December 27, 2021

Afternoon Update:

Connor O'Brien of Politico: "President Joe Biden signed a $768 billion defense policy bill on Monday, after Democrats and Republicans rejected his initial Pentagon plans and endorsed a major boost to military spending.... The bill rejects Biden's $715 billion Pentagon budget request and instead calls for $740 billion for the Defense Department."

AND in today's Comments, unwashed puts two and two together and comes up with billions of dollars to pay for Covid-19 vaccinations for the whole world. No magical thinking required; just arithmetic.

Hugo Lowell of the Guardian: "The Guardian reported last month that [Donald] Trump, according to multiple sources, called lieutenants based at the Willard hotel in Washington DC from the White House in the late hours of 5 January and sought ways to stop [Joe] Biden's certification from taking place on 6 January.... Congressman Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack, has said the panel will open an inquiry into ... [that] phone call.... Trump first told the lieutenants his vice-president, Mike Pence, was reluctant to go along with the plan to commandeer his ceremonial role at the joint session of Congress in a way that would allow Trump to retain the presidency for a second term, the sources said.... But as Trump relayed to them the situation with Pence, the sources said, on at least one call, he pressed his lieutenants about how to stop Biden's certification from taking place on 6 January in a scheme to get alternate slates of electors for Trump sent to Congress. The former president's remarks came as part of wider discussions he had with the lieutenants at the Willard -- a team led by Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Boris Epshteyn and Trump strategist Steve Bannon -- about delaying the certification, the sources said."

OMG! Boy Voted "Most Popular" Is John Roberts. Lydia Saad of Gallup: "Chief Justice John Roberts earns the highest job approval rating of 11 U.S. leaders rated in a Dec. 1-16 Gallup poll with 60% approving of how he is handling his role. Only two other leaders on the list are reviewed positively by majorities of Americans -- Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell (53%) and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Dr. Anthony Fauci (52%)."

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Biden's Booming Economy, Ctd. Justin Swanson of the New York Times: "Retail sales in the United States jumped nearly 11 percent this season compared with the holiday period in 2019, the year before the pandemic upended the global economy, according to a report Mastercard published on Sunday.... Despite early fears, holiday shoppers received their gifts mostly on time, with many shopping early and in person. Retailers, as well, placed merchandise orders early and tried to head off other bottlenecks. For their part, delivery companies ramped up hiring to handle the deluge of packages, which crushed the Postal Service last year. Nearly all packages delivered this year by UPS, FedEx and the Postal Service arrived on time or with minimal delays, according to ShipMatrix."

Ruth Marcus explains the First Amendment to a couple of schmucks, one of whom, unfortunately, is a judge. She describes the judge's recent opinion (and reaffirmation) as "The jaw-dropping in its constitutional illiteracy." MB: Sounds right to me. BTW, she skips the part when Schmuck 1 lays claim to his "God-given right" to free speech. God had nothing to do with it; the Constitution was written by men & upheld, more or less, by men & women.

A Christmas Message: The Gospel According to the Son of Donald. Tom Boggioni of the Raw Story: "In a very blunt column for the Atlantic, a former speechwriter for Ronald Reagan and both Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush, laid waste to Donald Trump Jr. over his recent comments about biblical principles and called him out for being a callow opportunist taking advantage of the Trump name. Last week, the former president's namesake told young conservatives at a Turning Point USA get-together, 'We've turned the other cheek and I understand sort of the biblical reference, I understand the mentality but it's gotten us nothing. OK? It's gotten us nothing while we've ceded ground in every major institution.' That, in turn, set off Peter Wehner who has used his Christian faith to advocate for conservative policies while also turning on Donald Trump for being antithetical to his beliefs.... 'Throughout his speech Don Jr. painted a scenario in which Trump supporters -- Americans living in red America -- are under relentless attack from a wicked and brutal enemy. He portrayed it as an existential battle between good and evil. One side must prevail; the other must be crushed. This in turn justifies any necessary means to win. And the former president’s son has a message for the tens of millions of evangelicals who form the energized base of the GOP: the scriptures are essentially a manual for suckers,' [Wehner] charged.... You can read his whole piece here -- subscription required." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I have never understood why evangelicals don't consider Donald Trump to be an anti-Christ. Because he is. And so is his greedy son.

Home Alone. Jordan Fischer, et al., of WUSA: "A New York man asked a federal judge on Christmas to allow him to use dating apps while he awaits trial on multiple felony charges for his role in the January 6 Capitol riot. The attorney for Thomas Sibick filed a motion on Saturday asking U.S. District Judge Amy B. Jackson to modify her release conditions for Sibick, who is currently on home incarceration at his parents' residence in Buffalo, New York. Sibick is one of multiple rioters now under indictment for the brutal assault on D.C. Police Officer Michael Fanone. While others were beating Fanone, repeatedly tasing him and threatening to kill him with his own gun, federal prosecutors say, Sibick took the opportunity to rob him of his badge and radio. Fanone's badge was later recovered from the spot in Sibick's back yard where he buried it after returning from D.C." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I leave it to you to write a dating app profile for this loser.

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Monday are here: "Coronavirus cases are being reported at record levels across the world -- surpassing even last winter;s devastating peak in some places -- as officials grapple with a surge caused by the omicron variant. France recorded more than 104,000 new cases Saturday, reaching a six-figure daily tally for the first time. Britain, Italy, Ireland and the Australian state of New South Wales also reported record high levels of new cases over the weekend. In the United States, the seven-day average of new daily cases was more than 203,000 on Sunday, according to a Washington Post tally, a level not seen since Jan. 19 last year." MB: That should be "January 19 this year." There were no known cases of Covid-19 in the U.S. on January 19, 2020. (That changed January 21, 2020, when the first case was identified.)"

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments for Sunday are here: "Over 1,000 flights in the United States, and thousands more globally, were canceled Sunday as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus sidelined crews during one of the year's busiest weekends for travel. As of Sunday evening, more than 1,300 flights with at least one stop in the United States, and over two times as many around the world, had been canceled, according to FlightAware, which provides aviation data. Sunday's bleak track record followed thousands of global flight cancellations on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day."

Michael Kranish, et al., of the Washington Post: "The coronavirus pandemic continued to scramble Americans' plans on the day after Christmas, with more than 1,000 flights canceled and virus-related absences and soaring case rates leaving many gatherings and events in limbo.... The airlines said the cancellations were mainly prompted by employees who tested positive for coronavirus, requiring them to quarantine for 10 days. Airline officials have called on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to cut that time to five days, joining an array of industries expressing concern that the highly transmissible omicron variant of the virus has made it impossible to maintain needed staffing levels. Anthony S. Fauci ... said Sunday that he would welcome a requirement that airline passengers be vaccinated, while stressing that masks and air filtration has made it safe for people to be on airplanes."

Gabe Hiatt & Natalie Compton of the Washington Post: "The bad news is your flight has been canceled. The good news is the airline owes you a refund; Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations entitle you to one.... [Here] are a few things you can do to put yourself in a better position for this uncertain time of flying."

Marie: If, like me, you didn't understand how the Webb cam could take pictures of stuff that happened millions or billions of years ago, contributor Gloria, a physicist, gave us an excellent, easy-to-understand explanation in yesterday's Comments thread.

Way Beyond the Beltway

China. Vincent Ni of the Guardian: "China has replaced the Communist party official widely associated with a security crackdown targeting ethnic Uyghurs and other Muslims in the far-west region of Xinjiang. The state-owned Xinhua news agency said in a brief announcement on Saturday that Ma Xingrui, the governor of the coastal economic powerhouse Guangdong province since 2017, had replaced Chen Quanguo as the Xinjiang party chief. Chen will move to another role. The change came amid a wider reshuffle ahead of next year's 20th party congress, scheduled for the autumn. It is not clear whether the move signals a rethink in China's overall approach to Xinjiang. Beijing would be sensitive to any interpretation that it was bowing to international pressure."

U.K. Karla Adam of the Washington Post: "The intruder who was arrested on Christmas morning on the grounds of Windsor Castle, where Queen Elizabeth II is living, was carrying a crossbow, police said on Sunday. The man has been detained under the Mental Health Act, they said. Officers arrested the 19-year-old Southampton man shortly after he entered the castle grounds around 8.30 a.m. Saturday, police said. He did not enter any any buildings on the estate. The queen was home at the time." CNNs' report is here.

News Ledes

New York Times: "Edward O. Wilson, a biologist and author who conducted pioneering work on biodiversity, insects and human nature -- and won two Pulitzer Prizes along the way -- died on Sunday in Burlington, Mass. He was 92." See also commentary on Wilson in yesterday's Comments thread.

AP: "Sarah Weddington, a Texas lawyer who as a 26-year-old successfully argued the landmark abortion rights case Roe v. Wade before the U.S. Supreme Court, died Sunday. She was 76.... Raised as a minister's daughter in the West Texas city of Abilene, Weddington attended law school at the University of Texas. A couple years after graduating, she and a former classmate, Linda Coffee, brought a class-action lawsuit on behalf of a pregnant woman challenging a state law that largely banned abortions. The case of 'Jane Roe,' whose real name was Norma McCorvey, was brought against Dallas County District Attorney Henry Wade and eventually advanced to the Supreme Court." The Guardian's obituary is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Sarah Weddington's New York Times obituary is here.

AP: "A major Christmas weekend storm caused whiteout conditions and closed key highways amid blowing snow in mountains of Northern California and Nevada, with forecasters warning that travel in the Sierra Nevada could be difficult for several days. Authorities near Reno said three people were injured in a 20-car pileup on Interstate 395, where drivers described limited visibility on Sunday. Further west, a 70-mile (112-kilometer) stretch of Interstate 80 was shut until at least Monday from Colfax, California, through the Lake Tahoe region to the Nevada state line."

December 26, 2021

A "Keyhole into the Past." Dennis Overbye & Joey Roulette of the New York Times: "The dreams and work of a generation of astronomers headed for an orbit around the sun on Saturday in the form of the biggest and most expensive space-based observatory ever built. The James Webb Space Telescope, a joint effort of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency, lifted off from a spaceport near the Equator in Kourou, French Guiana, a teetering pillar of fire and smoke embarking on a million-mile trip to the morning of time.... The telescope, named for the NASA administrator who led the space agency through the early years of the Apollo program, is designed to see farther in space and further back in time than the vaunted Hubble Space Telescope. Its primary light gathering mirror is 21 feet across, about three times bigger than Hubble, and seven times more sensitive.... The Webb's mission is to seek out the earliest, most distant stars and galaxies, which appeared 13.7 billion years ago, burning their way out of a fog leftover from the Big Bang (which occurred 13.8 billion years ago). Astronomers watching the launch remotely from all over the world, many Zooming together in their pajamas, were jubilant....The Webb will examine all of cosmic history, billions of years of it, astronomers say -- from the first stars to life in the solar system. This week, the NASA administrator Bill Nelson called the telescope a 'keyhole into the past.'" The Guardian's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: There are some things I take on faith, as it turns out, when I don't understand them. How can a camera take pictures of something that happened billions of years ago in a galaxy far, far away when I can't take pictures of my grandparents on a picnic in 1913? Or can I? 

Alexandra Jaffe of the AP: "President Joe Biden marked his first Christmas in office by making calls to military service members stationed around the world, offering them holiday wishes and gratitude for their service and sacrifice for the nation. Joined by his wife, Jill, and their new puppy, Commander, the president on Saturday spoke via video to service members representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard, stationed at bases in Qatar, Romania, Bahrain and the U.S." Here's video. ~~~

     ~~~ There's Always a Schmuck. Or a Schmeck. Joe DePaulo of Mediaite: "The man who told President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden 'Let's go Brandon' during a Christmas phone call claims he was just joking and that he's been receiving threats. Speaking to The Oregonian on Saturday, the man -- Jared Schmeck, from Central Point, OR -- said that although he believes Biden '[could] be doing a better job,' he did not intend any 'disrepect.'... 'He seems likes he's a cordial guy. There's no animosity or anything like that. It was merely just an innocent jest to also express my God-given right to express my frustrations in a joking manner... I love him just like I love any other brother or sister.' 'Let's go Brandon' has become a popular substitute among conservatives for 'Fuck Joe Biden.'" Mediaite's original story on Schmeck is here. Tommy Christopher reports that Biden took the remark in stride.

Guardian: "Despite surging Omicron cases of the coronavirus in the US, Joe and Jill Biden made an unannounced joint visit to a children's hospital in Washington DC on Christmas Eve. The US president's visit to Children's National Hospital was a surprise for patients and staff, the White House reported, and was believed to be the first visit to the institution by a sitting president.... Pictures on Friday showed the first couple with young patients, everyone wearing face masks to help prevent the spread of Covid-19."

Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: "A New York trial court judge has upheld his order preventing The New York Times from publishing documents prepared by a lawyer for the conservative group Project Veritas, in a move that alarmed First Amendment advocates concerned about judicial intrusion into journalistic practices. In a ruling made public on Friday, the judge, Justice Charles D. Wood of State Supreme Court in Westchester County, went further: He ordered The Times to immediately turn over any physical copies of the Project Veritas documents in question, and to destroy any electronic copies in the newspaper's possession. The Times said it would seek a stay of the ruling and was planning to appeal it." The Guardian's story is here. ~~~

~~~ New York Times Editors: "The Times, like any other news organization, makes ethical judgments daily about whether to disclose secret information from governments, corporations and others in the news. But the First Amendment is meant to leave those ethical decisions to journalists, not to courts. The only potential exception is information so sensitive -- say, planned troop movements during a war -- that its publication could pose a grave threat to American lives or national security. Project Veritas's legal memos are not a matter of national security.... Justice Wood has taken it upon himself to decide what The Times can and cannot report on. That's not how the First Amendment is supposed to work.

The New York Times' live updates for Covid-19 developments Saturday are here.

** South Africa. Marilyn Berger of the New York Times: "Desmond M. Tutu, the cleric who used his pulpit and spirited oratory to help bring down apartheid in South Africa and then became the leading advocate of peaceful reconciliation under Black majority rule, died on Sunday in Cape Town. He was 90."

December 25, 2021

No technical difficulties yet because I can't even find a suitable template for the "updated" Reality Chex. Too bad I don't want my very own Wesbsite to boast about my uncoming wedding or my impressive CV, because there are plenty of templates for that.

Meanwhile, some TV station is playing "Home Alone" on a practically continuous loop. So sometimes in the commercials of a show I'm watching I'll switch over to "Home Alone," and today I caught the bit of the film that features this:

My father used to sing us this one at Christmas time. Thanks to Patrick for the link:

If you want to take a short breather from the festivities, lock yourself in your study and play the Washington Post's "Find the Elves."