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hat 68 percent of Republicans recently approved Pres-
ident Donald Trump’s handling of the Putin Summit is far worse than frightening. America’s saving grace, how- ever, is that the majority (55 percent) of Americans disap- prove of Trump’s handling of the summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to a CBS news poll, the disapproval rate by Democrats was at 83 percent, and 53 percent by independ- ents. We fear, nevertheless, a non-reading and uninformed electorate threatens America’s democratic form of govern- ment.
We are convinced our concerns are legitimate. For in- stance, how could people who are aware of Russia’s in- volvement in the poisoning of a former spy and his daughter in London, Russia’s interference in America’s 2016 Presidential Election, the arrest of Russians con- nected to the election interference; the meetings held by Trump’s family and friends with Russians, Russia’s inva- sion and destabilization of Crimera, Russia’s interference in Syria; and American intelligence reports of how Russia promoted the racist use of social media to foster volatile race relations, believe that Russia is America’s “shadow- ally?”
How in spite of hard evidence, to the contrary, could nearly 20 percent of Americans not believe America’s in- telligence community’s reports regarding Russian complic-
ity?American allies and countries vulnerable to Russia’s meddling and invasion are shaken by Trump’s spring-love affair with a wintry Putin. Many Trump voters are express- ing regret over having cast ballots for him. Indeed, there appears to be a growing gap between the behavior of our president and the understanding of that behavior by his supporters.
If Americans don’t expand their reading and knowledge of our county’s international political alliances, we may end up with Russian becoming our national language (or at least our first language on the planet Mars if the earth survives that long).
America’s older generations were required to take a course in Problems of American Democracy (PAD) before graduating from high school. They were taught the tenets and concepts of NATO and of other U. S. treaties; the polit- ical theoretical, and practical aspects of American citizen- ship; different forms of government (democracy, autocracy, dictatorship, communism); the United Nations, among other topics.
Today, we understand PAD is now an elective if offered at all. No wonder less than 27 percent of Americans can name the three branches of American government. Can you name them? Therefore, one major problem with America is too many Americans don’t know America.
Can’t Give Up On Jameis
ecently there's been a lot
of discussion among NFL experts, on various sports televi- sion networks, who believe that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would be better off if they parted ways with their starting quarter- back, Jameis Winston. To them Jameis' seeming inability to control his off-field behavior is becoming a huge liability for the franchise.
These league know-it-alls suggest that the Bucs cut bait now before Jameis becomes involved in another scandal and costs the team further embar- rassment. But my question is, if the Buccaneer organization does decide to take their advice and release Jameis, where do they expect to find his replacement? Unless there's another Carson Wentz, Deshaun Watson or even a Jimmy Garoppolo under the radar out there who's available, to me, cutting ties with Jameis, at this point, doesn't make much sense.
The fact is, Jameis went number one in the draft for a reason. He has all of the quali- ties teams typically look for in a starting signal caller.
He is a proven winner. He has great leadership skills. He
has a high football I.Q. And he has excellent arm strength. Quarterbacks of his caliber aren't usually sitting around looking for a job. Just ask the Cleveland Browns.
Granted, he could use some work on his accuracy and his de- cision making at times. But those things are easy to correct. Finding a talented, young, fran- chise QB has proven to be a little more difficult.
Does Jameis have some character flaws that we should be concerned about? No doubt. But if the president of the United States, who admitted to doing the same things Jameis is accused of, can keep his job why can't Jameis?
As far as I'm concerned, even with his shortcomings, Jameis Winston still has what it takes to become an elite quar- terback in the NFL. And, to be honest, I really don't want to see his blossoming happen with an- other team.
I mean, Buccaneer history is littered with tales of players leaving and becoming super- stars on other squads. Aqib Talib, Michael Bennett and LaGarette Blount are all cur- rent NFL standouts who played
critical roles on multiple Super Bowl-winning teams after the Bucs gave up on them too soon.
I won't even mention the legendary mistakes made with quarterbacks like Doug Williams, Steve Young and Steve DeBerg back in the day. I can't imagine how sick Buc fans would be if Jameis' story became part of the same conver- sation.
The bottom line is that Jameis, once again, deserves the benefit of the doubt in prov- ing he's capable of turning his life around. The Pittsburgh Steelers stuck it out with Ben Roethlisberger during his sexual assault controversies and, two NFL Championships later, people barely mention "Big Ben's" past indiscretions. If Jameis can, somehow, achieve that same level of suc- cess his scandalous dalliances will also become a part of dis- tant memory.
I believe that the 3-game suspension Jameis will serve this year will wind up being a blessing in disguise. Now that he knows that his livelihood is in jeopardy, when he returns, it wouldn't be surprising if he has his best year as a professional.
Sometimes people need wake up calls to get them to where they need to be in life. With Jameis having his, we're either going to see what hap- pens when pressure bursts pipes or the powerful energy released when those pipes hold tight until the very end of the process.
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Problems Of American Democracy?
Where’s The Money?
“Before everything else, getting ready is the secret of success.”
Henry Ford
mpowered Financial
Greetings! I want to stay in the vein of continuing to empower you to win financially.
This week, I want to chal- lenge you to “SHOW ME THE MONEY!” No, I don’t want you to show me the money, but show yourself, where it is that your money goes. This will be one of the most important steps you can take in getting ready to posi- tion yourself to win finan- cially.
We’ve often heard it said that you have to know where you’ve been in order to know where you’re going. This adage is especially true when it comes to your money and your finan-
cial future.
SHOW ME THE MONEY is a principle that en- courages you to track your ex- penses, no matter how large or small, for an entire month. There are three benefits you will receive from writing down everything you spend money on each and every day of the month.
1). It helps you to identify not only where you are spend- ing your money, but how much money you are spending in spe- cific areas.
2). Knowing this will help you make an informed decision on how to reallocate your money, to areas that are more in line with your financial goals.
3). Thus, better equipping you to make a winning budget. While waiting for the next
column, get ready for your fi- nancial success by beginning to
track your expenses for the month.
Until next column, be en- couraged to take the necessary steps to prepare for your best fi- nancial future.
About Selphenia Selphenia Nichols Sim- mons is hailed as “The Queen of Success”. As a Life and Busi- ness Success Coach, she in- spires Christian women and entrepreneurs to go from being a mess to making massive prof-
its that profit the masses. Selphenia’s no-nonsense business strategies take indi- viduals and organizations from scratch, or anywhere in be-
tween, to Success.
Selphenia is available to
speak at churches, schools, uni- versities, business organiza- tions, retreats and conferences.
To request Selphenia to speak or train at your upcoming event call (813) 603-0088.
Get connected. Join Selphenia on Social Media for some daily motivation.
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FRIDAY, AUGUST 3, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5-A