One glaring thing I noticed:

Mr. Melvin never used the term "President". Perfectly appropriate!

What a wonderful, thoughtful letter from an American hero. Would love to shake his hand someday.

Please thank him for us here at DU for a beautiful and very appropriate letter! n/t

Don't know about CTE but...

It's obvious you don't lose weight or get any smarter!

It's frightening, Hortensis.

When I do even cursory amateur study of the international financial and economic systems, it scares the shit out of me to think what will happen if it all comes tumbling down. And, as you say, I'm not convinced they could control it. They sure as hell didn't control our '08 crash very well, at least not from the average worker's standpoint because we basically absorbed it penny-by-penny. And, at least in that instance they were protected from much of the harm with hedges and off-shore investments, which we can't access.

The levels of debt worldwide simply cannot be sustained and should never have been allowed.

Agreed, but who would that be?

Power and integrity together has almost become an oxymoron, at least in politics. I can think of a few in the US that have the integrity, but not the power. Some of those like Carter have spoken, but mostly to deaf ears. It's a sad and bazaar irony that Putin could probably damage him as much as anyone (no integrity but lots of power).

What's amazing to me though, is the fascination and blind loyalty that those of this peculiar mindset (usually in conservative ranks) have with that symbolic figure. It seems the image of "dear leader" becomes an object to endear and worship, much like a statue of Christ , Virgin Mary or the Buddha. And, as in religion, it becomes a herd mentality.

Some psychologists say that folks of this mindset build a mental structure of authoritarian hierarchy and once it's built, it cannot be disturbed. One of the most extreme examples we've witnessed is that of Ronald Reagan. He fit into their structure of authoritarianism perfectly, since there had been a huge void for them after Nixon fell.

Perhaps goes back to our innate insecurity with life...

...and fear of death. Save us, preacher man, save us!

Never ceases to amaze me...

....how a considerable sector of the human race worldwide seem to crave a powerful, symbolic leader without regards to that person's character, knowledge, or even sanity. All that's required, it seems, is (pick your race's color) skin, steely eyes, a big square jaw, a suit & tie with huge shoulder pads, an authoritative voice, and a line of bullshit a mile long. I think it has been that way throughout recorded history.

Right! And, only a tiny ray of sunlight via a leaker.

We only get an occasional peek into the vast web of dark right-wing money that controls Republican politicians and right-wing media, and what's seen is very ugly for our future. These people operate like a white-washed mafia in an airship well above our heads, lifted by billions of dollars skimmed off America's economy. I don't think the general public has a clue that this even exists. Ironic that it's fed by the public's money from trickle-up capitalism.

I recall vague details of when the Heritage Foundation (2014 revenue $97 million) and American Enterprise Institute (2015 revenue $85 million) were started. My, what lovely red-meat American names! Afterward, leakers let it be known that these and other groups are feeding daily talking points and sending policy papers to Faux News, the White House, and our Congress.

You hit the nail right on its head that our press is corrupted by constant, relentless pressure from the big boys and I would bet it comes from the executives of those media corporations. After all, they do all play golf and party together.

Clearly puts GOP corruption out in the sunlight!

Get high-wealth and corporate money out of our politics! All funding should be from grass-roots.

Most wealthy donors are disconnected from the public and don't give a shit about us.

Lucky, just experiment with it.

Some of us seem to be born worriers, but that's not necessarily a bad trait! Mine is a product of being raised by very loving, caring folks that were constantly helping (and worrying about) others, along with a streak of perfectionism.

If you live where you don't have to be concerned with people nosing through your stuff, keep a journal so you can look back at past notes. If you don't feel you have that degree of privacy, study your writings for a while until you feel some release and then destroy it.

One very important thing is to not be too formal with it and let it free-flow - don't worry about spelling or diction, LOL. However, I do think it's important to develop a format that's comfortable for you, and that you cover all aspects of the event.

At least for me, there's something magical about putting my thoughts and emotions on paper where I can see them, and knowing it's only for my consumption. Given a little time, answers - or at least some relief - seem to come magically, too!

Once, years ago while I was on a field service job out of state, I went to dinner with two guys with our company that are moderate right-wingers, born-again Christian, and both like to talk non-stop. Only after about a half-hour, I was a nervous wreck and couldn't enjoy my food. I moved away from them and sat down alone with my pocket journal. I wrote it all out and relief came very quickly. That probably saved me from losing my temper with them and possibly having to leave the job.

Hope that helps!