Thursday, December 26, 2019

Current Events Discussion Topics

An on-line "Zoom" discussion is conducted every Monday morning at 9:30am Chicago time through the North Shore Senior Center hosted by Ron Mantegna. You can enroll in this discussion session at   https://www.nssc.org/

Ron conducts a Northbrook Library zoom discussion every 1st and 3rd and 5th Thursday, 10-11:30am. Open free to all who enroll.  Contact the Northbrook Library to connect with Ron Mantegna.                                                                        

Is it Open? Shut? Does control of the Strait give Iran a more powerful weapon than having the nuclear bomb? Can any military response offset the geographic advantage Iran now has over our economy? Can Iran easily give up all enriched uranium as part of a deal—because it rules the Strait?

 

Why are Democrats losing support? Only 27% of voters consider themselves Democrats. What style of Leader has the best chance of being the Democrat’s 2028 Nominee? Would that same style of Leader win Independents who are now 47% of all voters? Put another way, would it be easier for Rahm Emanuel to be elected President by America than win the Democratic Nomination? (BTW, Republicans have similar low approvals, but Trump’s MAGA Party dominates Republicans today.)

 

What or who might be more to blame for the increase in antisemitism? Is it vocal Anti-Israel sentiment by Liberals and the Media? Or Trump’s Populist “Anti Other” policies?

 

Vandals? Or Vanity? How much is the Reflecting Pool a metaphor for this Presidency? A $14M renovation turned into an algae-filled paint-peeling disaster. What’s the likelihood unlawful actions destroyed the 6.5M gallon pool? Or is this a microcosm of a dictatorial decision-making process?  Trump directed everything: quickly, alone, over promising, giving a no bid contract to a crony inexperienced contractor, resulting in failed execution. How much of this same pattern of decision-making has led to where we are with the Iran War, Tariffs, Deportation, Retribution, America Alone?

 

How is this changing us as a nation? For the first time, families where Mom & Dad both work full time set a record high of 52% in 2025, according to Pew Research. The share of families where the Dad works full time and the Mom is not employed fell from 42% in 1975 to just 23% in 2025. Might one big ramification be that we’ll have fewer children? And will we need more Immigrant Workers?

 

Your thoughts about opening of the Obama Center? Is it ironic---or petty TDS—to point out that a day when the natural focus would be on one man looked more like a celebration of America? And the 4th of July, when focus should be on celebrating America, looks like it will focus more on one man?

 

How does acting like a bully with our allies helping us? Why “diss” Italy’s Meloni, one of Trump’s strongest supporters, saying she begged for a photo? ITALY NEVER BEGS!”. But Trump goes out of his way to humiliate other allies: Ukraine, France, Canada, Japan, Mexico…even Israel.  For what?

 

How real is “rigged” mail-in voting? Trump’s Exec Order allows the Post Office to not deliver mail-in votes in states who don’t turn over their voter rolls to Justice. Why would unproven charges of fraud require stepping outside America’s Rule of Law, Due Process, and Constitution?

 

Are we diminishing the benefits of Intelligence? Acting director of national intelligence, Bill Pulte, asked for a list of every employee in the office so he could assess whether to fire them., How does any list help someone with no Intelligence experience evaluate competence? Or is that not his job?

  

Your thoughts about Spacex: largest IPO ever. And Musk, the first trillionaire.

 

What the bigger risk regarding Artificial Intelligence? Over-regulation? Or under-regulation?

 

UK is moving forward to ban Social Media for children under 16.  Should we do the same?

 

Why aren’t we giving Ukraine more support? Their drone attacks have turned the war into at least a stalemate. Russia is suffering. Isn’t it in our best interest to push for an ending that helps Ukraine?

 

Are we pushing Cuba to be an even more failed state? How might taking over a failed state be in the best interests of working-class Americans? What’s the big “win” for us in making this a priority? 

 

Turns out the guy who burned the cross on Michigan Ave. was protesting against Trump. What is that teaching us?

 

Where are we today with the Epstein files? Does this issue still resonate with voters? What might change if Democrats win the House?

 

Your thoughts about Pope Leo’s concerns with A.I.  Pope Leo added his moral point of view to a growing backlash against the impact of A.I. “Threatens to normalize an anti-human vision.”

 

Should we call this “Corruption” more than “Insider Trading? What if I buy a stock, and have the power to affect a major change that dramatically increases that stock’s value? A related issue: is it OK to allow bets on ANYTHING?  Folks who never worked on a trading floor are moving markets with “informed wagers”. Some are getting rich.

 

What is the Benefit and Risk of blocking international flights into major Sanctuary Cities? The Trump administration is "drawing up plans" blocks such flights according to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. Cities with major international airports including Boston, Denver, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, Seattle ​and San Francisco.

 

Is Trump governing as President of the Republican Party, less concerned with any negative views of other voters, even given his 38% Approval? How does this affect the GOP?

 

Why so many Indian-American winners? Many recent finalists—and especially winners—of the Scripps National Spelling Bee are children of immigrants, particularly Indian-American families.

 

Is the Administration attacking Freedom of Speech? ABC accused the FCC of violating its free speech rights by investigating “The View” just because the program discusses political views the Administration doesn’t like. What about attacks on Late Night Hosts like Colbert and Kimmel?

 

How healthy are we with RFK Jr? Food & Drug Administration blocked publication of several studies supporting the safety of widely used vaccines against Covid-19 and shingles.

 

The color of money is now gray. What are the ramifications of Seniors holding more wealth? In 1989, Americans over age 55 held 56% of the wealth. Today it’s 74%. Wealth for under 40 has shrunk from 12 to 6.6%. 18% of Americans are Senior citizens, up from 13% in 1990.

 

Is the issue of Women’s Rights back on the ballot? The Supreme Court temporarily restored access to the teleprescribing and mailing of abortion drugs, which now account for more than 60% of all abortions in the health system. How might this issue affect the November Election?

 

Is eliminating all standards for greenhouse gas emissions in our best interests? How smart is it to totally disregard the concerns of scientists vs. moderating how standards apply?

 

Is America primarily “a Christian Nation”? A major 250th-anniversary prayer gathering conducted on the National Mall was backed by the White House. The Evangelical Christian prayer/worship gathering was called “Rededicate 250”. Event planners say it was to remind Americans that our Founding Fathers wanted us to be a “Christian Nation”. How accurate is that view? How wise?