Author: Kent

Past Publsher/CEO of the old Kokomo Tribune and Kokomo Dispatch. As one of a newspaper family who owned a 34,000 daily newspaper in the heart of the Midwest for 85 years, I have a deep belief in a strong “Fourth Estate”, the press. Without a diligent, truthful, and assertive free press, the power would be taken from the people. People have the absolute right to know. After earning a degree in Industrial Management from the Krannert School of Management at Purdue, I spent over 20 years in newspaper management with several as publisher. I also hold three graduate science degrees including a Ph.D.. I have a passionate interest in science, the environment, government, and politics. I have very little tolerance for ignorance and stupidity.
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From China and More with Love

Smithfield Farms, the largest pork producing farm in the USA, was sold to China with the unanimous support of its stockholders! The hogs will still be raised here, but slaughtered and packaged for sale there fefore being sent back here. This includes labels of…

Morrell
Eckrich
Krakus
Cudahy
Premium Hams
Cook’s
Gwlatney

The same with many chickens. They can now be shipped there, but when they come back all that needs to be labeled is that they WERE RAISED IN THE USA. Not that they were processed in China!!!

Our great FDA at work again. The chickens will be all processed and most sold to fast food restaurants for sandwiches, along with schools and supermarkets. The China slaughter and processing are not nearly equal to the requirements here for cleanliness.

BAD FOOD
We recently learned that Starkist Tuna is now owned by Korea, and is in big conflict with the U.S. concerning quality, safety, and records, which Korea refuses to produce. Read several articles on Google about this, and even one that was defending the eating of tilapia said to avoid the fish that came from China? Also, I had just returned home from buying Albertson’s 4-day special of 4 bags of frozen tilapia for the price of one? Sure enough, on the top of the bags it read, “farm raised”, and on the bottom in small print it said, “China”.

In general, farm raised fish should not be eaten because of the high concentration of antibiotics they are fed to prevent diseases due to being tightly confined with other fish. Buy wild caught fish from North America, Hawaii or New Zealand. Read all the way to the end.

Recently, a Food Inspector on TV said he had lived overseas and he had seen the filthy conditions their foods are raised and processed in. It is enough to make you thrown up. Many of their fish on Fish Farms are fed raw sewage daily. He said he has seen so much filth throughout their foor growing and processing that he would “never” eat any of it. They raise this filth, put some food coloring an some flavoring on it, then they ship it to hte USA & Canada for YOU to consume and fee to your families. They have no Food & Safety Inspectors. They ship it to you to buy and poison your families and friends.

Imported food we eat and the junk we buy:

Green Giant frozen vegetables are from China and so are most of Europe’s Best.

Arctic Gardens are OK, so is Birdseye.

Never buy the grocery store garlic unless it is clearly marked from the USA or Canada, the other stuff is grown in people poop (even worse than chicken poop). China is the largest producer of garlic in the world; USA is next.

Buy only local honey, much honey is shipped in huge containers from China and re-packaged here.

Cold-FX is grown and packed in China and is full of fecal bacteria. Doesn’t work anyway; bit scam. If the country of origin is not clearly marked, beware!

If produce, ask an employee:

Watch out for packages which state “prepared for”, “packed by” or “imported by”. We don’t understand the lack of mandatory labeling, especially on produce. The country of origin should be clearly shown on the item in the store (and no cheating about were produced and where processed and where packaged.).

Go to the local farmers’ markets in season and keep a wary eye open the rest of the year.

Please read this very carefully, and read to the vary bottom. It’s important for all of us. How is it possible to ship food from China cheaper than having it produced in the US or Canada?

For example, the “Our Family” brand of mandarin oranges says right on the can, “From China”. So, for a few more cents, buy the “Liberty” brand. Gold Brand or Dole is from California. Beware, Costco sells canned peaches and pears in a plastic jar that come from China.

All “High Liner” and most other frozen fish products come from China or Indonesia. The package may say “Pacific Salmon” on the front, but look for the small print. Most of these products come from fish farms in the orient where there re no regulations on what is fed to these fish.

Recently, the Montreal Gazette had an article by the Canadian government on how Chinese feed the fish: they suspend chicken wire crates over the fish ponds, and the fish feed on chicken poop. If you search the Internet about what the Chinese feed their fish, you’ll be alarmed; e.g. growth hormones and expired antibiotics from humans?

Never buy any type of fish or shellfish that comes from these countries …
Vietnam
China
Philippines
Another example is canned mushrooms. No-Name brand came from Indonesia.

Also, check those little fruit cups. They used to be made in Canada in the Niagara region until about 2 years ago. They are now packaged in China. Most sold in Aldi stores.

While the Chinese export inferior and even toxic products, dangerous toys, and goods to be sold in North American markets, the media wrings it hands! Yet, at least 70% of North Americans believe that the trading privileges afforded to the Chinese should be suspended. Well, duh!!!!

Why do you need the government to suspend trading privileges? Simply to it yourself; Canada and the United States. Simply look on the bottom of every product you buy, and if it says “Made in China” or “PRC” (and that now includes Hong Cong), simply choose another product or none at all. You will be amazed at how dependent your are on Chinese products, and you will be equally amazed at what you can do without.

Think about this:

If 200 million North Americans refuse to buy just $20 each of Chinese goods, that’s a billion dollar trade imbalance resolved in our favor …. fast! The downside? Some Canadian/American businesses will feel a temporary pinch from having foreign stockpiles of inventory.

Just one month of trading losses will hit the Chinese for 8% of their North American exports. Then they will at least have to ask themselves if the benefits of their arrogance and lawlessness are worth it.

Start reading labels more closely and buy something else even if it costs a few cents more. And just think, if you eat in restaurants a lot, you have no idea what your are eating. Those culinary orgies will kill you eventually.

[More reasons to BUY AMERICAN!….. and do not trust a damned thing the Chinese send our way!]

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Blind Generation

[This article was written by a Millennial college student by the name of Alyssa Ahlgren, who’s in grad school for her MBA. It’s a short article but definitely worth a read.]

“College Student: My Generation Is Blind to the Prosperity Around Us”

I’m sitting in a small coffee shop near Nokomis trying to think of what to write about. I scroll through my newsfeed on my phone looking at the latest headlines of Democratic candidates calling for policies to “fix” the so-called injustices of capitalism. I put my phone down and continue to look around. I see people talking freely, working on their MacBook’s, ordering food they get in an instant, seeing cars go by outside, and it dawned on me. We live in the most privileged time in the most prosperous nation and we’ve become completely blind to it.

Vehicles, food, technology, freedom to associate with whom we choose. These things are so ingrained in our American way of life we don’t give them a second thought. We are so well off here in the United States that our poverty line begins 31 times above the global average. Thirty. One. Times. Virtually no one in the United States is considered poor by global standards. Yet, in a time where we can order a product off Amazon with one click and have it at our doorstep the next day, we are unappreciative, unsatisfied, and ungrateful.

Our un-appreciation is evident as the popularity of socialist policies among my generation continues to grow. Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently said to Newsweek talking about the millennial generation, “An entire generation, which is now becoming one of the largest electorates in America, came of age and never saw American prosperity.”

Never saw American prosperity! Let that sink in. When I first read that statement, I thought to myself, that was quite literally the most entitled and factually illiterate thing I’ve ever heard in my 26 years on this earth. Many young people agree with her, which is entirely misguided. My generation is being indoctrinated by a mainstream narrative to actually believe we have never seen prosperity. I know this first hand, I went to college, let’s just say I didn’t have the popular opinion, but I digress.

Why then, with all of the overwhelming evidence around us, evidence that I can even see sitting at a coffee shop, do we not view this as prosperity? We have people who are dying to get into our country. People around the world destitute and truly impoverished. Yet, we have a young generation convinced they’ve never seen prosperity, and as a result, elect politicians dead set on taking steps towards abolishing capitalism. Why? The answer is this, my generation has only seen prosperity. We have no contrast. We didn’t live in the great depression, or live through two world wars, the Korean War, The Vietnam War or see the rise and fall of socialism and communism. We don’t know what it’s like to live without the Internet, without cars, without smart phones. We don’t have a lack of prosperity problem. We have an entitlement problem, an ungratefulness problem, and it’s spreading like a plague.”

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Of Color

Don’t you get fed up with the “of color” crap? The Squad touts being “of color” and claims President Donald Trump is afraid of them. Bologna!

And I am just not sure what “of color” means. Does it mean people with a given pigment in their skin? Does it mean those with brown, black, red, olive, etc. skin? If you look at an artist’s pallet, you would see many colors…… including white. Does that mean that everyone can claim to be “of color”? That, now, would seem logical.

What for sure it does not mean is some superior intelligence. The color of one’s skin is not an indicator of brain power.

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Life at Risk

The United Nations has just issued a damning report about the decline of Earth’s natural life-support systems. It states human society is in jeopardy from the accelerating decline in the biological systems upon which the planet depends. This includes human life.

Many years ago in 1978, Dr. Robert van den Bosch wrote a Prologue for his book, The Pesticide Conspiracy. I have re-printed it below. This may be the future of mankind.

“On this day in a future time, spring has returned and the sun-washed Mississippi Delta is breathtakingly beautiful under a brilliant blue sky and a mantle of lush greenery. It is a glorious season of warm days and soft nights, when the land, as it has for countless centuries, pluses with renewed life. There are the sounds of spring too: the rustling of leaves in a zephyr, the faint rumble of distant thunder, the whisper of water in a slowly flowing stream, the chitchat of small birds, the chirring of cicadas, the crackling flight of grasshoppers, the low hum of foraging bees.

But these are the voices of Nature, and they form a muted chorus compared to the crescendo of sound once heard in this vibrant season. Something is missing from this spring-time symphony; that something is the sound of man. Man is gone, and nowhere to be heard is the clatter of a tractor, the moaning power surge of a spray plane, the grinding throb of a diesel locomotive, the roar of a truck-trailer rig, the squawk of a transistor radio, the whooping voices across a field.

At some time in the past, man fashioned a catastrophe and vanished in it. Now all that is left of his brilliant doings are the decaying remnants of the things he created. Ghosted cities and towns crumbling to rubble, automobiles rusted to junk on littered streets, farmhouses and outbuildings rotting to dust, croplands tangled with brush and invaded by forest, graveyards with headstones toppled among the weeds.

Yes, man has vanished, but the insects still abound, and on this lovely day theirs is the prevailing voice an an almost silent spring.”

I am thinking Dr. van den Bosch may be a prophet of times to come. We continue to poison the planet with toxins like glyphosate (typically Roundup) and dicamba, and 2,4,D. We continue to rape the oceans causing once abundant fish stocks to crash and use oceans as waste dump sites. We cut trees and demolish rain forests that are key parts of planet climate controls. We pump the air full of poisonous fumes and products of combustion. We pave over fertile lands with concrete, asphalt, and buildings. And finally, we humans continue to reproduce like there is no tomorrow.

The message is clear. Our Earth planet home cannot sustain what we are doing to it. There is time to reverse course, but is there the wisdom and courage to do so?

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Tone Deaf

To know Democrats, many newspaper columnists, and many electronic media talking heads are tone deaf or maybe worse — daft, all one had to do was read the Opinion page of the Kokomo Tribune on April 23rd. In particular, the column by John Krull, clearly a “never Trumper”, is filled with vitriol toward President Trump. Turn on your TV to most stations and you will hear much the same.

The Mueller Report states there was NO collusion with the Russians (not a crime even if so) by President Donald Trump or any in the Trump Campaign to influence the election of 2016. It took 200 pages to say that. NO COLLUSION!

President Obama knew well before the 2016 presidential election the Russians were at work. Did he warn the Trump campaign this was going on. NO. He, Hillary Clinton, and the DNC aided and abetted Russian influence by weaponizing the FBI, CIA, Department of Justice, and other intelligence agencies against the Trump campaign. He and Clinton wanted Trump defeated. He did not get that done, but crimes were committed not by the Trump campaign but by Obama, Clinton, and many in the FBI, CIA, and more. And before he left office, Obama made permanent employees of what were political appointed positions in an attempt to preserve the “deep state”.

Mueller, Weissman, and the henchmen tried to skate on the last 200 pages of the Mueller report. That half dealt with the charge of obstruction of justice. Interesting there can be no obstruction of justice when there is no underlying “crime”. Too, to be obstruction of anything, there must be action, not simply voicing anger or displeasure. Mueller wanted to muddy the waters to give Democrats in Congress the excuse for endless investigations and perhaps even the impeachment of President Trump. We are now left with the crazies in Congress: Nadler, Schiff, Cummings, Waters, Castro, Swalwell. Ocasio-Cortez, Omar and Tlaib. Those who are chairs of committees plan endless hand wringing, wailing, and harassment. It will not work.

Rather ironically, the reason Mueller had anything to say about obstruction of justice was that President Trump was totally transparent in his approach to Mueller. Millions of pages of documents and unlimited access to White House and campaign personnel, even to Trump’s personal attorney, were provided. No executive privilege was exercised; this was completely unprecedented.

President Donald Trump brought our country back from the brink of disaster. The economy is booming and predicted to continue to do so. Unemployment is at historic lows. More people working than ever in the history of the United States. Manufacturing jobs have returned. Wages are continuing to rise, particularly among the middle and lower classes. Stifling regulations have been rolled back. The USA is again respected on the world stage.

Thankfully, unlike Obama’s “wingman” AG Eric Holder, we now have an Attorney General in William P. Barr who will not be deterred in pursuing justice for the crimes committed by the Clinton side of the 2016 election Special Counsel Mueller willfully ignored. Barr will indict those who committed crimes against our country. It will take time, but Lady Justice will prevail.

The 2020 election will be more consequential than the last. It will be a continuing shining light on the hill with President Trump or economic collapse with all the freebies promised by the Democrats. That will be the choice.

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Kokomo

Do you wonder about all of the new apartment buildings and condominiums near downtown with more to come on South Main, near north Washington Street and near the KHS gym? Let’s look at some facts.

Howard County population shows an increase of 55 people in the past year. That is estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau. The county total now is about 82,366. A Tribune article stated this is a drop of 386 people from the 2010 census. The U.S. Census data show Howard County had 84,964 people in 2000 or a loss of 2,598 people when compared to the present. A gradual loss trend is expected into the future regardless of the minute gain last year.

What are we to make of these numbers? Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight has said, “We can choose growth or we can choose decline. It all hinges on the decisions our leaders make.” Goodnight seems to believe community health depends at least in part upon an ever increasing population.

Maybe we need to be focusing on other factors. A recent newspaper article said that Howard County is ranked 80th out of Indiana’s 92 counties in health outcomes which measure how long people live and how healthy they feel. It finished 81st in health factors based on behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment. Who wants to come into this kind of environment?

There was another article that indicated our area had a serious increase in violent crime. Local law enforcement disputed this claim explaining a change in reporting methods in 2015 resulted in distorted data. The article had indicated a 122.8 percent increase from 2012 to 2017 in violent crime in the Kokomo Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). This from the FBI Uniform Crime Report. Even if there was no increase in violent crime, the national reporting of “fake news” does not help the perception of life in Kokomo and Howard County.

Now the big one: housing. We see home construction continuing throughout the county. We see vacant homes in Kokomo. We see massive completed and ongoing construction of apartment complexes primarily close to downtown Kokomo. One has to wonder just who is going to inhabit all of these apartment units. Is Kokomo really expecting a huge influx of apartment dwellers? If so, from where and where are they expected to work?

I doubt commuters, which public officials estimate to be around 9,000 daily, to local employers are largely apartment dwellers. Most occupy homes in nearby communities, not apartments. A significant portion come from Noblesville and nearer Indianapolis. Do you really believe these folks are going to move into apartments in Kokomo, particularly near downtown. I don’t. So, what is the expectation?

There is a nasty rumor going around that the expectation is an influx of people from the Chicago area. If so, this is not good for our community. More people do not necessarily mean a better, safer, and healthier community.

We need to focus on quality of life, not numbers of people. We need to do something about health outcomes. We need to stay on top of crime which means being sure law enforcement is tops in both numbers and training. We need to address our general infrastructure, not just “look nice” or high profile while neglecting roads and alleys.

We do not need more apartments, particularly low income ones, but more we will get! They are already or soon will be under construction.

A new mayor will soon be in charge of Kokomo. Responsible leadership means doing what is best for our community. This may mean a change in direction in some very key ways. Think about this when casting your vote. Our future is at stake.

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Senators Braun and Young on Immigration

How about this idea? The two of you lead the way and introduce legislation in the Senate that addresses all of the immigration law flaws. The laws need to end chain migration, anchor babies, visa lottery, Visa over-stays, and the endless legal maneuvering that allows any catch & release. We need to go to a merit based immigration system and limited numbers annually. The H1B-visa system needs overhaul if not elimination.

You could be heroes to many of us in Indiana. We are fed up with the lack of any action in Congress including the Senate to solve the immigration issues.

Senators and Representatives need to be on record. The only way to do that is to push legislation that solves problems and get it voted on.

I am pleased that as far as I know, Indiana does not have any sanctuary cities. I would hope, too, you would support legislation that slams the door on any taxpayer funds that go to cities and/or states that harbor illegal aliens.

We have plenty of illegal aliens already in Indiana, I am positive. I am most familiar with the area around North Central Indiana. Not good.

So, please get the motivation to act. Get legislation introduced that deals with the problems. Support the President.

There are many times when I believe President Trump is about the only one in the Federal government that cares about our country. The Congress has not demonstrated that it does.

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Nancy

You wonder why our country is struggling to survive. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is one giant reason why. In plain terms, she is as crooked as a dog’s hind legs. She tells all in a press conference last year. Here is what she said…

“We call it the ‘wrap-up smear.’ You smear somebody, with falsehoods and all the rest, and then you merchandise it. And then you write it, and then they’ll say ‘See? It’s reported in the press that this, this, this and this,’ so they have that validation that the press reported the smear, and then it’s called the ‘wrap-up smear.’ Now I’m going to merchandise the press’s report on the smear that we made”

She needs to go back to the 12th District of California and stay there.

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The Truth Wizard

We have a new wizard in town. His name is William P. Barr. He is our country’s Attorney General.

I have watched this man testify before Congress. In his somewhat gentle way, he directly addresses questions and challenges. He is precise and will not be bullied by the Democrat Socialists on any Congressional committee.

Barr was born in New York City in 1950, the son of Columbia University faculty members Mary Margaret and Donald Barr. He was raised Catholic. Barr graduated from Columbia University with a degree in government and Chinese studies, then went on to George Washington University Law School for his J.D. degree (summa cum laude).

He has worked in the Central Intelligence Agency and the Department of Justice in various capacities. He was US Deputy Attorney General from 1990 to 1991 and then Attorney General from 1991 to 1993. In his confirmation process, he was approved unanimously by the Senate Judiciary Committee and then by voice vote by the full Senate. He was sworn in as Attorney General in November 1991. He returned to private practice upon leaving that post.

Barr’s current appointment as Attorney General was not so easy. The Democrat Socialists objected. The vote out of the Senate Judiciary Committee was 12-10 along a party-line vote. All Republicans “Yes” and all Democrat Socialists “No”. The vote in the full Senate went nearly the same way with only three Democrats voting to confirm, one Republican not voting and only Rand Paul voting no.

Barr’s presence is calming. He is physically a big man, kind of like a bear. He does not seem to get ruffled easily. He speaks softly, but directly. Already, he has put the Democrat Socialists in a panic by stating the Trump campaign was spied upon by elements of the government. He intends to pursue those who violated the law and bring violators to justice. Big Panic! Interesting that William Barr and Robert Muller, the Special Counsel, have been good friends since the 1980s. This, too, should put the Democrat Socialists in a tizzy.

As a personal aside, William “Bill” Barr loves the bagpipe. He has played competitively in Scotland. He and his wife, Christine, have been married 46 years.

William Barr is the new wizard in town. He reminds me of some character in the Harry Potter family. His new name should be “The Truth Wizard”. That it shall be.

“The Truth Wizard”!

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D. Bruce Roberts Ph.D. Response

I feel compelled to respond to the Sound Off letter by D.Bruce Roberts Ph.D. that appeared in the Tribune on April 4th. He wrote in response to my earlier column about the Democrat party becoming the Democrat Socialist party. Dr. Roberts is all in on Democrat Socialism. This is understandable when doing some research on Dr. Roberts’ background. He is a professor emeritus (retired professor) from a Christian Seminary. His expertise is in religious education and development.

Frankly, he is of a mind that those of us who favor capitalism and free enterprise warn about. He was in a position in a college to influence young minds toward the goals of socialism. Those goals are skillfully masked goals similar to those of communism. It is crystal clear that neither works to benefit citizens. I don’t believe Dr. Roberts could name a single country on the globe where socialism or communism have in the long term worked.

Further, given his background, I doubt Dr. Roberts has had any experience or exposure to private enterprise where new ideas and services are created and payrolls have to be met. A significant motivation in private enterprise is the profit motive. He is a creature of academia which is supported financially by taxpayers, grants, and student tuition; not profits.

In what Dr. Roberts wrote, I see claim democracy and socialism go together. What he may not realize is that the United State of America is not a democracy. It is a republic as defined in the US Constitution. God help us if everything is run by pure democratic vote. We elect representatives to our state legislative bodies and the US Senate and House of Representatives. They make the decisions and promulgate law and direction.

He talks about worker-owned cooperatives and publicly owned enterprises. Nothing in our current system prevents these from existing now, but they must compete with private enterprise. He complains about big corporate bureaucracies controlling our society. We do have some level of agreement in that I do not favor unbridled capitalism. Reasonable regulation is required. That is what our legislative bodies are responsible for doing without killing motivation.

He claims corporate executives answer only to themselves and a few wealthy stockholders. I guess he has not yet heard of such as 401(K)’s. Millions of citizens participate in these and other forms of investment across the country. And now under our current system, we have the lowest unemployment ever for African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and Asian-Americans. More people are employed in our economy now than ever in history. Times are good.

I did not read in what Dr. Roberts wrote any correction of fact of what I had written. None. The Democrat party is on a spiral downward. They have offered no creative policies or plans. They only engage in destruction politics with endless “investigation”.

Dr. Roberts says we have rule by the wealthy. I wonder who he thinks the smelly Walmart folks and the deplorables are? They are the ones who elected President Donald Trump, a strong capitalist. They are the meat and grit of this country. They are the ones who are ruling this country.