October 19, 2021
Lara Seligman, et al., of Politico: "The State Department's inspector general is launching a series of investigations into the end of the Biden administration's diplomatic operations in Afghanistan.... The reviews by the internal watchdog will focus on the State Department's Special Immigrant Visa program; Afghans processed for refugee admission into the U.S.; resettlement of those refugees and visa recipients; and the emergency evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul 'to include evacuation of U.S. citizens and Afghan nationals,' according to an Oct. 15 action memorandum to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.... The Pentagon's inspector general also has at least three reviews related to the evacuation that are underway, and it's possible other agencies and departments' watchdog units, too, will probe exactly what happened." ~~~
~~~ Alex Marquardt & Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "The Biden administration's top envoy for Afghanistan is leaving his position, the US State Department confirmed in a Monday announcement, less than two months after the US withdrew from Afghanistan in a chaotic -- and deadly -- evacuation process. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad will be replaced by his deputy, Tom West, who led Afghan policy for the Biden presidential transition team and has been working closely with Khalilzad for months."
Brady Dennis & Darryl Fears of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration moved Monday to regulate a group of long-lasting, human-made chemicals that pose health risks to millions of Americans, >even as they continue to be used in an array of products such as cosmetics, dental floss, food packaging, clothing and cleaning supplies. The Environmental Protection Agency said it will move with urgency to set enforceable drinking water limits on certain polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, more commonly known as 'forever chemicals,' which do not break down naturally and have turned up in the water supplies of communities across the country."
Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "Senate Democrats on Tuesday will unveil a scaled-back version of a Biden administration proposal to crack down on wealthy tax cheats after conservative groups and the bank industry raised major privacy concerns, three people with knowledge of the coming announcement said. Initially, the Department of Treasury and Senate Democrats had proposed requiring financial institutions to provide the Internal Revenue Service with additional information on bank accounts with more than $600 in annual deposits or withdrawals. After a backlash, the new proposal will instead require the provision of additional information for accounts with more than $10,000 in annual deposits or withdrawals, a measure Democrats have been considering for weeks but have not formally endorsed, the people said. The revised version of the bank reporting proposal will also weaken its scope by exempting all wage income from counting toward the $10,000 threshold withdrawal, intending to ensure it applies to only larger account holders...." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Like most retirees, none of my income comes from wages, so I guess I'm in the potential "wealthy tax cheat" bucket. It's a mighty big bucket.
Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department asked the Supreme Court on Monday for an emergency halt to the Texas law that has practically stopped access to abortion in the nation's second-largest state. The action means the court will again have to confront the controversial law, which generally outlaws the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy. In a divisive 5 to 4 decision last month, the court allowed the law to go into effect, although dissenters said it violated the nearly 50-year-old precedent in Roe v. Wade that guaranteed a right to abortion before fetal viability. DOJ raises new arguments in its filing, and says the court must intervene to prevent an end run around its authority and the Constitution." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ Kevin Breuninger of CNBC: "The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to a request from abortion-rights advocates and providers to quickly consider taking up their challenge of a restrictive Texas law that bans most abortions after as early as six weeks of pregnancy.... If the court agrees to consider the case on an expedited basis, it could accept briefs, hear arguments and deliver a ruling much faster than if the case had to wind through the normal court channels.... The high court directed the respondents in the case to file a response by noon on Thursday. That's the same time Texas is due to file its reply in a separate challenge of the law, which the Department of Justice brought to the Supreme Court earlier Monday."
Jada Yuan of the Washington Post: "For five years after the death of her son, Jill Biden says, she lost her faith in God.... She had stopped going to church or even praying, she told the congregants of Brookland Baptist Church late Sunday afternoon. But she found her way back, and over the weekend traveled nearly 500 miles to surprise the woman who'd helped her get there. Robin Jackson, the wife of the church's pastor, is that woman, and in 2019, Biden said, she 'changed my life.' That's when Jackson approached Biden during a service and said she'd like to become her 'prayer partner.' Biden didn't know what a 'prayer partner' was, she told PBS in 2020, but she was intrigued. They've kept in regular contact, and have been praying together, ever since."
Robert Kuttner of the American Prospect: "Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell sold between $1 million and $5 million worth of stock from his personal account on October 1, 2020, according to disclosure forms reviewed by the Prospect. Powell's sale of shares from a Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund has not been previously reported. This sale occurred right before the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered a significant drop.... Three other senior Fed officials have faced serious criticism for making stock trades during the pandemic. Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan and Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren were compelled to take early retirements as a result of the disclosure of their trades. Fed Vice Chair Richard Clarida also came under fire for stock trading. The other trades are now the subject of investigations by the Fed's own inspector general and the SEC."
Greg Sargent of the Washington Post: "Sen. Joe Manchin III ... is making new demands that could badly impair our ability to combat child poverty and global warming, by shrinking two key components of the multi-trillion-dollar reconciliation bill. Manchin's new moves reveal the folly of arbitrary centrism. This posture is essentially that any effort to restrain liberal governance is an inherent good, with no serious acknowledgement required of the real-world trade offs it entails.... Manchin has even suggested to colleagues that he doesn't particularly care which progressive priorities get jettisoned; he just wants to see some of them gone." ~~~
~~~ Manchin Throws Grannie Under the Bus. Catherine Rampell of the Washington Post: Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) has been advocating work requirements for anyone receiving child benefits under the Build Back Better bill, a policy that would hurt families where a grandparent is head-of-household. "These households have swelled over the past decade.... As of 2019, roughly 6.2 million children lived with grandparents; within that population, 1.1 million had no parents present in the household. The numbers have likely grown since covid-19 struck.... Most grandparents responsible for their grandchildren are no longer in the labor force. They're often retired, disabled or both.... The [temporary] program [-- which ends in December --] has already lifted millions of children out of poverty; if extended, its long-term effect is estimated to slash child poverty by nearly half."
Joseph Choi of the Hill: Donald "Trump blasted Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) on Monday after the senator said in an interview he would not vote for the real estate mogul if he ran for president again in 2024. On Sunday, Cassidy said during an interview on 'Axios on HBO' that he did not believe Trump would be the GOP presidential nominee again. 'President Trump is the first president, in the Republican side at least, to lose the House, the Senate and the presidency in four years. Elections are about winning,' Cassidy told Axios' Mike Allen. When Allen noted that it was 'clear' that Cassidy would not be voting for Trump in any case, Cassidy responded, 'I'm not.' In a statement on Monday, Trump called Cassidy a 'RINO' ... and reiterated a notion he had hoisted on other Republicans that Cassidy had 'begged' for his endorsement in 2020 'and used it all over the place to win re-election.' 'Now, Wacky Bill Cassidy can't walk down the street in Louisiana, a State I won by almost 20 points,' the Trump statement read. 'He could not even be elected dog catcher today, the great people curse him.'"
Another Bad Hair Day for Matt. David Shortell of CNN: "Joel Greenberg, the former Florida official whose crimes in the state ensnared Rep. Matt Gaetz in a federal sex trafficking investigation, has been providing the Justice Department with new information as he continues to cooperate with authorities following a guilty plea earlier this year. At a brief hearing in Orlando federal court Monday, Roger Handberg, an assistant US attorney, said that Greenberg has made allegations to investigators that 'take us to some places we did not anticipate.' 'What investigators do is they follow up on that to try to corroborate the information that's been provided,' Handberg said."
Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "In two unsigned decisions without noted dissents, the Supreme Court on Monday ruled in favor of police officers accused of using excessive force. The rulings were a signal that the court continues to support the doctrine of qualified immunity, which can shield police misconduct from lawsuits seeking damages. The doctrine has been the subject of criticism across the ideological spectrum, and it became a flash point in the nationwide protests last year over police brutality, with activists and lawmakers calling for its reconsideration. The doctrine requires plaintiffs to overcome a daunting hurdle. They must not only show that the official accused of misconduct violated a constitutional right, but also that the right had been 'clearly established' in a previous ruling." (Also linked yesterday.)
Jacqueline Alemany of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump is suing to block the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol from receiving records it has requested regarding his role and the role of his aides in the events of that day. The lawsuit argues that the records request is overly broad and has no legislative purpose." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) Politico's story is here.
How Many Lies Can You Tell Under Oath in Four-and-a-Half Hours? David Fahrenthold & Shayna Jacobs of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump was questioned for four and a half hours Monday by lawyers for a group of protesters who have sued him, alleging that Trump's security guards assaulted them in 2015, one of the lawyers said. Trump's testimony was recorded on video so that it could be played at a trial in the suit. That arrangement allowed Trump to avoid testifying in person.... Benjamin N. Dictor, an attorney for the four protesters..., said that Trump largely answered his questions -- though he said Trump declined to answer 'a handful.' Dictor said he would ask the judge in the suit, Doris M. Gonzalez, to order Trump to answer those questions later."
Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "The Metro system in Washington pulled more than half of its subway cars from service before the Monday morning commute as federal investigators scrutinized a surge in train-alignment'failures' and the derailment of one train at least three times in a single day last week, officials said. The removal of about 60 percent of the system's cars prompted service reductions that paralyzed commuters across the capital region on Monday, forcing them to take buses, work from home or endure long waits for what many riders described on social media as overcrowded trains." ~~~
~~~ Justin George, et al., of the Washington Post: "Wheel assemblies on Metro rail cars like the one at fault in last week's Blue Line derailment had failed 31 times since 2017 -- and renewed inspections last week identified almost two dozen similar defects, the chair of the National Transportation Safety Board said Monday. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority pulled the 7000 series cars from service Sunday night, leaving the agency down more than half its fleet as service reductions and crowded trains were expected through the week."
The Pandemic, Ctd.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Tuesday are here.
Sharon LaFraniere & Noah Weiland of the New York Times: "The Food and Drug Administration is planning to allow Americans to receive a different Covid-19 vaccine as a booster than the one they initially received, a move that could reduce the appeal of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and provide flexibility to doctors and other vaccinators. The government would not recommend one shot over another, and it might note that using the same vaccine as a booster when possible is preferable, people familiar with the agency's planning said. But vaccine providers could use their discretion to offer a different brand, a freedom that state health officials have been requesting for weeks."
Joel Achenbach & Lenny Bernstein of the Washington Post: "Colin L. Powell, the former secretary of state and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who died Monday of what his family described as complications from covid-19, had been treated for the blood cancer known as multiple myeloma and was due to get a coronavirus booster shot when he suddenly became ill and was hospitalized, his longtime assistant, Peggy Cifrino, said Monday. Powell, who was 84, received his second Pfizer shot in February but was immunocompromised as a result of his cancer and suffered from Parkinson's disease, Cifrino said in an interview. Multiple myeloma is a blood cancer that severely impairs the immune system, lowering the effectiveness of vaccines." ~~~
~~~ Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha.
~~~ Summer Concepcion of TPM: "On the morning of ... Colin Powell's death from complications of COVID-19, Fox News anchor John Roberts boosted vaccine skepticism in a now-deleted tweet. Roberts failed to acknowledge Powell's battle with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that impairs the body's ability to fight infections." "The fact that Colin Powell died from a breakthrough COVID infection raises new concerns about how effective vaccines are long-term," Roberts tweeted. Concepcion links to some tweeted responses, like this one by Jason O. Gilbert: "Thank you for this perfect tweet to send people when they claim that Fox News is a legitimate news organization because they have real reporters like John Roberts". And this one by Molly Knight: "'The fact that she died even though she was wearing a seatbelt means we shouldn't wear seatbelts.'" ~~~
~~~ David Edwards of the Raw Story: "Fox News host Will Cain and network contributor Tomi Lahren also used the opportunity of Powell's death to rail against vaccine mandates." ~~~
~~~ As Philip Bump of the Washington Post writes, "... instead of demonstrating that the vaccine isn't 100 percent effective in preventing death, which was known, [Colin Powell's] death better serves to show the need to tamp down on coronavirus cases more broadly to help protect those most at risk." ~~~
~~~ AND Oliver Darcy of CNN: "Some prominent conservative media figures on Monday dishonestly used the death of former US Secretary of State Colin Powell, who died of Covid-19 complications, to cast doubt on the effectiveness of the coronavirus vaccines....Powell's cancer .. did not make it into the monologue of Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Carlson, the right-wing talk network's highest-rated star, instead used Powell's death on Monday night to suggest Americans are 'being lied to' about the vaccines. Throughout his monologue, Carlson, who has declined to say whether he is vaccinated, cast doubt on the effectiveness of vaccines." TuKKKer, dishonest? Oh, Oliver, how could you?
~~~ The Epitome of Stupid. Michael Luciano of Mediaite: "Radio talk show host Dennis Prager informed his audience on Monday that not only does he have Covid-19, but he was trying to get infected in order to achieve 'natural immunity.' The 73-year-old said he tested positive last week and has not required hospitalization, thanks in part to receiving monoclonal antibodies. These can be effective in treating Covid for people with mild to moderate symptoms who also have a high risk of progression. But Prager also rattled off the unproven Covid Treatments They Don't Want You To Know About™ that have become popular among many conservatives.... '...I have engaged with strangers, constantly hugging them, taking photos with them knowing that I was making myself very susceptible to getting Covid, which is, indeed, as bizarre as it sounded, what I wanted, in the hope I would achieve natural immunity and be taken care of by therapeutics. That is exactly what has happened....'" MB: Whatever radio station or network carries Prager should not have aired his show. ~~~
~~~ Walk Away, Dan. Walk Away. MEANWHILE. Jeremy Barr of the Washington Post: "In late May, the massively influential radio network Westwood One debuted a new daily talk show from Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent and New York City cop who gained stature in conservative media during the presidency of Donald Trump. The show occupies the noon-3 p.m. time slot once dominated by Rush Limbaugh, setting Bongino up as one of the key challengers for his audience.... Now, Bongino is threatening to walk away completely. He has taken issue with a vaccination mandate imposed in August by Westwood One’s owner, Cumulus Media." The report is part of the WashPo's Tuesday Covid-19 updates, so free to nonsubscribers.
Washington State. Chuck Culpepper of the Washington Post: "... Washington State football coach Nick Rolovich was dismissed Monday, the school announced, after not adhering to a statewide order issued by Gov. Jay Inslee in August. He was the state's highest-paid employee at $3.2 million per year, and he had remained unvaccinated up to the state's vaccination deadline of Monday. Four of his assistants -- Ricky Logo (defensive tackles), John Richardson (assistant head coach/cornerbacks), Craig Stutzmann (co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks) and Mark Weber (offensive line) -- also lost their jobs, the school said. Defensive coordinator Jake Dickert will serve as acting head coach." MB: Yes, but they're big, hunky he-men, and they don't need no stinkin' shots.
Beyond the Beltway
New York. Not as Bad as the Headline & Lede Read. Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post: "The chair of the New York State Democratic Party apologized Monday after comparing Buffalo mayoral nominee India Walton, a Black woman, to former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke. The party chair, Jay Jacobs, made the comparison in an interview with Spectrum News. He doubled down in a defiant statement issued through the state party before eventually issuing an apology amid criticism from other Democrats, including some calls to resign. Walton, a self-identified socialist, won the Democratic nomination for Buffalo mayor in June, in a victory over four-term incumbent Byron Brown. Brown has since launched a write-in campaign, and several top New York Democrats, including Jacobs and Gov. Kathy Hochul, have so far declined to endorse a candidate in the race. In the interview with Spectrum News, Jacobs was asked what type of precedent it sets if he and other leading Democrats refrain from endorsing Walton, the winner of the primary. Jacobs responded that it is not necessary for state party chairs to endorse the primary winner, citing the white supremacist Duke as an example." ~~~
~~~ Marie. Actually, no. Jacobs did not compare Walton to Duke. He compared one party's response to another's. He said, in effect, "It's not uncommon for parties to reject a nominee for any number of reasons, and racism is one of them." Jacobs even said in his initial remarks that Duke was "very different" and that Walton is "not in the same category" as Duke. Using their response to David Duke's win as an example was reasonable inasmuch as he's one of the few local candidates listeners would be familiar with. Jacobs is apologizing because some people, including the WashPo reporter Sonmez & Chuck Schumer, enjoy fake outrage too much. Better lede: "... after some Democrats mistakenly thought he compared ... Walton ... to ... Duke...."
New York. Jeffrey Mays & Zachary Small of the New York Times: "For more than 100 years, a 7-foot-tall statue of Thomas Jefferson has towered over members of the New York City Council in their chamber at City Hall, a testament to his role as one of the nation's founding fathers and the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. But for the last two decades, some Black and Latino Council members, citing Jefferson's history as a slaveholder, called for the statue to be banished -- a push that gained significant momentum in the last year, as the nation has broadly reconsidered public monuments that can be viewed as symbols of systemic racism. On Monday, city officials voted unanimously to remove the statue from Council chambers, but delayed a decision on where to put it."
North Carolina. Stephanie Saul of the New York Times: "The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill may continue using race as a factor in its admissions process, a federal judge ruled on Monday, rejecting the argument of a conservative nonprofit legal group that is trying to dismantle college affirmative action policies across the country. In her ruling, which came down decidedly against the plaintiff, Judge Loretta C. Biggs said that the university's use of race in deciding which students to admit was narrowly tailored, and that the university had made an effort to consider race-neutral alternatives.... The plaintiff, a group called Students for Fair Admissions, vowed to appeal if necessary all the way to the Supreme Court...." MB: Gosh, I'll bet those "Fair" students are so white they glow like the angels in heaven.
Way Beyond
Russia, et al. "Russia Allows Methane Leaks." Steven Mufson, et al., of the Washington Post: "Today, the second-biggest natural gas producer is Russia, fed by the prolific Yamal region, followed by Iran and its Persian Gulf gas fields. Next come China, Canada and Qatar, with its flotilla of liquefied natural gas tankers. The United States, bolstered by horizontal fracking in the Permian Basin across west Texas and eastern New Mexico, remains the world's largest natural gas producer. Scientists say that rapidly cutting methane 'is very likely to be the most powerful lever' to slow the rate of warming. But they have also documented a disturbing and surprising spike in atmospheric concentrations in recent years that they have not yet pinned down.... Given Russia's sprawling oil and gas industry, climate summit watchers say persuading President Vladimir Putin to plug his nation's leaking pipelines and dial back plans to grow natural gas exports will be important. The White House's chief climate negotiator, John F. Kerry, has spent hours with top Russian officials in search of a 'road map,' said Ruslan Edelgeriyev, special presidential envoy on climate issues for the Russian Federation.... So far, Russia's numbers don't add up, a Post analysis has found[.]" ~~~
~~~ Russia. Anton Troianovski of the New York Times: "Russia is scrambling to retain the wealth and power that come from selling fossil fuels to the world, even as the Kremlin increasingly acknowledges climate change to be a human-made crisis that the country needs to do more to address. Last week, President Vladimir V. Putin said Russia would stop adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere by 2060. It was a remarkable reversal since Mr. Putin has long dismissed climate science and many in his country see international efforts to combat global warming as part of a Western plot to weaken Russia. His announcement comes two weeks before world leaders are set to converge in Glasgow for a pivotal U.N. climate summit. But it's unclear if Russia is sincere in its new pledge.... Russia's climate contradictions are on display on the 600-mile-long island of Sakhalin, just north of Japan. The relatively wealthy region of 500,000 people is rich in hydrocarbons, the backbone of its economy. But the regional government last year pledged to make Sakhalin Russia's first 'carbon neutral' region by 2025 -- one that absorbs as much carbon out of the air as it emits."
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Reader Comments (17)
The records requests have no legislative purpose? How about that bit in the oath of office, "to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic." Sounds right up their alley to me, ya dipshit!
Inspector General investigations of President Biden's Afghan withdrawal and evacuation?
No problem. Just fire or sideline them.
It's been done...
Just watched a revealing new video by Don Winslow ( cited as a "best selling author") describing Manchin as "Senator for Sale"–––this is one of the best I've seen.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/don-winslow-joe-manchin_n_616e502ee4b00cb3cbd704db
The pandemic, continued:
We've been encouraging the Baptist side of the family for months
to get the damn vaccinations.
Here are a few excerpts from yesterday's correspondence. It's two
pages long, so just the most interesting statements:
"The jab was patented YEARS ago. It has aborted fetal kidney cells
IN IT with HiV IN IT. Each shot only makes you sicker and become
more dependent on PHARMA and cannot function and think for
yourself."
"The truth is out there but not ON THE NEWS!! They are censored
and OWNED by the CCP!!"
"You have upset several family members over your poisonous
EXPERIMENTAL covid jab PUSH. YOU CAN KEEP YOUR
OPINIONS TO YOURSELF!!!!"
This side down here is:
PRO TRUMP
PRO GOT
PRO FREEDOM
PRO AMEREICA
PRO LIFE
PRO GUN RIGHTS
VERY REPUBLICAN PATRIOTS.
This from a niece we've known since birth (hers, not ours).
We won't reply since it seems like nothing would change their minds.
And we won't be attending any funerals.
Hang in there, Forrest. At a funeral in a progressive Northern state this past weekend, there wasn't a single mask in the Catholic church. Eventually, Western civilization began to understand that the sun did not rotate around the earth. It was a slog to get there, though. We are in the slog phase.
@Forrest Morris: Thanks for sharing. That is some really scary stuff. And the weird thing is, some of it is so specific: aborted kidney cells & HIV? Really? Your niece gets this "information" from somewhere; she didn't just make it up. I guess if they can't get to you on the YouTubes & the Googles, they (whoever "they" are) blast out urgent emails about the cooties implanted in the vaccines and the owned-and-operated networks.
Crazy theories have been generated since most people lived in caves & mud huts, but the idea was that in the information age, "responsible" news organizations would pump out facts, and people would accept them, even as they formed their own opinions on the meanings of the facts. Apparently, a huge percentage of humans are disinclined to accept news which we in the real world deem to be the best available information known at a given time. That becomes a great human tragedy when life-and-death matters are the topics.
@citizen625: Don't worry. The forces of evil are ascendant now, and they are pushing away the light. But I predict that some day in late December, the good god of light (Mithras, maybe) will regain his strength & slowly start pushing the evil forces away, revealing a bit more of the sun each day, so the days will grow longer and longer. Until late June, when the god gets all tuKKKered out. Not sure how that works out for the people of, say, Chile.
The view from above.
I’ve been reading a book by two time Pulitzer Prize winning historian Bernard Bailyn, a collection of essays on the nature, forms, and techniques of historical research and writing. It’s a heady read which lifts one aloft to ride the intellectual thermals, looking down on the landscape, as it were, from above.
In an essay on modern trends in history, Bailyn gathers up some fairly recondite pieces and lays them out on the table to parse their values. He talks about manifest history, what is clear from well known documentary evidence (people moved from Europe and Africa in the 18th century) and then introduces the concept of “latent events” (the economic and social effects of the greatest migration in history up to that time, over three million people in less than a century).
I bring this up because were we historians a hundred years from now, looking back on current events, we might benefit from this sort of additive technique. Certainly the manifest events would be obvious, the rise of a culture of lies during a pandemic in a time of political turmoil. But digging deeper, we would see the myriad clues that fill in the story.
Just as an example, England, in the 18th century found that the vast number of residents leaving the British Isles and Ireland, was having a dramatic effect on the economy. Fewer people to manufacture and buy stuff. So they put a halt to emigration (for a while).
Today, the culture of lies and the viral spread of misinformation is leading to a serious breakdown of the social compact and societal mores. Small details can be missed on the ground, but from the air they are visible. From up there you can see the rivers changing direction, the roadways crumbling in vital areas, and traffic patterns beset by crashes, road signs pointing the wrong way, and road rage taking over even in areas where there’s no traffic at all.
Just a ferinstance. I’ve been noticing that two enormous (and enormously important) groups in this country have become infected with the lies spread by the right. Police, and members of the armed forces, deciding to ignore both public safety mandates and direct orders for vaccination, display exactly the sort of chaos and selfishness that evil things like Steve Bannon and his former boss live for. Fox thrives on chaos and fear. The Republican Party would collapse without chaos and fear, and lies. But we all pay the price for this farcical freeeedom.
It’s hard, sometimes, to see all this clearly on the ground, but the pieces are all there, all pointing to a very possible collapse of the whole thing. Elections, the lifeblood of democracy, are being ripped apart, voters, like cops and soldiers, are encouraged to ignore what’s right and reject stability, sanity, and responsibility.
Whose to blame? Newt Gingrich? Reagan? Bush? Trump? Sure, partly, but they all saw an opportunity to divide and conquer. Confederates won the economic wars (welfare for the rich, empty tomato cans for the poor), but lost the culture wars. And they hate it. So every chance they get to stick it to the hated libs, even if it means they also suffer for it, they do it. “Leaders” on the right smack their lips, rub their hands together gleefully and say “ That’s right. Burn it all down. More power and money for us.”
One can only imagine what Bailyn would make of this. Maybe a new book: “The Ideological Origins of the American Apocalypse”.
Oh, Forest, you have my deepest sympathy––having to deal with my brother for all these years it's enough to choke a horse–-or something like that –-although even he has gotten vaccinated. Since you mention 'the Baptist part of the family" it seems as if religion once again rears its god-like superiority to fuck up human kind.
And speaking of religion: Jill Biden's story about her loss of belief after losing her son but because of a religious mentor she apparently has come round. She blaimed her god for the death–-therefore she washed her hands of HIM––those that believe in a god that gives but also apparently "takes away" must always be in a pretty pickle and I wonder––because it IS such a wonder––-how the religious operate this way––must be exhausting!
Akhilleus,
No doubt there's a distinct political component to the anti-vaxxers in Blue. Was thinking about that last night and concluded that police departments with such a high proportion of officers infected with the Republican virus and its white supremacist component, would be notably unqualified to police the diverse communities that make up most of our major cities.
Then took one more step. If racism and anti-vaxxing sentiments share much space on Dr. Venn's diagram, what we might be seeing is a kind of self-pruning of the temperamentally unqualified in urban police departments...and that may not be all bad.
@AK: thanks for that––history and seeing from above––and yes––"One can only imagine what Bailyn would make of this. Maybe a new book: “The Ideological Origins of the American Apocalypse”.
AK mentions, "the rise of a culture of lies during a pandemic in a time of political turmoil. " The "Spanish Influenza" was pretty concurrent with the rise of religious fundamentalism through the temperance movement; consolidation of the the power of the KKK; and finally the Immigration Act of 1924. Liars lie and during a pandemic the audience gets a little soft in the head as we now see.
No honor, no decency…
The right is once again using Colin Powell, this time mere hours after his death.
The Decider and Darth Cheney used Powell to gin up their phony war (which we’re still paying for in so many ways), and now right-wing anti-vax liars are using him once again as a stalking horse to “prove” their baseless claims that vaccines don’t work. Powell died because of other complications that no vaccine could fix, but never mind that now. He’s just another handy darkie they put to good use.
Back in the run up to the phony Iraq War, it was good strategy to send a black man out to lie for them, make it harder for pain in the ass liberals and those insistent on facts and truth to attack them.
Granted, Powell was complicit that time around. This time, however, he’s dead and no one is asking him what he thinks.
He’s not even in the ground and they’re dragging his corpse around town for their own ends.
This shit is pure evil.
@Akhilleus: I spent decades wondering what was the matter with Germans that they could allow Hitler to run their country and try to ruin the world. Now I see that what was the matter with Germans is what is the matter with at least a third of our own neighbors. Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow's secret is out.
Marie,
It’s worth remembering (is it ever) that Hitler’s rise was/is not a particularly German problem. It’s a human problem (well, certain humans, anyway). Germany, in the aftermath of The Great War (great? Really? As in “wicked great”?) was buffeted by a series of baleful circumstances, but an affection for authoritarianism, comforting, bias reinforcing lies, racism, and violence are not specific quiddities of Germanic culture.
“It can’t happen here” is a dangerous nostrum. Donald Trump, were he smarter, more inherently ideological, could have written “The Art of Mein Kampf” and the usual suspects on the right would be out this very day shopping for jodhpurs and knee high black leather boots if they didn’t already have a closet full.
Sean Hannity would have a full length mirror hung in his dressing room so’s he could practice his heel clicks and “sieg heil” salute.
Those latent events that Bailyn refers to are piling up on the side of a hardcore American fascism.
Marie,
Hey, can we get The Shadow a gig on MSNBC? Maybe a regular spot on Rachel’s show? I can just hear him now: “I know what evil lurks in the hearts of men! Lookin’ at you, Gym Jordan! A-HAHAHAhahaha!”
And the voice of the Shadow was none other than Orson Welles, who, incidentally, was from Kenosha, Wisconsin and LEFT––to embrace Hollywood ( and be involved in many other ventures) and play, among the stars, and write the script and play the lead in the iconic film "Citizen Kane" whose protagonist was based on W.R. Hearst, someone we discussed here not too long ago.
I have a vivid memory of being in a bubbly Saturday night bath, the radio on a stool near the tub, and being absolutely smitten with "Evil lurks in the hearts of men––the Shadow knows."
And wonders upon wonders–––SO DO WE!