Before my hurricane comparison, a few international developments.  I begin with President Donald Trump, here with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.  From  Time : Like other political and business leaders around the world,   South Korean President Lee Jae-myung   looked to lavish the U.S. President with a gift, a thinly veiled attempt to get to his heart. While some, like   Japan’s Prime Minister who met Trump on Tuesday , have lavished him with   golf clubs , and others have flattered him with honorary   medals and trophies , Lee presented the man who earlier this year   proclaimed himself “king” on a fake TIME magazine cover   with a gold crown . That photo above is gift of gold crown to Trump to commemorate a golden age of the Korea-U.S. alliance.  Note Lee's special gold tie.  A replica of a 1000-year old Korean kingdom crown.  Symbolizes the divine connection between authority of the heavens and sovereignty on eart...

But before I get into Sanae Takaichi, the first female prime minister of Japan, the latest news of the day. Did you know that the meaning of trumpery is worthless nonsense?  Term has long been in this dictionary: Trumpery   - as defined by Merriam-Webster:  "The meaning of   TRUMPERY   is worthless nonsense ."  Showy but worthless finery; bric-a-brac.   Nonsense; rubbish.   Deception; trickery; fraud. While the world turns with not much peace, and the U.S. still in government shutdown, Wall Street is breaking all time high records. According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 gained 82.92 points, or 1.23%, to end at 6,874.61 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 431.22 points, or 1.86%, to 23,636.09. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 333.87 points, or 0.71%, to 47,540.99 . However, last time I checked, gold prices today tumbled by 3% to just below $4000/ounce, a sign that there just might be a solution to sanity with China tariffs, while...

Seabed mining goes back to 1869, Jules Verne, and   20,000 Leagues Under the Sea  ( paperback for $3.95 ).  Then in the 1870's, the British Challenger Expedition explored the world's oceans for polymetallic nodules. Amazingly enough, I was once an authority in deep seabed mining.  I was the staff manager in the U.S. Senate for the  Deep Seabed Mineral Resources Act in 1981 , and attended a variety of Law of the Sea gatherings around the world.  That was more than 40 years ago.  When I was director of the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute from the mid-80s to 2000, we were with the University of Mississippi the national centers for this topic with funding from the Department of Interior.  I retired almost a quarter century ago, and the field is finally beginning to show some life. But back then, there was one more matter of secret urgency, using this Senate legislation as a post-cover.  A  Russian submarine had sunk close to Hawaii , and our...