The students, faculty and alumni of Yale Law School seem to be unanimous in their objection to Josh Hawley’s (class of 2006) attempt to subvert the presidential election, and, as one would expect of the Elis, have voiced their protestation in very clear and compelling language. Worth a quick read.
An old friend writes: Robespierre in the waning days of the French Revolution had a convention in Paris of his supporters; this , after his 44,000 citizen councils had each beheaded from one to five people. At the convention he then called for everybody in the room to be beheaded. It was then three brave souls spoke up and the soldiers in the room led him away. That adage history repeats itself is so shopworn but so true.
I see this as more amusing than dramatic. Now that it’s clear Trump will not be re-elected, the theater surrounding his bid has suddenly morphed from an action film into a comedy.
This is the same guy who asserted that he was the Second Coming of Christ. Could it possibly be that he’s….oh I don’t know…..INSANE?
At left we have a reminder, as if we needed one, that Westerners, Americans in particular, are fixated on our rights, while ignoring our obligations to those around us.
In fact, we’re so fixated on these rights that we cut them out of whole cloth, e.g., our supposed “constitutional” right to operate inessential businesses during the pandemic or violate mask requirements. News flash: the Constitution does not prevent state and local governments from making and enforcing laws designed to protect citizens’ health and safety. Try doing 50 through a school zone if you think I’m making this up.
There is a suggestion that principled conservatives may split off from the new Trump-oriented Republican party.
In a word, no. This day of the truly despicable conservative has peaked. It’s true that there is a wide and deep river of racism, anti-intellectualism, and bible-thumping that runs through America, but the Trump administration will prove to be its high water mark. It’s soon to be revealed as a complete disgrace to this country, one of which very few people could possibly be proud. The president will soon be shown as a conman and a criminal, and the congresspeople who are attempting to subvert the election for his benefit will soon be demonstrated to be traitors, as they most certainly are.
The fracas isn’t even over, and we already see the GOP desperately trying to pretend that it never happened.
Now, will the Republican Party take a horrific hit? One hopes so, but the idea of a schism in the GOP is a non-starter.
A short (< 1 min.) excerpt of a speech given by Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy is embedded in this article in today’s Washington Post.
He’s right; currently we are experiencing the most serious attempt to overthrow American democracy in our country’s history. (more…)
When my daughter was young, I used to help her with things like grammar and poetry interpretation. I recall explaining Frost’s “Fire and Ice”: He seems to be saying that the world could end either in fire, perhaps nuclear war, or by ice, our vast indifference to the well-being of one another. They are both extremely powerful forces, and either one will get the job done. (more…)
We have no choice but to prosecute Trump once he’s out of office. If we don’t, we’ll be issuing an open invitation for the next would-be dictator, and the next one couldn’t possibly be this incompetent. We really don’t have a choice here.
I’m sure some people will counter that Obama didn’t prosecute Bush 43 for war crimes (waging an aggressive war), on the basis of “national unity,” but how solid is that analogy? (more…)
Question: 2019 was the first year the U.S. consumed more renewable energy than coal since what year?
Relevance: Hint: Burning wood was the main energy resource until the advent of electricity, at which point hydro came along. After a certain point, however, coal beat out renewables until just the year before last.
GOP Senator Ben Sasse: “When we talk in private, I haven’t heard a single Congressional Republican allege that the election results were fraudulent — not one,” Sasse wrote. “Instead, I hear them talk about their worries about how they will ‘look’ to President Trump’s most ardent supporters.”
Given that these people are dishonest cowards, I get where they’re coming from. Three-quarters of Republican voters believe the election results were fraudulent, and we’ve learned recently that nothing is going to change their minds. Certainly not the lower and appellate courts, nor the ultraconservative U.S. Supreme Court. So here we have 50+ million people who are seething, steaming in the certainty that the election was stolen from their leader who was sent by God Himself to make America great again.
Something’s got to give. Yes, it would be good if these senators were people of integrity who would simply say, “Look, America, Biden won, and there is exactly zero evidence of anything else. Let’s get on with the job of fixing what’s wrong with America and work together to find and implement solutions to our collective problems like the pandemic and stagnant wages.
If there ever were a season of hope, it’s the New Year.
This is actually a very serious subject, but the cartoon below should make you smile.
The man has no sense of shame–sadly, a huge advantage in the business world.
