The government sent a 40 page statement to a tRump appointed judge telling her why a "special master" is not needed to review the documents the government seized at Mar a Lago. Inside the statement the DOJ says its investigation is ongoing and the special master could possibly compromise the government's case.
As many have pointed out, if anyone other than the failed former guy stole and retained classified documents they would likely be led away in handcuffs. Enough already. Lock him up!
In a recent poll, only 3% of respondent asserted climate change was the number one issue facing America today. Meanwhile, 10 of the 15 fastest growing counties in the country are located in the Southwest which is suffering the effects of a 1000 year drought. The other 5 counties are located in the Southeast and Northwest. The counties losing population are in the Midwest and Northeast, both areas suffering the least from climate change.
Most people know in their hearts there is a problem. But with one of the two political parties denying any connection between weather disasters and climate change, confusion reigns. Outside of authoritarian regimes, there is no political party like the GOP and its attitude toward climate. Unless and until Republicans have a change of heart, people will continue to move to vulnerable areas and we will be heading for disaster.
Still transplanting fall lettuce and greens like chinese cabbage and broccoli. I finished harvesting a 20 foot row of potatoes. H/t to Ralph Childs for the seed. It was a bumper crop of beautiful spuds. Planted spinach to follow. It is late for spinach at this point, but a warmer than normal fall is predicted, so we will see. The summer squash is about to succumb to downy mildew, but the plants produced like champions all summer. Cucumbers, ditto.
I'm still getting used to a constrained garden situation with shade a major problem. The garden beds produced really well with 6 hours of direct sunshine per day. Having gardened with full sun for many years, I was surprised many vegetables performed so well. I guess it's never too late for old dogs to learn a few new tricks!
California has said it will ban the sale of gas powered vehicles starting in 2035! With a car market as large as that of many European countries, this is a BFD. Also, 16 states usually follow California's lead, putting pressure on carmakers to ramp up their EV programs. If I am still driving in 2035, it will definitely be electric.
Of course the most conservative Supreme Court in a century will probably find some way to block California's initiative, but the idea of an EV future is a genie which will not go back into the bottle without a fight. The Court threw incentives to the states when it came to abortion law and will reap the whirlwind from the Dobbs decision. Let's see if they can step on their collective robe when it comes to saving the planet.
Joe Biden stepped firmly on the new third rail of American politics yesterday. He unveiled a plan to help former college students struggling with up to 1.5 trillion in student debt. Virtually all will get $10 thousand in forgiveness. Students who took advantage of Pell grants will receive an additional 10 thousand in relief.
Many of my fellow baby boomers are against giving any forgiveness to student debt. We paid our own way and paid off any loans goes the argument. Unfortunately, this attitude flies in the face of real world experiences of my generation.
When i graduated high school in 1969, tuition, room and board and books at a New York state public university ran about $2500.00 per year. I had a regents scholarship and some savings and was able to graduate in 1973 with about $1500. in debt at 4% interest. All told, in today's dollars it cost me about 50 thousand to graduate. That's about the equivalent of one year of expenses today. Much of the difference is the bloated administrations in today's universities and colleges. We need to reform higher education to reflect our priorities.
The sacrificial lamb was selected in NY 21cte last night. Matt Castelli earned the dubious honor of running against Elise Stefanik to represent the district in the next Congress. Castelli is a former CIA agent who is betting a moderate democrat can defeat the MAGA candidate in a district which continues to trend bright red. Outside of Democratic enclaves surrounding universities and hospitals in the district we might as well be in the backwoods of Tennessee or Alabama as far as voting proclivities. Guns are the major issue in this area and even "moderate" Republicans are worried the government is coming for their AR-15s.
At one time a Democrat actually broke through and won this district for the first time since the Civil War. Bill Owens, a Clinton Democrat with strong ties to the business community sneaked through when Republicans split their vote between two candidates. Unless Castelli has some secret plan or Stefanik is embroiled in a shocking scandal, the latter is basically a shoe in. I can almost sympathize with downstate Republicans in Blue districts who probably feel the way I do. Democracy for thee, but not for me.
The old axiom regarding stupidity is keep your mouth shut or open it and remove all doubt. Ron Johnson has chosen the latter, although there was never any doubt. When asked by a reporter if he had intended to deliver a competing slate of Wisconsin electors to VP Mike Pence on January 6, Johnson said he only intended to do it for a matter of seconds, therefore there was no attempt to interfere with the orderly transition of government to Joe Biden.
I guess in Johnson's mind there must be a time limit on treason and 2 seconds doesn't cut it.
It is the silly season of national politics. As the final primaries decide who will be running for Congress, pundits and ordinary people pick through the entrails of each contest, trying to divine some significance, no matter how small.
Meanwhile, every move the former guy makes is dissected for clues as to which criminal or civil investigation will bring him down. Many people have avoided the news due to tRump overload. The Ukraine war continues. Blah, blah, blah.
Sometime in the not too distant future, Republicans will hit the trifecta of American governance. They will control the House, Senate and White House. People like Marjorie Taylor Greene in the House and, Dog forbid, Ron Johnson in the Senate will have real power to affect the lives of everyday Americans.button Culture War issues such as a nationwide ban on abortions, doing away with gay marriage and making sure trans people are not allowed to play any kind of sport are issues they can and will take action on. Do you really think Social Security and Medicare are sacrosanct? Already, some are calling for both programs to be approved by Congress on a yearly basis. That involves the ability to amend the laws. Think about that.
Of course, zero taxes for "job creators" is high on the agenda. Politization of justice and further emasculation of the Voting Rights Act are other targets. If you think none of this is possible and cooler heads will prevail, you have not been paying attention to politics for the last 20 years. These atrocities are not only possible, but are being planned as i write this.
The Divine Mrs. M and I will seemingly confront climate change in a very personal way come October. We are scheduled to cruise the Rhone River in France. But unless that country experiences a very wet September, parts of the river may not be deep enough to float our boat, leading to a truncated itinerary.
Not only are the rivers in France at a low ebb after an extremely dry winter and spring, they are also used to cool the nuclear reactors which supply much of the nation's electricity. Until recently, many of the reactors discharged the warmed water back into the rivers, but without a waiver the reactors' management will be unable to pour extremely hot water back into already warmed waters. With Russia withholding natural gas supplies due to fallout from the Ukraine war, much of Europe is in an energy squeeze.
We may be riding buses instead of cruising and may be grateful there is an alternative available to us. Tourism may become another casualty of climate change.
In 2013, Liz Cheney excoriated then president Obama for the sin of expanding the reach of healthcare to many middle class Americans. Since her election to Congress in 2016, she voted with the former guy 93% of the time. Yet here she stands, bloodied but unbowed after losing her primary election by more than 30 points to a former never Trumper who drank the Kool-Aid and embraced the big lie.
What does it say about politics in 2022 that Cheney is now the darling of many on the left? I would hazard a guess it says a lot more about the state of the Republican party than anything else. Liz hasn't changed, but the party of Lincoln has morphed into the party of Victor Orban, leaving Cheney's political identity far to the left of many of her Congressional colleagues.
She is now free from the strictures of Congress and will have the backing of those who believe the Republican party of conservative ideas as opposed to its present status as a cult worshipping a failed former president. She will be a formidable thorn in tRump's side, especially if she runs for president in 2024. While I could never agree with most of her policies, I can respect her for her dedication to democracy.
Paul Krugman says it in the NYT this morning. While Republicans at one time used to vote for climate policy legislation dealing with issues like acid rain, they now automatically oppose anything that has to do with climate mitigation. A case in point is the Inflation Reduction act which just passed without a single Republican vote. Even major oil companies like BP and Shell approved the legislation which is mostly dealing with climate.
Krugman traces the GOP addition of environmental issues to the overall Culture War as far back as the 1990's and Newt Gingrich, but he believes it became more explicit after the election of Barack Obama in 2008. The 20-30% of white Americans who are thoroughgoing racists are ready to oppose anything associated with our first black president. The craven leaders of the party cater to this minority because they turn out to vote in the primaries. Don't expect the GOP to turn green anytime soon.
After thenasty heat earlier this month, we have settled into typical late August weather in the north country; warm sunny days and cool, pleasant nights. Most people love this weather, but gardeners know it is a prelude to the long cold winter coming. It is too late to plant warm weather, long day loving plants. When the zucchini and cucumbers give up the ghost there will be no replacements.
But all is not lost! The cooler weather plants like kale and spinach are ready to replace summer fare. The tomatoes and peppers are producing and will continue to do so until frost which should come sometime in early to mid October. I'm still making succession planting of lettuce and chinese broccoli and bok choi. But as the doomsayers lament, "the end is near", or at least nearer than I would like.
Yesterday, Merrick Garland called tRump's bluff and ordered the release of the search warrant used to remove classified documents from the failed former president's residence in Florida. From what I understand this morning, Donnie Two Scoops' legal team will demand the release of some sort of fantasy documents while at the same time opposing the release of the warrant and the inventory of documents taken by the FBI. Hopefully the media will blow up this latest attempt to spin the news.
According to some sources, the classified documents involved were top secret and related to nuclear defense. If the Espionage Act was involved, tRump could be in a world of hurt. It would prove ironic indeed if the first domino to fall involved mishandling of classified documents, the same issue he bludgeoned Hilary Clinton with in the 2016 election. Of course, a few pundits on the left have even insinuated the secrets may very well have been shopped in the nuclear black market. Personally, I find that hard to believe even if I am more than willing to believe the worst when it comes to tRump. Time will tell.
Even Melania's wardrobe doesn't include as many shoes as are dropping in the Donald's multiplicity of civil and criminal investigations. From suborning state officials in Georgia to sexual assault allegations to civil lawsuits against him and his company in New York, tRump is exposed as few people in this country outside of Mafia Dons have ever been. In a land of grievance, the man is the undisputed King.
The various legal troubles continue to swirl, but at some point later this year or next, court dates and trials will begin. The millions who belong to the cult of tRump will be treated to eye popping revelations and legal evidence showing their Dear Leader at the center of perhaps the most lawless administrations in American history. Will it convince them? Certainly a few at the margin will stop drinking the Kool-Aid, but millions more will be convinced he is getting a bum rap. Many, if not most of these people are part of the tiny minority of "deplorables" who most of us would cross the street to avoid, but if even 10% of the population is immune to fact based narratives, the potential for violence on a large scale is a possibility. We are entering a dangerous time for those of us who believe in democracy.
One of his signature issues in the 2016 presidential elections was tRump's obsession with Hilary Clinton's private e-mail server. Though a thorough investigation proved no classified information was mishandled by Clinton the media kept up a steady drumbeat echoing tRump's supposed concerns. Now the shoe is on the other foot and it seems it pinches.
The DOJ had to convince a federal judge there was probable cause to think evidence of crimes was in place at the failed former president's residence, Mar a lago. Considering the political blowback such an action was sure to engender, I'm sure Merrick Garland must have iron-clad evidence to take the step of searching tRump's castle. Republicans are up in arms about the action, but as several pundits said, the DOJ has information the GOP doesn't. Once again, the Republican dog is chasing the car. Let's hope they catch it again!
Despite carve outs favoring the wealthy by Kirsten Sinema (D- Hedge Fund) and fossil fuel interests for Joe Manchin (D Exxon), regular Democrats in the Senate were able to pass the Inflation Reduction Act on a strict party line vote. The 50-50 tie was broken by VP Kamala Harris in her role as presiding officer of the Senate.
This successor to Build Back Better does not have nearly the heft of the latter, but it is still an achievement the party can run on in the November midterms. Nearly 370 billion dollars for climate mitigation and research to combat climate change is nothing to sneeze at. Steps to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices is another bright spot as is a minimum tax on corporate earnings are also welcome. More important is the proof that compromise, even if it is only with members of your own party can lead to good governance. The GOP continues to blindly oppose anything the Democrats do. Unfortunately, they don't offer another alternative aside from slashing taxes on the rich and doing the bidding of their corporate overlords.
With falling inflation, Republicans are losing the one issue they hoped to ride to victory in November. Let's hope the Democrats use their exercise in good governance shows the average swing voter there is only one party interested in working in her best interest.
Senator Ron Johnson, reputedly the dumbest member of the world's worst debating society, decided to say the quiet part out loud. He casually proposed Social Security, Medicare and Veterans' benefits be approved by Congress on an annual basis instead of their present status of paid for entitlements. Coming from Johnson, many commenters laughed the proposal off as they would if another brain dead Republican,(Tommy Tuberville, can you hear me), touted this as a realistic policy alternative.
However, if you look at the GOP and its battle against so called "entitlements" for the last 100 years, this is just the first salvo in a new attack. As the recent vote in Kansas shows, Republicans badly overplayed their hand in the recent Supreme court decision gutting Roe vs. Wade. There is very little public support for destroying SS and Medicare, but making it part of the larger culture wars, Johnson, et.al. think they can help the 30% of the population who listen to them come to the decision they should destroy their futures in the name of denying benefits to "those people".
The continuing weather related disasters make the daily news a horror show of devastation. Yesterday, the governor of Kentucky wondered out loud why his state seemed to be an epicenter of disaster. Meanwhile, western states continue to burn. In other news, the nation continues to be split by the abortion debate, war continues to rage in Ukraine and inflation is eroding the world's ability to respond to these and other crises.
Of course in a reflective mode, we can easily see climate change as the greatest threat to humanity, dwarfing every other concern. Unfortunately, that is not how the human brain works. With some justification we have dumped hundreds of billions into the Covid 19 crisis. Now monkeypox may demand a similar expenditure. And the world continues to flood and burn. The same outcome can be discerned regarding the other problems listed above.
It is the old saw of the frog in a pot of water. Raise the temperature of the water slowly but steadily and before the amphibian knows what is happening he cooks. The same thing is happening to humanity. The drumbeat of disaster continues. Temperature is rising. Will we figure this out, or will we join the frog?
Bemoaning the social and environmental cost of electric vehicles and the lithium which makes them possible got me thinking. What is the average consumer to do in the face of gigatons of carbon being released into the atmosphere each year. If every one of us was able to use bikes to go to work and adopted a vegan lifestyle involving little or no travel would it impact the trajectory of climate change?
The answer is it would probably make very little difference in the short run. Compared to the number of third world consumers trying to make the jump to a first world lifestyle, our individual choice to consume less is the proverbial drop in the bucket.
As we become disillusioned by our leaders' inability to make the massive governmental actions necessary to really address the crisis it becomes comforting for individuals to make personal choices in line with efforts to save the planet. While it is not nothing and commendable, it is also not going to make much difference in the long run. Pressure campaigns to force our government and multi-national corporations to do the right environmental things is a better solution.
One of the cornerstones of the green new deal is the switch from gasoline powered autos to electric vehicles. Perhaps the most important component of contemporary EV's is the battery which supplies the energy. The most important part of the battery is the lithium which facilitates energy storage.
Climate change deniers are quick to point out it takes tons of ore refined at great cost to produce each lithium car battery. That is their excuse to continue extracting fossil fuels and burning them and the planet. I found out that up to a third of the lithium now used in battery production comes from the Atacama plain in northern Chile. This high and dry area in the Andes mountains has been home to an indigenous population for thousands of years. It has been oppressed from the time of the Spanish conquest of the Incas and now it looks like it will happen again, along with the environmental degradation inherent in the mining industry.
It looks like the first world will get its shiny new electric vehicles and once again native populations will pay the price, whether in Chile, Bolivia or the Congo.
As a youngster growing up in the 1960s, I idolized Bill Russell, Bob Cousy and the Celtics. They appeared to me the epitome of America; black and white stars playing together at the highest level. I didn't realize at the time Boston was a terribly racist city and Russell was a target for many fans of the team. Russell passed away on Saturday and his legacy will be enthusiastically celebrated by the city and its residents.
Russell was perhaps the first superstar in a team sport. Yes, Jackie Robinson was the first black to break the color barrier in baseball, but he was not a game changer as a player. Russell won 11 championships in 13 years as a player and coach of the Celtics. He also pushed the envelope in the movement for civil rights, including setting up an integrated basketball camp in Mississippi.
Bill Russell is an icon and was an iconoclast. I will always have fond memories of Mr. Russell and the Celtics. Rest in peace big guy.
