She will talk about the current situation on asylum-seekers in our country. And she would like to touch on the drastic policy changes, and on the financial and humanitarian implications of those changes.

Lorena Perez McGill lives in The Woodlands, Texas. She earned an LL.M. from Georgetown University and a J.D. from Pontifica Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra. McGill’s career experience includes working as an attorney, an adjunct professor at the University of Houston, and as a faculty member at Georgetown University.[1] https://ballotpedia.org/Lorena_Perez_McGill

For those who like to work, watch, read ahead, she suggests the following:

Something to watch, and to take notes for a lively discussion this Saturday: a video filmed by The Rational Middle, on our dependence on the immigrant workforce (authorized and unauthorized), titled “Immigration’s Crossroads: Rebuilding After Hurricane Harvey”, https://youtu.be/fw31BauwzZw (it would be great if participants would also watch these two videos, one on H1B visas, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuSTx1Jvzaw; and another one on the tragic consequences of having a broken immigration system, http://rationalmiddle.com/the-burden-of-a-broken-immigration-system/).

Something to read, and to ponder before jumping to three word chants: an article on who really benefits from our current chaotic immigration policies, titled “Border Hustle: Smugglers, cartels and the U.S. detention industry are making billions off of desperate migrants”, https://www.texastribune.org/2019/03/07/private-prisons-smugglers-and-cartels-cash-migrants/

As usual, our world is still in “interesting times.” We will start the session with “Current Events” led by Curt Gibby
Disclaimer: Due to the fluctuating state of our government; anything written here can be “inaccurate” by Saturday or sooner.

The 2019 Texas General Election day is Nov 5, 2019.  It covers state and local propositions, issues and school boards, etc.  Early voting starts October 21, 2019.
Sample Ballots, etc.  www.harrisvotes.com, Montgomery Cty: https://elections.mctx.org/ or, https://ballotpedia.org/Sample_Ballot_Lookup

President Donald J. Trump will have been in office for 974  days by Saturday.  There are 409 days to the next General Presidential Election, 3 November 2020.   Texas holds its Primary Elections on Super Tuesday, 3 March 2020 in 164 days. First day of early voting in the Primary is 18 February 2020

Trump: ‘We’d Certainly Like to Avoid’ War With Iran

By Steve Herman September 16, 2019

https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2019/09/mil-190916-voa01.htm

In-Depth Coverage (Background material and pictures of attack)

U.S. President Donald Trump says any American military attack on Iran would be proportionate to the attacks carried out on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to reporters on the South Lawn on Monday afternoon, Trump, asked about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo directly blaming Iran for the attack on the Saudi installations, replied: “I think we’re the same. I think we just want to find out the final numbers and see.”
The president added that it would be known who is responsible “for certain over the next pretty short period.”
Earlier in the afternoon, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office during a meeting with the crown prince of Bahrain, Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, that while he does not want war with Iran, “The United States is more prepared” for a conflict than any country in history.
“With all that being said, we’d certainly like to avoid it,” added Trump.

Curt’s Comment: Although the President and the Ayatollah may be serious about avoiding a war, members of IRGC (Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps) may be a little more quick to react to a perceived provocation.

“Locked and Loaded” Our president loves the phrase. Obviously to him it somehow means he is ready to deliver massive (proportionate) destruction on a moment’s notice, but the origin of the phrase goes back to WWII and the soldiers equipped with the M1 Garand Rifle and the tricky procedure for loading a clip of 8 rounds of ammo without losing your thumb! PERHAPS THERE IS A CAUTION HERE FOR OUR EAGER PRESIDENT!
By Steve Herman September 16, 2019
https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2019/09/mil-190916-voa01.htm

In-Depth Coverage  (Background material and pictures of attack)

            U.S. President Donald Trump says any American military attack on Iran would be proportionate to the attacks carried out on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia.
            Speaking to reporters on the South Lawn on Monday afternoon, Trump, asked about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo directly blaming Iran for the attack on the Saudi installations, replied: “I think we’re the same. I think we just want to find out the final numbers and see.”
            The president added that it would be known who is responsible “for certain over the next pretty short period.”
            Earlier in the afternoon, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office during a meeting with the crown prince of Bahrain, Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, that while he does not want war with Iran, “The United States is more prepared” for a conflict than any country in history.
            “With all that being said, we’d certainly like to avoid it,” added Trump.

Curt’s Comment: Although the President and the Ayatollah may be serious about avoiding a war, members of  IRGC (Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps) may be a little more quick to react to a perceived provocation.

“Locked and Loaded” Our president loves the  phrase. Obviously to him it somehow means he is ready to deliver massive (proportionate) destruction on a moment’s notice, but the origin of the phrase goes back to WWII and the soldiers equipped with the M1 Garand Rifle and the tricky procedure for loading a clip of 8 rounds of ammo without losing your thumb!  PERHAPS THERE IS A CAUTION HERE FOR OUR EAGER PRESIDENT!

What Exactly Does ‘Locked and Loaded’ Mean?

By Herb Lin,Tuesday, August 15, 2017, 11:30 AM
https://www.lawfareblog.com/what-exactly-does-locked-and-loaded-mean
“Lock and load” refers to “the procedure used for readying an empty M1 Garand (Rifle used in WWII) for action, not because he said it backwards. In order to prepare the weapon for firing, the bolt must first be ‘locked’ back to the rear so that the en bloc clip can be ‘loaded’ into the fixed magazine. Once the clip is inserted, the bolt snaps forward on its own as soon as thumb pressure is released from the top round of the clip, chambering a round and leaving it ready to fire.”

See the video: “How NOT to Load an M1 Garand!” (Rifle)

4,605,840 views, •Published on Dec 24, 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYSl_Ngt_gc

And/Or
“How to load the M1 Garand the US Army way”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GdTKm4eBAs
Afghanistan: 79 Afghans are still being killed every day by Taliban(Today on PBS)

How did the Taliban come about?

             The Taliban was formed in the early 1990s by an Afghan faction of mujahideen, Islamic fighters who had resisted the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan (1979–89) with the covert backing of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and its Pakistani counterpart, the Inter-Services Intelligence directorate (ISI).Jul 4, 2014
The Taliban in Afghanistan | Council on Foreign Relations https://www.cfr.org › backgrounder › taliban-afghanistan
Also, read “The Brzezinski Interview with Le Nouvel Observateur (1998)”
https://dgibbs.faculty.arizona.edu/brzezinski_interview
and,“Our terrorists”https://newint.org/features/2009/10/01/blowback-extended-version

We’ll talk more about it in class.

BREXIT (Chaos?): (If you can predict the outcome, tell us, please)
Supreme Court: Parliament suspension battle enters second day
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-49735947
1 hour ago (re:Tuesday 9 pm CDT)
Related Topics: Parliament suspension 2019

The row over the legality of Boris Johnson’s decision to suspend Parliament will return to the Supreme Court later for a second day.
            The PM suspended – or prorogued – Parliament for five weeks earlier this month, saying he wanted a Queen’s Speech to outline his new policies.
            But critics say Mr Johnson was instead trying to stop the scrutiny of MPs in the run-up to Brexit on 31 October.
Two cases about the prorogation are now being appealed in the court.
            During the first day of the hearing on Tuesday, Lord Pannick QC, for businesswoman Gina Miller and other campaigners against the prime minister’s move, said the suspension had been done to “silence” MPs ahead of Brexit and was an “unlawful abuse of power”.
            But government lawyer Lord Keen QC said the PM had been “entitled” to act as he did, and the issue was not one for the courts.

• Prorogation case ‘a difficult question of law’
• Could the Supreme Court overrule the government?
• Could MPs return to Parliament?

What are the two cases being appealed?

  
            Gina Miller’s team is appealing the decision by the English High Court that the decision was “purely political” and therefore “not a matter” for the judiciary.
            The government is appealing a ruling by judges at Edinburgh’s Court of Session, who said the move by Mr Johnson was “unlawful” and aimed to “stymie” MPs ahead of the Brexit deadline.

TRADE WARS:
Will Thailand Plus take away Vietnam’s spoils in US-China trade war?
Jitsiree Thongnoi , Published: 12:15pm, 14 Sep, 2019, Updated: 3:56pm, 16 Sep, 2019
https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3027177/will-thailand-plus-take-away-vietnams-spoils-us-china-trade-war

• Bangkok hopes tax breaks offered in its Thailand Plus stimulus package will lure firms from China hit by higher tariffs
• Doubters say it will still struggle to outshine its low-cost labour neighbour Vietnam as the best port in a storm

Thailand is opening its arms to Chinese firms fleeing Donald Trump’s trade war, hoping special investment zones and tax incentives can give it the edge over its low-cost neighbour Vietnam.
Bangkok hopes the move will offset a downturn in exports and tourism, but analysts caution that tweaking tax rates may not be enough to eclipse the draw of Vietnam’s low-cost labour and free-trade agreements with global partners like the European Union.
The measures are contained in a stimulus package known as “Thailand Plus”approved by the government last week. The package includes changes to the law aimed at “easing investment” by firms from China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea . The country’s economic cabinet and the Board of Investment hope to attract 100 companies to invest in the country, with Chinese firms as their chief target.

Vietnam’s low-cost labour makes it attractive to Chinese firms fleeing Trump’s trade war, but Thailand wants in on the action.

            Thailand is opening its arms to Chinese firms fleeing Donald Trump’s trade war, hoping special investment zones and tax incentives can give it the edge over its low-cost neighbour Vietnam
            Bangkok hopes the move will offset a downturn in exports and tourism, but analysts caution that tweaking tax rates may not be enough to eclipse the draw of Vietnam’s low-cost labour and free-trade agreements with global partners like the European Union.
            The measures are contained in a stimulus package known as “Thailand Plus”approved by the government last week. The package includes changes to the law aimed at “easing investment” by firms from China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea.
            The country’s economic cabinet and the Board of Investment hope to attract 100 companies to invest in the country, with Chinese firms as their chief target.

From our May Meeting —Seen on PBS Newshour: “U.S Based Multi-National Corporations have been creating jobs in China at four times the rate in China than at home in the U.S. since 2009.”  13 May 2019

This Week in Asia
US Navy’s nimble warships in Asia to be armed with radar-evading missiles
12 Sep 2019

Singapore Yale-NUS College’s class on dissent ‘not training for Hong Kong-style protests’  (REALLY?)
Dewey Sim  Published: 6:00pm, 16 Sep, 2019, Updated: 11:18pm, 16 Sep, 2019
Singapore class on dissent ‘not training for Hong Kong-style protests’16 Sep 2019

• Programme organiser Alfian Sa’at defends week-long course after liberal arts school scraps event citing law banning ‘partisan politics’ on campus
• Classes included a workshop on banner design and screenings of several films including a documentary about Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong

Bring your insights and your concerns to Third Saturday Seminar and we will share.

Room B-102, LSC-Montgomery
3200 College Park Drive, Conroe, TX 77384

Academy for Lifelong Learning: LSC-Montgomery , http://www.lonestar.edu/all-montgomery.htm
Registration: Download the form and submit it to ALL
In person: LSC-Montgomery (3200 College Park Dr., Conroe, TX 77384), Continuing Education/ALL Office Building E (Room 205)

• Phone: 936.273.7446
• Fax: 936.273.7262
• Steve Gorman is the ALL Director (936) 273-7259),

Third Saturday Seminars – Fall 2019  –  3 Sessions

Each Session normally starts with a review of current events often followed by a noteworthy topic often presented by guest speaker.  Class discussion is encouraged. The Third Saturday Seminar is about demystifying what is going on around us.Topics have included health care, internet safety, and, providing medical care to civilians in Iraq. Meets the third Saturday of September, October, and November: 9/21, 10/19, 11/16.

16647         3rd SA     9/21-11/16       9:30 AM-12 PM      B102              Gibby

 Click for Campus Map

“Some part of our being knows this (the universe) is where we came from. We long to return. And we can. Because the cosmos is also within us; We’re made of star-stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself. ”  Carl Sagan

2019 continues to be an “INTERESTING” year!  We will keep you informed to the best of our ability. See you on Saturday.  Curt Gibby 

(N.B. I can go days without checking email.)  If you send me an email, and it is important, please give me a heads-up by calling me at 281-773-3314.  If I don’t answer, please leave a message. Thanks, Curt)

Next Meeting 19 October 2019 (3d Saturday).