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.