Open Thread March 9, 2022

Yesterday, unexpectedly, we had a high temperature above freezing (only 37°F, but still. Definitely too warm to hear the call of the ki-ki-bird.) I did go to the mailbox, because my informed delivery said there was a card or letter from my first cousin. Turned out to be a New Year’s card. Stiil worth getting. I donned a fleece coat and gloves, so I’m fine.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Mother Jones – A Message From an American Fighting in Ukraine
Quote – A week or so ago, Sergey Nevstruyev, a 59-year-old father of four and grandfather of three who owns construction and remodeling businesses in North Carolina, was in his home in Charlotte, watching the horrific images of Vladimir Putin’s illegal attack on Ukraine. Today he is in Kyiv, serving as a major in a Ukrainian brigade commanded by Serhiy Melnychuk, a well-known former member of the Ukrainian parliament and onetime military commander who led a volunteer militia that fought Russian-backed separatists in the Donbas region in 2014 following Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Click through for the rest of the story. I’ve long felt that David Corn is Mother Jones’s counterpart to the New Yorker’s David Remnick – just my opinion.

Robert Reich – Five ways Putin’s war could (possibly) make America better but only if we push for them
they are – 1. Help Americans endure higher fuel prices.
2. Move the nation toward green energy.
3. Trim the military-industrial complex.
4. Put democracy and human rights at the center of American foreign policy.
5. Protect and expand voting rights in America.
Click through for amplification.- The Reich on the left is right – as usual (approaching always.) Today’s Republican Party being what it is, I have doubts that pushing hard enough is possible. But that’s no reason not to try. Because if not now, when?

Women’s History – Wikipedia – Maria Mitchell
Quote – Mitchell was the first internationally known woman to work as both a professional astronomer and a professor of astronomy after accepting a position at Vassar College in 1865. She was also the first woman elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Cllick through for bio. I am using Wikipedia in order to be consistent, but I’ve drawn the names from a variety of sources. I had actually heard of Ms. Mitchell, but that was recently and in an obscure place. Anyone who is into astronomy probably knows about her – others, not so much.

Food For Thought:
(Dan Brown is a LinkedIn contact of mine. However, I don’t know his source (yes, the name is there, I just don’t know who he is). So I share this for what it is worth.)