she has no such prospects.
In developed countries, the average age of both parents at a first
birth has been rising steadily and most American couples now say their ideal family
would consist of only 2 children. Since some have none, an average of 2 children
per family falls short of population replacement. In fact, the average number
of children per woman of childbearing age in the US is now down to about 1.7. This
is not a good place to be, as overall population then becomes top-heavy at
older ages with too many people like me. An average of 2.1 children per woman
is needed to keep an optimal, steady, and level population. Census data shows
that many US states and cities have a declining population, including
Washington, DC.
Brookings, U.S. population growth has nearly flatlined,
new census data shows
A HISTORIC
DEMOGRAPHIC LOW POINT
Among the many consequences the COVID-19
pandemic has inflicted on the nation, its impact on the nation’s demographic
stagnation is likely to be consequential. The new census estimates make plain
that as a result of more deaths, fewer births, and a recent low in immigration,
America has achieved something close to zero growth in the 2020-21
period.
Moving on now to the international realm, observers of the Ukraine
conflict are speculating about Vladimir Putin’s health. He reportedly is
preparing one of his daughters to take over for him in the Ukraine “special
military operation” should he become disabled. Would she be just as ruthless as
her father or might she actually modify his course?
We members of Amnesty International observed on June 4 the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown with candlelight vigils. A similar vigil being held in Hong Kong was shut down by Chinese authorities.
Wash. Post, As Biden eases Trump’s sanctions, Cubans hope for an economic lift
Here’s a Cuba
Urgent Action from us as Caribbean volunteers at Amnesty International
Please find UA 49/22, regarding Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara and Mykel
Castillo Pérez.
The trials of Manuel Otero Alcántara and Maykel Castillo Pérez, prisoners of conscience, are set to start on 30 May and 31 May, respectively, in Cuba. Otero Alcántara and Castillo Pérez have been in pre-trial detention for nearly a year, after being detained for criticizing the Cuban government. A prosecutor has requested that they be sentenced to seven and ten years in prison. [I, Barbara, have met Otero.] We urge Cuban authorities to grant access to international organizations to monitor the trials and to immediately and unconditionally release these prisoners of conscience.
INTERNAL LINK: https://oneamnesty.sharepoint.com/sites/iar/3e08d008-ae57-46e0-adf7-5283eb515c23#
EXTERNAL LINK: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr25/5660/2022/en/
62
organizations and 78 artists demand that the Cuban government release the
artists Maykel «El Osorio» Castillo Pérez, Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, Abel Lashay,
María Cristina Garrido and Randy Arteaga, who were unjustly detained for
exercising freedom of expression and argue that these cases are part of a
campaign by the Cuban government itself marked by repression and human rights
violations in order to intimidate, silence and imprison artists and creatives
who dare to criticize them.
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