Yesterday, the exterminator came. After looking around inside and out, he called his office and discussed the progress, and the bottom line is we are going to try a two-month interval instead of two weeks. Yes, that’s good news, although it won’t make much, if any, financial difference – when the visits are close together, each one costs less. (And they are quite reasonable anyway.) Also, I learned that I had chosen the winning photo for next year’s calendar’s cover photo for the Natonal Parks Conservation Association. Earlier this month, I had done the same for the Nature Conservancy. I never pick winners in situations like this … and now twice in a row. But I think I know why – and it’a not a question of taste. Both groups offered three photos, of which two were purely scenic and the third included a critter (one was an adult squeaking silkmoth and the other was 3 bear cubs). With odds like that, the majority is always going to pick the critter over the still lifes. Rocks, water features, and trees just aren’t cuddly.
This is from Monday from Mary Trump. She promised updates after consulting with experts, and was hoping to provide at least some of those yesterday. It shold be possible to get to the updates from this link if she has written it yet. If it’s confusing, search for “The Good In Us”.
I’m pretty sure there’s at least one person who reads her who also watches Seth Meyers faithfully. If it’s not you, you can still catch up on Monday night’s show here.
Yesterday, Trinette was by to bring in mail, take out trash and recyclables, and start the car. (Hi back to all.) While here, she noticed I had acquired an HD antenna and had not done anything with it. I know you all think I am highly computer literate, but the truth is, I had no more idea what to do with it than a dog who has caught a car. With a book or pamphlet of instructions, I could have coped, but it didn’t come with one. But Trinette got it working and set on PBS in practically no time. What a gem!
As a veteran, I’m deeply interested in this, because no one can be a MAGAt and a good soldier at the same time, any more than one can be a MAGAt and a patriot at the same time. The mention of individual unit commanders developing their own training tells me two things – first, that there are multiple unit commanders whose hearts are in the right place (and in sync with their brains), and second, that these commanders’ own superior officers have failed them. Yes, there’s much more to get out of this report; those were just what struck me.
Dearfield, Colorado, a town in Weld County (Northeast of Denver), now a ghost town, began to be homesteaded by black people in 1910. Eventually it became the home of 300 people of color, making it the largest black homestead in the state. It is already on the National Register of Historic Places. Now, descendants of the homesteaders, historians, and others who care, want it to be designated as a National Park. I for one certainly hope the effort succeeds.
Yesterday, Trinette came by (and yes, Nameless, I told her “Hi” from you). She brought in the mail and packages and took out the trash and recyclables. She also started the car (i had been worrying about that) and ran it for a while, then took it out to get filled with gas (which reminds me of a very silly penguin joke).
It was a slow day for email, and there wasn’t much on Black History that I could find. I was attracted to an article in The Root, which was also cited on MSN but not reproduced in full. I’ll share The Root’s link, and hope at least some of you can see it. Its premise was that, while we normally celebrate people and events with praise for the heroes, we maybe should not forget the villains who made the journey harder than it needed to be. I’m old enough to remember George Wallace (shown in the lead photo) and something of Bull Connor, and more recently David Duke and possibly so are some of y’all. I agree with the premise – I think that attempting to change the minds of bigots by convincing them that whoever they love to hate as a group are in no way lesser than they are is non-productive, even counter productive – because on some level they know that, and it scares them more than anything.
Robert Reich turned his Substack over to a guest writer. The title of the column is How to understand the politics of Israel and Palestine? (Query his.) I hope anyone who thinks there is only one side in the current conflict will give it a chance.
Yesterday, I slept late, wnt to bed early-ish, and accomplished very little in between. I can’t say I feel bad about it – it was clearly needed – but I was finding it difficult to describe it. I guess this is as good as anything. Now, tomorrow – on the 31st – I will load all the contining logos and images that we use. I was in no shape to do it on December 31, but on January 31st, I’ll have no need to stay up late to do it. And I won’t have as many as I did a year ago either.
While this is good news, it is also too little, too late. Between the systemically excluding black jurors (from the jury pool – they never made it to voir dire) to the truly outrageous use of a blind man as an eyewitness, this case should have been laughed out of court before it started.
Another gift from my cousin. The Post calls this an opinion piece – but I see very little opinion accompanied by a lot of history and Constitution (which might actually be a good rule for opinion pieces in general, mightn’t it.)
Yesterday, I worked on educating myself for today’s opera – “Dead Man Walking” by Jake Heggie. Obviously it is based on the book, but has probably also taken a thing or two from the movie. The book was published in 1993, the movie produced in 1995, and the opera premiered in 2000. Considering all that, I’d say the Met was dragging its feet. And I’m not alone in that – because this season is being different. Thankfully. The book is purely non-fiction, and includes Sister Helen’s experiences with two death row inmates … and their families. For both the movie and the opera, these two men were conflated into one and given the name Joseph de Rocher, which is far from close to either real name.It struck me as interesting (probably meaningless) that at the premier in San Francisco Sister Helen was sung by Susan Graham and the convict’s mother by Frederica von Stade. In the 2023 Met production 23 years later, Susan Graham is singing the convict’s mother and Sister Helen portrayed by Joyce di Donato – she’s a trifle older than Graham was when she sang it, but she also has real experience working with convicts in at least one prison that I know of – Sing Sing in New York. This opera is set in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, which, if you are aware of it, it’s probably under another name – Angola. Wikipedia has a fairly detailed sumary, and I will probably keep it open while listening. It certainly doesn’t appear that the opera shies away from anything. And, as if to demonstrate that capital punishment is an issue which has not gone away, here is a petition written by Sister Helen herself, sponsored/promoted by Move On, with whom Robert Reich works so much.
I haven’t mentioned Loper Bright v. Raimondo yet, but you may have heard about it anyway. It’s been before the Supreme Court this week. If it is decided wrongly (and of course the crazy justices are leaning that way), regulatory agencies will not be allowed to regulate. I can hardly begin to describe how catastrophic that would be. Little Sammy is calling regulation “the administrative state” as if it were a bad thing. It actually isn’t – it’s far preferable to an “anarchic state,” which is what we are likely to get. This quote is from Wonkette’s newsletter , and is chock full of links to blogs by people who actually have the credentials to have opinions:
What smart things do we need to know about Loper Bright v. Raimondo (the Supreme Court case in which they’re probably about to ban “agencies doing regulations”) today? Here’s Madibe K. Dennie on Samuel Alito’s latest power grab disguised as a legal theory. (Balls and Strikes) Here’s Justice Kegs pretending not to understand that agencies have different policies during different administrations because voters chose a new administration to make different policy — plus some bullshit on the “major questions doctrine” (made up) and delegation. (Dorf on Law) The Only Republicans Are Allowed to Govern Doctrine. (Lawyers Guns & Money) Chris Geidner says it’s one of the most disingenuous arguments he’s ever seen. It must have been SOMETHING. (Law Dork)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/no-labels-party-2024-presidential-ballot-access-effort-complaint/
Some people are saying that “No Labels” has lost, or is losing, it’s collective mind. Personally, I am not sure that No Labels has a mind to lose. It has made a complaint to DOJ with the premise that anyone who doesn’t want to see their candidate, whoever that may be (they don’t even have a clue yet), on the November ballot is part of a RICO conspiracy against them. The Justice Department has not yet responded. Hopefully someone will tell them that, because the Constitution directs them to, states have laws in place covering every aspect of elections, including who may and may not appear on the ballot, and that if the No Labels candidate doesn’t qualify, it is the duty of the state not to put them on it.
Yesterday, I didn’t get a lot done. Not that I have to every blessed day, of course.
As usual, Wonkette is pretty snarky, but the facts are solid. Republicans! i can only deduce that they want to prevent kids from growing up and voting. Including their own kids. Come to think, that would also explain all the guns.
The New Yorker had this piece on the separate battles breaking out in the Middle East. Am I being paranoid to suspect that these are not unrelated incidents? Well, if I am, i am not alone. If you can’t access it at the New Yorker, I made a pdf copy, and I can literally forward it in secons.
Glenn Kirschner – Mark Meadows gets immunity to testify in federal grand jury about Trump’s crimes: Top takeaways [Yes, it’s long. I made it through, but not without my mind wandering some.]
The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party – October 24, 2023
MSNBC – Top House Democrat reacts to Johnson Speaker election: ‘I’m going to take him at his word’ [Nicolle, however, or one of her guests, called him “Jim Jordan with a jacket and a smile.” So we’ll see.]
Founders Sing – WE AIN’T GOIN’ DOWN WITH JIM
This dog’s best friend was abandoned. His dad adopted him and reunited them.
Beau – Let’s talk about 2 questions about Biden’s trip….
