Last of the year

This may very well be the last post I'll make this year.  Aside from family milestones I'm pretty happy to put 2017 in the rear view mirror.  Starting with the inauguration of Orange Narcissus, there has been some violation of democratic norms virtually every day.  At least many of us haven't gotten used to the constant lying by virtually everyone employed in this administration.  Hopefully the outrage will be sustained through the upcoming elections.  On the pop culture front, we continue to lose many of the rock and roll icons who started the genre and kept it fresh and relevant.  Chuck Berry, David Bowie and Tom Petty are the brightest lights among the many who passed.  Closer to home, a younger cousin and a favorite aunt also left us, far too early in both cases.  Feelings of mortality are ever present at the waning of the old year.  But, those of us who remain resolve to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the new year.  As Tiny Tim should have said, "Flying Spaghetti Monster bless us, everyone"!

Liar in chief

One of the most annoying aspects of the tRump presidency is the constant lying.  He is on a "working vacation" in Florida and claims he is not golfing.  This is a lie that is easy to confirm.  There are numerous pictures of him on the golf course every day.  As a golfer, I would hate to be paired with such a man.  You know he cheats on his score.  A 20 foot birdie putt is probably conceded by the lickspittles he does play with.   Meanwhile, he knows the right wing media will back up his lies regarding golf, so he flips the bird to the rest of us.  I'm sure the briefing he receives every day is the extent of the work he does at Mar-a -Lago.  The only benefit of the 111 days of vacation he has taken so far is the lesser pace of his destruction of democratic norms while he is  on the links. 

Trumpgeddon

Many pundits on the left have decided we are too worried about the daily damage being done by the tRump administration to our democratic polity.   The Donald hasn't done any more damage than say a President Cruz, and besides he has saddled the GOP with a lot of political baggage it won't shed for years, if not decades.  If the Dems run around with their hair on fire every day, lamenting the recent tax bill as "Armageddon" and the declaration on Jerusalem  as the worst foreign policy gaffe since the Iraq war, they risk making the public blasé when these predictions of disaster don't live up to the hype.  It is true that a unified republican government hasn't gotten much done, and we haven't gotten into any shooting wars, yet.   However, the hollowing out of so many government agencies by political appointees whose only qualification seems to be their opposition to the mission of said agencies is unprecedented.  Reagan tried some of these tactic, most notably with the EPA, but a democratic congress spared us the worst case scenario.  tRump and his enablers have a cheering section in the GOP dominated House and Senate and irreversible damage may be done to several agencies.  The judiciary is being ideologically tilted for possibly decades in which it will possibly thwart the coming progressive wave.   These are legitimate reasons to condemn this travesty of an administration.   By not loudly and constantly calling out the daily efforts at subversion, we risk the possibility of normalizing this abnormal behavior.

Post Christmas thoughts

A very Merry Christmas was had by all the celebrants at Casa Monzeglio.   Most of us took vicarious pleasure at the sight of 3 year olds tearing open multiple wrapped packages with rapacious delight.  They will start to actually enjoy said gifts in the coming days, but they have probably not come down from the sugar high of Christmas.   My usual quibble with the holiday; it is a monetized celebration of consumerism was muted in the face of the enjoyment had by Ben, Hannah, Erica and even one year old Wyatt.  So what if a significant portion of our national GDP is dependent on a one day extravaganza of gifting!  Meanwhile, climate change deniers will point to the weather in the Northeast and Midwest as proof there is no warming going on.  By Thursday, our highs here on the NCR will hover in the single digits and lows will be 15-20 below.  We haven't seen temps like this in several years.  But I am told by longtime residents that as late as the 70s and 80s, this was considered normal weather.  Cold snaps included temps in the -40 degree range, so break out the flip-flops, it's downright tropical.

Happy Holidays

Today will be 1 second longer than yesterday here on the NCR!  We have officially started the long climb toward summer in 2018.   I can start looking at seed catalogs and golf holiday advertisements with a certain guilty pleasure.   Congresscritters are headed back to their home districts where many will be guilted by constituents regarding their recent vote on the tax scam of 2017.  tRump will undoubtedly be holding court in Mar-a-Lago, spilling state secrets, playing golf and otherwise embarrassing the nation.  The rest of us will enjoy a brief respite from politics and savor the joys of the holiday season.  The Divine Mrs. M and I wish everyone who deserves it (you know who you are) peace on earth and may all your fondest wishes be realized. 

DACA and the Democrats

Following the final vote on the republican "tax reform" bill, the democrats are left with a dilemma.  Traditionally, dems run as the "we're better than republicans".  That may even work next year, but the party risks depressing turnout if it can't offer a positive reason for the rank and file to vote.  They can push repeal and replace of the tax law, but many in the base won't feel the effects of the law for several years.  They could push a resolution to the problem by proposing comprehensive  in reform.  That risks the backlash from right wing media.  Medicare for all or more plausibly Medicaid for all might be the winner.  Especially as many people forego health insurance with the repeal of the ACA mandate.

What is good for the goose

Repeal and replace should be the new mantra for democrats going into the 2018 elections.  The republicans will pass their tax giveaway today and it is tailor made for the mid-terms, much as the ACA was for republicans in 2010.  The difference was Obamacare was redistributive downwards and was demonized as a gift to "those People".  The tax bill is a wet kiss to the .01% and a Bronx cheer to the rest of us.  In the final two weeks leading up to passage they made it even worse with goodies like the Corker kickback which benefits a dozen or so Senators as well as the*president.  The authors of the bill were counting on the crumbs which many in the middle class will get for the first few years to temper the backlash to the bill.  However, aside from inveterate Faux News viewers, the rest of us know what's in the bill.   Corker's embarrassment is due to some savvy reporting by David Sirota who wondered why the Tennessee senator changed his vote despite the bill's provisions exploding the deficit, which the pious Corker said was a non starter for him.  So let's make sure of democratic majorities in the House and Senate so this tax bill can be re-visited and made more equitable for the majority of the population.

Even Astrology hates the tax bill

I was going to try to avoid a political post today, instead noting the approach of the Winter Solstice with ruminations on winter (I hate it) and how our modern Christmas is a corruption of various pagan rites the early Christian church used to indoctrinate new followers.  But even the change of seasons is political these days.  It turns out that this year in a situation that hasn't occurred in 350 years, Saturn will be in Capricorn on the 21st of December and somehow anything undertaken that day will turn into a catastrophe.  Cue republicans, who will probably vote on their new tax bill on Thursday the 21st!   Of course, most non-partisan tax watchdogs as well as all democratic interest groups are certain this bill will exacerbate the inequalities of wealth in America, but who knew even the stars are against this travesty.

nihilism, pure and simple

The Nice Polite Republicans on NPR this morning interviewed a republican representative from Maryland regarding the tax bill sailing through Congress.  He was allowed to regurgitate all the talking points leadership has been selling.   He incorrectly posited that a middle class family with $90,000 income would receive a $4000. tax refund.  Of course, the whole line of questioning was besides the point.  What this tax bill does is gut the federal government's ability to fund infrastructure investment, research and development, social services and most anything benefitting the majority of the nation's population.   As Kevin Drum points out, if you give the institutional republican party credit for any insight it would be they realize that despite their best efforts to disenfranchise and demonize minorities in this country, demographic destiny will catch up to them shortly.  Despite the candidacy of tRump maximizing the white, mostly racist vote, they figure they will probably be out of power for decades if the party survives at all, so why not make their last years in power a smash and grab operation.  So what if it leaves America a helpless, hollowed out power.  They will leave this mess to the next democratic administration which will, hopefully explain that now that the adults are once again in charge again, the oligarchic concentrations of wealth and power now being enshrined in the tax code will be dispersed to the general population and the nation will begin the rebuilding process in a more equitable fashion.

Another in a series

The Washington Post published the results of another study of the relationship of racism to tRump's victory in 2016.  No surprise, it affirms what other studies and anecdotal evidence have previously stated.  Trump and his handlers waged a racist campaign which struck a chord in a racist nation.  Of course, the recent election of Doug Jones in Alabama is further confirmation of the efficacy of racist campaigns.  76% of white men and 63% of white women voted for an alleged child molester who opined America was great during the era of slavery, because families were "united".  What put Jones over the top was the fact 98% of black women and 92% of black men (I'd love to find out what motivated 8% of black voters to support slavery) voted for the democrat.  Had the other republican who Moore defeated in the primary, Luther Strange, been the GOP candidate he probably would have won by 30 points.  Despite the protestations of liberals and conservatives alike, racism is alive and well in 21st century America. The unfunny thing about it is in European countries which have decried American prejudice, as soon as they have a significant immigrant population racism rears its ugly head.   The primal fear of the "other" is probably a genetic defense mechanism left over from our earliest ancestors.  To small bands of proto humans, anyone who was not a member of the clan was anathema.  Unfortunately we have not outgrown this defense mechanism and until everyone is the same color, racism will color our interpersonal relations.  Until then, some people suggest we empathize with the racists among us.  I would prefer other paths to sainthood.

Hopeful signs

Doug Jones' victory in the Alabama special election can be seen as either a momentary blip in the decline of civility in America or as a sign that there is hope for the republic.  Of course, the accusations of predation on teenage girls by Roy Moore were a big part  of his defeat.  It turns out that many Alabamians were outraged enough to either change and vote for a democrat or stay home and depress republican turnout.  I think I would bet on the latter, as with an all out GOTV, Jones squeeked out a victory.  Most commentators are betting any garden variety republican untainted by scandal will cruise to victory over Jones in 2020.  But who knows at this point.  Maybe the horse will sing by that time!

Alabama follies

While most of the country holds its collective breath and hopes that sanity wins the day in Alabama, I doubt the average American would wager more than a cup of coffee that 'Bama will do the right thing and elect an upstanding family man and former prosecutor over an alleged child molester and law breaker.  Alabama is one of several states the Divine Mrs. M would not even fly over if given the option and her antipathy is based on the intolerance and hypocrisy that has allowed Roy Moore's candidacy to advance to the eve of the election as the favorite.  Many republicans no doubt say democrats would vote for a pervert if he was on the ballot in a deep blue state.  To them I say, check out Anthony Weiner's career arc in New York.  The election in Alabama is a referendum on the republican party.   A win by Moore should cause nationwide revulsion for the party among women, minorities and anyone with a shred of decency.  I hope my fellow Americans in Alabama do the right thing, but I won't be betting on it.

This and That

While it wasn't "A Star is Born" moment, at least (I think) I didn't embarrass myself as I lent my voice to the Champlain Valley Voices production of the Christmas portion of Handel's Messiah last Saturday evening.  A good time was had by all.  The concert was the culmination of rehearsals dating back to late August and the 55 voice chorus belted out the oratorio, assisted by a full baroque string orchestra and some very talented soloists.  Having not participated in a chorus since the 6th grade, I was somewhat intimidated by my fellow musicians, but love of the music overcame my trepidation.  The Divine Mrs. M's tireless encouragement was instrumental in keeping me on course.  Meanwhile, tomorrow the family will celebrate another milestone as Justyce Rain Kirker changes her name to Erica Justyce Groleau and officially becomes a member of our extended family.  She won our hearts four years ago, so this is merely an affirmation of our love and a milestone for daughter and son-in-law Alicia and Rick.  It will be a very Merry Christmas on the NCR.  Speaking of which it looks like we will get our first significant snowfall tomorrow.  Have I mentioned how much I hate winter!

Another infamous date

It has been 37 years since John Lennon was gunned down by Mark Chapman.  It seems weird to think my eldest daughter was 5 months old at the time.   How much has changed in our lives since that date.   I was a casual Beatles fan at the time, and had mixed reviews of the post mop top careers of John, Paul, George and Ringo.  I preferred Harrison's music and his social conscience, but Lennon also intrigued me.   I sometimes wonder what he would have created if given another 4 decades.   Would his music have had continued relevance to the baby boom generation?   As my baby brother would philosophically state, "Hard tellin', not knowin".   Would there have been another "Imagine" to challenge the right wing evangelicals who were becoming increasingly political at the time?  What ifs are bittersweet at best, but Lennon's hard edged advocacy of peace and equality would certainly be an antidote to tRump and the modern day republican party.

Unilateral disarmament

It was sad yesterday to see Al Franken, formerly one of the Senate's most widely respected leaders, announce his resignation amid charges of inappropriate conduct.   I realize as an old white man who has been afforded the benefit of the doubt my entire life, it is not easy for me to comment on the foibles of other old white men.   However, in this case it would seem the democrats are indulging in the fantasy that their moral propriety will be reciprocated by the republicans, and I won't let that misconception pass.  Yes, Franken probably indulged in some crude behavior, but did it rise to the level of forced resignation.  I guarantee there are at least a half dozen republican senators who have done that much or worse and will never be called on it and if they were they would not resign.  As Dahlia Lithwick pointed out recently, democrats are right to exercise zero tolerance in a perfect world.  The fact their opponents refuse to do so is the cautionary part of the equation. 

Another date that will live in infamy

Of course, any date since Jan. 20, 2017 is a pretty good candidate for that designation, but since I haven't seen any mention of the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941, I figured I would mention it.  As the "Greatest Generation" has continually reminded the rest of us, Dec. 7, 1941 was the beginning of the struggle to preserve democracy around the world.  We won that fight and the victors reaped an unrivalled era of prosperity.  It's a pity that many from that generation and more than a few of the baby boomers are flushing democracy down the proverbial toilet.

What a deal!

If Donald J. Trump took over Monty Hall's old slot at "Let's make a Deal", instead of offering the contestants a choice of doors #1,2, or 3, he would allow them to look behind 2 doors before having to choose.   What a deal!  That's exactly what he did for the state of Israel yesterday when he recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state.   The Prime Minister was probably turning cartwheels as America surrendered a potential bargaining chip in the peace process.  By granting recognition with no strings attached, tRump managed to unite Jordan, Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia in condemnation of the move.  Meanwhile, this move will undoubtedly re-energize Hammas and Hezbollah as the foci of Palestinian resistance to Israel.  We will never know what Netanyahu would have been willing to give up in return for US recognition of Jerusalem, because no one asked him for any concession.  What a farce.

Bubbles

As Rachel Maddow's show fades out and Lawrence O'Donnell and his latest guests eviscerate the GOP and its titular head, I wonder what my crazy uncle would make of the proceedings on MSNBC on an average weeknight.  I know I'll never find out, because the uncle in question would never tune into the above mentioned shows any more than I would check out the latest stylings by Sean Hannity.  We live in mutually exclusive bubbles and both of us consider ourselves in possession of the only truthful narrative of our national politics.  Ordinarily, the alignment of Maddow, et. al with the national media's interpretation of the facts would be an open and shut case.  However, after a nearly 40 year campaign by the GOP and its counterfactual universe, the New York Times and Washington Post are deemed by most voters who identify as republicans as "fake news" and dismissed when reality collides with their chosen narrative.  These views are reinforced by social media which verifies such idiocies as Hillary running a child sex slavery ring out of the basement of a D.C. pizzeria.   How the truth can compete with this is problematical at best.

Obsessing

This may be a repetitive post, but even on the cusp of retirement, I find the future of work a fascinating topic.   Growing up in mid to late 20th century America, most people, myself included, measured their self worth by the work they did and the value they produced.  Not working was something hippies and welfare cheats did and they were properly excoriated by society for violating this norm.  The recent spate of articles about AI or artificial intelligence explores the potential of this technology to change how we measure self worth in the future.  Many of these explorations of AI blithely claim it will be like many revolutions in the past.  It will take over many jobs now done by humans, but somehow many new jobs we can't even imagine will be created.  Unfortunately, there is a huge hole in this logic.  As Kevin Drum points out, if AI can meet or exceed human intelligence, then by definition it will also be able to do any new jobs created better than humans.   Many in Silicon Valley and other AI incubators are worried about what to do with a population with basically no work function in a future society.   With the automation of most routine jobs which will include many highly technical and well paying professions, how will our grandchildren and their progeny define themselves if they have not work function.   As we build machines with the ability to build more and better machines, will these super powerful computers decide humanity is disposable?  Or will the material abundance eliminate poverty and usher in a virtual heaven on earth where everyone can live up to his or her potential, freed from the drudgery and lack of choice forced on most of us in the present.   These are the questions our generation should be asking as we quite possibly face the end of work as a measure of social worth.

What to say

If this was a recording, I would be speechless.  Living in the first term of a Trump presidency can have that effect on anyone who expects the chief executive of the nation to at least pretend to be a grownup.  After his pick to be leader of the National Security Council was indicted for lying to the FBI by the special counsel investigating tRump's campaign's ties to Russia, all he could do was relentlessly attack the agency all weekend.   As one commentator pointed out the press and law enforcement agencies, in the absence of congressional oversight, represent the only check on  the president's power.  This inability to suborn the free press and the law drives Orange Narcissus crazy.  I wonder how long he will be able to resist the urge to use the substantial powers he controls to actually damage his remaining adversaries.  

Tax follies

It looks like faux deficit outrage by a small number of republicans is all that stands in  the way of the latest redistribution plan by the GOP.  Bob Corker and Jeff Flake, neither of whom is running for office again are free to voice their inner deficit hawks, albeit not too loudly if they wish to feed at the wingnut welfare trough when they leave the Senate.  Their objections have put a speed bump in an otherwise smooth road to send more middle class money to the 1%.   This horrible tax bill is unpopular and opposed by economists, interest groups on both sides of the political divide and the general public, but aside from the aforementioned senators, there is no outrage in Congress.  This bill is a big wet kiss to the donor class.  I hope the "little people" realize there is strength in numbers and while it may be too late to kill this monstrosity, we can at least make the perps pay for it in 2018.

Condemning the Enablers

One reason the insult comedian continues his tired act in the oval office is the many staffers in the White House who excuse the lies, and defend the indefensible tweets and moronic statements propagated on a daily basis by this *president.   Chief  among them is the press secretary, the loathsome Sarah Huckabee Sanders, aka the spawn of Huck.   While it is uncharitable to criticize her appearance, an occasional smile might lend a little humanity to a visage only a mother could love.  However, her blind devotion to the demented head of state she serves is the real reason for disapproval.  After being questioned as to how the *president could retweet an obviously doctored video showing a dutch boy being beaten by a muslim, which was subsequently denounced by the British PM, all she could say was whether the video was true or not, the problem of muslim terrorism is point tRump was making.  How any self respecting human being could go before the national press and make that argument is beyond my understanding.  Enabling the racist, islamophobic impulses boiling out of this administration is something she should answer for when the entire rotten edifice crumbles.  Like Ron Zeigler, the press flack for Tricky Dick, Sanders will go down in history as a poor joke of a human being.

Another Shoe drops

Matt Lauer has joined the parade of men accused of sexual misconduct by fellow workers.  He was fired from the Today show this morning, apparently minutes before the show was about to begin.   We seem to be rapidly approaching the "reign of terror" moment when firings and public shaming of media and government figures become more and more indiscriminate.  Most of us know what happened in the aftermath of the French Revolution.  The reaction against the excesses of Robespierre led to the Empire and a retrenchment of privilege.  I wonder if the present purge will result in something similar.

Franken and Moore and fairness

Both of the above named men have been accused of sexual harassment by credible victims.  They have dealt with the charges in diametrically opposite ways, and the response of their constituencies is instructive.   While most of Franken's supporters, myself included, were shocked by the stories, we could console ourselves that at least he made a heartfelt apology (with a little prodding) and continues to express his shame and embarrassment.  Even his first accuser did not insist he resign after his apology.  Meanwhile, Roy Moore remains defiant, dismissing his accusers as liars, despite numerous corroborations, ala his role model, the *president.  While he has lost some support in deep red Alabama, Moore is still the odds on favorite to win Jeff Sessions senate seat.  I doubt Franken will run for reelection and wouldn't be surprised to see him lose if he did compete, despite his mea culpas.   While I sympathize with the women who were harassed in both cases, it seems that doing the right thing results in punishment, while doubling down on the crimes gets the perp a free pass.  Democrats must eat their own, while Republicans smirk on their way to election.   I don't know about you, but it seems fairness is phenomenon experienced mostly by liberals.

Onward Christmas Soldiers

Now that Thanksgiving is safely in the rearview mirror, the attention of most of my fellow countrymen has now turned to Christmas.  Cyber Monday is upon us and according to NPR we will be spending at least 6 billion dollars online today.  A majority of the spending will be on stuff most of us will thank the giver for and promptly deposit in a closet somewhere out of sight.  Having participated in 66 Christmases as a giver and receiver of gifts, I am torn by the desire to give versus the near certainty that most of the gifts will probably wind up in the aforementioned closet.  Ah, the Christmas spirit is here!

Thankfulness

I'm still recovering from the annual turkey jubilee, but I did want to make one point about family.  The Divine Mrs. M and I are fortunate we don't have to deal with any crazy uncles decrying liberal politics on Thanksgiving Day.  While we do have these people in the family, they are safely ensconced in a Faux News bubble in Florida.  We do exchange Christmas cards with some of them, but that is the extent of our interaction.  My siblings and virtually all of their immediate families are in sync regarding the virtue or lack of same of our political parties, so we can concentrate on thankfulness and eating, the real meaning of Thanksgiving!

Disempowering the people

Kevin Drum reported yesterday on two issues which show how people are screwed over by policies enacted by republican lawmakers and the present administration.  In the first instance, state legislatures in 9 states controlled by republicans have passed laws disenfranchising anyone with outstanding court fees, fines or legal fees.  In Alabama that amounts to over 100,000 people or more than 3% of voting age residents.  It goes without saying these are overwhelmingly black and poor people who may have been caught up in the system for traffic infractions, missed child support payments or any of the myriad costs incurred by poor people during their interaction with the legal system that most of us take for granted.   Most of these voters being denied their rights are democratic voters, but of course this is a feature, not a bug to most republicans.  Drum's other point was the rapid devolvement of the sexual harassment issue into a partisan imbroglio.  While everyone piously agrees this is a zero tolerance issue, it has rapidly become a continuing story of republican denial and obfuscation and democratic acceptance and punishment.  The parallel stories of Al Franken and Roy Moore are instructive in this regard.  One credible accuser has so far come forth in the case of Franken.  After a brief period of soul searching, Franken issued a humble apology and agreed to cooperate with a congressional investigation. Moore, on the other hand has denied the charges of 9 women (and counting) and has impugned their integrity, implying this is a partisan attack.  This is the tRump playbook.   As Drum points out, if democrats see this is a heads I win, tails you lose situation, their continued cooperation will be suspect.  If being an insensitive asshole gets you a pass, more men of all political persuasions will be more likely to join the asshole political party.  Taken together, these point out essential differences in the political parties at this juncture in history.  It is up to individuals to reward good behavior at the ballot box and punish bad.  Let's hope the majority feels the same way.  Alabama's special election provides a test case.  It will be interesting to see  what the results say about the state of our politics in 2017.

Reading the fine print

Many of us political junkies have been obsessed with the continuing investigations of the Trump administration's ties to Russia.  This has led to blindness regarding the continuing despoliation of the federal government and the judiciary by the supposed "incompetents" hired by the Orange Narcissus.  These people may not be competent in the sense that good administrators who know the mission of their departments are, but when it comes to destruction, they are top notch.  State, EPA, Interior and Education are being hollowed out as we speak and if Tom Price had not been forced out of Health and Human Services the same would be happening to that department.  Meanwhile, the stacking of the Federal judiciary continues at a breakneck pace.  The American Bar Association ratings are meaningless to this administration.  Instead, the litmus test is a far right ideology which can't be bothered by facts.  Recently, the Senate Judiciary committee voted along party lines to confirm a 36 year old blogger to a federal appeals court judgeship for life.  He has never tried a case and it seems his most salient qualification is marriage to a lawyer who works in the White House.  While we may be able to get rid of tRump in 2020, the nation will be dealing with the vandalism to our institutions for many years to come.  This is what you get when you elect a serial liar with no qualifications out of a desire to "shake things up".  Be careful what you vote for!

Theories of Relativity

The weekend news continued to be dominated by the continuing story of Roy Moore and the parade of women whose stories of underage "dating" and sexual assault at the hands of the Senate candidate from Alabama keep coming.  As most of the women respond to inquires of why they hadn't come forward sooner with the explanation that "no one asked us", it would put the excuses that it happened 40 years ago to rest.  Moore has not disputed the fact he pursued teenagers when he was a 30 something assistant D.A in Gadsen in the 70s.  He just maintains it was totally legal and his attentions did not cross any lines.  If I was writing ads for the democratic challenger, I would simply ask the voters of Alabama if they have wives, daughters, sisters or female friends and would they tolerate a 32 year old man making advances on these women when they were 14-16.  If they were fine with that thought, then go ahead and vote for Moore, since they  are no better than him.   As one commentator reacted to an evangelical pastor defending Moore, he decried the "moral relativity" of defending what is essentially child molestation by claiming the Lord is working through people such as Moore.  What a bankrupt thought!

What's good for the goose

So, now one of the liberal lions of the Senate, Al Franken stands accused and convicted with photographic evidence of at the very least sexual misconduct if not outright assault.  Franken promptly apologized and then donned sackcloth and ashes when his original contrition was not deemed sufficient.  This has led to the extremes of demanding his immediate resignation to advising him to "tough it out" until his term is up in 2020.  Personally I find myself ambivalent.  Franken was not a senator at the time, but a comedian who, at least in the picture in question made a pathetically poor attempt at comedy.  This may have been funny 50 years ago, but by 2006 when the incident took place it was definitely beyond the pale.  More troubling was the victims story about the forced kiss demanded by Franken in the name of rehearsing a comedy skit.  Still, if this is a one time event and Franken's apology is accepted as sufficient by the victim,  I believe the voters of Minnesota can decide Franken's fate in 2020.  If however a parade of harassed women come forward to accuse the senator, he should step down and deal with the fallout.   Holier than thou liberals need to take a deep breath before they turn what should be a teachable moment into a reign of terror.

The times they are a changin

Every generation finds new relevance in Bob Dylan's old folk tune.  The latest issue to reflect the lyrics is the struggle of women against the patriarchy and its insistence on objectifying and degrading the fair sex.  It started with Harvey Weinstein and has since snowballed into a full fledged examination of men's attitudes about women, sex and power.  Episodes of misogyny from decades ago have been dragged into the spotlight and the men who perpetrated the outrages are belatedly paying for them in the court of public opinion.  In a way, it is the Handmaid's Tale in reverse.  Now it is the men who must search their consciences for evidence of discrimination and pay a price in the court of public opinion.  Even Bill Clinton is not immune to the urge by many to force a reckoning on any man who took advantage of women by virtue of his superior position in the social and political hierarchy.  What most men still don't realize is we continue to enjoy an advantage over women because all of our social, political and religious institutions start with the assumption of male superiority.  In a way, it is worse than racism because it stems from the very earliest civilizations.  Unless and until several generations of men and women are raised as true equals, the struggle will continue.

Reflections

As I told one pre-emptive well wisher yesterday, I long ago stopped eagerly anticipating birthdays and have rarely reflected on the changes in body and mind which have occurred over the years.  For the most part I have welcomed the accumulation of years with the insouciance of youth.  For some reason I somehow felt I would avoid the aches and pains of the aging process and maintain the same level of performance at 66 as I did at 36.  Needless to say I have had a rude education regarding the effects of anno domini on bones and muscle.   I wish I could say that at least the mental processes have resisted the aging effect.  However, daily evidence to the contrary has destroyed that hope.  I'm left with the old saw which states that age imparts wisdom.  Reflecting on the spectacle of a 70 something pedophile brazenly running for the Senate in Alabama, I can't put to much stock in that nostrum.   Optimistically, I hope to continue in reasonably good health, enjoy the love of a very good woman, continue to enjoy work and play and watch the younger generations of the family grow and thrive.  That is my birthday wish.

The GOP's weiner problem

Much as Democrats had to deal with Anthony Weiner and his sexting problem, Republicans now must wrestle with their Roy Moore dilemma.  Both men have demonstrated they are manifestly unfit to represent at least half of the population.   The democrats were able to distance themselves from their pervert amid a universal chorus of approbation.   Both sides denounced Weiner and despite his one last try for public office he has basically faded from view.   Unfortunately for republicans, Roy Moore and many who support him will not go quietly into that good night.  Shoes continue to drop and even Sean Hannity may have to revise his endorsement.  There is something inherently skeevy about 30 something men preying on teenage girls that may turn enough voters to do the unthinkable and vote for a democrat, but the smart money is on Moore to win this election and become a democrat attack ad for the 2018  and 2020 elections in 49 states.  To paraphrase the late, great Edward R. Murrow,  " Alabama, have you no shame"?

Online immolation

The next time you click on the Amazon link or engage with another online retailer, it might behoove you to think of your local friends and neighbors and how our behaviors in this regard are impacting local communities.   The catalyst for this rant was a story in Bloomberg about the coming retail "apocalypse" coming to a mall near you and a visit to said local mall.  I generally avoid shopping if possible, but I needed a black suit to appear with the Divine Mrs. M in our local singing group's performance of Handel's Messiah next month.  Entering the local J.C. Penney with some trepidation, I was able to purchase my glad rags on sale at up to 60% off ticketed prices.  At checkout, I was informed I could save an additional 40% by signing up for a store credit card.  Having done so and being approved on the spot, I supposedly saved $270.00 on my purchase.  Now of course some of the savings were illusory, but to be able to buy a fairly decent suit and tie for $115.00 including taxes seemed almost too good to be true.  Penney is struggling against online competition and seems to be holding its own, but its debt is piling up and when it tries to refinance, the bell may start tolling.  While it may be hard to sympathize with tenants in malls which systematically destroyed downtown businesses, they at least provided jobs for local people.  Online merchants don't keep their profits in the local economy and don't provide jobs, unless you happen to be near a "fulfillment" center where you can work in a soul killing giant warehouse.  It looks like we are entering the retail endgame, where everything will be available online and brick and mortar will be obsolete, as will the retail jobs which so many low income workers depend on.  Think about that the next time you blow a wet kiss in Jeff Bezo's direction.

Lords of the Flies

As the controversy swirling around Senate candidate Roy Moore intensifies, it would seem that a strong strain of tribalism has come into play.   For Moore partisans, it would seem that unless his accusers of pedophilia can produce a tape showing the actual moment of unlawful contact between him and a 14 year old girl, there is no crime.  Probably there are a few republicans who would even argue against charges in that event.  Similarly, a reporter contacted people in Johnstown, Pa. who voted for Trump a year after the election to see if they had changed their minds.  When first interviewed, these mostly lower middle class whites were skeptical of Trump, but were ready to give him a chance to make their lives better.  Fast forward and the same people who set a time limit of 3-6 months to show results now say all that doesn't matter.  When pressed, they admit the attraction of Trump is he gives them permission to hate.   That seems to be what their lives have devolved to in 2017.   The fact his declared policies would actually make their lives worse means little or nothing to them compared to the opportunity to yell at black NFL players who kneel to protest racial injustice.  Roy Moore is tapping into a similar well of tribalism.  It is a dark road we are travelling and unless the citizens of Alabama choose to shine a light on Dec. 12, it will get darker still.  The title of this post refers to the William Goldman novel about the travails of a group of prep school boys marooned on an island with no adult supervision and the horrific society they develop on their own.  When I first read the book, I could barely believe the story was possible.  Now, not so much.  Piggies of the world, Unite!
 

Post-Post Mortems

The body has not even cooled, but the autopsies of the election results around the country are continuing as pundits on both sides try with the benefit of hindsight to claim they knew all along that appeals to racism and white nationalism would backfire on republicans.  This after even democratic leaning analysts had excoriated Ralph Northam for running what they termed a  lackluster campaign.  What they meant was he stuck to issues and mostly refused to respond to the hateful ads run by Ed Gillespie.  Now, in retrospect, Northam is being celebrated for his forbearance and his approach will be lauded as the template for all future democratic campaigns.  NOT... each state and local election will demand a different approach, depending on the region and voter preferences.  A real litmus test of democratic revival in the Trump era will be the special election in Alabama to determine the ultimate successor to the execrable Jefferson Beauregard Sessions.  If  the dems in deep red Alabama can beat the lunatic Roy Moore, it will be a turning point in the battle against Trumpism.   Even a tight race would encourage other candidates to challenge supposedly safe republican districts.  As they say, you have to crawl before you can walk.

Back in the Saddle

It was a wonderful couple of weeks, but now it's over.  The Divine Mrs. M and her faithful baggage handler are back from a European vacation even Chevy Chase would be proud of.  Having not taken more than two weeks in a row for vacation since the early 80's, it was with trepidation I embarked, but as I should have known, the world of vegetable distribution managed to continue in my absence.  It was gratifying that at least a few people claimed they missed me.  Meanwhile, it was bracing to realize the rest of the world, or at least the small slice of it we encountered in Paris and London seems to be getting along fine with the idea that America, with a little help from Russia elected an incompetent simpleton as President.  The English are consumed by sexual abuse scandals among politicians of all political stripes as well as trying to parse the details of Brexit.  The French are mostly obsessed about where they will be spending their next vacation and what effect their new president will have on their jobs.  It was refreshing to say the least.  I'll relate more about our trip as it is reflected through the lens of politics and policy, or as it chronicles the journey of two innocents in strange lands.  Meanwhile, it looks as if many people in Virginia and New Jersey are sending a message they are tired of the politics of division and its chief practitioner.  The  republican in the Virginia governor's race distanced himself from The Donald, but not his policies and he went down to a stunning defeat.  Let's hope it is the first of many, culminating in a democratic capture of the House in the 2018 elections.

Lies and the Biggest Liar

It is almost a relief to be out of the country for a couple of weeks.  I hope the *president doesn't do anything to spark any international outrage.  It's bad enough being an American abroad these days without Cheeto Jesus making it more difficult to be proud of our nationality.  He will undoubtedly keep feuding with Gold Star families over his treatment of the survivors of deceased servicemembers as well as continuing his sabotage of Obamacare.  Lies and more lies from the world's biggest pre-varicator.  Fortunately that news probably won't get much coverage from the foreign press.  I look forward to trying to explain to Frenchmen next week and Britons the following week how America lost its collective mind last November.  Blogging will be light to non-existent for the next couple of weeks, but I'll be storing impressions which I will be anxious to share next month.

Trumpian comfort

It's no wonder the Donald has not been calling the families of American servicemen and women who were KIA.  When he finally called the pregnant wife of one of the soldiers killed in Niger almost 2 weeks ago, he was quoted as saying "he knew what he signed up for".  This a new low, even for Orange Narcissus.  A sensitivity trainer would run, screaming from the White House after a session with the current obviously soulless occupant.  I'm not sure the right wing media will have the stones to smear the grieving widow and her two small children in service to tRump, but no doubt some stories will be written denigrating the service of a black man and questioning the woman's motives for revealing the extent of the *president's lack of empathy.  I'm reasonably sure his staff will write some stock comforting words for Cheeto Jesus to parrot to other grieving families.   It may not sound sincere, but at least it won't rub salt into their wounds.

The Dollar General phenomenon

A post at the Lawyers Guns and Money blog caught my eye and prompted this post regarding the blight of Dollar General and Dollar Tree stores in small towns across the NCR.   Since these two companies have over 20,000 stores across the country with plans for thousands more, I know this is not a local disease.  It is however a symptom of our economic malaise.  These vultures prey on the people without access to even the Walmart which killed the little Main St. stores which kept local economies vital.  Selling toilet paper and other necessities to cash strapped customers should be a soul deadening business, but Wall St. seems to love it.   Even relatively well off towns like Plattsburgh and Oneonta which host SUNY colleges and hospitals, bastions of well paying jobs are increasingly targets for these dollar stores.   As a kid, I remember the original Woolworth 5&10 store in the nearest town.  It was the Dollar General of its time.  My mother allowed me to roam the aisles looking at the cheap toys and candy while she bought a few necessities from the offerings.  That original store morphed into a larger emporium at the first strip mall in town and gradually took on a more middle class vibe as consumers in the area became more middle class.  Perhaps the same thing will occur this time.  However, where the children of the 50s and 60s expected to do better economically than their parents, many of today's younger generation, especially in small towns, see Dollar General and its imitators as their first and last choice for shopping.

Saving up the outrage

Another day, another easily demonstrable falsehood uttered by the Orange Menace.  Dismissing his duty to call the family of soldiers KIA as "very difficult", tRump called out his predecessors for not calling.   When asked how he could make that claim, our *president said he "was told by people" that Obama had not called parents.  The mainstream media is hyperventilating this morning, but this is just another in an endless stream of lies issuing from the piehole of the most powerful man on earth.  It is probably good he is alienating another of the shrinking number of constituencies who support this travesty of a man, but people of conscience need to save their outrage for the voting booth next year.  If majorities in Congress cannot hold the administration to account, voters will have to do it for them.

The stupidity....it hurts

With the stroke of a pen, Cheeto Jesus set in motion a series of events which will rob up to several million people of health insurance, cost health care companies billions of dollars and likely raise the federal debt by many billions.  All of this, so the Moron-in-Chief can declare that Obamacare is imploding and demand its repeal.  It looks like the same treatment is in store for NAFTA.  An integrated trade deal among the three largest economies in North America will be upended so tRump can prove it was a lousy deal.  War with N. Korea is a tweet away with millions put in harm's way at an idiot's whim.   This is America in 2017.

What is to be done?

It;s no coincidence the title of this post is taken from a tract written by Vladimir Lenin in the run up to the Russian revolution in 1917,   Thanks to Donald Trump and a compliant republican congress, the little bit of progressive change Barack Obama and the democrats were able to deliver in 8 years is being erased at an increasingly rapid clip, we are approaching a war with N. Korea, natural disasters are leaving many US citizens to the tender mercies of an overstretched relief agency, and the moron-in-chief insists on re-litigating the culture wars with insensitive, racist appeals to divide the country.  We are one international incident away from a crisis we may be unable to recover from.  Indeed, what is to be done?  Lenin's solution was a communist revolution which proceeded to feed on the revolutionists until any resemblance to his original program was erased in the terror under Stalin.  Fortunately, we have a much greater democratic heritage than the Russians.  On the flip side, it seems there is an irreducible number of our fellow Americans who desire an authoritarian leader, even one as clueless and mentally deranged as the Donald.  This primal need of a leader who removes the need for civic engagement and promises security in return for obedience has been with us throughout human history and has triumphed over more democratic systems almost without exception.  We have maintained a reasonably robust democracy for over 200 years, but without a public commitment to the rule of law and civic engagement we may very well be witnessing the demise of our precious democracy.  Indeed, what is to be done?

Approaching the end of the season

Or not.  It depends on which season you are talking about.   The Yankees tacked at least another week on their season with a 5-3 win over the Indians.  Now it's on to Houston, where they may have a problem if their slugging rookie, Aaron Judge can't figure out how to get a bat on the ball.  The other season in question is in the garden and it looks like we'll be flirting with frost for the next several days/nights.  It was 35 degrees this morning, so the basil, tomatoes and summer squash are safe for another day.  Tonight may be more challenging with temps predicted to dip to 34.  We'll see.  Meanwhile, there is plenty of hardy veg out there that will only get better with a few frosts.  The Divine Mrs. M and I will be heading to Paris and London next weekend and I won't see the garden until Nov. 6.  Who knows what will or won't be damaged by Mother Nature by then.  Hopefully I will still be playing in the garden and the Yankees will be heading to the World Series.

Scott Pruitt's crimes against humanity

Rolling back the Clean Power Plan can be looked at as a merely symbolic act.   Thanks to lawsuits by 2 dozen states it has never been implemented.   Besides, the advent of cheap natural gas and advances in wind and solar power have rendered most coal fired power plants non-competitive and will eventually make coal an historic curiosity.  However, the pernicious message Pruitt and his enabler-in-chief are sending is that science is irrelevant.  The hard work of previous administrations can be reversed and there is little or nothing that can be done by people of conscience until the elections of 2018 when there is at least the possibility of democrats regaining control of at least one branch of congress and bringing a little sanity back to governance.  The EPA under this administration has become a mouthpiece for a fossil fuel industry which is looking more and more like the tobacco lobby did before science linked cigarette smoking with lung cancer.   In Pruitt's case however, the stakes are much higher.  The health of our planet and humanity's continuing existence is being imperiled by the rapacity of an industry and the incredible stupidity of the government we somehow allowed.  But remember, Hillary's e-mail management practices were the real issue of the 2016 elections!

It's a Corker!

Thanks to a taste for retirement, Sen. Bob Corker is able to speak his true feelings for the Moron-In_Chief without fear of campaign reprisals by the minions of Cheeto Jesus.  He says most of his caucus feels the same way, and the lack of condemnation by fellow senators speaks volumes.  Unfortunately, as one congressman pointed out, anyone running for re-election cannot be so candid without risking a war on Twitter which will enrage the mouth breathing base of the party.   However, at a certain point, the risk of this monstrously unqualified president starting a war demands rejection by his own party.  There is no way democrats can do anything about this omnipresent danger to world peace before the next election.  Republicans are only constrained by their political calculations.  However, with the tRump's approval ratings in the low 30s, there may never be a better time for these "summer soldiers and sunshine patriots" to come to the defense of their country.

Another lost weekend

More NFL stupidity, gun control stupidity and hurricane aftermath stupidity.  Just another weekend with the Moron-in-Chief at the helm. 

Gun uncontrol

One of the conservative columnists at the NYT, Bret Stephens,  trolled the various liberal factions searching for a strategy to get control of guns in these United States.  Stephens suggestion is to push for the repeal of the 2nd amendment to the Constitution.  Of  course anyone foolish enough to push that crusade deserves the hail of lead they would probably attract.  He did however underline how difficult any conversation about guns will be.  According to stats, less than 25% of Americans own 80% of all the firearms in the country.  Most of us who do own a gun are ambivalent at best when it comes to the utility of doing so.  In my case, I bought a shotgun from a friend years ago, more to help him get some much needed cash than making a statement.  I used it for hunting varmints a few times, but careless storage has reduced it to a rusty mess which would require more than the gun is worth to restore it.  Still, I would probably not favor a blanket ban on gun ownership.  Registration, insurance, manufacturers' liability I could support, but until the an overwhelming majority of citizens is repulsed by the never ending carnage caused by firearms these common sense regulations have as much chance of being enacted as tRump has of being impeached by this Congress.

What's wrong with this picture

I hadn't actually seen footage of POTUS tossing rolls of paper towels to a crowd in Puerto Rico, but this morning there was a still shot of tRump doing just that on the blog First Draft under the title, "the boy ain't right".  I wholeheartedly agree.  As I have said before, although the Shrub and his administration did far more harm to America than Cheeto Jesus has so far, at least GWB acted the way most of us expect a president to act.  The Moron-in-Chief seems to be acting out the fantasies of an unbalanced teenager suddenly thrust into the role of most powerful man in the world.   The only more bizarre touch would have been a T-shirt cannon.  Maybe they'll have one for him at the next natural disaster!   Seriously, his own secretary of state was caught calling him a moron and did not deny it.  If there was a checklist to evaluate the fitness of someone to be president, The Donald has now completed a nearly perfect example of NOT.

Same old story

Despite the fact a mass shooting happens in the US on average once each day (I believe it is defined as more than 3 casualties), and the frequency has been going up along with the severity of the events, a parade of right wing pundits and "authorities" are letting us know that the continuing carnage is the price of "freedom".  No other wealthy industrialized country in the first world tolerates this type of gun violence and the increasingly weak 2nd amendment arguments being made in favor of semi-automatic weapons are pushing many toward support of solutions like Australia's ban on these human killers.  The arsenal of weapons amassed by Stephen Paddock and the horrific use he put them to shows the absolute necessity for common sense control of what are agents of mass destruction.  Although it seems callous in the aftermath of the Las Vegas tragedy to say this, it is fortunate it was an elderly white man with apparently no connection to international terrorism who committed this atrocity.  Maybe the next shooting will be done by a white haired grandma with an RPG.  I'm sure Jonah Goldberg or Eric Ericsson will have some pat answer to the question of why we should allow our fellow citizens to be blown away in the name of  FREEDOM.

RIP Tom Petty

Although I was only a casual fan, the music of Tom Petty was part of the soundtrack of my family's life in the late 1980s and early 90s.  Free-Falling, Won't Back Down, and American Girl were favorites of my daughters.  As a mid-range baby boomer Petty and I were contemporaries, so the fact he died of a massive heart attack hits uncomfortably close to home.  Coupled with the death of one of my brother Neil's friends of heart failure at 62 despite a life of absurd healthiness it really brings home the limits of our span on this earth.   The deaths in Las Vegas at the hands of a deranged gunman are in the lightning strike category of life ending events.  Heart attacks on otherwise healthy middle aged men are another story entirely. RIP Tom and Jamie.

Automatic tragedy in Las Vegas

Another mass shooting to start the week.  From early reports it sounds like an angry old white guy acted out the "Get off my lawn" mantra on steroids.  More than 50 people are reported dead and over 200 injured after the shooter unloaded on a crowd at a concert at one of the Vegas resorts.   Literally hundreds if not thousands of people around the country who know and/or are related to the casualties are now dealing with life altering grief on a scale I know nothing about and can only try to empathize with.  It would be easy to score cheap political points regarding gun control, political affiliations of the shooter, etc., but today is not the time. 

A fine pack of morons are we

The networks reported breathlessly that the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers linked arms during the playing of the national anthem last night in a show of solidarity in the face of criticism of players by Cheeto Jesus.   Meanwhile, the republicans in congress unveiled their "tax reform" bill.  It is a shameless giveaway to the very rich donor class, but as usual, everyone from the GOP is telling us it is a middle class tax cut.  They will trot out a few provisions which will provide some crumbs to the average taxpayer while obfuscating provisions which shower wealth on the 1% and set the stage for calls to further shred the social safety net which the 99% depend on.  I wish someone would stand up and tell people if they want nice things they need to pay taxes.  Instead, as Steve Bannon characterized the voters of Alabama, we act like a pack of morons when tax cuts are dangled in front of us.   Infrastructure, social services, education and all the other trappings of modern government depend on the willingness of people to support these functions.  The momentary thrill of a few extra dollars in our paychecks should not obscure the long lasting harm we are doing to the foundation of government and its ability to meet our needs.  The unfolding disaster in Puerto Rico is a reminder of how fragile the social compact can become in the absence of a robust government response fueled by the tax payments of ordinary and wealthy citizens alike. 

Suffering in the Commonwealth

At the risk of beating a dead horse, I am thinking Puerto Rico may fast becoming tRump's Katrina.  As it becomes clearer by the day that FEMA is overwhelmed by the confluences of Harvey, Irma and Maria, residents of the Commonwealth are starting to die due to shortages of fuel, medicine and medical care.   Had the full resources of the Department of Defense been deployed immediately after Maria cleared PR, the first response would have been robust and the hardest hit areas would be receiving aid by now.  Instead, news organizations are the first into remote regions of the island and residents are asking where is the relief.   Meanwhile, with the bill for rebuilding large parts of Texas, Florida and PR said to reach into the hundreds of billions of dollars, Cheeto Jesus is pitching a tax cut for corporations and the wealthy.  I really thought G.W.Bush was the worst president in my lifetime, but he looks like the father of our country compared to the malevolent clown now ensconced in the Oval Office. 

Living down to expectations

Just when you think it can't get any worse, the citizens living in the state of Alabama nominated a sweaty, bible thumping ignoramus who is virtually assured of election to "The world's greatest deliberative body" in November.  This is a man who has been held in contempt by the US Supreme Court for instructing state employees to refuse to recognize same sex marriage.  The rule of law is something Moore recognizes only when it aligns with his prejudices.  He will replace the ethically compromised Luther Strange, who was an interim appointment by a corrupt governor who needed to stop Strange's investigation of his sexual peccadillos.  Admittedly the electorate in Alabama was presented with 2 seriously flawed candidates.  But they didn't disappoint.  Now we will be treated to the spectacle of another racist, misogynist, homophobic theocrat holding forth in the Senate on these and other retrograde policies. 

Sandy, Katrina, Harvey, Maria responses. Rinse and repeat

As millions of US citizens in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands huddle in the heat and darkness, waiting for relief, it's starting to look like a familiar story.   The GOP politicians no one seems to want in charge are still there, ignoring the calls for help.  The "president" is too busy inciting nuclear war or NFL destruction to worry about the humanitarian crisis about to unfold in the Caribbean.  Where is "Heckuva job Brownie" when you need him?  It's too bad there isn't a Trump property in or near San Juan.   Seriously, it is time for someone to step up and demand relief for the victims of Maria, before the death toll spirals into a third world nightmare.

We are so screwed

It was very warm and sunny weekend at Casa Monzeglio.  Normally at this point in the gardening season we are flirting with frost.   However, as I was bunching basil and cilantro on Friday evening for the Farmers' market on Saturday it felt like midsummer.  The only jarring note was the sunset at 7 p.m. instead of 9.   At this point in the season I am in harvest mode, but if we had any moisture, there would be an explosion of weed seedlings.  It hasn't rained in 20 days and only brief showers are predicted for later this week, heralding a cold front which may finally usher in fall weather.  Meanwhile, very little has been heard from climate change deniers.  After Harvey, Irma and Maria, most Americans are shell shocked by the constant drumbeat of superlatives used to describe these storms.  Coupled with the unusually warm fall weather across much of the country, the flacks for the fossil fuel industry are lying low.   This is cold comfort to the millions of Americans in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands who will shortly be running out of food and potable water and will have no electricity for months.  The GOP is still trying to demonstrate it is capable of governing the country by passing a healthcare bill.  The problem is virtually any organization related to health care is overwhelmingly against the bill, decrying it as cruel and unusual punishment for millions of Americans.  As Paul Krugman points out this morning in the NYT, the republican party has lied its way to control of Congress and the presidency, and now it must deliver legislation based on those lies.  I can hardly wait to see what the party of "fiscal responsibility" does for tax reform, aside from blowing up the deficit to provide tax cuts for wealthy donors who have threatened to turn of the cash spigot if their concerns are not addressed.  Faced with the need to deliver on their lies, the GOP has turned into a pretzel in an attempt to reconcile the fantasy they fed the base with the reality of governance.  We are sooo screwed...

Health Care by Dummies

As the bad publicity and opposition to the egregious Graham-Cassidy "health care"  bill mounts, it is becoming increasingly unlikely to pass.  Put together in a back room with even less care than Frankenstein's monster, the legislation is by turns, cruel, incompetent and stupid.  Personally, I think Lindsay Graham was made a co-sponsor solely because of his friendship with John McCain.  When asked about specifics of the bill it was obvious he has no idea of what he was putting his name on.  Block grants to the states is about as far as he is conversant with the bill.  The Louisiana senator who also put his name on the bill is really getting raked over the coals by Jimmy Kimmel after his sanctimonious blather about protecting low income families with sick children.  The effect of the bill would be the exact opposite, and he is being relentlessly criticized  for it.   As Paul Krugman put it in his column today, regardless of whether this piece of crap is passed, it shows the real disease that is affecting the GOP and that sickness is not going away anytime soon.   This travesty of a political party has distilled the essence of everything wrong in America and made it the action agenda.  What is wrong with these  people?

Pre Apocolypse Now

Magnitude 7 and 8 earthquakes in Mexico.  Category 5 hurricanes in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.  Trump threatening North Korea with "total destruction".  I wonder if somehow Gaia or Mother Earth is reacting to the aftermath of the election of Cheeto Jesus.  It would certainly seem like the natural world is preparing us for disaster.

Saving the world

Cheeto Jesus will take the bully pulpit of the U.N. today and may the flying spaghetti monster save us all.   It seems that all the rogue regimes in the world will be in his crosshairs.  Iran, North Korea, Venezuela and anyone else who has crossed his orangeness since November.  Despite the gravity of the situation and the venue, the US will probably be a laughingstock at the end of the day as the so-called leader of the free world vents in one and two syllables.

Continuing perfection

The run of nearly perfect weather has continued through the weekend and promises to run through the entire week.  Lows in the 50s and highs in the upper 70s and low 80s has energized the late plantings in the garden.   Some late seedings of basil, cilantro and dill will be large enough to harvest before the end of the farmers' market.   It looks like even the spinach planted on the 2nd of Sept. will be big enough for a cutting before really cold weather arrives.  This season has been a lesson in patience.   Keep planting even in the face of horrific weather and at least this year you will have been rewarded.  Even the swede midge pest must have taken an early vacation.  I was spraying organic pesticide and fungicide on the late cauliflower last night and noticed that a large percentage of plants were actually making heads!    Here's hoping October is as clement as this month.  I may actually run out of things to harvest.

What if

What if James Comey hadn't issued his infamous letter on Oct. 28,2016 insinuating he was about to re-open the investigation into Hillary's e-mail server?  What if the Russians had been called out by Facebook for using social media to target undecided voters?  What if the media treated each Trump scandal on a par with the only Clinton scandal they could find?  Obviously if any of the above had or had not happened we would be talking about President Clinton right now.  That is the gist of Clinton's take on "What Happened" in 2016.  But in a wide ranging interview with Rachel Maddow last night, she also offered her take on the tRump presidency so far and it was devastating in its comprehensive condemnation of both domestic and foreign policy.  Unfortunately, based on the likely audience, she was preaching to the choir.   Maybe she could book a segment on "Fox and Friends" next week!

The whiff of totalitarianism

That the White House press secretary would suggest an ESPN commentator should be fired for tweeting that tRump is a white supremacist should probably not shock anyone.  Sarah Huckabee Sanders, aka the spawn of Huck is as clueless as her predecessor and even less shamed in the performance of her job than the unlamented Sean Spicer.  The erosion of democracy this represents is shocking and harks back to the Nixon presidency and its infamous "enemies list".  Nixon's imperial presidency was an obvious threat to democracy and even republicans were willing to stand against it when evidence of obstruction of justice became overwhelming.  Today's GOP is unable and unwilling to process the damage being done to the republic by this administration.  Russia intervened in our elections to help The Donald get elected.  This is now incontrovertible.  where is the outrage among republicans.  If the shoe was on the other foot, Hillary would already be impeached and we would be wondering if there was a Senate republican who would vote to acquit.  Thanks to the hapless nature of the administration we have not stumbled too far down the road to dictatorship, but more capable men than Trump are now taking notes on how to manipulate public opinion and consolidate power.  We are closer to Putin's Russia than most people think.

Gardening update

We are finally getting the weather we should have had for the last month or so.   Clear, warm days and cool nights.  After last week's cold and rain, it is taking most crops a few days to get back to growing again.  The brassicas should be shining right now, but the insidious swede midge has attacked virtually all the cole crops and it looks like I wasted a lot of time on the broccoli and cauliflower.   The only way to beat this pest organically is to not grow the crop for at least 2 years and hope there are no wild host crops like mustard to sustain the midge population.  It would be interesting to find out how the pest came to inhabit Almena Gardens.  Meanwhile, the winter squash crop is maturing.  The early wet weather this summer greatly reduced the number of vines and a weed infestation hampered what survived, but there is a crop to be harvested.  Lettuce, kale, collards, cukes, zukes and herbs are still abundant and likely to last until frost.  Overall it has been a frustrating season with a few bright spots.  Maybe it is time to start a local chapter of Gardener's Anonymous.

Irmageddon

While the impact on the US will be devastating in the short term;  millions without power for possibly weeks on end and some horrific damage in the Florida Keys, it pales compared to the damage Irma inflicted on many small islands in the Caribbean as well as Cuba.  In some cases it will be decades before normality returns, especially for the poor and uninsured.  Reporters have described many islands as resembling pictures of bombed out cities.  Having seen some pictures this morning, I would agree with that assessment.  Many of these islands depend on the tourist industry for survival.  It is hard to imagine they will have the resources to rebuild in time for any business this year and even next.  What happens when the next monster storm batters them again.  The infrastructure that is built should be hardened as for a war.  In the meantime, the people who have to deal with the aftermath of Irma will need support.  They will be forgotten as soon as the next big thing happens.

Disaster Porn and the denials of climate change

Although Hurricane Irma left a path of apocalyptic disaster through the Caribbean on its way to Florida, the media paid only middling attention to the travails of those hit with the full fury of the storm.  From Wednesday on, the obsessive focus was on Florida and the devastation about to be visited on its residents.  While there was some justification; after all, Florida contains the hopes and fears of over 20 million people, after a couple of days of non-stop coverage, anything less than an end of the world scenario would seem to be an anticlimax.  You could almost see the reporters salivating at the prospect of a Category 5 storm hitting Miami Beach.  Reputations are made or lost covering gigantic disasters and this appeared to be one of them.  By Sunday, as the storm lost strength and hit the sparsely populated Keys you sensed the news anchors losing interest and almost hoping the whole thing would go away and let them go back to worrying about who is in or out of tRump's inner circle.  I guess that the coverage was no better or worse than that of previous storms, but with the internet and social media piling on, it appears to me we are in for a proctologist's view of natural disasters, at least in these United States.  Other places not so much.

The newly normal

As Irma barrels towards South Florida for a Sunday rendezvous many people are wondering if this is just an anomalous hurricane season or is it the new normal.  In 2005 we had several killer hurricanes in quick succession and everyone was wondering the same thing.  I think the hurricane seasons will come and go, but the increasing temperatures of the oceans will magnify the storms that do occur until the Harveys and Irmas will become accepted as inevitable.  Despite Rush Limbaugh's complaint that the Librul media is inventing these storms, the 50 inch rainfalls and 185 MPH winds are not some left wing plot.  If anything they are proof of what Al Gore and 97% of climate scientists have been telling us for over 20 years.  Humans have been altering the planet for millennia, but in the last 200 years with the advent of the carbon based economy our potential to cause a global catastrophe has become a real possibility.  I hope the correct lessons are being learned in the wake of the latest storms, but I wouldn't bet on it.

See no evil

One of the nice polite republicans on NPR this morning was interviewing Ta Nehisi Coates regarding his recent article in The Atlantic.   Coates theory of the 2016 presidential election is racism played a large part in the eventual election of Cheeto Jesus.   Of course, I have held that theory since before the election occurred.  That a manifestly unqualified mountebank, racist and misogynist could prevail over a qualified albeit flawed woman candidate is a triumph of prejudice over sober judgment.  The interviewer on NPR kept insisting that the common sense wisdom that tRump is the result of white working class resentment at being left behind in a globalized society.  Coates agreed that was part of the answer, but pointed out the GOP nominee was supported overwhelmingly by whites of all socio economic classes.  That they knew he was a disaster of a candidate and likely to remain one as president or in the words of one supporter, "he's an asshole, but he's our asshole", pretty much clinches Coates' argument.  The inability or more likely the plain refusal of many whites to admit they wanted a white man as president to cleanse the republic of 8 years of blackness is a stain that will mark our democracy for decades.

Racism and the modern republican party

The mainstream media and quite a few liberal bloggers continue to make excuses for the obvious racism of the republican party and this reticence needs to be called out.  Much as the democratic party of the late 19th through the mid 20th century was the home to a large contingent of racists, the republicans from the 1970s and forward have become the preferred refuge of racists seeking political power.  Membership in the KKK or the Aryan Brotherhood will not help you gain a national following, but it will make you a punching bag for those who are less extreme, but more dangerous to the body politic.  While the overt racism of dixiecrats largely excused the politics of South Boston and other democratic enclaves in the north, the modern republican party does not differentiate southern racists from their northern cousins.  Support for Trump and his followers may have been less in Pennsylvania than in Alabama, but it was sufficient to elect him.  the hunt for the semi-mythical white voter who backed Obama, but voted for Trump because of his economic message is a fool's errand.  The GOP successfully painted Obama and Hillary as out of touch elitists and Trump as the people's herald in one of the most blatantly racist and misogynistic campaigns of all time.  White resentment won the election, pure and simple.  Never underestimate the darker side of human nature.

The beatings will continue until morale improves

As Irma bears down on Florida and may well eclipse the damage Harvey did to Texas, the republicans in Congress are already squabbling about how relief for the regions in question will be handled.   Attach aid funding to a debt ceiling or not; deal with democrats or go it alone; express faux outrage at the entire process.   Continue fiddling while Rome burns seems to be their go to option.  Two storms in two weeks that are probably going to be called "thousand year events" and the leaders of the GOP and the doofus in chief will still deny the warming oceans as the cause of both Harvey and Irma.   What to do about the implications of these weather events should have rocketed to the top of the legislative agenda.  Instead we will be treated to an episode of "Keep moving along, nothing to see here" as the planet starts down the path of destruction.  The collective we voted for these incompetents.  How many more storms will it take to realize the course we are on and start making drastic corrections.  For my grandchildren's sake I hope it is sooner rather than later.

Post labor day blues

Back from the Labor Day weekend.  It looks like a tough week ahead in domestic politics.  The situation in Southeast Texas is still horrendous, a new monster hurricane is barreling towards Florida, Trump will announce the cancellation of the DACA program and on it goes. 

Climate Change anyone

According to one columnist for the NYT, in the 1980s there were 9 storms which caused over a billion dollars of damage in the US.   Since 2010 there have been 20, including Hurricane Harvey which is estimated to have caused at least 75 billion in property loss.  I think many in the media are focusing on the short term story of the flooding and displacement caused by Harvey, but are neglecting or underestimating the suffering and pain the Houston area will endure in the medium and long term.    Tens of thousands of people, perhaps hundreds of thousands will be homeless for months, if not years.  Economic activity will grind to a  halt until reconstruction starts and who is going to pay for it all.   The  haphazard development which set the stage for the disaster is not likely to change, so this could all be replayed in the near future.  The Gulf remains extremely warm and another storm could conceivably hit the area again this year.   Meanwhile, Cheeto Jesus promises help on the one hand while the House plans to gut FEMA to help pay for the wall with Mexico.  Texas voted overwhelmingly for tRump, so I guess a little schadenfruede is in order.  But in the long term, we are all in this together and we better start dealing with the implications Harvey has exposed.

Live Free and Die

Thanks to the non-regulatory state that is Texas, chemical plants with the potential to explode in a giant fireball are allowed to locate in residential neighborhoods.  A research facility handling the most deadly germs known to man is allowed in a city (Galveston) which has been leveled by hurricanes at least once and is now cut off from the fuel supplies which run the generators  which power the equipment which keeps the bugs isolated from us.  Just another clusterf*** brought to you by Texas.












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The heros among us

The talking heads at NPR were concentrating on interviewing the intrepid and motley "navy" composed of private boat owners who have rescued many stranded Houstonians from 2nd floor windows in residential neighborhoods.   They also allowed the spokesman for the National Guard to wax poetic about the heroism of the troops being mobilized to aid in the evacuation and the coming recovery from Harvey's wrath.   I appreciate the service these people are doing and applaud the selflessness on display.  What I don't like is the chest thumping about how Texans, or for that matter New Jerseyans or New Yorkers after Sandy put their neighbors first and spent time and money helping others.  Of course, that's what most humans do.  It is not a peculiarity of geography.  Throughout history humanity has consistently shown that in a crisis we react with altruism.  It's who and what we are.  Of course there are some who put their own safety and comfort above that of others, but they are in the minority.   Most of us are just waiting for the local crisis to activate that part of us which values the commonwealth over the individual.

Not a 6 foot invisible rabbit

Unlike that Harvey, the tropical storm with the same name remains a ubiquitous presence in Texas for yet another day.  By the time it begins to pound neighboring Louisiana on Thursday, this "1000 year storm" will have dumped up to 50 inches of rain in some areas around Houston.  The city may take decades to recover from the damage now being inflicted.  And who is to say another storm may already be brewing in the overheated Gulf of Mexico as I write this.  I feel for the people caught in this meat grinder, but I fear compassion will be demanded more and more as the full force of human generated climate change begins to be felt on a wide scale.  This is what they call a "teachable moment", but I doubt Cheeto Jesus sees it as just another photo op as he flies in to view the damage.  Unfortunately, it will be all about The Donald, instead of the millions of people suffering on the ground.

Not climate change

While it may seem superficial or callous to call attention to the long term implications of the weather disaster that is now tropical storm Harvey, someone has to play Cassandra, so it might as well be me.  It has already been called a 500 year storm, but in the same breath it could also be the harbinger of similar storms which may occur every 20 or 30 years from now on.  The warming atmosphere is now primed to hold more and more moisture.  Under the right conditions this water vapor can condense into the catastrophe now unfolding in Texas.  Houston may be inundated with up to 50 inches of rain in less than a week.   Far less rainfall during Katrina drowned New Orleans.  What does this mean for the country and the world?   The Tweeter-in-Chief, besides providing glowing praise for the emergency responders has done precious little but monitor the Weather Channel.  If he actually listened to the meteorologists, he would come away with a better understanding of what the human race will be confronting in the next few decades.  Harvey is another in a series of wake-up calls for humanity.  We need to stop hitting the snooze button and get out of our proverbial beds.  The time is now.

Autumnal dropping of leaves and shoes

The temperature dropped into the mid 40s on the NCR last night and it felt like Fall was in the air this morning.  The leaves on the trees are still green, but this morning was a reminder they will be turning shortly and the long slog toward winter will begin, much to the annoyance of the Divine Mrs. M.  As the weather cools down, the various investigations of last year's elections are heating up and instead of leaves, shoes will be dropping on Capitol Hill.   Robert Mueller's team will be turning up the pressure on various Cheeto Jesus henchman and at least some of them will flip on their boss.  It will be interesting to see how The Donald's most fanatic followers react as the full picture of Russian complicity with his campaign becomes undeniable.  The term deplorable seems inadequate to describe the basket of racists, misogynists, homophobes and other misfits who will probably never abandon their vision of the republican party led by the Tweeter in Chief.

Once more into the breach

Hillary Clinton's autopsy of the 2016 election, "What Happened" is out and even if you don't read it, it will be excerpted to death by the media until either they or their audience loses interest.  They have already chosen a few episodes to highlight, especially the infamous stalking of Clinton by tRump in the second presidential debate.  If only she had paused and said what she was thinking and said "Back up you creep", she would have solidified her support among most women and a majority of men.  Instead she showed she was and is cool under pressure.  Unfortunately the performance was not appreciated by enough voters.  Of course the media will try to focus on mistakes her campaign made and not on the role many outlets played in boosting The Donald while focusing obsessively on her e-mails.  Some critics have even gone so far as to say the NYT and Washington Post were quick to claim they were the last bastions against Trump immediately after the election and signed up hundreds of thousands of Clinton supporters as subscribers.  As we and they know there would have been no such response if Clinton had won!  Meanwhile, we are treated to the spectacle of Cheeto Jesus appealing to his base at a rally in Phoenix.  Contrast the unhinged rant directed at the virtually everyone but his low information base with the measured tone displayed by Clinton throughout the campaign.  I will end with that thought.

Weather woes continue

Depending on where you were in the North country yesterday, you were under a tornado watch, experienced torrential rain, high winds and stifling humidity.  Trees were downed, people lost power and in general it was a miserable late summer day.  The rain was so heavy many people either pulled over on the highway or used their flashers to warn they were running well below the speed limit.  I have lived in this area for the past 16 years and have never experienced the weather extremes we have seen on a weekly basis this spring and summer.  It appears this may be the new normal.  If so, it will be a challenging and extremely risky gamble to put seeds in the ground and expect to harvest a crop in this area.  Judging by the reports from other areas around the country agriculture may replace casinos as the most risky venues to invest your hard earned dollars.

Celebrity Apprentice, presidential episode

Reading furiously from the teleprompter in front of an audience composed almost entirely of active duty service members, our president (it hurts to even think that, let alone write it) gave his best shot at looking like he is fit for the office.  Of course, every president knows he will win press accolades by appearing on TV and proposing the killing of more brown people in far off lands.  For some reason, most of the mainstream media equates American sponsored death and destruction as somehow showcasing American leadership.   Nothing tRump said was any different than what his predecessors proposed regarding the failed Afghan state.  As the Russians and British before them our leaders have discovered Afghanistan is the ultimate quagmire.  Unfortunately, they have learned nothing from this.  As a wealthy nation, we can squander large sums of money indefinitely in this corner of the world and as long as the casualties are not to noticeable.   Unless there is a horrific massacre of American troops, the carnage will continue, mostly through drone strikes.  Cheeto Jesus will not save us or the Afghans, but he will ensure that more of us die in the name of American security.

The rains of August

It's funny how an inch of rain affects crops so much differently in August than in June.  We had almost an inch and a half in storms on Friday night, yet it was dry enough to harvest for the market on Saturday morning.  Another shower later in the morning made weeding impossible for the balance of the day, but Sunday dawned bright and warm and a lot of weeds died.  I will be transplanting the last lettuce seedlings this week.  They should be ready during the first week of October to coincide with the final Farmers' Market of the season.  Lettuce has been one of the few bright spots in an other wise dreary death march in the garden.  The same rain which spurs crop growth in August was an absolute killer in late May and early June.  The tomatoes may never recover and the corn crop was a totat bust. 
Meanwhile, the story that plays the most in national news is the recovery and repentance of those who voted for tRump.  For the nearly 64 million of us who voted for Hillary this is cold comfort.  What these idiots expected from The Donald is unclear, except that he wasn't Clinton and therefore was the better choice.  A playboy wannabe, failed businessman, money launderer for Russian interests and all around racist was a better choice than someone who gave their life to public service, democratic ideals and espoused equality for all.  We should somehow care that these snowflakes have now discovered that maybe they made a poor choice.  F*** them and the horses they rode in on!

American ingenuity

It turns out that many, if not most of the "beautiful" statues and monuments Cheeto Jesus is worried about were mass produced, mostly by northern manufacturers just in time for the Jim Crow south to disenfranchise and continue the oppression of the black population.  A manufacturer in Bridgeport, Connecticut advertised a "silent sentinel" soldier statue in a zinc alloy for $450.00 .  they had a Union and Confederate version and could get one erected at the village green or courthouse in a matter of weeks from ordering.  Larger monuments like the General Lee at the center of the Charlottesville controversy took a few months longer, but were far cheaper than a marble or stone statue would have been.  As a matter of fact, the creator of the Lee statue was a native of the North Country and a contemporary of Frederic Remington.  tRump loves him some Remington, so I guess there is a tenuous connection of these statues to art.  Nevertheless, as always, Americans are ready to profit from any cause, lost or not.

The morality play

As I expected, most republicans in congress issued mealy mouthed condemnations of the neo-Nazi and alt right protests in Charlottesville, but as of now, only one, Lindsay Graham called out the president for drawing a moral equivalence between the right and left protestors.  Predictably, Cheeto Jesus attacked Graham on Twitter, calling him a liar.  Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell continued the party line of placating the Orange Disgrace.  The GOP has now become a hostage to the White House, and unless a majority of republicans grow a backbone and repudiate a fair percentage of their base, things will only get worse.  The haters were emboldened by this administration and we can expect more and worse from them in coming weeks.  May the Flying Spaghetti Monster help us.

Can we all agree

I thought it was a summer thunderstorm last night which interrupted the harvest and other garden activities last night.  However, when I turned on the TV last night it was the sound of talking heads exploding that made more noise.  It seems that Cheeto Jesus finally went a bridge too far for most liberal and even some conservatives at his chaotic press conference yesterday at tRump tower.  He didn't imply, but instead drew a moral equivalence between the neo-Nazi white supremacists who gathered in Charlottesville last weekend and the counter demonstrators who stood up to the hate mongers and their confederate flag waving, swastika toting goons.  Any doubt about where the president's sympathies lie was put to rest as he challenged the "fake media" to contradict him.  Today there will be calls for people of good will working for this disgrace to the office of president to resign in protest.  I would like to believe it will happen, but most of these people drank the kool-aid long ago and will cling to their positions in the face of their boss's manifest unfitness for the job.  At some point, these people will have to explain to their children and grandchildren how they could continue to work for an administration which gives aid and comfort to David Duke and all he stands for.  Now is the time for all people of conscience to reject Donald Trump. 

USA???????????????

I was crossing the border in the normal course of events this morning and glancing to my right as I motored into Canada I saw what looked like a military camp within a stone's through of the USA.  Looking more closely at the semi chaotic mess, it occurred to me no army worth its salt would put up with this apparently unplanned state of affairs.  Besides, unless the objective was to march on Plattsburgh (the British did in 1814 and it didn't turn  out well), there is no reason for soldiers on a peaceful border.  Then it hit me.   This was a refugee camp.  Our local NPR station has been covering the exodus of dark skinned immigrants who are fleeing the US as the tRump administration continues to crack down on undocumented persons.  Many of these people are refugees from Haiti who were granted temporary immigration status after the great earthquake.  They still have no home to go back to, but in today's America, that sort of economic argument doesn't work anymore.  It's all about looking tough and showing ordinary white folks that The Donald has your back.  Meanwhile, hundreds, if not thousands of people are cheerfully crossing the border and being arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.  They are then transported to the camp on the border for processing before being released to wait for their day in immigration court.  Canada's policies are not much different from ours, but the bully boy tactics of ICE have frightened many into believing they will get a better deal with our neighbor to the north.  Somewhere, Emma Lazarus is weeping....

Spotty showers and democracy

Weather similes and metaphors are probably weak, but I think in this case they fit the news and weather over the weekend, at least here on the NCR.   Friday night and Saturday were supposed to be showery and miserable, but at Casa Monzeglio we had no rain and the harvest for the Farmers' Market on Saturday was conducted under dry conditions.  After delivering the veggies to my friends at Black Sheep Farms, I proceeded to kill weeds until mid-afternoon, when it was time to play golf with friends.  Driving 30 miles to the course, I passed through the aftermath of several thunderstorms and on arrival discovered the course was closed due to excessive rainfall during an early afternoon storm.  Heading home, there was no evidence of rain, and the cultivation and weed control continued.  Comparing the intermittent weather here to demonstrations for and against the removal of a monument to the traitor Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville seems like a stretch, but the reactions to the clash of neo-Nazi, KKK and white supremacists with "antifa" groups were as varied as the weather over the weekend.  From full throated condemnation by most responsible commentators to the tepid rejection of "many sides" by our president it ran the gamut.  It would seem Cheeto Jesus will continue to refuse to reject white supremacism.  I think he realizes his base is mostly supporting him because of his stand in this regard.  Anyone who doesn't believe 30% of our fellow countrymen are either racists or they at the very least tolerate racism is living in a fool's paradise. 

Shades of the Red Queen

For those who relish allegories, I would direct you to Alice in Wonderland as the prescient exposition of the tRump administration written over 100 years ago.  I particularly wish to point out the Red Queen.  I don't know who Carroll had in mind when he created the ruler of the deck of cards, but she perfectly prefigures The Donald.  It is almost as if he read the book (I know, given his shortcomings in this regard it is unlikely) and decided to model his adult life on the Queen.  The scary part is we are living in this world and the call of "Off with his head" is likely to echo through the White House often in the next few months.

Snatching defeat...

A new controversy has broken out between the Clinton and Sanders' wings of the democratic party which may endanger the party's ability to win national elections in the short term.  Nina Turner, the outspoken Sander's spokesperson is railing against the DNC because of a perceived slight when she arrived at the office with a petition.  Personally, I find Ms. Turner an abrasive and hard to figure personality.  She is a black woman who I believe fixated on Bernie Sanders as a vehicle to espouse her radical brand of politics which seemingly relies on confrontation rather than consensus building.  She is about as far from the typical "dudebro" Sanders supporter as can be imagined, but her unswerving loyalty to Bernie has elevated her stature in his movement.  Said movement is really an alternative to most democratic power structures which are controlled by more traditional dems.  The clash between these two alternative democratic visions will hamper the party's message going forward as it faces a zombie republican party whose brains were eaten by Trump, but nevertheless continues as a unified force to elect those faithful to its ideology of fealty to the .01%.  The challenge for both Sanders and Clinton is to unite their disparate followers and create a truly national party which can advocate for both of their visions without the disharmonious litmus tests of fealty to single payer health care, etc. which causes the problems democrats continue to manufacture for themselves.  Come on people, let's get together.