A tip for us older people: "Keep trying; don't give up, unless...!"

 The most important lesson my health aide teaches me--whatever you did that was easy for you to do, and you find it almost impossible to do now, keep trying, you'll likely find a way (unless you simply can't)!

My health aide was on vacation this holiday season.  With her gone, I could have let things I found difficult to do pile up to become the evaluation, I can't do it!  To prevent that evaluation of my sequence of performances, I simply kept trying and trying and trying--using ingenuity to accomplish the task!

It's important to believe in yourself even when it's so easy to lean on another person to do it for you!  

By the way, it's very, very useful to have a health aide at your side at least sometime during each day.  I use the phone to augment my sessions with her!  (In my opinion, they're indispensable for a full life.  It should become clearer as more people live longer, I hope.)   

HAPPY NEW YEAR, 2023!

Major problem for international politics: No leader is held responsible for his actions by an international body!

The leader does what he wants as long as he secures support from his country to remain in power.  That leads to permitting him to whatever he wants--engage in hostilities, produce citizen flight from the country, make his subjects into virtual slaves, make treatises with international criminals and rogue countries.  

International organizations can have no say over him.  The only real threat to his exercise of will is possibly the will of his citizens or his military.   

And so, the world over suffers from his heinous acts that go unchecked or overridden, because he doesn't need to think what havoc he creates, given his continued base of support within his country.

So it seems.

Phone is out of service. Verizon notified.

 Phone is out-of-service.  Verizon notified, 12/26/22.

Thanks, as always!!  

Sierra Leone has mired in educational poverty, claims those in the know!

 "Its schools, few of which have electricity, are among the world's worst." Economist, December 10, 2022, p. 44.  

But now, the government is trying various approaches to change things--in the quality of offerings and ease of accessibility--spending over 20% of its budget on schooling: abolishing tuition, etc. free or nearly making it overall much less; improving the content of the classes; and hopefully, raising significantly the test scores of students attending, etc.

Indeed, the Sierra Leone educational system, such as it is, is fostering different approaches to innovation that should bear results in improved student performance!

My impression: the state educational system is trying hard, much harder--for the sake of the students' careers!          

Democracies should help establish democracies world-over!

I've been apprised on several occasions that the Commonwealth of Nations, the English group of  democracies who are linked together in trade and related issues, could be of assistance to countries that might consider going from autocracy to democracy.  The former Prime Minister Mr. Johnson headed that organization.

Is it possible that this group could be of assistance in President Biden's drive to establish more democracies in this period when there are fewer?  In particular, has the Biden Administration touched base with this organization or with Mr. Johnson?

Just a thought, since it's been mentioned to me several times as possibly a useful avenue!

US is making a terrible mistake in not having diplomatic contacts in Eritrea, Africa

My information, just received yesterday, is that the US doesn't have an embassy in Eritrea.

It is my understanding that the government there is supporting the President of Ethiopia's attempts in the Horn of Africa.  Russia is there due largely to the China military base.  To my mind, the area is hot with gunshot.  My sources may be overplaying it as Egypt is trying to control the Red Sea.  Sorry, for any informational gaps, but that's a long way away!

I recommend that any movement toward democracy in Africa must be coordinated with helping the African Union in their efforts along with the United Nations to stabilize an area strongly engaged in trying to cope with the Continent's poverty, fueled by Muslim extremists, jihadists, aimed at establishing caliphates.  This is a tall order to come to their aide after a century of the Continent's neglect. 

Placing the Africa Union in G-7 seems wise. 

My thoughts on the major problems there amassed over years in El Paso.

My opinion (P.S.  My health aide is from Sierra Leone!  Have had her for a year and a half.)

 

Unskilled in technology, people in many nations are standing in line for education!

They need jobs and they need to learn how to use the computers--including the hand-held kind! 

President Biden is holding an African Summit right now where he's explaining how the entire continent of Africa can be educated in today's tech world, so they can participate in modern living and send their goods around the world to be sold.  

It would seem to me that before investors the world over would be interested in helping a nation to educate its people in the ways of Advanced Nations, they would have to know that anything they would help build--a school or university; an industrial building or office complex--wouldn't be destroyed by war or civic unrest.  Primarily, they would need assurance a group like the jihadists would not target their edifices, in which they have put their own capital money to educate and train the people to work in the ways of modern society.

At the US southern borders, Latin Americans are knocking on US doors to get into the United States.  They want to learn how they can get jobs and live in today's tech world!

Because so many Latinos can travel to our southern border, they are anxiously hoping they can live here at least temporarily while they learn contemporary skills in technology and get hired by modern businesses.   A lot are looking for work and a place to live, too.  Once they settle in, they are anticipating going to school to upgrade their skills and to send their children to school, also, so their kids can qualify for good jobs--indeed, everybody in their family to become trained, skilled workers!