Women Of The United States May Have Saved The Country

Women Of The United States May Have Saved The Country

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I would sincerely thank the women of the United States for helping save the United States from sliding further from being a democracy and moving toward an authoritarian form of government.

A far greater proportion of women swung to the Democrats in the 2018 election, especially white college-educated women, partly because a president who verbally and by his actions demeans women. This resulted in a huge political shift toward what is more perfect for this nation.

A record 25 Democratic women are heading to Congress for the first time. Women are stepping up to the implied challenge. I thank these women who are working for a better nation and may be saving it!

In 2018, 110 (81 Democrat, 29 Republican) women hold seats in the United States Congress, comprising 20.6% of the 535 members; 23 women (23%) serve in the U.S. Senate, and 87 women (20.0%) serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. Five women non-voting delegates (3 Democrat, 2 Republican) also represent American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands in the United States House of Representatives.

Source:  https://cawp.rutgers.edu/women-us-congress-2018. 

Princess Cruise Booking Process Evaluation

Princess Cruise Booking Process Evaluation

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January 3, 2019, my wife and I called Princess Cruises to book an Alaskan cruise. There were a number of complicating issues, like cancelling an prior cruise, non refundable deposit on the prior cruise, cabin location, etc. The lady who answered the phone, Regina #1, was the most amazing person I have ever interfaced with from a corporation. Typically corporate sales people come across as worn down by the job. Not Regina. She was amazing in every regard. She understood each issue we presented her with and deftly dealt with each one. She seemed to have all the time in the world to help us with planning and executing the trip. She had answers for every issue and made the trip planning a wonderful experience. We have traveled with Princess Cruises before and have found them very good. My impression of Princess Cruises has gone up with this experience.

Possible Reason Why Retail Stores Do So Poorly Against The Internet

Possible Reason Why Retail Stores Do So Poorly Against The Internet

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It has been long held belief that local retail stores that do poorly is partially due to stocking the wrong product. I much rather shop at a local store than on the Internet for some products, like clothing and shoes. Here is a prime example. As the winter of 2018 and 2019 gets colder I start to reach for my pull over long sleeve shirts that partially button down in the front, typically 3 or 4 buttons. I require a typical shirt collar that lays flat. I do not like knit shirts. I had tossed out about 10 shirts for donations as they no longer pleased me or they showed wear. Here are my results from shopping locally for replacement shirts. I list each store I visited followed by the total shirts I found:

Ross Dress For Less = 0 Brea Calif.  The only Ross Dress For Less that I found amazing was in Santa Barbara – huge selection at great prices.
Nordstrom Rack = 0  Most of their stock is expensive.  Their discount racks did not work for me.  Their selection of varied items was limited.
J.C. Penney = 0  I found no shirts that even came close to what I needed. They did not carry a varied selection.
Kohl’s = 3 separate recent purchases. (they had only one shirt in the store and I liked it and purchased 2 more of different colors, from their web site.  I went back a few days later and found a terrific heavy long sleeve shirt. They only had one so I ordered 2 more from their web site.  A few weeks later, my daughter needed to buy black work pants.  She found those pants at Kohl’s).
Burlington Coat Factory = 5 (They sell overstock clothing like Ross. They sell coats only in the cold season I was told.) I purchased 2 shirts here but I got screwed because one casual shirt needed to be dry cleaned.
Walmart = 0  Selection was simple, typical, uninspiring and very limited styles.
Nordstrom = 1 for over $100 (I did not buy any product here.)
Banana Republic = 0
Macy’s = 2  I had to go to my local Macy’s because their web site showed a pack-able Hawke & Co. men’s vest.  I was so impressed with this vest that I purchased a pack-able coat which I LOVE!.  I have to admit that I almost never shop at Macy’s thinking they are expensive.  I think I will give this store future visits.  Their stock does seem quite varied in styles.

In summary, I did find a lot of shirts that were short sleeve. Excuse me but winter is upon us. I want long sleeve. I found a lot of shirts had partial zippers, which I have too many of and I have no use for. I have found that my knit shirts collars fails to lay flat easily if there is a partial zipper and the I slide the zipper up closer to the head. I much prefer solid fabric and not knit shirts for this reason. I really do think the store buyers for many if not most of these stores, are not doing a very good job of buying what the public wants. I have seen more crap garments hanging on the clothing store racks in my opinion.
So far, Kohl’s is a surprise solution for me.  It seems their buyers offer a more varied selection. 

A new, rather radical, solution for local stores, that also have Internet sales, is to offer items in the store for people to try on but don’t sell the remaining single items in each size unless the item is being deleted from being offered in the future.  While the item is current, do not sell the last small, medium and large sizes but instead offer the customer to see if it fits and if they like it enough to buy it and would pay to have it delivered.  The store could even offer a discount for any delivered item.  This would drastically cut down store inventory but hopefully not sales.   The store could then expand in store product for the customer to try on.  From my experience at Kohl’s, this worked perfectly for me.

 

Posted Jan 2, 2019.
Updated Jan 24, 2019
Updated March 9, 2019 when links to this failed: pack-able Hawke & Co. men’s vest.  I was so impressed with this vest that I purchased a pack-able coat which I LOVE!.



 

 

 

NFL Football & Networks Fail To Meet Some Of Our Needs.

NFL Football & Networks Fail To Meet Some Of Our Needs.

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“The rules about what games local TV stations are allowed to air are crafted between the NFL and networks which carry the games (FOX, CBS, NBC, ESPN and NFL Network). Local affiliates (i.e. FOX31 Denver) have little control in the process – and are sometimes at the mercy of the decisions made on-the-fly by the network.” https://kdvr.com/2013/11/08/how-the-nfl-and-tv-networks-influence-the-football-games-fox31-airs/

I was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and a close friend of mine loves the Philadelphia Eagles. I have come to enjoy following that team also. The problem is that the corporate operators don’t care about our wanting to watch the Eagles games. Eagle’s games are seldom televised on the west coast. It appears to be all about what is best for the networks and the NFL.

Channel checking the huge station choices offered by my cable company, I am amazed at how many stations are simply awful and in my opinion, a waste of channel space. It is really retarded that there is not a second tier system where there are more sports networks that can bid on out of area NFL and other sports events and fit into my cable channel choices.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis Retirement Letter.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis Retirement Letter.

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President Trump on Thursday announced that Defense Secretary Jim Mattis would be retiring at the end of February.


Defense Secretary Jim Mattis’ letter, dated December 20, 2018, to the president of the United States, with highlighted portions and inserted (text blocks) that allegedly seem to conflict with an ignorant and stupid president and reads very much like a policy outline telling the president the correct course ahead and what is best for this nation and this world:


Dear Mr. President:
I have been privileged to serve as our country’s 26th Secretary of Defense which has allowed me to serve alongside our men and women of the Department in defense of our citizens and our ideals.


I am proud of the progress that has been made over the past two years on some of the key goals articulated in our National Defense Strategy: putting the Department on a more sound budgetary footing, improving readiness and lethality in our forces, and reforming the Department’s business practices for greater performance. Our troops (should) continue to provide the capabilities needed to prevail in conflict and sustain strong U.S. global influence.


One core belief I have always held is that our strength as a nation is inextricably linked to the strength of our unique and comprehensive system of alliances and partnerships. While the U.S. remains the indispensable nation in the free world, we cannot protect our interests or serve that role effectively without maintaining strong alliances and showing respect to those allies. Like you, I have said from the beginning that the armed forces of the United States should not be the policeman of the world. Instead, we must use all tools of American power to provide for the common defense, including providing effective leadership to our alliances. NATO’s 29 democracies demonstrated that strength in their commitment to fighting alongside us following the 9-11 attack on America. The Defeat-ISIS coalition of 74 nations is further proof.


Similarly, I believe we must be resolute and unambiguous in our approach to those countries whose strategic interests are increasingly in tension with ours. It is clear that China and Russia, for example, want to shape a world consistent with their authoritarian model — gaining veto authority over other nations’ economic, diplomatic, and security decisions — to promote their own interests at the expense of their neighbors, America and our allies. That is why we must use all the tools of American power to provide for the common defense.

My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues. We must do everything possible to advance an international order that is most conducive to our security, prosperity and values, and we are strengthened in this effort by the solidarity of our alliances.


Because you have the right to have a Secretary of Defense whose views are better aligned with yours on these and other subjects, I believe it is right for me to step down from my position. The end date for my tenure is February 28, 2019, a date that should allow sufficient time for a successor to be nominated and confirmed as well as to make sure the Department’s interests are properly articulated and protected at upcoming events to include Congressional posture hearings and the NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in February. Further, that a full transition to a new Secretary of Defense occurs well in advance of the transition of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in September in order to ensure stability within the Department.


I pledge my full effort to a smooth transition that ensures the needs and interests of the 2.15 million Service Members and 732,079 DoD civilians receive undistracted attention of the Department at all times so that they can fulfill their critical, round-the-clock mission to protect the American people.


I very much appreciate this opportunity to serve the nation and our men and women in uniform.

James Mattis