Obama Ratifies Nuclear Treaty with Iran

Forecasters Predict a Rainy Winter

California is finally set to get some drought relief …Specifically, forecasters say a strong El Niño is heading our way.  Time gives odds:

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said there is now a 90% chance that El Niño will last through the winter and an 80% chance it will last into spring 2016.

As does the Los Angeles Times:

Scientists say the likelihood that a significant El Niño will happen is more than 90%, and some models suggest there is a nearly 100% chance it will be strong this fall.

El Niño increases rainfall in California.  Forecasters say this could be the strongest El Niño in 50 years.  USA Today notes:

There is growing evidence California could see an even stronger El Niño event this winter than the 1997 one that caused massive flooding across Northern California.

Indeed, it could be so large that it sets “a new all-time record”  However, even a very wet winter probably won’t be enough to erase California’s drought.   Personally I am very hesitent to believe any of this because they predicted the exact thing last year about this time and we all know what kind of a dry winter and worsening drought we've had.   Since I've lived in California the state has almost continually been getting dryer and dryer.  This is certainly true since the wet year of 1997 - 1998.   Anything Rush Limbaugh pronounces as a fact I'm inclined to doubt.  There is also stuff about how the sun is entering a fifteen year cool down phase and we could have some kind of a mini ice age on earth.  You get the feeling a lot of this is anti global warming propaganda- trying to stem the tide of ongoing reality.

The Iranians and the Obama Administration announced a nuclear agreement this morning, quite contrary to what I just put in yesterday’s blog, pasting word for word in most cases.  I listened to the President’s four minute official speech where he claims the United States got every concession we wanted from them and how it would now be impossible for Iran to build a nuclear bomb any time in the next fifteen years.  All the possible pathways to obtaining weapons grade uranium have been cut off to them.  This agreement will lower oil prices, making a liar out of a certain blog I read yesterday.  Oil prices will continue in their downward trek thus pissing off all the other oil producers including OPEC, Russia, and all of the frackers and drillers here.   I’m gratified by all of that- - and now it will tick Israel’s prime minister no end.  But I’m rather puzzled how in just the past two days there could be this whole laundry list of concessions we were still arguing over and now it’s a done deal.  I’m sure all the Republicans and Shawn Hannity will be ready with their doom and gloom speeches.   Needless to say this deal will markedly increase Iran’s power and presteige in the Mideast.   It could prove to be a really good thing assuming all goes as hoped.  Thom Hartman says this deal will go through unless two-thirds of both houses of Congress votes against the treaty.  So the numbers work in reverse.

If there is any torturing going on with Iran it went on during the reign of the Shaw of Iran, when we overthrew their democratically elected government in 1953.  One Iranian leader says “We have had a troubled history with the United States”.  Iraq, whom the US supported, used chemical weapons on Iran.  But there is no indication that Iran has ever tortured any of our prisoners.  Iran has signed the nuclear non polliferation treaty.  Yet Israel gets all high and mighty saying how Iran “Now has a path to acquiring a nuclear bomb” because of this deal.  I fail to connect the dots on that one Shawn Hannity also says “Because Iran has this nuclear deal now all the Sunni countries like Saudi Arabia are looking to get a nuclear bomb”.  Again I fail to see the causal justification for that, unless that the very fact that Iran is now at peace is somehow in itself a “threat” to the Saudis or Israel.  It would seem as if Israel wants all war all the time.  In general this looks to be a good deal.  I don’t know how it happened- - but it seems Peace indeed has been given a chance.  So the thing to do now is NOT to “blow it”!   Together let us work together to defeat ISIS.  Saudi Arabia and Israel don’t have any objections to that, do they?

Mal Evans greeted me and said that the Federation under Taccoman leadership made banner headlines out of the event.  Had Mal still been in charge of propaganda it would be a little article on page 29 or whatever.   Mal is skeptical as am I because it goes against the longstanding Mark Campbell prophecy of May of 1982.  This is the one where we were supposed to be in a war with Iran in 2012.   Also the fact that Iran is under Lanian influence is suspect.  Bones surprised me in that he is enthusiastically for it.  I mentioned Bible prophecy to Bones and he said “I don’t surrender my free will to a bunch of authors in the first century BC”.    He said “We have to work for peace today”.   It’s a case of “Got peace if you want it”.  Bush could have had peace in Iran ten years ago but of course ten years ago Bush had no appetite for peace.