TO DATE WE HAVEN’T GIVEN THEM MUCH REASON TO: Does North Korea even care how the US responds to its missile tests?

FIXED, PUBLISHED PRICES MIGHT BE WORTH A TRY: Those Indecipherable Medical Bills? They’re One Reason Health Care Costs So Much.

PRAVIN R. JETHWA: Towards High Noon in U.S.-China Relations.

The administration should craft and implement a clear, bold and bipartisan “Pacific Doctrine” which would stipulate the following:

Any attempt by an outside or a regional power to impede, block or jeopardize America’s freedom to navigate or overfly any of the maritime spaces in the western Pacific, at any time or anywhere, including the South China Sea, now or in the future, (a) will be resisted by force, and (b) that America will seek to impose an unmistakable military defeat on the aggressor to preserve and protect America’s access and alliances in the aforementioned regions.

A clearly articulated and nationally agreed doctrine along these lines would not only proclaim America’s purpose, but at an operational level, establish, for the first time, red-lines and explicit deterrence vis-à-vis the Chinese regime, much like the Truman doctrine of 1947 which laid the foundations for the historically successful containment policy against the Soviet Union.

A clear strategy backed by strong alliances is perhaps the best deterrent to war, but the “bipartisan” part is going to be problematical given that there doesn’t seem to be anything Democrats won’t do to sabotage the current Administration.

AN ENEMY WW2 BOMBER: In StrategyPage’s WW2 combat aircraft photo series: the German He-111.

Here’s some He-111 historical trivia. The Nationalist Chinese Air Force used a very early version of the He-111 in 1937 in the Second Sino-Japanese War. (The Wikipedia entry explains.)

WHAT, YOU THOUGHT THIS STUFF STARTED WITH TRUMP? Lee Smith: Did the Obama Administration’s Abuse of Foreign-Intelligence Collection Start Before Trump? One clue: The Russia story is a replay of how the former White House smeared pro-Israel activists in the lead-up to the Iran Deal. ““At some point, the administration weaponized the NSA’s legitimate monitoring of communications of foreign officials to stay one step ahead of domestic political opponents. . . . The NSA’s collections of foreigners became a means of gathering real-time intelligence on Americans engaged in perfectly legitimate political activism.”

RICHARD FERNANDEZ: The Sovietization of American Politics.

Hope looks like it just left town. To boot there are now allegations that Susan Rice actively requested the “unmasking” of Trump campaign and transition official’s names from intelligence reports. That makes a “dual track investigation” inevitable according to law professor William Jacobson. “I don’t see how the Obama administration does not now become a target of congressional investigation after this revelation.” Both sides are in a race to see who can jail or politically cripple the other side first. Although the pawns will fall first the game won’t end until checkmate traps one of the two rival kings.

No one is backing down, certainly not the Democrats. “Why is Trump flailing?” writes Greg Sargent in the Washington Post, “because Americans hate his agenda, and it’s based on lies” . Uncompromising stands are nothing new for the Democratic party. The difference is that this time the Republicans aren’t giving way. The strange guy with orange complexion has put the progressives out of reckoning by being just as unreasonable as the conservatives thought the liberals were. The strategy of “by any means necessary”, so effective when the Democrats enjoyed a monopoly on its use is now transformed into a pact of mutually assured destruction as the other side adopts similar methods.

Obama and Trump are in a game of chicken that neither seems ready to abandon.

Obama probably can’t afford to, and there’s no reason Trump should want to.

And do read the whole thing.

BLESS THEIR HEARTS: MSNBC’s Matthews, Corn Meltdown, Claim Susan Rice ‘Unmasking’ Controversy Is Racist and Sexist.

But is more or less racist than words like Chicago and golf?

Earlier: “If I ever get in a jam, I ask for no special treatment. Just treat me like Susan Rice.”

(Classical – no doubt racist! – reference in headline.)

IT’S EASIER TO DEMAND THAN TO DO: Facebook Demands That Its Outside Law Firms Meet 33% Diversity Target That Facebook Does Not Meet.

JUSTICE: Wife of Pulse gunman to be extradited to Florida.

Federal court documents obtained by WESH 2 News show that Noor Salman has waived a hearing in California where she was going to fight extradition.

Salman had been scheduled to appear in court for the hearing on Monday.

Salman will be brought back to Orlando and will appear in court to face charges of obstructing justice and providing support to a terrorist.

It no longer shocks, but it does still sadden a little how often the wives aid and abet their terrorist husbands.

BYRON YORK: On Trump surveillance, Rice, Schiff talk but say nothing.

Related: Six questions raised by the report that Susan Rice unmasked names of Trump advisers.

WHITE HOUSE STAFF SHAKEUP: Steve Bannon Out at National Security Council. “According to the report, Bannon never attended a meeting of the council and Trump felt he was no longer needed to be on it. ‘Susan Rice operationalized the NSC during the last administration,’ Bannon told the Wall Street Journal. ‘I was put on to ensure that it was de-operationalized. General McMaster has returned the NSC to its proper function.'”

PASS THE KETCHUP: Why French Fries Are More of a “Superfood” Than Kale.

Frankly, the superfood term could use a sensible and scientific makeover. The foods most commonly crowned with the description are fruits and vegetables with high concentrations of antioxidants and vitamins. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, studies conducted “generally don’t provide strong evidence that antioxidant supplements have a substantial impact on disease,” so there’s no reason to assume that eating tons of so-called “superfoods” would impart added benefits over a balanced diet. Moreover, the body doesn’t need mega doses of vitamins, and too much can actually be harmful. For example, consuming an average of 1.5 cups of cooked kale a day over a six-year timespan could result in chronic vitamin A toxicity, and that assumes no other dietary intake of the vitamin.

Clearly, someone could not subsist on the current conception of “superfoods,” so how “super” are they really? A truer superfood, one which provides almost everything the body needs, is the humble potato. Packed with starch, fiber, and protein, as well as a plethora of vitamins and minerals, it may be the most complete food on the planet. Cut one up and fry the slices with a little canola oil, and you’ve got yourself a healthful feast!

I always suspected that kale was based on a vicious lie told by happiness-hating harridans.

RETAIL BLUES: Payless ShoeSource files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

I can’t remember the last time I went into a store to buy a pair of shoes.

TAXPROF: The IRS Scandal, Day 1427: 54 Applications For Tax-Exempt Status Were Rejected In 2016; One Conservative Group Has Been Waiting For An Answer Since 2009.

HOWIE CARR: “If I ever get in a jam, I ask for no special treatment. Just treat me like Susan Rice.”

REX TILLERSON: U.S. ‘Has Spoken Enough About North Korea’

NORTH KOREA: A Significant Demonstration of Missile Know-How.

The latest launch only travelled 60 kilometres horizontally, but this should not necessarily be interpreted as a failure. The missile reached an altitude of 189 kilometres, well into outer space. This would seem to be a test of an alternative trajectory, which exposes the missile to different conditions. Re-entry testing could have been conducted on this flight.

There could be another explanation for the launch. This could be a test of elements of the submarine-launched missile from a land-based silo, or a test of systems common to both missiles.

We could be witnessing the evolution of both land and sea missiles at the same time, and a growing synergy between the two.

In any case, the development of these two classes of missiles represents a major development in North Korea’s strategic power.

Nazi Germany was able to build about 5,200 V-2 ballistic missiles in less than two years, all while being subjected to Allied bombardment and invasion on two fronts. That North Korea should be able to develop a thriving missile program seven decades later and under (nominally) peacetime conditions should come as no surprise. What we can’t afford to be surprised by is their ultimate intentions.

YEAH, WELL HIS SYRIA AND LIBYA POLICIES AREN’T EXACTLY BLOOMING EITHER: Obama’s Asia Pivot Still Bearing Sour Fruit.

Obama’s vision of a multilateral regional coalition appears to be in tatters. President Trump may not mind, as he doesn’t appear to intrinsically value such things anyway. Still, he may find that the kinds of deals he wants in the region would have been easier to come by had his predecessor been more successful.

Well, I think Trump already wishes Obama had been less useless on North Korea.

FASTER, PLEASE: The End Of OPEC Is Near.

The market believes that if crude oil prices remain above $50 per barrel, U.S. shale oil production will increase. For this reason, OPEC is finding itself in a catch-22 situation: It is losing market share to the U.S. shale oil drillers, but it is unable to propel prices considerably higher. It is losing its ability to influence prices above a certain level. [As Instapundit readers have been aware for a while now. -Steve]

A cartel is able to hold its members only when it fulfills their objective of higher prices, which has not been the case with OPEC. The member nations will now look to fulfill their objective by cheating and acting individually, according to their requirement.

Saudi Arabia, which was the leader of OPEC and the price setter of the world, is losing its clout in OPEC. Even in the current round of production cuts, most of the work is being done by Saudi Arabia, whereas the other members are shying away from their designated quotas.

OPEC has far outlived the average lifespan of a cartel, but if the OPEC members don’t regroup and act together, chances are that the cartel will come to an end very soon.

It couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of crooks, thugs, and despots.

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: Wayne State Moves To Fire Five Tenured Faculty Who Have Not Published In Five Years.

Narrowing the University/Private-Sector Gap.

WELL, THIS IS THE 21ST CENTURY, YOU KNOW: Brain cancer patients live longer wearing electric cap designed to zap tumors.

The cap, called the Optune, works by sending alternating, intermediate-frequency (200kHz) electrical fields into the brains of cancer patients. The idea is that the electrical fields disrupt cell division, preventing cells from properly lining up their chromosomes during a cellular split. This disruption, the company says, is fatal to cells. But because cancer cells make up the majority of the cells dividing in the brains of adult cancer patients, the treatment is more harmful to tumors than the brain.

Patients are supposed to wear the cap for at least 18 hours every day, as well as stay on a standard chemotherapy, called temozolomide. The Optune has strips of electrodes connected to a small generator that patients can carry around in a bag. The electrical fields cause mild warming, but otherwise they don’t disrupt normal daily life. And patients can wear a hat over their futuristic-looking medical caps.

In the five-year, phase III clinical trial—from July 2009 to November 2014—466 glioblastoma patients were randomly assigned to try out the Optune with their temozolomide treatment, while 229 others took just temozolomide.

The median overall survival jumped from 16 months among patients on the standard chemotherapy to 21 months for those also using the Optune, researchers found. In the first two years, the Optune seemed to boost patient survival rates from 31 percent to 43 percent. At three years, survival went from 16 percent to 26 percent. And at four years, standard treatment patients had an 8 percent survival rate, while cap-wearers had a 20 percent rate. At five years, survival rates jumped from 5 to 13 percent.

Those are impressive numbers for a new treatment for an almost-universally fatal cancer.

CULTURAL APPROPRIATION: Black Twitter Explodes After Muslim Teen Gets Into Stanford With ‘Black Lives Matter’ Essay. “When I/we talk about black struggle being used by non-black folks for social capital and material gain, this is what’s meant by it.”

Plus, from Feminista Jones: “I’d be interested in hearing him get into more of the nuance of non-Black Muslims historically hating Black people/rejecting [Black] Muslims.” See, if you’re a white person who talks about that, you’re an Islamophobe.

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MY LATEST CREATORS SYNDICATE COLUMN: The chemical weapons attack in Syria —Obama’s Red Line Horror.