Politics Plus

Let’s begin by stipulating that the words “Benghazi” and “fun” should probably not appear in the same sentence.  We lost four citizens who were devoted to public service, and they will be missed.  And there’s no doubt that sitting through the grueling 11 hours of GOP reps asking hard questions attempting to destroy her was no fun for Hillary.  But she did a stellar job!

So let’s begin our pictorial odyssey with a quiz:

Based on the picture below of Chair Trey Gowdy (Chief Investi-Hater), do you think he was covered in …

[1] Baby Oil

[2] Pam Spray

[3] Flop Sweat

Shot of the Rethuglicans on the committee Witch Hunt warming up to do battle

And when Rep. Roskam (R-IL) repeatedly and rudely commented that “I'm just giving you the courtesy of reading your notes” – Hillary, realizing she had nothing to hide, decided to return the favor and share her notes with him …

Hillary’s cool command of the facts – even when, as she noted, they didn’t fit the narrative the Repubes wanted, made me think she was channeling Pres. Obama.

It wasn’t very long before this split-screen became a good summary of the difference on how it was going for the Rethuglicans and Hillary

It was such an abysmal performance by Gowdy and his henchmen that, as the saying goes, every contest has a winner and a loser.  Take a guess who’s who from this post-hearing candid photo …

The following headlines raise the only REAL lQUESTION eft …

Will Hillary have to declare the $4.7 MILLION the republicans have wasted on this Witch Hunt as a Campaign Contribution?

Let's enjoy a few more headlines …

From TIME

For posterity, we’d be remiss without visiting what a few of the MSM pundits had to say about the day:

The pointless grilling of Mrs. Clinton, who fielded a barrage of questions that have long been answered and settled, served only to embarrass the Republican lawmakers who have spent millions of dollars on a political crusade. In recent days, some prominent Republicans have even admitted as much.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/23/opinion/hillary-clinton-and-the-benghazi-gang.html

With Gowdy’s committee under fire for its motives, he and the Republican majority appeared chastened during the hearing, mostly refraining from slamming Clinton. But after 11 hours, they appeared unable to point to specific gains from the day.

http://time.com/4084578/benghazi-hearing-hillary-clinton-analysis/

The “get Hillary” committee did not get Hillary.

The House Benghazi committee — dubbed a “get Hillary” effort by Democrats who opposed its creation — brought out precious little new information and no major political missteps by the former secretary of state, who happens to be running for president.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/analysis-benghazi-committee-hillary-clinton-presidential-platform/story?id=34665750

The newslessness of the hearing was a triumph for Clinton. There was no negative sound bite from her. No acknowledgement of error. No moment of real weakness or confusion about the events that unfolded on Sept. 11-12, 2012.  The hearing was, in a word, boring. And that's exactly what Clinton wanted.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/10/22/hillary-clinton-triumphed-at-the-benghazi-committee-by-not-losing-her-cool/

When this began, conventional wisdom was that Hillary had to survive the scrutiny. That at best, this would be a wash. Toward the end, however, that wisdom changed. “Unless something happens,” wrote conservative columnist Matt Lewis on Twitter, “it’s starting to look like Hillary Clinton won’t merely survive this hearing—she will have come out on top.”

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2015/10/hillary_clinton_won_the_benghazi_hearing.html

Republicans will kick themselves for dragging Hillary Clinton before the House Benghazi committee Thursday.

http://www.vox.com/2015/10/22/9600322/hillary-clinton-benghazi-hearing

So while Trey et al may still be screaming, “Benghazi!  BENGHAZI!!  BENGHAZI!!!” I think Hillary is saying …

Congrats to Canada!  (Sorry to steal your thunder, Lynn – but I could NOT resist the picture!)

OTTAWA — The nine-year reign of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his Conservative Party came to a sudden and stunning end on Monday night at the hands of Justin Trudeau, the young leader of the Liberal Party.

Starting with a sweep of the Atlantic provinces, the Liberals capitalized on what many Canadians saw as Mr. Harper’s heavy-handed style, and the party went on to capture 184 of the 338 seats in the next House of Commons. The unexpected rout occurred 47 years after Mr. Trudeau’s father, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, first swept to power.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/world/americas/canada-election-stephen-harper-justin-trudeau.html?_r=0

Canada’s general elections have concluded with a landslide win for the Liberal Party and their leader, Justin Trudeau, ending the almost 10-year-rule of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

http://time.com/4079278/justin-trudeau-canada-prime-minister/

What better way to begin an overview of the splendors of autumn than with … well, an overview of the vast now no-longer verdant vegetation of the vales and vistas of Vermont?

NOTE: The Drone Video Is Best Viewed FULL SCREEN

Remind Me Again Why the Leaves Change Color

Most of us have a vague recollection of learning why leaves change color in the fall from our school days.  But let’s do a quick recap.

To begin with, Jack Frost can stop taking all his bows, because it’s not his handiwork. 

Trees, like the rest of, like to eat.  But unlike you or me, they are able to manufacture their own food.  This process takes place in the leaves in cells filled with chlorophyll via photosynthesis.

Chlorophyll is the green pigment that we all associate with leaf color.  It plays a crucial role in using the energy from the sun to convert the water from the tree’s roots and carbon dioxide [CO₂] from the air into sugars and starches that feed the tree, and as a by-product gives off oxygen [O₂].

But sitting right along with chlorophyll in the leaves’ cells are several other chemicals, including carotene and xanthophyll which you see in the orange color in carrots and yellow in corn.  They’ve been there all summer working just as hard as the green chlorophyll.

But in autumn when the days get shorter and the temperatures cool off, the production of chlorophyll begins to slow down, then breaks down and disappears.  So now it’s the time for the oranges and yellows of carotene and xanthophyll to be noticed and take center stage.  They were there the whole time – just masked by the green chlorophyll.

But some colors – viz., the reds and purples particularly associated with maples and sumacs – have NOT been hidden all summer long.  They’re being made de novo.  The sugars made late in summer or early fall, particularly with warm, sunny days, are chemically converted at that time of year to anthocyanins.

And the fact that the reds and purples of anthocyanins require bright sunshine is the reason that some trees are two-toned, with leaves at the top and outside a gorgeous red or purple, while inner and lower leaves deprived of all that sunshine display the more common yellows and oranges.

At the very end, I’ll post some solid Links with information used in putting this together that have more details, along with maps showing locations near you to enjoy Autumn’s Kaleidoscopic Color Show.

But let’s enjoy some of my favorite photos of the fantasia of fall …

RESOURCES

http://extension.illinois.edu/fallcolor/updates.cfm

http://extension.illinois.edu/fallcolor/education.cfm

http://www.foliagenetwork.com/

http://www.weather.com/maps/fall-foliage

Let me preface this by saying that, despite all appearances, this is not – NOT – snark!

Just in case it slipped under your radar, no doubt you’ll want to learn about Jennifer Connell.  She’s an HR manager who lives in Manhattan who sued her now 12 y/o nephew for $127,000 for an “exuberant hug” he gave her at his Birthday party when he turned 8 y/o.

The defendant, Sean Tarala, had just gotten his first two-wheeler as a Birthday present, and was excitedly riding around when Aunt Jen arrived to share in the festivities.  From testimony at trial, when Sean spotted Connell, the excited boy dropped the brand new bicycle to the ground, exclaiming, “Auntie Jen, Auntie Jen.”

JENNIFER CONNELL TESTIMONY at TRIAL:

“All of a sudden he was there in the air, I had to catch him and we tumbled onto the ground,”

“I remember him shouting, ‘Auntie Jen I love you,’ and there he was flying at me.”

She did suffer a broken wrist in the fall, but she told the jury she didn’t say anything at the time because “It was his birthday party and I didn’t want to upset him.” 

But later, she apparently had some serious second thoughts – at least according to the pleadings of her lawsuit:

“The injuries, losses and harms to the plaintiff were caused by the negligence and carelessness of the minor defendant in that a reasonable eight years old under those circumstances would know or should have known that a forceful greeting such as the one delivered by the defendant to the plaintiff could cause the harms and losses suffered by the plaintiff.”

And to buttress her request for $127,000 in damages, according to her testimony, it has severely hampered her social life:

“I was at a party recently, and it was difficult to hold my hors d’oeuvre plate.”

Fortunately the six-member Superior Court jury found that Sean was not liable.  AND it took them only 20 minutes to reach a verdict!

Auntie Jen gets ZERO!

To add another layer of sorrow, Sean’s Mother passed away last year – but she was aware of the lawsuit which had already been filed.  He was in court with his father, Michael Tarala, for the trial, and “appeared confused,” according to the Connecticut Post.

Perhaps wisely, Jen Connell “pleaded with judicial marshals to escort her to her car through a throng of media waiting outside the Main Street courthouse.”

PHOTO: Jennifer Connell, 54, leaving court after suing her 12-year-old nephew for wrist inj. She gets $0. pic.twitter.com/A8pWTMjFTA

— Kevin Galliford (@KallMeKG) October 13, 2015

… “I remember him shouting, ‘Auntie Jen I love you!’”

It’s probably a safe bet that Auntie Jen will never hear those words again from Sean.