Yesterday, in Tish James’s New York suit against the Trump Organization, both sides had filed a motion for summary judgment. Only the one for the plaintiff was granted, and the judge had some words for the defendant and his lawyers. Wonkette is just one of the sources by which those words are getting covered, but it may be the most snarky one (it’s on Substack).
https://www.wonkette.com/p/trump-just-got-the-corporate-death
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
Crooks & Liars – It’s Time For A ‘Rural New Deal’
Quote – [I]n May, Fix Our House released an analysis arguing that “Congress lacks the incentive structure necessary to responsibly handle crucial tasks like raising the debt limit.” While “gerrymandering is a huge problem,” polarization is also an issue, as “rural voters are increasingly trending more to the right, and urban voters more to the left,” the Fix Our House report says. Members of Congress elected in uncompetitive districts fear primaries, so they focus on their voting base and refrain from working with “the enemy.” RUBI director Anthony Flaccavento said Tuesday that “the extreme political divide in our country robs rural communities of the resources and opportunities they need, while making it nearly impossible to address the biggest problems we face as a nation.” Click through for more, including details on what such a deal would include. I don’t see it happening as long as there is a GQP majority in even one house. Another reason to vote the full ticket.
Democratic Underground (Brooklynite) – Booker Statement on Senator Robert Menendez
Quote – For nearly a decade, I’ve worked in the Senate alongside Senator Menendez. As New Jersey’s junior Senator, I imagine that I’ve had more professional experiences with him than most others…. Senator Menendez is again facing a federal indictment, one that contains shocking allegations of corruption and specific, disturbing details of wrongdoing. I’ve found the allegations hard to reconcile with the person I know…. There is, however, another higher standard for public officials, one not of criminal law but of common ideals…. Stepping down is not an admission of guilt but an acknowledgment that holding public office often demands tremendous sacrifices at great personal cost. Senator Menendez has made these sacrifices in the past to serve. And in this case he must do so again. I believe stepping down is best for those Senator Menendez has spent his life serving. Click through for full statement (with link to Sen. Booker’s government site.) Wow. Now, THAT is how it’s done.
Thing is, he is entitled to Secret Service protection (until and unlessCongess legislates otherwise.) The Secret Service has a legitimate interest in setting terms for his detention. You can talk 24/7/365 about why he should be locked up. But unless those discussions include the Secret Service, it ain’t gonna happen.
Glenn Kirschner – Trump threatens witness Gen. Milley; Trump should be revoked on release & detained pending trial
Farron Balanced – Trump Tells Republicans To Obstruct His Prosecutions Or Shut Down The Government
Robert Reich – Say Goodbye to Lousy, Low-Paying Jobs: The Benefits of a Jobs Guarantee
Armageddon Update – “Family Values”
Street dog starts living indoors. Guess the first thing he did.
Beau – Let’s talk about Missouri, change, and elections….
Yesterday was the day when my neighborhood actually had a day that was twelve hours zero minutes long. But that’s not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about trolls, what they did in 2016, what they are doing now (and I’m not at all sure we have learned anything.) I’d like to point out that in 2020, we didn’t see them in the same way they did in 2016 and are doing now – there wasn’t so much emphasis on dividing Democrats on our candidate – I don’t recall eeing any, actually. They may have realized it was futile, bcause it was clear that Democrats were united. They may have realized the only thing trying for division then would have accomplished would have been to show their hand. But now they have already been working for three years, and I deduce that they think they have a good shot at dividing us over Joe Biden’s age, as they did in 2016 over Hillary’s emails (but really over her gender.) But the fact that they are, and have been, doing this so early suggests that they want to see any andidate other than Biden – that he is the one they don’t think they can beat. We simply cannot allow it. In today’s short takes, you will learn something about their methods (in other words, what to look for) and something about what can be done. Both are old, but both are still valid – a refresher course in something this important can’t hurt. I do realize much of this is happening on social media, and most of us don’t use that. But people on Democratic Underground are starting to see some of it pop up there, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Daily Kos is having the same experience. And there are probably other sites where Democrats tend to congregate, and it’s easy to think you are reading a Democratic opinion when you aren’t.
Back then, there were a few memes bearing the message “There are only two choices on the ballot this year – democracy and fascism.” I was struck (and inspired) by what Colleen said in a comment the other day, and am going to work on possibly as many as four that say “There are only two choices on the ballot – democracy, and a living hell.” At least that avoids the use of “fascism” – a word which seems pretty clear to me, but about which enough people argue that is clearly isn’t as plain as I think it is. I’ll use some here as I make them, on days in October when I don’t have one already, and I strongly invite opinions as they unfold on which are better or worse and why.
Yesterday, I decided that, before the week gets crazi(er), I would feature a couple of articles on disabilities. One is discouraging, but at least the more we know about it the better we can cope. The other is a pure feel-good story (although, like health care go-fund-me stories, it would feel better if the ADA were properly enforced so that this wasn’t needed. I am fortunate in that I can deal with my mobility issues myself everywhere I need to go. But there are a lot of places I can’t go because they are toxic to me with my allergies.) Then I ran into this story (more of an anecdote, really) and thought I would share. You can’t make this stuff up (But who would want to?)
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
The 19th – Nearly half of women with disabilities report experiencing sexual harassment or assault at work, poll finds
Quote – The number [of women with disabilities], 48 percent, compares to 32 percent of women without disabilities who reported experiencing sexual assault or harassment at work…. SurveyMonkey did not reach enough nonbinary people with disabilities to break out in this poll. However, the poll did find elevated rates of sexual harassment and assault in the workplace for disabled men: 23 percent of disabled men reported experiencing sexual harassment or abuse in the workplace, compared with 11 percent of non-disabled men. Click through for details. This is a poll which the 19th ran itself, using Survey Monkey, and that could affect its application to society in general. However, if one realizes that sexual assault is less about sex than it is about power, and that the disabled are more vulnerable to predators than the abled, it does make sense.
Wonkette (via Substack) – BeyHive Rises In Formation, Helps Disabled Fan See Beyoncé Concert
Quote – Jon Hetherington from Oregon has been a fan of Beyoncé since her Destiny’s Child years and was looking forward to finally seeing her in concert at her Renaissance World Tour in Seattle. However, on his Instagram a couple weeks ago, he’d expressed concerns after a difficult experience when he’d seen Janelle Monáe. Hetherington has cerebral palsy and uses an electric wheelchair. The accessible transportation service he’d used apparently claimed 9:30 p.m. was just too late to take him home and he was almost stranded for the night. “I’m tired of not having the access most people in my life do,” Hetherington posted on his liberatedbygaga account. “I’m tired of having to fit ableist standards because society wasn’t built to include people like me.” Click through for full story. While this is both heartwarming, and also revealing of the kind of people who become fans of Beyoncé, it doesn’t actually address the difficulty which mobility presents to so many disaabled people that it’s the kind of disability we think of first. (Nor does it address the issues of people whose disabilities are not mobility related.)
I looked for Glenn, Andrew Weissmann, Neal Katyal, and Harry Litman. Everyone seems to be taking a breather. So here’s this, to piss off all the LGBTQIA haters.
Look to the Rainbow (Petula Clark) from the 1968 movie with Fred Astaire (4 years after the Civil Right Act – pretty good time to release it, don’t you think?
1. On the day I was born,/Said my father, said he./I’ve an an elegant legacy/Waitin’ for ye,/’Tis a rhyme for your lips/And a song for your heart,/To sing it whenever/he world falls apart.
Look, look/(Chorus):Look to the rainbow./Follow it over the hill/And the stream./Look, look/Look to the rainbow./Follow the fellow/Who follows a dream./Follow the fellow,/Follow the fellow,/Follow the fellow/Who follows a dream.
2. So I bundled my heart/And I roamed the world free;/To the East with the lark/To the West with the sea./And I searched all the earth/And I scanned all the skies,/And I found it at last,/In my own true love’s eyes. (Chorus)
The Lincoln Project – Strong
MSNBC – Lawrence: Tuberville is the most disgraceful senator of the year
Armageddon Update – 2 Tiered Justice System
Woman Rescues 10 Tiny Puppies From A Rock Cave
Beau – Let’s talk about McCarthy’s missed moment coming back around….
Yesterday, I got to see Virgil. He was in good spirits, and returns all greetings. I could not find the cards, so we payed Scrabble. I also got to meet a new resident in his area, a very handsome one, named JJ – I think either a black lab or a black lab mix – and very polite although not fully trained yet (I don’t know for what.) Anials in prisons truly warm my heart. That is just so good for everyone concerned – staff, inmates, even visitors, and of course the animals themselves. We got to talking about animals, and I menitioned I had been thinking lately an wondering which cats in my life would be there to meet me, as opposed to having already crossed the bridge with someone else. Baba, for instance – the very first sat in my life, so early I don’t een rememebr her and just know what I am told (that she was virtually my nanny. Virgil said, “No wonder you’re a cat person – you were raised by a cat.” She will have crossed the bridge with my mother, and my father will have been delighted to see her. Other cats who will have crossed the bridge with Mom include Tina (the first cat I remember), Sombra (adopted by Mom after I joined the Marines) and a few more, but I don’t know for sure which. Now I am sure that Archie will be there to meet me, and I hope also Sherlock, Moonshadow,and DJ, but there may be more. I’ll try for the roll call, but I may leave some out – Sugar Bear, Raffles, Bunny, Princess Fukutsu, Mr. Rochester, Cyclone, Debby, Cimarron, Cobrisa, Irene, Boss, Marcy, Nero, Raffles II, Cindy, and Jane. pluas the aforementioned Archie, Sherlock, Moonshadow and DJ. But we never had more than 12 at any one time. Jane we had already when I met Virgil, but from the moment the two of them met, she was HIS CAT. Period. Virgil and I had DJ in the Springs for a while, but after he passed away (his bilirubin was off the charts) we adopted a cat whose human had died, named Grey Mouser (the cat, not the person – and I’m sure the person’s family would have been astonished to learn that name is from the Sword and Sorcery genre) Mouse for short, and she took over Virgil completely. Even half-heartedly tried to kill me a few times. And that doesn’t include any animals Virgil had as a kid – including a cat named Squirrely and a dog named Zot – and others. All were distinct personalites, and some were real characters.
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
Democratic Underground (LuckyCharms) – Health Care Terms
There’s no way I can get a quote from this – it is simply a list of all the terms Americans need to know to navigate out health care system. It is (therefore) also a list of terms which no one anywhere else in the world needs to know.You don’t have to completely read through the list – its sheer length will get the point across – but of course you certainly can. Click through for the full list. I’ll just throw this in –
Politico – Senators seek to stop shutdowns forever, after McCarthy’s spending stumbles
Quote – Senators and House members began circulating a letter on Friday pushing legislation that would automatically fund the government past spending deadlines like Sept. 30. It’s a longshot, but if passed it would amount to a permanent end to shutdown threats. Addressed to top party leaders on both sides of the Capitol, the missive asks for floor votes on the effort in both the House and the Senate, according to a draft copy obtained by POLITICO. Click through – This is very good news which would be even better if it had a chance in the House. An do one had better start going on about the Founders not specifying this kind of action. None of them knew about the Mafia. Grrrr.
Experts in autocracies have pointed out that it is, unfortunately, easy to slip into normalizing the tyrant, hence it is important to hang on to outrage. These incidents which seem to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with them will, I hope, help with that. As a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as “unceasing,” “grudging,” and “vengeful destruction.”
When I was in high scholl (and through my college years), Dr. S. I. Hayakawa emerged as an expert on semantics, and in fact made it a household word. I doubt whether this is the dictionary definition – but he and his work made us think about how the way we speak about things, the words and phrases we use, the way we form questions and answers, actually influence the way we think. The author of this articles does not use the word “semantics,” but he certainly addresses its implications, and in particular when it comes to climate change. And he’s right. Referring to extreme weather as “the new normal” may be a good desription; it may even terrify a few people into paying attention, but it does not address the problem. Climate change is a symptom, an indicator. It itself is not the disease that caused the symptom. I am inclined to call that disease “human arrogance.” Perhaps you have a better idea. But, when I call it that, I can see clearly why no one is directly addressing it. “You can’t fix stupid,” and there is equally no direct way to fix arrogance.
==============================================================
Summer 2023 was the hottest on record – yes, it’s climate change, but don’t call it ‘the new normal’
Kansas City’s baseball stadium ran misters to cool people off in heat near 100 degrees on June 28, 2023. AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
Consider this analogy from the world of sports: Suppose a baseball player is having a great season, and his batting average is twice what it was last year. If he hits a ball out of the park on Tuesday, we don’t ask whether he got that hit because his batting average has risen. His average has gone up because of the hits, not the other way around. Perhaps the Tuesday homer resulted from a fat pitch, or the wind breaking just right, or because he was well rested that day. But if his batting average has doubled since last season, we might reasonably ask if he’s on steroids.
Unprecedented heat and downpours and drought and wildfires aren’t “caused by climate change” – they are climate change.
The rise in frequency and intensity of extreme events is by definition a change in the climate, just as an increase in the frequency of base hits causes a better’s average to rise.
And as in the baseball analogy, we should ask tough questions about the underlying cause. While El Niño is a contributor to 2023’s extreme heat, that warm event has only just begun. The steroids fueling extreme weather are the heat-trapping gases from burning coal, oil and gas for energy around the world.
Nothing ‘normal’ about it
A lot of commentary uses the framing of a “new normal,” as if our climate has undergone a step change to a new state. This is deeply misleading and downplays the danger. The unspoken implication of “new normal” is that the change is past and we can adjust to it as we did to the “old normal.”
Unfortunately, warming won’t stop this year or next. The changes will get worse until we stop putting more carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere than the planet can remove.
The excess carbon dioxide humans have put into the atmosphere raises the temperature – permanently, as far as human history is concerned. Carbon dioxide lingers in the atmosphere for a long time, so long that the carbon dioxide from a gallon of gasoline I burn today will still be warming the climate in thousands of years.
That warming increases evaporation from the planet’s surface, putting more moisture into the atmosphere to fall as rain and snow. Locally intense rainfall has more water vapor to work with in a warmer world, so big storms drop more rain, causing dangerous floods and mudslides like the ones we saw in Vermont, California, India and other places around the world this year.
By the same token, anybody who’s ever watered the lawn or a garden knows that in hot weather, plants and soils need more water. A hotter world also has more droughts and drying that can lead to wildfires.
So, what can we do about it?
Not every kind of bad weather is associated with burning carbon. There’s scant evidence that hailstorms or tornadoes or blizzards are on the increase, for example. But if summer 2023 shows us anything, it’s that the extremes that are caused by fossil fuels are uncomfortable at best and often dangerous.
Without drastic emission cuts, the direct cost of flooding has been projected to rise to more than US$14 trillion per year by the end of the century and sea-level rise to produce billions of refugees. By one estimate, unmitigated climate change could reduce per capita income by nearly a quarter by the end of the century globally and even more in the Global South if future adaptation is similar to what it’s been in the past. The potential social and political consequences of economic collapse on such a scale are incalculable.
Fortunately, it’s quite clear how to stop making the problem worse: Re-engineer the world economy so that it no longer runs on carbon combustion. This is a big ask, for sure, but there are affordable alternatives.
Clean energy is already cheaper than old-fashioned combustion in most of the world. Solar and wind power are now about half the price of coal- and gas-fired power. New methods for transmitting and storing power and balancing supply and demand to eliminate the need for fossil fuel electricity generation are coming online around the world.
Just as the summer of 2023 was among the hottest in thousands of years, 2024 will likely be hotter still. El Niño is strengthening, and this weather phenomenon has a history of heating up the planet. We will probably look back at recent years as among the coolest of the 21st century.
This article was updated Sept. 15, 2023, with NOAA and NASA also confirming summer 2023 the hottest on record.
============================================================== Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone, “you can’t fix stupid.” But you can fix ignorant – at least some of the time. The only way I see to drive a wedge into stupid is to fix ignorance. That’s difficut enough, heaven knows, but it’s doable – not fixing all the ignorance in the world, no; but fixing enough to get to a practicable consensus is. And semantics can’t hurt and may help in that.
