Final musings on a lost decade

    The decade now passing started with the economy in dire straits.   Unemployment was nearly ten percent, the democratic congress had passed Obamacare and had come under sustained fire from the newly minted "Tea Party" for fiscal recklessness.  As studies have since proven, the teabaggers for the most part were reacting badly to the election in 2008 of the first black president in our history.
     The racist animus which drove many to vote republican in 2010 was accompanied by the religious intolerance of white evangelicals who feared the loss of our "Christian nation" if tolerance of muslims, LGTBQ people and  other undesirables such as jews and  blacks became the norm.
      This combination of economic and religious revanchism led to the election of an historically unqualified and badly flawed human being to the presidency in 2016.   Despite the economy functioning well for a minority of population it is doing well enough for tRump to run and possibly win in 2020 despite his impeachment.   Much of his support continues to come from those who have either benefitted from the economy or who derive satisfaction from the president*s championing their social values.
      As anyone who reads this knows by now, I have little love for the decade now passing.  I can only hope we reach a higher level of political and economic comity in the 20s as well as developing the will to stave off ecological catastrophe.  Meanwhile, I will continue to enjoy the company of the Divine Mrs. M, our children and grandchildren.  They are truly what makes life worth living in these times.

A lawless end to the decade

     Five Jews stabbed in a NYC suburb.  Two killed in a Texas church shooting.  These are the headlines we are confronted with as the last days of the decade wind down.  Along with a nod to a discredited racist science in the NYT which has created its own hysterical response this is what we can look forward to as the decade of the 20s begins.
      Of course there have been lawless interludes throughout American history.  Treason in defense of slavery, aka, the Civil War is perhaps the number one example.  But ever since the backlash to the counter culture of the 1960s, there have been lawless responses to any new cultural advances.  Reaganism and its more modern theorists are the template.  Longing for an era where white supremacy was unquestioned and pesky minorities and women knew their places in the hierarchy has led to the tRump presidency and an unprecedented scorn for rule of law when it fails to justify the aforementioned domination of the "white" race.
     More shootings and attendant hand wringing are on the horizon as we enter the new decade, but the underlying cause of the violence is the wholesale scorn for the laws which protect and defend the overwhelming majority of the population.  Getting rid of the president* in 2020 is a start, but he is only a symptom of the wider malaise which grips the country and the world.  Until we grapple with the implications of a multicultural world, the hate which drives the white supremacists among us will result in more violence and death.

Shocking news

      Shockingly, Chuck Todd of Meet the Press fame was shocked, shocked I tell you that republicans would actually come onto the set of his show and lie to him about the facts surrounding the president*s impeachment!
      Since Todd has also said it is not up to him to divine the truth or falsity of statements made by politicians I was certainly surprised by his shock when Ted Cruz expounded on the meme of Ukrainian meddling in the 2016 election with a straight face.  Todd then pointed to the numerous falsehoods tRump aimed at Cruz, his father, his family and his campaign in 2016.  like the good soldier he is, Cruz remained unmoved by Todd's litany.   For someone who makes millions of dollars each year to report on politics, only stupidity can excuse the MSNBC host.
      It seems like every week the light goes on for someone in the media and they exclaim republicans are lying to them on Sundays, in prime time, on the radio and in print.   How can they do this when most of the lies are easily fact checked?
      Republicans it seems, have found their base not only doesn't mind the lies, but actually looks forward to whatever spin the GOP puts on the latest corruption of our politics by tRump, McConnell and whomever crawls out of the woodwork to impugn democrats.  This is the only function of the republican party and until the 70% of the public who still value truth stand up and call the out, republicans will keep lying to your face, Chuck and will laugh at you as they leave the studio.

Post Christmas Grumps

     Once again, my post Christmas grumpiness at the materialism and utter hedonism engendered by the holiday nearly overwhelmed me once again.  The saving grace was my grandson, Wyatt, who although kept chanting "Can I have another present please", remained in good humor throughout the day.  
     Seriously, I sometimes wonder at an economy so pitched to a mystical birthday can continue to churn out the amount of useless plastic which eventually finds its way to America's overburdened landfills or worse yet becomes part of the oceanic trash dump.   We spend weeks buying and wrapping presents for an orgy of gifting which leaves the givers and receivers exhausted and in debt for months afterwards.   Anyway, that is my rant for a December 26.

Some Chritmas Eve thoughts

      As our Christian nation prepares to celebrate the birth of its savior, many Americans are celebrating the gratuitous cruelty which has characterized our national discourse since the first day of tRump's administration.
      Instead of helping the immigrant children, of which Christ was one, instead we separate them from their parents and lock them in cages.  
       In our name, the administration has proposed new rules on food stamps which will cause hundreds of thousands of people to lose assistance.
       If Cheetolini should win the next presidential election, help for the sick via Medicaid will be withdrawn.
       These acts of cruelty, so unlike the gospels of the New Testament are a condemnation of a political party which acts more like Herod than Christ.   The nearest literary approximation of many of our fellow citizens is the character Ebenezer Scrooge in Dicken's A Christmas Carol.  But while Scrooge was a hard hearted miser who refused to help the poor, he did not positively gloat over the misfortunes of the poor.  Many in our country support the administration's social policies precisely because they inflict needless suffering on the poor amongst us.
      When we gather together with our families to celebrate the holiday and the season of Christmas, I hope we take the message of Christ to heart.   Healing the sick, helping the poor and succoring the stranger are the real "reasons for the season".   Merry Christmas to all who celebrate that spirit.

Winterlude

      Winter is here.   Having had a cooler than normal November and December has helped me get over the nitty gritty of living in the North Country.  Frequent snowfall at its attendant exertions have also eased us into the season.   Watching and participating in numerous holiday events are another antidote to the creeping cold.  About the best thing you can say about the Winter Solstice is that the underlying cause for our celebrations is that each day from now on will be a little longer than the previous.  Truly a joyful cause and effect.

One for the money, two for the show

     For political junkies, last night's cable TV lineup was catnip.   While impeachment was still front and center with most of the talking heads, the PBS/Politico debates held on public television was an interesting look at a smaller field of democrats vying for their party's nomination.  I found myself shuttling back and forth when the debate flagged in the one case or when a 5 minute bloc of commercials intruded in the other.
      I think most people came away from the debates with their choices either intact or confirmed.  No one made a huge blunder, although Mayor Pete took incoming fire from both Liz Warren and Amy Klobuchar.   His momentum may have stalled on last night's stage.   "Billionaire wine cave" will haunt his campaign for the nonce.
     Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi continues to play no limit Texas Hold Em with Moscow Mitch.  Despite a weak hand, she is holding on to the articles of impeachment at least through the holidays and letting Cheetolini dangle in the wind.  She may be gambling the president* will force McConnell to hold a fair trial so he can bask in his eventual acquittal.  However, as new revelations come out from the open investigations which continue, republicans in the Senate may start to panic.   Dragging out the proceedings into the new year look less and less promising for the GOP.  Merry Impeachment to all and a Happy Removal in 2020.

The party of conscience

     An inner guide to feeling whether something is right or wrong.   I think that is an apt description of democrats after the historic vote yesterday which impeached the president* in the House.  Two democrats opposed the measure and Tulsi Gabbard, Putin's preferred democratic candidate for president, voted present.   31 democrats who represent districts won by tRump in the 2016 elections voted to impeach.   They had no incentive to do so other than a conscience prompted decision the evidence warranted the charge.
      Listening to a few of the republicans who aside from the apostate, Justin Amash, voted unanimously against impeachment was a form of torture.   Ignorance is not an excuse, gentlemen!  The GOP representatives were uniformly white, overwhelmingly male and mostly old.  In other words, the preferred Fox News demographic.  This is the audience they were pandering to, starting with the old white dude residing (for the moment) at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
      The democrats had no choice in voting for impeachment.   Besides overwhelming evidence of a crime, the administration's constant obstruction of their investigations guaranteed the outcome.  Republicans can willfully deny the charges, but the obstruction of the Congress' institutional prerogatives should give them pause, especially in the Senate.
     Now comes the cat and mouse game between Nancy Pelosi and Mitch McConnell.  Pelosi was asked if she would hold the impeachment articles until the Majority leader agreed to at least the appearence of a fair trial.  She did not deny the possibility.   It looks like she may be playing a better hand than the one she was dealt.

History will judge

      The ink was barely dry on Cheetolini's spittle flecked letter to Nancy Pelosi when protesters started brandishing "Impeach" signs and gathering all over the country to demonstrate their support for holding the president* accountable.
      According to tRump's scribes (there is a vanishingly small chance he wrote the text, aside from editorial input) history will judge him a victim of democratic overreach.   The problem with the argument is its willful ignorance of the Constitution, the separation of powers and simple justice.  The president* and his enablers don't believe it was wrong to pressure foreign governments to intervene in American elections.   After all, it worked in 2016!
     A slim majority of citizens believe in the impeachment of this lawless president and up to 70% believe relevant witnesses should be called during the Senate trial.  Of course this will never happen because even as he protests his innocence, tRump will never allow Mick Mulvaney, John Bolton and other witnesses with intimate knowledge of Ukrainegate to testify.   There will be no Profiles in Courage moment in the Senate because the outcome is a foregone conclusion.  
     Some pundits are already saying that within a generation this president* will be judged less harshly than most of us imagine at least in the textbooks approved in red states.  I am less sure of that.  As more and more evidence comes to light, The Donald will go down as the most corrupt and least liked president in modern times.  That is the legacy he is fighting against.

Climate war

      Over at Mother Jones, Kevin Drum has been fulminating on the inevitable climate disaster we are making for ourselves and possible solutions to this existential threat to our species and our planet.
      He has said for many years that even the casual climate warrior and I count myself as one, will not be willing to make the sacrifices that would be required to stem our carbon dump into the atmosphere.   Not only are the population of advanced countries unwilling.  The developing world is clamoring for the same comforts we take for granted.  For them to enjoy our standard of living would hasten our demise.   Unless... Drum makes the case for massive R&D into green technologies.
      With a proposal of $700 billion per year, he would literally throw massive amounts of money at every promising project from solar to wind to carbon sequestration and fusion power.  I think he is putting these ideas out there in hopes of getting enough people to press their representatives in Congress to start pushing the R&D buttons.
      As he says, it may be too little, too late, but we must do something massive in the next few years or pray that some program being developed as I write this will make non fossil fuel power so cheap we can electrify our lives and keep the climate livable for our descendants.

The winter of discontent

      With Boris Johnson's crushing victory in the recent UK elections, pundits in the US are going into overdrive predicting a similar victory for tRump in the 2020 presidential sweepstakes.   Most are predicting electoral doom if democrats nominate Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren as these two are reckoned to be as far left as Labor's Jeremy Corbyn.
      Of course the possibility of a victory by Cheetolini is baked into the numbers.  Both the democratic and republican nominees start out the campaigns with about 45% of the voting public on their respective sides.  For democrats it is all about turning out their base, which is much larger than the republican's.  
      Most pundits writing for the largest papers and speaking on Cable news are members of the 1% and they think Sanders and Warren are harbingers of the apocalypse.   The fact they may have to sell that third home on Martha's Vineyard or do with one less domestic is reason enough to silently root for a tRump victory while simultaneously assuring the rest of us that nice things are not possible if we are to continue spending on a bloated military and making sure their latest tax cuts remain inviolate.

Doing the wrong thing

     Just as democrats in the House struggle to do what the president*'s crimes demand and follow through on impeachment, republicans have reacted in exactly the opposite fashion.  They are doing the wrong thing by defending an executive that many in the party freely admit (in private) is doing our democracy great harm.
     It is not only in the political arena where this is happening.  On global climate change, the republican party is the only major political party in the world continuing to deny our world is entering uncharted territory when it comes to weather.  As Paul Krugman points out in today's NYT, part of this is explained by the fact the GOP hoovers up most of the political donations of the fossil fuel industry.   Even that does not fully explain the mendacity of republicans.   They have become an anti-science, anti-immigrant reincarnation of the nativist Know Nothing party of the mid 1800s.  They have staked their continued existence on appealing to the basest instincts embraced by a significant minority of Americans.
     Krugman feels the only way we can save our democracy and by extension, the planet is for the GOP to suffer a series of crushing defeats.  Unfortunately, as yesterday's elections in the UK dealt a crushing defeat to the Labor Party in what may be a dress rehearsal of our own in 2020, being on the right side of history may not be enough in today's world.  

Doing the right thing

    As we come closer to the 4th time articles of impeachment have been brought against a sitting president of the United States, the anguish some democratic representatives in the House are feeling continues to get prime time coverage.
     We are told these representatives of districts tRump won in 2016 are in a tough spot.  If they vote for impeachment the conventional wisdom goes, they risk the wrath of the voters who put them in office.   Personally, I think that is total BS.  Diehard tRump voters never voted for them in the first place and most if not all of those who did vote for them are sick of the president*'s lawlessness and will vote for anyone with a conscience.  The latter is a commodity in short supply in today's GOP.  We are at a crossroads with respect to democracy.   If we let this travesty of a man continue in office, we risk the republic which Benjamin Franklin said was ours, "if you can keep it".

Shoes dropping

    The democrats p/reviewed their impeachment strategy yesterday and it looks like an attempt to satisfy all their constituencies as well as their consciences and their oath of office.
    By limiting themselves to two articles of impeachment they should be able to pass them through the House before Christmas and have the Senate take them up and start Cheetolini's trial in January.  The upside of the strategy is it satisfies the activist wing of the party and at the same time ensures the trial and foregone acquittal of the orange buffoon will be flushed down our  collective memory hole before the election season is upon us.
     The downside to this strategy is leaving so many instances of wrongdoing by the president* uninvestigated.   From obstructing the investigation into Russian meddling in our elections to violations of the emoluments clause, these eminently impeachable offenses will go unpunished to the chagrin of many.   Nancy Pelosi has decided to stake democrats' fortunes on two articles and a quick trial.   She and we know that even if the Donald was credibly shown to be the Boston Strangler he would be acquitted by the Senate, so why waste extra time detailing his many crimes?
     I think democrats can pursue both avenues in a post impeachment environment.   tRump will continue to do crimes and the dems can continue their crusade in the courts to force administration officials to testify.  The Donald may indeed be the first president to be impeached twice during his first term.

Hard Lessons

       Amid the media noise created by the tRump impeachment hearings, lesser events are given short schrift, but perhaps two things which happened in the last few days are important enough for a second look.
      Paul Volcker has died.  For millions who suffered under his anti inflation policies in the late 70s and early 80s of the last century, that is probably cause for celebration.   To be fair, the 10% inflation that characterized the era when many boomers came of age was definitely a problem that needed to be dealt with.  Volcker's chosen method was to raise interest rates in a draconian fashion and subject the working class to a decade of lost earnings.   Union busting was also part of the plan to bring down inflation as the unions were struggling to bring wages in line with inflation.  Ronald Reagan's breaking of the Air Traffic controllers union was perhaps the straw which helped break the back of a declining labor movement.  Volcker continued the harsh interest rate policy until the recession of 1982 succeeded in stemming the inflationary tide.   His legacy is the Federal Reserve's fanatical devotion to keeping inflation below 2% despite little or no evidence that is some sort of sacred limit to inflation.  
      Meanwhile, the labor department announced the unemployment rate is at a 50 year low, clocking in at 3.5%.   Right wing economists have told us for almost as long that a nearly 6% unemployment rate is built into our economy and is the price we must pay for economic stability.  Somehow, despite its warts, the present economy gives the lie to that dogma.   how many millions have sacrificed their futures on the altar of a policy which prescribed their suffering as a necessary adjunct to prosperity for the rest of the population.

Another Canary

      According to a news article in my internet opening page, perhaps the largest trucking company in the US, Celadon, will declare bankruptcy today.   As many as 3200 drivers may be stranded out on the road.   Most drivers rely on company provided credit cards to purchase fuel.
      As someone intimately involved with the freight business, this information is more pertinent to the economic future than last month's much touted jobs report.   Trucking remains the lifeblood of commerce in this country and a declining transport sector can be expected to impact the wider economy within a few months.
      As a newbie in the produce industry in the early 1980s I was in charge of hiring trucks to move loads of produce around the country.   Produce is a little bit of an outlier as far as trucking goes.   In much of the industry, rates are usually contracted years in advance.  Manufacturers know exactly how much it costs to ship each widget to market.   On the other hand, lettuce shippers in California usually negotiate with truckers on a daily basis for rates to ship their product to market.
      A trip to New York markets which might have cost $5,000 on Friday could possibly cost $8,000 on Monday, simply because there were fewer trucks available.   By Wednesday, the cost could fall again as more truckers "deadheaded" to the area in search of lucrative paydays.  With fewer trucks on the road, these paydays could become much more inviting.  
     I knew when manufacturing in the country had slowed by the number of additional trucks looking for loads of produce to keep the wheels turning.   If today's news regarding Celadon is true, rates for moving produce are likely to fall in the short term.  But for the economy in general, a decline in the number of trucks on the road signals problems in the months ahead.

Putting a little love in their hearts

     When I look at Nancy Pelosi, I see the steely eyed determination which has made her the highest ranking female in government in US history.   However, yesterday she alluded to another side of her personality while dispatching a right wing "reporter" who shouted out " Do you hate the president" as she was leaving the podium after announcing she had instructed her committee chairmen in the House to begin drafting articles of impeachment for said president*.
     The question caused her to pivot and face the hapless scribe.  After telling him in no uncertain terms he was wrong, she marched back to the lectern and described being raised in a Catholic family with "a heart full of love".   She went on to say she prays for Cheetolini despite his many horrific policies.  She implied the impeachment was forced on her by tRump's abuse of his office and her oath of office.  Finally, she faced the reporter once more and said "Don't mess with me" and marched out as the gaggle of reporters sat back in stunned silence.
     Combined with Joe Biden calling an Iowa voter a "damned liar" for implying he got his son a lucrative job in Ukraine, Pelosi's performance seems to give the lie to the media narrative of democrats in a defensive crouch when assailed by republican talking points.  Maybe Nancy is on to something and tough love is the right answer for her critics.

Gaslighting for fun and profit

    The House Judiciary Committee held its initial impeachment session yesterday with 3 witnesses brought by democrats and one invited by republicans.  After a grueling 9 hour session of which I watched the last half hour, the results were predictable and depressing.
     It seems republicans and democrats live in parallel universes when it comes to the behavior of the president*.   The democrats and their witnesses concentrated on the accumulated evidence showing tRump had withheld military aid and a coveted visit to the White House to force the president of Ukraine to announce an investigation of Joe Biden, his son, and a conspiracy theory that Ukraine, not Russia intervened in the 2016 elections.  Despite administration stonewalling, the intelligence committee got 12 fact witnesses to detail the plot.  According to 3 of the law professors there was more than evidence to write at least 3 articles of impeachment and start a trial in the Senate.
     Of course, the republican witness, Jonathon Turley argued there was not enough evidence yet.  In his telling, congress should fight tooth and nail in the courts to compel witness testimony.  This is the same person who through the miracle of videotape is seen to advise a republican congress in 1998 that it should impeach Bill Clinton without delay or the consequences would be horrific.
     I expect more of the same in coming weeks as the judiciary committee proceeds along partisan lines with the majority living in a fact based universe and the minority in a fact free space where loyalty to the dear leader means more than honor or country.

And another one bites the dust.

      Plauged by low polling numbers and a faltering fund raising effort, Kamala Harris dropped out of the race for the democratic presidential nomination yesterday.    While I am not surprised, it was somewhat disheartening to see the party increasingly turn toward the probability of a white moderate becoming the nominee.
      Harris' campaign never really got over the polling bump she received at the first democratic debate when she went after a wobbly Joe Biden on his opposition to busing to achieve racial balance in schools.   It seemed she kept chasing another media moment and never laid out a serious plan.   However, what did in her candidacy was a shortage of money and Biden's seeming lock on the moderate black vote she was counting on.   She could have survived one or the other, but not both.  That said, she will remain an important voice for democrats.
     

It's the economy stupid

      Two columns in the NYT caught my eye this morning.  Paul Krugman's argues and provides statistics which show life expectancy in states which voted for tRump is diverging from states which voted for Hillary Clinton.   Inhabitants of the latter can expect to live up to 4 more years than red state citizens.   He opines that Medicaid expansion and better health care in general explains the difference.
     Russ Douthat, a self proclaimed "weird catholic columnist" tackles the decline of marriage and child raising in America and slams explanations from the left and right and finally comes to the conclusion that it really is the fault of those who would change the traditional, patriarchal foundation of American marriage.
     Both men point to Europe as evidence for their assertions.   However, both of these upper middle class products of the meritocracy seem to be missing an essential point.   The majority of those in their child bearing years do not have the money to raise children in the idealized 1950's model.  Child care is probably the number one cause of the one or two child family or increasingly the no child model.   The idealized single breadwinner family seems to me to be obsolete for much of the country.  it now takes two incomes in many cases to afford the child care Krugman and Douthat take for granted.   The American dream is receding for blue and red states alike and unless the economic realities are addressed, children will continue to be a scarce commodity.

Winter is here

     Meteorological winter started yesterday with a sneaky 2-3 inch snowfall which prompted a quick round of snowblowing this morning.  Ugh.  As I have told many people over the years, I hate winter!  So far, we have had a short though fairly mild fall which came to a crashing halt with a snowstorm during the first week of November.   We struggled to reach freezing in the run up to Thanksgiving and now we are again in Winter's icy grip.  I am hoping for a short, mild season, but at this point it doesn't look promising.