All Those Opposed to Mother's Milk
In the tornado-like news cycle under President TwitterDee (aka TwitterDum), telling issues have a shorter lifespan than mayflies, one OMG moment is quickly eclipsed by next, ad nauseam, whether it’s about the leader of the free world cozying up to Vlad the Impaler or a porn star.
One wonders how many TwitterDee devotees are opposed to mother’s milk. His administration is.
In the political Pleistocene —last month— news emerged that the United States government had opposed a resolution by the World Health Assembly encouraging breast-feeding and cautioning against inaccurate or misleading marketing by makers of infant formula.
Supporting mother’s milk sounds like a no-brainer — unless, of course, you value big business over little babies.
More expensive, as well as less healthful than breast feeding, infant formula puts babies at a higher risk of communicable diseases in developing countries — particularly if the product is used improperly or under unsanitary conditions.
Suckling at the teat of the $70 billion baby formula industry, D.C.’s “Drain the Swamp” gang took care of business, or tried to. They went so far as to reportedly threaten Ecuador, which had planned to introduce the mother’s milk measure, with the loss of aid. Other countries were suitably intimidated, and the resolution lacked a sponsor until Russia agreed to submit it.
Russia, of course, has little to fear from President TwitterDum, who much prefers attacking U.S. allies like Ecuador, NATO or Canada.
My fellow Americans, I ask you: Is this what 46.1 percent of you voted for in 2016? Are 62.9 million of us opposed to mother’s milk? What’s next, apple pie?
Was Canada on your mind when you entered the voting booth two years ago? Did you imagine back then that our president would visit England, insult his host by telling her how to govern her country, and then, to top it off, endorse her political rival? Is that any way to behave at a barbecue, much less on a state visit?
Or how about loosening emission standards on cars and trucks and coal-fired power plants while unprecedented severe weather leads the evening news night after night?
Do 62.9 million Americans believe climate change is a hoax?
The Pentagon doesn’t, and has been preparing for it for decades. A 2010 DOD analysis states: “Climate change will contribute to food and water scarcity, will increase the spread of disease, and may spur or exacerbate mass migration.” The point the brass makes is that anyone concerned about immigration and national security should also be concerned about climate change.
Do 46.1 percent of American voters favor reducing protections enumerated in the Endangered Species Act, which helped bring the bald eagle back from the brink?
How about separating parents from their children at U.S. borders? Or worse yet, the deportation of 450 migrant parents without their children, who remain in U.S, custody. Before you call this “fake news,” the figure comes from the current administration.
So the question is: should we call these children illegal immigrants or hostages?
Speaking of fake news, which the president believes in (although his daughter Ivanka does not): TwitterDee crossed “the pond” and proceeded to criticize his host, British Prime Minister Theresa May, in a local tabloid. When the inevitable fallout fell, he cried, “fake news,” of course. The newspaper, however, had taped the interview and could substantiate his remarks.
Which brings us to lying. The president has a casual relationship with the truth. His lies often involve size. Attendance at his inauguration was the biggest ever. It wasn’t. It wasn’t bigger than Obama’s in 2009, based on aerial footage and subway traffic statistics. It wasn’t even close.
He continually brags that he gets bigger attendance at his rallies than rock stars like Beyoncé at their concerts. He doesn’t, not even close, even though his rallies are free.
He lies about more important things, too, of course. Why does he do it, even when the truth can be ascertained?
Maybe it’s because we have a fake president on our hands.