March 15, 2020

Yes, it was by design. Remember Bannon saying he wanted to "deconstruct the administrative state"?

Remember Grover Norquist saying he wanted to reduce the federal government to the size where it could be drowned in a bathtub, then pull the plug? Remember John Bolton saying the UN was so useless you could take a wrecking ball to the top 10 stories of the building and it would be all to the good?

These evil mf-ers did it all in plain sight, and told us their intent, over a span of at least 40 years. The architects of this catastrophe hate the US government, and public education, and everything else that might be considered the commons, social welfare (ie the social good ) , and the Social Contract.

When Democratic politicians and media people bleat about "the norms," the Social Contract is exactly what they're talking about.

And now Newt Gingrich, one of the most enthusiastic proponents of this destruction, is stuck in Rome (where Callista, wife #3, is ambassador to the Vatican) calling for the full might of the US federal government to be marshalled as it was in WW II for this terrifying battle. Well tough shit, Newt, you had your part in this and it is too late. Try praying.

March 15, 2020

Smite Trump & his enablers! Smite them! Smite them!

All those calling out for "karma" don't get it. Karma is a process of generations, hanging on from one lifetime to the next. He and his family might come back as cockroaches, or something, but in this lifetime they might continue to prosper and cause misery to to others until stopped by human agency.

What you really want is something more immediate, like the Greek Furies. Once the gods had condemned someone for the sin of hubris, the Furies would pursue that person to the ends of the Earth, tormenting them and and blighting their lives. Oedipus, you may recall, ended up putting out his own eyes.

March 14, 2020

Unknowingly, I got in under the wire for elective surgery & have been recovering since...

Total knee replacement; not any fun. It hurts. Also I've had almost continuous nausea & have been losing weight.

On the one hand, my husband is taking excellent care of me & doing all the shopping and simple cooking, and now to the outpatient Physical Therapy every other day. Today I noticed the studio was virtually empty, and as I was getting ready to leave, hubby was advising the woman at the front desk about using Chrome Books to guide people through their exercises remotely if they are afraid to come in. He mentioned a local library that checks them out to kids a couple of days at a time. Anyway, old teachers never retire.

On the other hand, I have been unable so far to organize my pantry and inventory it. Early on I tried giving him the start of a comprehensive list, but it freaked him out so I realized I'd have to try another tack. He did get me the pack of tp from Costco though.

And one hand sanitizer from Winco: as a man was taking the last four 8 oz bottles, he turned to hubby and asked if he wanted one. I put it on the table in the foyer for visitors, should we have any. Unfortunately, this just missed the cleaning ladies, who I asked to please scrub their hands with hand wipes before starting their chores. As they left, I thought one sounded like she had a cold. Jesus.

Speaking of Winco, my dear one who hates to shop adores Winco. So once or twice a week he ventures forth to bring things home, which I thank him for even as I wish I had the energy to wipe down all the surfaces. He is on immunosuppressants for ulcerative colitis.

Prepping for Coronavirus has provided the occasion for the most agreeable conversations I have had with my daughter since I can't remember when. She lives 60 miles away in the woods in a dead zone for electronics, though the phone provided by the landlady will take incoming calls (apparently there is some requirement about that, but I don't understand).

We've had many disagreements in our lives, to the extent that her becoming an anti-vaxxer was just the frosting on the cake. However, I have always believed in disaster preparedness, and this is just another disaster (altho one I might die from). Also, like many of my generation I planned at one time to go back to the land and wait out the great global economic crash we thought was going to happen in the late-60s early-70s. (And never did. But I still have a great book about raising small farm animals. ) (I'm pretty sure that had something to do with Bernie going to Vermont when he did. Just a guess. ) Daughter has always had a garden going, and this new location is no different -- fruit trees, veg garden. No chickens this time tho, due to the aggressive wildlife. She's going to try goats.

So there she is, prepping for 6 weeks -- and turns out worried about me and her stepdad. Because we are in our 70s and compromised. That's ... touching, that is. Anyway, I'm fairly certain we are good for 2 weeks -- but certainly not six.

And the virus is in our town, last I heard.

March 10, 2020

None of the other candidates peddled conspiracy theories in the first place...

None of them ever said the system was "rigged" against them personally, or that they were at war with the "Democratic establishment." None of them presented themselves with revolutionary anger in almost-Messianic terms.

So the other candidates didn't attract those kinds of followers.

Oh, there is plenty of anger to go around. The voting system really is broken. I for one am extremely pissed about it. So far this century we've been presented with two GOP presidents who did not win the popular vote: one enabled by the SCOTUS itself after voter suppression had done its work, and one by the SCOTUS overturn of the Voting Rights Act plus foreign infiltration, sabotage, and New Jim Crow laws.

It's just that the target of my ire is not the Democratic Party per se, which has been the victim, not the perpetrator. If there really were a "Democratic establishment," instead of the hapless Jim Perez, Senator Sanders ( I, VT) would never have been allowed to run as a Democrat in the first place, much less twice. What Sanders has been railing against as being so unfair to him turns out to be just us voters, not billionaires in some smoke-filled room.

The majority of our Democratic voters and candidates fully understand who the real enemy is: the GOP and Donald J. Trump. We had a lot of good people who threw their hats in the ring -- but there can be only one.

Fingers crossed.

March 2, 2020

Ah, I see the point of departure. I've heard & disagreed w him innumerable times on PBS...

...opposite Mark Sheilds, but this time he had me at John Locke & the rest of his connection to the currents of actual Western history. After 8 years of Dubya living ahistorically in a version of the eternal now, and the horrendous Trump living in a solopsistic bubble, it's a pleasure to read someone who sees history as something alive.

I, too, have observed the rise of populism around the planet with great dismay, and I don't trust it. All too often it is used as a mask for the rise of authoritarian regimes.

Not that that would ever happen with someone running in my party, right?

But it is a fact that there is only one group of people at DU who feel the need to make all the rest of us sign loyalty oaths in case it's our candidate who doesn't get the nomination, while theirs does. People hoping for Amy K, Mayor Pete, Elizabeth Warren, good old Joe -- I have not seen a single post or survey from them demanding we swear to vote for their candidate despite presumably overwhelming disappointment should someone else not make the cut. The Yang Gang didn't. Didn't hear it from Beto's people.

Just one group feels that kind of anxiety (not everyone, but a visible minority) -- and it is the same group, ironically, who harbors people who still say (outside of DU, to be sure, thanks to the TOS) they will raise a stink at the convention if their personal candidate is not the nominee despite what the rules say. Meanwhile, here comes another post explaining in detail why we, the base of the party, the establishment (so I've heard) have to promise we will vote for the gentleman if he gets the nomination. I don't see how this is even a question -- for Democrats.

Have a good day, Prof. Plum.