Open Thread July 14, 2022

Yesterday, after a better night’s sleep, I finally caught up on reading and responding to comments here. Apologies for the delay. I wanted to take out trash and recyclables, but I discovered the hard way yhat some wasps had decided the trash polycart was a perfect place to hang out.. I managed to get the trash I had talek out inot the cart by using my critch (which I always take along outdoors for balance, whether I nned it for any other reason or not) to open the lid, but since they were on the side oppisite the handle, and if I had pushed it down to the curb I’d have been pushing it right through thm, I decided discretion was the better part of valor (and they picj up trash every week – it’s recyclables I have to make sure to get the right week for.) To deal with them I will need bug spray, long sleeves, high neck, a mask, and gloves, and that’s not going to happen n the daytime. The sting feels better now (which is an improvement overe the last wasp sting I got – it hurt for days just as badly as it hurt when it happened), but it has swollen some and may not be finished.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

WaPo (gift link) – Opinion | An expert in political violence urgently warns: The worst is coming
Quote – Greg Sargent: You’ve written that the Republican Party has a “militia problem.” Can you describe it?
Rachel Kleinfeld: For the last few years, we’ve seen an uptick in Republican parties at the local level — though occasionally at the state level — using militias for security at party events, having militias vote on party business, in one case in Michigan having militias introduce legislation. You’re seeing a lot of photo-ops with militia members — things that normalize their interaction with the democratic process. These militias are being used to threaten other Republicans who aren’t part of this antidemocratic faction.
Click through for complete interview (no paywall with the link I have used) I’m worried too. And I don’t have the ghost of a viable suggestion.

The Warning – Steve Schmidt – Arrest Trump
Quote – He must be arrested and charged by the Government of the United States. He must face criminal trial. The era of special treatment for the Queens hustler must come to an end. His appalling dispensations have helped shatter trust and confidence in the American justice system at a moment in which the collapse of faith, trust and belief in American institutions has reached such a dangerous low that extremism has been embraced as an answer…. There are some who say that a trial of Donald Trump may become a catalyst for violence and mayhem. Perhaps. That would be terrible, but in the end, the civil authorities will have to do what is necessary to restore order. The American people must not live at the point of the militia’s gun. We won’t.
Click through for argument. Schmidt knows how to say the quiet part out loud. Let me try my hand at it – every sane American should now be able to comprehend (and empathize with) the feelings of a woman who has been violently raped and whose rapist is still at large.

Food For Thought (a hope rather than a statement –   Ojeda)