Yesterday, I didn’t do much. I received an order of groceries and for once got everything I ordered and nothing I didn’t. The news was light also, so I’m going with one deep and one women’s history today. When I say deep, I mean both serious and scary. Definitely worth some thought.
Heather Cox Richardson takes Talking Points Memo’s exposure of the SACR (Society for American Civic Renewal) and uses her knowledge of history to compare it to various happenings in our own history, leading up to the Civil War.
Yesterday, I was still running late, but not quite as late. Hopefully I”ll catch up eventually.
I am of two minds about sharing stories like this one, because I don’t want to give anyone the impression that it’s only in the South (and Mississippi does get a lot of flak). Things like this can happen literally anywhere in the U.S. And you don’t even have to be a minority for it to happen to you – as you will see if you can get past enough of the violence to see the third photo. Trigger warning.
I’m actually fine with the Right Wing Media keeping these rulings and what they mean under the radar for now. Not that MAGAts would understand the implications (do any of them know what an “implication” is?) but it wouldn;t be hard to scare them into armed protest.
This is just appalling – not that the Panthers showed up, but that they felt (with sound reason) that they needed to. Crazy white people are a threat to everyone. I’m not sure who they think thay are, but I’m damen sure that, whoever it is, they’re not.
Yesterday, I learned that The Borowitz Report is now on substack. That email I received notifying me explains why I hadn’t received any newsletters for some time … although my New Yorker subscription is still up to date. This is not earthshaing in itself – I’m only sharing it to remind everyone that to read freecolumns on substack, there’s no paywall, but there is a request to become a paid subscriber, and you need to find that request and click on “Keep reading” or “Let me read it first” or whatever opt-out Substack has assigned to that particular participant. I recommend we all get used to it. Just since I started reading Substack authors, which is less than a year, Wonkette has joined it, and Talking Points Memo, and now Borowitz, and the number and names of people who blog there would suggest that one might not really need anythng else but Substack in order to be well informed. I’m not going there – I have numerous other sources I don’t want to give up – but just sayin’.
Yes, I know, Joe Manchin. But this time he’s exactly right. And if he can be right on this, he can be right on at least some other things. Which may explain why the party has put up with him for so long.
Right wing jurists. “History and tradition.” G.K, Chesterton once wrote that tradition is de,ocracy extended through time. His example was, Democracy says “Don’t ignore a good man’s opinion, even if he is (insert caste designator here.)” Tradition says, “Don’t ignore a good man’s opinion, even if he is dead.” Aside from the obvious facts that only men are included, and that all appear presumed to be “good” (IIRC he was writing in the nineteen-oughts), I have no objection to attending to the opinions of the dead. I’m fine if they vote. I’m not fine with their being dictators from the grave. History (with a little help from archeology) tells us that human sacrifice was a tradition for literally thousands of years. I don’t know, or know of, anyone who wants it back.
Yesterday, I got a couple of my hospital stay bills paid (with my HRA credit/debit card.) I haven’t paid them all because I haven’t gotten them yet – the hospital got my address wrong and then passed that on to everyone. I have like 8 MSNs (they used to be called EOBs), many have more than one provider, and one of them has so many providers it’s 14 pages. But the combination of Medicare and an HRA is a real blessing. Incidentally, today is Saint Joseph’s Day. Just two days after St. Patrick’s, and coming asthey do in the middle of Lent, they make a nice little break from Lenten fasting … if anyone is still doing that.
Robert Hubbell provided a link to a transcript of President Biden’s Gridiron speech. Unlike the White Hose Correspondents’ Dinner, video is never released from the Gridiron, so this is all we’ll get. FactBase, who posted it, attempts to provide reactions along the way. Remember, when you see negative reactions, that everyone there is a journalist. My reaction is very positive to thse remarks.
Viktor Orbán is in some ways more dangerous than Trump**. Unlike Trump**, he knows what he is doing and he is good at it. The meeting Heather Cox Richardson writes about was blatant subversion, and a public slap in the face to the United States (though it wpuld have been more public had the media bothered to notice it.)
Yesterday, Trinette was by again – I didn’t have much in the way of recyclables (I will next week) but I did have a big bag of trash. And she was kind enough to change the batteries in my thermostat. Not that it’s terribly difficult, if I weren’t so short (I used to be 5’5″ but I’m down to 5’0″) and so easy to get off balance. She went home to work on her taxes, and I came back to my “den” to work on this. And maybe my taxes too. I don’t envy her – she has not only her own taxes to do, but her two sons – pne of whom has out of state income and will again this year at least. Me, so much of my income (all of my Social Security) is non-taxable (yes, that means there isn’t a lot of it, but it’s enough) that I really don’t legally need to file. But I do.
Yesterday, I got very little done. Most of what I accomplished was clearing a way to the best seat to watch the actual television from – now that it’s working again. Escept that when it came time, the heavy snow we’ve has the last two days had mangled the signal so badly I couldn’t watch Fortunately , “Dead Man Walking” will be streamed through Passport – but the streams don’t start until the 19th. I was hoping not to have to wait. (I’ve already waited over 20 years just to hear it.) So, yes, this is skimpy. And i’ll have listened to Turandot and been grateful.
I missed “Pi Day,” so this is a bit late. And this parody is a bit over 8 minutes (about the same as the original IIRC) but it’s worth every second of your time that it takes. It’s upbeat, but it made me reach for a hanky It says, in a dfferent way, so much of what I have been feeling. (I even put it into my email signature.)
If you’ve been wondering why suddenly TikTok is neeing named in bills and voted on in the House, and now going to the Senate, this should make it pellucidly clear.
Yesterday, I got a new email from the Theater of War and immediately thought of SpyCat, because they will be doing two readings of “An Enemy of the People” live in Ohio in April, in Mount Vernon and Gambier on the 6th and 7th respectively (and of course also on Zoom.) These productions are not just theater – there’s no stage, no sets, no costumes or makeup, just readings, and voice acting. And the whole play is never presented – selections are read pertinent to the public health topic addressed. And after the reading, audience members react, both on site and now, since the pandemic, through Zoom, and share through their experience what has touched them and what applies to today. Their website is theaterofwar.com, and it’s headed up with a four minute video describing what they do and why, with three examples (obviously very short.) But there’s also a lot of information there with more detail. “An Enemy of the People,” written in 1882, could almost be the story of CoViD and Dr. Fauci.
Robert Reich makes the case for what he calls “Nauseous Optimism,” by which he means being optimistic even when one’s stomach is churning. but he explains it better than I can.
One of the Mar-a-Lago documents case who has been known as “Employee Number 5” is speaking out on the case and his part in it. I think he’s hoping it will make a bigger difference than I think it will – but any difference in the right direction is a good thing.
