Dorian and the fire this time

      The media is abuzz with the possibly cataclysmic battering the east coast of Florida may endure thanks to a blossoming Hurricane Dorian.  As with Katrina and New Orleans 14 years ago, Dorian seems to have come out of nowhere and it threatening to become a Category 4 storm before landfall in Florida.  
      The extremely warm waters of the Atlantic between Dorian and the coast will enable what would ordinarily be a weak tropical storm to become a major hurricane.  Needless to say, the warming is occuring due to man made climate change.  The latest poster children for mankind's clueless interaction with climate is the burning of the Amazonian rainforest for fun and profit and the tRump administration's relaxation of regulations regarding methane gas released into the atmosphere.  Both will worsen climate change and make it harder to combat.  It seems on some days that humanity has a death wish.   I only hope President Warren's administration will be able to do something before it is too late.

It's a feature, not a bug

     The casual cruelty of the tRump administration is breathtaking and brainless at the same time.  Whether it is immigration policy so heartless it would deport children being treated for life threatening conditions, or attempts to roll back Obama era regulations on industries which actually oppose the efforts, the sycophants and toadies in this parody of a government reach new lows nearly every day.
     Even dedicated supporters of the president* must be shaking their heads over reports from Miami and Boston showing letters from a government agency demanding that legal immigrants whose children are receiving care for life threatening illnesses pack their families up and leave the US within 33 days.  For many, it may as well be a death sentence, since treatment for many of the conditions they suffer is rudimentary at best in their home countries.
    The EPA, in its attempt to roll back any regulations from the previous administration has prioritized the gutting of regulations on the oil and gas extraction industries which deal with methane, a potent greenhouse gas.  The irony is those subject to the regulations don't want the relief, probably because they know the next administration will revisit this stupidity and reverse it.  The same is true of the automotive industry's fight to maintain pre tRump fuel efficiency standards.   The true believers either don't know or don't care.
    Finally, the president* has now been credibly accused of encouraging subordinates to break the law in order to expedite the construction of "The Wall" on our southern border.  Senior officials say tRump offered to pardon anyone who is prosecuted for violations of environmental law or eminent domain in order to make sure hundreds of miles of fencing is erected before the next election.  The mind boggles...

Choices

    In an action sure to be quoted by climate denialists, a major union at the Los Angeles city run gas fired power plants is on record as being against the city retiring 3 plants in favor of a contract with a solar project to supply power at cheaper prices.  The union warns it will lose 400 jobs and ratepayers will be hammered by mayor Eric Garcetti's  decision to shutter the plants in favor of the more ecological solar project.
     As Kevin Drum accurately points out, fighting climate change is not the exclusive domain of republican fat cats.  Working people in industries which are hastening the destruction of our planet are also part of that coalition.  Others have said we could pay coal miners their salaries for the rest of their lives and still be ahead in the fight against climate change, but I doubt the miners or in the above example the members of the IBEW at the gas plants would like "money for nothing and their checks for free".   At least during our working lives most of us want to produce something in return for our livelihoods.   Even if producing that thing is dangerous for the world we live in.   That is why finding a consensus to battle climate change is so difficult.

Empty Chair, empty suit

     When the G-6 plus 1 convened a session on climate change the other day, the US chair at the meeting was empty, both physically and morally.  The president* of the US, the putative leader of the "free" world chose not to confront the problem of climate change at a forum where his voice would have counted.  Instead he made a lame excuse and the existential threat to humanity, illustrated by the burning of the Amazon rainforest, will once again be ignored by the country most responsible for the progressive heating of the planet.
     That this malignant narcissist is dooming the coming generations of humanity to an uphill battle against climate change is a damning indictment of him, the party he represents and the millions of my fellow countrymen who support him and his policies or lack thereof.   With public opinion firmly against impeachment it is unlikely.   Even if tRump is removed from the office he has tarnished, the VP who would replace him, the execrable Mike Pence would not be much of an improvement in the climate change fight.   The GOP must be defeated decisively at the ballot box in 2020 and the new administration must make the fight against climate change the defining issue of the next decade.  Anyone with grandchildren who votes republican should do so with the clear knowledge they are condemning these kids to a much lower living standard than our own and the possible end of humanity with a few hundred years.

50 and counting

   The Divine Mrs. M and I attended a low key 50th reunion of the Center Moriches High School Class of 69 last Saturday and a good time was had by all.  Of course not everyone made it to The Maples, a classic old bar in Manorville where we also gathered for our 40th.   It was surprising to note that more than a few classmates have passed on since 2009, or perhaps not.   Others sent their regrets and one even bought a round for anyone from the class even though he could not make it.
     As we viewed the picture we posed for near the end of our soiree, the aforementioned Mrs. M, the Valedictorian of the class opined we looked like a bunch of grandparents.  My reply was, yes, but that's what we are.  Many more of us will shuffle off this mortal coil before 2029, but that is as it should be.  We stand on the shoulders of those that went before us and our children and grandchildren will do the same, if there is a livable planet when it comes time for their 50th reunions.

Late summer garden travails

    Late summer gardening is both a joy and some of the hardest work of the year.  Keeping up a schedule of planting, weeding, pest control and harvesting makes for long summer evenings and weekends of toil.  The payoff is a fairly easy Sept. and Oct. of mostly harvesting the crops you spent your July and August nurturing.  With the move of Casa Monzeglio to a more constrained location, my gardening activity next year should be considerably less.  As the Divine Mrs. M says, it is time to start smelling the roses instead of spraying and fertilizing them!

Around the bend

    The president* is exhibiting more and more symptoms of cognitive decline and that should be concerning to anyone who values the continued existence of the human race.   Specifically, in the last 48 hours, he has accused Jews who vote for democrats of "disloyalty".   This is a more intellectual anti semetic smear than most, but nonetheless it was roundly condemned by both sides of the political spectrum.  He then proceeded to cancel a meeting with the prime minister of Denmark when she rebuffed his offer to buy Greenland.
     I realize that tRump thrives in a chaotic environment, but these latest two incidents indicate a real mental problem.   Trying to drive a wedge between a large democratic constituency and the party is one thing.  To use anti-Semitic tropes to describe the 79% of Jews who voted for dems in 2018 is quite another and reveals the racist strain that runs through this administration.  It also calls into question Cheetolini's judgement.   With his tiny fingers on the nuclear trigger, this is extremely troubling.
     Cancelling a scheduled meeting with an ally because they reject a bullying tactic is the behavior of a pre adolescent who didn't get their way.  It is no way to run the foreign policy of the US.   It is a wonder there are any career foreign service officers left to run the State Department.   Pompeo is a sychophant who will follow the man child's lead.  It is looking more and more like a "Lord of the Flies" scenario.   If you weren't scared before you read this, I hope you are now.

Bizzaro World revisited

    In the upside down, inside out world inhabited by Cheetolini and his supporters, everyone, including the "fake news" media will endorse him because otherwise they will go out of business.  Why this is so is never explained, but presumably it is because the national media needs its constant fix of outrageousness in order to function.
    Similarly, the president* touts the economy as the best and strongest in history, but blames his own appointee to the Fed for trying to sabotage him for reasons.  His trade war with China is contributing billions to the treasury, yet ordinary Americans are ponying up billions to pay for the increased costs of Chinese goods.  Meanwhile, the treasury is sending billions more to farmers who can't market their crops.  
    I could go on, but you get the idea.  Any reporting which doesn't align with The Donald's world view is ipso facto a plot against him.   The danger to democracy has never been greater, because tRump and his facilitators care nothing for our form of government if it gets in the way of their vision.

Still dazed

     It was a whirlwind of a weekend as Casa Monzeglio shifted 5 miles from one end of Peru to a more central location.   The movers showed me why packing and shifting heavy furniture is no longer something I should undertake, even with the willing help of the kids and their spouses.  The Divine Mrs. M was everywhere, supervising and offering encouragement to all as well as advocating for and explaining the significance of every memento she wished to move.  Thankfully our 3 daughters were able to get her to part with significant amounts of "stuff", but much more needs to be culled or the new house will look like a self storage unit instead of a home.  Just sayin.

Moving Daze

      This is the big weekend!   We are officially moving in to the new Casa Monzeglio.    It's only about 5 miles from our present abode, but the logistics are still daunting.
       The kindest thing you can say about me and the Divine Mrs. M when it comes to material possessions is we don't like to part with them.   Over the course of 44 years of marriage and 3 children, that comes to a lot of stuff.   We didn't really pare down our possessions when we moved to Peru in 2001.  The house was larger than our previous dwelling and  there was a 4 car garage and a huge barn.  Fast forward to 2019 and the reality is we are trying to stuff a size 10 foot into a size 6 shoe.
      Books and records are for losers.  In which case, we both have a big L stamped on our heads.   By the way, you can't even give books away.  We paid to landfill much of our library.  We still have hundreds of tomes to store on 4 large bookshelves.
      For the rest, we will be sorting and discarding and yardsaling for the next few weeks, but there will be arguments and tears in our future as we come to terms with the available space for "stuff" in our new home.  

The hardest work

     Stacy Abrams, the rising democratic star from Georgia is forgoing a run for the presidency to concentrate on the voter suppression which almost surely denied her the governorship of her state in 2018.    While it would seem to be an easy choice to not join the 24 or so democratic candidates in a grueling race for the democratic presidential nomination, Abrams has picked an even tougher fight.
    Suppression of voting rights in America has been a constant since the republic was born.  Originally, only white property owners could vote, and even that franchise was restricted.  More and more categories of white men were eventually added to the rolls, and after the Civil War, black men were nominally enfranchised.  The democratic party of the AnteBellum  south went to work with a vengeance, using poll taxes, literacy exams and even violence to discourage blacks from voting.  It worked for nearly 100 years.  With the passing of civil rights legislation in 1965 mostly by democrats, blacks became a factor in elections.
       Of course, women finally got the vote in 1920, and became vociferous supporters of everyone's right to vote.   But the GOP filled in the vacuum created by democrats who supported civil rights and ironically, the party of Lincoln is now fully into suppressing the votes of blacks, minorities and the poor.  Abrams has picked a tough fight, but it is one worth taking on for the sake of future generations.

Hoping things work out

      The "leader" of the free world opined yesterday he hoped things would work out for the democracy advocates in Hong Kong, but more so for China.   So, we have a would be authoritarian giving his blessing to an authentic totalitarian regime as it seeks to quash a nascent democratic wave in Hong Kong.
     Of course, Hong Kong is a special case.  Leased by the last Chinese dynasty to the British for 99 years in the late 1800s, the city finally reverted to China, but with the proviso that it be allowed to maintain a relatively vibrant democratic polity.  Under the latest Chinese leader, (I'm not going to butcher his name), the mainland Chinese are trying to turn what to them is a medium sized trouble-making city into a more compliant metropolitan unit.  Most of the residents are having nothing to do with this new policy and are demonstrating against it in a time honored democratic fashion.
     Unfortunately, Cheetolini has decided to side with the forces of oppression in hopes of a trade deal which he thinks will boost his chances for election.  He encourages white supremacy in the US and authoritarians abroad.  It's no wonder most of our allies are viewing the current administration with horror.   Our position of head of democratic forces in the world has been abdicated and we need to do something about it.

Gaslighting and Projection

     Lying and saying Nyah, Nyah seems to be the GOP response to every issue these days.   From tRump re-tweeting conspiracy theories about the Epstein suicide to republicans complaining the dems are really the bad guys in every policy debate.   I'm sure they will come up with a reason to blame one or more of the presidential candidates for the gutting of the endangered species Act.

     Cheetolini has always used projection to throw his critics off their game.  A prime example from the presidential debates in 2016 is Hillary's calling him a Russian puppet.   "Not a puppet, not a puppet, you're the puppet".  He repeated this several times with about as much sincerity as a 5th grader in a lunchtime scrap with a classmate.  He went on to use this tactic throughout the campaign with much success.

      As the primaries get closer, the handful of viable democratic candidates must grapple with their response to republican gaslighting and projection.   As one pundit opined, they can't get involved in each individual lie, but must take on the entirety of the culture and show the American people just what lies they have been fed for the last 4 years by the projectionist in chief.

Obsessions

    With the national media in a frenzy over the Jeffrey Epstein suicide and Cheetolini's latest ravings about a new horror movie satire about blue state elitists hunting red state MAGA types, there isn't much else to comment on, so I will bore you with a garden report.
     As usual, a nice rain is usually followed by diagnosing problems that were not apparent in drought stressed crops.  The tomatoes are suffering with either stress or early blight, so it looks like a short crop.  This is doubly disappointing because I cut down on the number of plants this year.   The peppers were also stressed, but aside from a little more sunscald than usual, they are doing nicely after the rain.   The late broccoli crop looks like a total loss due to the insidious swede midge.  Although the plants look very healthy, the midge laid eggs in the central growing point and the result is a lot of outer leaves, but no head.    Fortunately the later cabbage, collard and other brassicas are looking like they escaped the problem.  The solution to the broccoli problem is to plant Chinese broccoli.  With small central heads and numerous quick growing side shoots it grows faster than the midge can lay its eggs.

Watching what they do

     As Rachel Maddow has said numerous times, forget about what tRump and republicans say and watch what they do.   Proof of this adage was on display on Wed. as ICE agents raided several meat packing plants in Mississippi and left dozens of children without parents as nearly 700 immigrants without papers were rounded up.  Fortunately, members of the community rallied to help the disconsolate children in their hour of need.  Meanwhile, the president* was insulting democrats and insisting he is a uniter, not a divider.
     In other news, Stephen Ross, the billionaire owner of the Miami Dolphins and the Soul Cycle franchise provided further proof of Rachel's words.  When called out for holding a $250,000/plate fundraiser for Cheetolini at his Hamptons mansion, Ross insisted he disagreed with tRump about many issues, but allowed that the tax cuts were one issue which united him and the president*.   He can't understand why many of his soul cyclers' BS detectors have gone off and he may now face financial blowback for his political beliefs.  The population must make it clear to the Ross' of the world they are entitled to exercise their first amendment rights, but so are the rest of us.  Name em' and shame em'.

Divider in chief

     Even knowing the tiniest bit of compassion and an above the fray reaction to mild criticism would have earned him a spate of "Donald Trump became president today" stories, the president* couldn't do it.  Instead, reacting to Sherrod Brown saying that some people in the hospital tRump visited were critical of him, the commander in chief blasted out a series of tweets attacking Brown and the mayor of Dayton, Ohio as the community tries to deal with the aftermath of the massacre perpetrated last Sunday morning.
     Following that fiasco, the president* and his entourage landed in El Paso and sprayed insults to Beto O'Rourke and the Hispanic congresswoman, Veronica Escobar, who both suggested he not visit the site of the horrific Walmart shooting, as the gunman's manifesto was replete with the language of "invasion" the president has employed numerous times in the last 4 years.
     Having now alienated blacks, Hispanics, youth and college educated suburbanites you have to wonder if there is any demographic besides old, white people he is reaching out to.

Giving a damn

    I guess I have been a little cynical concerning the newest "inflection point" in the gun control debate.  Everyone with even half a brain knows the republicans are sitting on legislation which may have made a difference in preventing the atrocities in El Paso and Dayton last weekend.  Background check, closing loopholes, banning assault weapons are all no-brainers but are being held hostage by "Moscow Mitch" and his merry band of nihilists in the Senate.  Even assuming the GOP grows a spine and passes some of the House legislation it still faces a veto from Cheetolini, who will correctly deduce his base is against any kind of gun control.
     We live in a country of 324 million people with over 393 million firearms.  Until we deal with this situation, we are living on that famous river in Africa.

Following the money

    Once again, Paul Krugman at the NYT nails the connection between the white nationalist movement, terrorism and the GOP.   As always, follow the money.
     The republican party's vision of the country for the last 40 years has been tax cuts for the wealthy, a huge military industrial complex and the shredding of the nation's social safety net.  At the same time, the party became whiter and more prone to the ideology of white supremacy with its commitment to violence.  With each successive GOP administration the dependence of the party on the haters became more pronounced as its policy prescriptions became less and less popular.   Eventually the party became so dependent on racial animus to win elections it nominated an avowed white supremacist who won the presidency through a series of breaks, including Russian collusion and FBI interference.
      So, we now have a commander-in-chief who actively encourages his followers to chant "Send her back" to a citizen and legislator.  He wondered out loud how to discourage migrants from coming to our country and when the crowd shouted "shoot them", he allowed as how it was the panhandle of Florida and therefore, those sentiments could be gotten away with.  Krugman compares him with Nathan Bedford Forest, the founder of the Ku Klux Klan.
     This is where we are in 2019.  The economy is teetering on the brink, climate change threatens spaceship earth and we are being encouraged to hate people of color by our president*.   We need to address all these threats as quickly as possible, but first we need to call out the republican party for its complicity in stifling the response to all of the above.  Follow the money!

Processing the unthinkable

29 people dead and dozens more injured over the weekend as the nation endured mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton.  It is hard to wrap your mind around the suffering which will be experienced for decades by the survivors.  In a way, at least the dead will be at peace.  Not so the wives, husbands and children who will miss them for the rest of their lives.
      Meanwhile, millions of words will be spoken and written about these tragedies, but the root causes, right wing extremism and access to rapid fire guns will not be addressed in any substantial way.   With a gun supporting racist in the White House, if anything, the crazies will be emboldened and a mass shooting may be coming to a location near you.  More than 250 have occurred already this year.  
      Of course, as with health care there are plenty of examples of countries around the world who have banned assault rifles and seen the incidence of shootings plummet.   The way is plain, the will is what is lacking.

Gardening and Apartment rentals

   I'm tired of rehashing the latest series of democratic debates, so let's talk about gardening and apartment leasing.
    The garden is facing the typical late summer dry spell at this time.  I just re-watered a new planting of lettuce I put  in on Monday.  Usually one watering right after planting is enough to keep transplants going until we get a decent rainfall.  That is not happening, so back to the hoses.  Meanwhile, the dry July will impact tomato and potato yields for my CSA and cause problems with seeding for later crops like radishes, cilantro and basil.  It is a time waster to keep watering and it allows the weed population a respite from my trusty hoe.
     We have an apartment for rent this month, and I put it on Craigslist yesterday without much hope, as there are many listings already.  Surprisingly, I have already had 5 replies and the first people to look at the place are ready to rent it.  There assessment of the availability in the area is that most apartments are "small and stinky".  Hmm.  I wonder if that is a common perception.

Round Two

     The remaining 10 democratic presidential hopefuls gathered on the stage in Detroit last night.  My hot take at the end was Joe Biden took incoming from virtually every other candidate on stage and when the smoke cleared he was still standing, barely.  Biden was notably hesitant on some issues and instead of just shooting a word salad at his attacker would lapse into silence and presumably hope his response time would be over and the moderators would rescue him.
    Most of the others on stage did little to help their cause.  Kamala Harris gave a fitful defense of her health care plan without explaining it in much detail.  Cory Booker comes off as polished, but not exciting, although as a youthful contrast with Biden he certainly looked good.  I doubt any of the others on stage will be around for the next debate except perhaps Julian Castro, who continues to impress with his policies, especially on immigration.