;)
April 22, 2022
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
Jonathan Weisman & Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican of Georgia, on Friday repeated false claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election as she defended her actions surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, in an extraordinary hearing that asked whether she should be labeled an 'insurrectionist' and barred from office under the Constitution. While under oath at an administrative law hearing in Atlanta, Ms. Greene insisted that 'a tremendous amount of fraudulent activity' had robbed ... Donald J. Trump of his re-election, an assertion that has been soundly refuted by multiple courts, Republican-led recounts and Mr. Trump's own attorney general, William P. Barr. But despite her exhortations on social media to '#FightForTrump,' she said she had possessed no knowledge that protesters intended to invade the Capitol on Jan. 6, or disrupt the congressional joint session called to count the electoral votes and confirm Joseph R. Biden Jr.'s victory. She said she did not recall meeting with any of the instigators.... The legal case appeared to be on shaky ground as the administrative law judge, Charles R. Beaudrot, repeatedly sided with Ms. Greene's lawyer, the prominent conservative election attorney James Bopp Jr.... The final decision [on whether or not Greene can remain on the ballot] will fall to Georgia's secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger [R]...." Read on. Greene repeatedly could not recall saying things that have been reported or that she posted on Twitter. ~~~
~~~ Matthew Brown & Feliciz Sonmez of the Washington Post: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, testifying Friday about her alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol as part of a case seeking to disqualify her from seeking reelection, said she could not remember whether she urged ... Donald Trump to impose martial law as a way to remain in power....[An] exchange [between Greene & an attorney for the plaintiff] was one of dozens of times during Friday's hearing that Greene said she could not recall her tweets or statements related to the attack." Neal Katyal, appearing on MSNBC, said Greene's testimony demonstrated that her memory was worse than Harold & Kumar's when they were high on dope.
** Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican leader, told G.O.P. lawmakers in the days after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol that ... Donald J. Trump acknowledged that he bore 'some responsibility' for what happened that day, new audio revealed. The audio obtained by The New York Times that emerged on Friday is part of a series of new revelations about Republican leaders' private condemnations of Mr. Trump in the days after his supporters stormed the Capitol as part of an effort to stop the certification of electoral votes for Joseph R. Biden Jr. 'Let me be very clear to all of you, and I have been very clear to the president: he bears responsibilities for his words and actions,' Mr. McCarthy said on the call, which took place on Jan. 11. 'No if, ands or buts.... I asked him personally today, does he hold responsibility for what happened?' Mr. McCarthy said. 'Does he feel bad about what happened? He told me he does have some responsibility for what happened and he'd need to acknowledge that.' Mr. McCarthy's assertion is at odds with the former president's refusal, then and now, to accept responsibility for the deadly attack." ~~~
~~~ Supplicant McCarthy Seeks Absolution from the Lord High Executioner. Jacqueline Alemany, et al., of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) spoke on the phone Thursday night about a newly released audio of McCarthy telling Republican leaders that Trump should resign in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, according to two people familiar with the conversation. The audio contradicted McCarthy's claim that he didn't push for Trump to resign after the deadly insurrection by a pro-Trump mob. On Friday, more audio clips surfaced in which McCarthy says, 'I've had it with this guy,' and blamed Trump for the storming of the Capitol. McCarthy called Trump after the audio was released. The former president was not upset about McCarthy's remarks and was glad the Republican leader didn't follow through, which Trump saw as a sign of his continued grip on the Republican Party, according to the three people...."
Dana Goldstein & Stephanie Saul of the New York Times on Florida's rejection of math textbooks: "The New York Times was able to review 21 of the rejected books and see what may have led the state to reject them. Because Florida has released so few details about its textbook review process, it is unknown whether these examples led to the rejections. But they do illustrate the way in which these concepts appear -- and don't appear -- in curriculum materials." This is a much more comprehensive report on the rejected textbooks than the WashPo story linked earlier today. ~~~
~~~ Judd Legum & others at Popular Information also looked at eight of the rejected textbooks and found that the very worst thing they did was to encourage young children to work together. One textbook, oh horrors, featured a couple of Black mathematicians. You knew that would be a problem. Thanks to RAS for the link.
~~~~~~~~~~
Anna Phillips of the Washington Post: "President Biden will sign an executive order on Friday in Seattle laying the groundwork for protecting some of the biggest and oldest trees in America's forests.... Biden will direct the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to define and inventory mature and old-growth forests nationwide within a year.... He will also require the agencies to identify threats to these trees, such as wildfire and climate change, and to use that information to craft policies that protect them.... [The order] will include initiatives aimed at restoring U.S. forests ravaged by wildfire, drought and insects, requiring federal agencies to come up with a reforestation goal by 2030. It will also address major problems facing tree planting efforts in the West -- insufficient seeds and seedlings -- by directing agencies to develop plans to increase cone and seed collection and nursery capacity.
Putin's War Crimes, Ctd.
The New York Times' live updates of developments Friday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "In the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, uncertainty loomed over the fate of the Azovstal steel plant, where hundreds if not thousands of Ukrainian fighters and civilians have been holed up for weeks in fortified underground warrens with diminishing supplies of food, water and ammunition. The plant was being shelled on Thursday, according to a Ukrainian soldier there, though ... Vladimir V. Putin of Russia had called off an assault hours earlier in favor of a blockade 'that a fly can't get through,' apparently with the intent of starving the defenders out.... Though Mr. Putin prematurely claimed victory in Mariupol on Thursday, a soldier with the Ukrainian National Guard inside ... the steel plant said that Ukrainian forces were holding on while they had ammunition.... In his nightly address, [President] Zelensky said that Russia had rejected a proposal for a truce on Orthodox Easter this Sunday."~~~
~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Friday are here: "Mariupol's mayor made a renewed appeal Friday for a 'full evacuation' and said more than 100,000 people remained trapped in the city.... The war has inflicted roughly $60 billion worth of physical damage to Ukraine's infrastructure, according to the World Bank's chief, who warned the cost would rise. [President] Zelensky told a virtual World Bank forum on Friday that his country would need $7 billion in monthly financial support and hundreds of billions of dollars more to rebuild after the conflict." ~~~
~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Friday are here. ~~~
~~~ Samantha Lock & Luke Harding of the Guardian write an overview of the latest updates on the war: "Volodymyr Zelenskiy has accused Russia of planning to 'falsify' an independence referendum in the partly occupied southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, telling Ukrainians there not to give personal information to occupying forces.... The Ukrainian president said in a video message on Thursday evening: 'Be very careful about what information you provide to the invaders. And if they ask you to fill out some questionnaires, leave your passport data somewhere, you should know -- this is not to help you ...'"
Paulina Villegas of the Washington Post: "New satellite images show a mass grave in the Russian-occupied village of Manhush, located about 12 miles west of Mariupol, a discovery that Ukrainian officials say is evidence of war crimes against civilians in the strategic port city. The images, provided Thursday to The Washington Post by Maxar Technologies, show several rows of graves in four distinct sections, each measuring nearly 280 feet. The company's review of the images indicates that the new graves appeared between March 23 and March 26 and that there are now more than 200 burial plots alongside an existing cemetery. The Mariupol City Council said in a statement on Telegram that officials believe up to 9,000 civilians could be buried in the mass grave, where authorities said Russians forces 'dug new trenches and filled them with corpses every day throughout April.'" The Guardian's report is here.
Louisa Loveluck & David Stern of the Washington Post: A "convoy of vehicles, the first to be granted safe passage by Russia [from Mariupol] in almost two weeks, was meant to include scores of vehicles. As it was, only four buses arrived in the southeastern town of Zaporizhzhia, 140 miles north of Mariupol, the rest held up as night fell by Russian checkpoints along the route, officials said. A trickle of private cars had also made it through.... On Thursday, the escaped civilians came with horror stories of the brutal tactics that Russian forces had used.... Families lived underground and survived on dried pasta or raw grains. Even venturing out to find water could mean death from above.... In a rare televised meeting broadcast Thursday, [Vladimir] Putin addressed Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, telling him that 'the work of the armed forces to liberate Mariupol has been a success. Congratulations.'"
Aamer Madhani, et al., of the AP: "President Joe Biden on Thursday announced an additional $800 million in military aid to help Ukraine fight back in its strong but increasingly difficult battle against the Russian invasion, and he warned that Congress will need to approve even more assistance if the U.S. is to keep up its crucial support. The new military package includes much needed heavy artillery, 144,000 rounds of ammunition and drones for the escalating battle in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. It builds on roughly $2.6 billion in military assistance that Biden had previously approved." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
John Ismay of the New York Times: "... two senior defense officials described to reporters the efforts by the U.S. European Command in Stuttgart, Germany, to move as many weapons as possible from American stockpiles to the border of Ukraine. Representatives from 14 nations, including Ukraine, have posted liaison officers to a task force in Stuttgart that takes requests from the government in Kyiv and arranges for weapons and supplies from different countries to be delivered, said one of the official.... The new drone that will soon head to the region, called Phoenix Ghost, is a previously-unknown design that 'was developed rapidly by the Air Force' after discussions with Ukrainian troops about what kinds of weapons they need, the second official said.... For the expected battle between large Ukrainian and Russian forces over the Donbas region, the United States is providing a significant new flush of artillery weapons: dozens of 155-millimeter howitzers. Five new Ukrainian artillery battalions will be outfitted, each with 18 guns and nearly 37,000 rounds."
Cowardly Liar Caught on Tape. Marie: In yesterday's New York Times, we learned from Times reporters Jonathan Martin & Alex Burns that House Minority leader Kevin McCarthy had told other House leaders that "he would tell Mr. Trump of the impeachment resolution: 'I think this will pass, and it would be my recommendation you should resign,' he said...." McCarthy issued a statement Thursday calling the report "totally false and wrong," and his spokesman further denied to NBC News that McCarthy had ever said any such thing. Now, Martin & Burns have revised their Times report: "The Times has reviewed the full recording of the conversation..., which runs just over an hour." They also have included a recording of McCarthy's remarks within the body of the linked report. Rachel Maddow, who devoted her opening segments Thursday to McCarthy's false denial, was aghast that a Congressional leader would tell such a bald-faced lie. You can watch the Maddow segments here. ~~~
~~~ Update. Felicia Sonmez & Julian Mark of the Washington Post report on Kevin McCarthy big lie.
Amy Wang of the New York Times: "Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) will be among the recipients this year of the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, which is given by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation to underscore the importance of fighting for democracy. It is also the first time the foundation is honoring five people simultaneously with the award. Other recipients this year will be Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D), Arizona House Speaker Russell 'Rusty' Bowers (R) and Wandrea 'Shaye' Moss, an election department employee in Fulton County, Ga." MB: I have a feeling Kevin McCarthy & Mitch McConnell didn't make the short list.
Luke Broadwater & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Donald Trump Jr. ... has agreed to meet soon with the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, according to a person familiar with matter. The committee has not issued a subpoena for Donald Trump Jr.'s testimony, but he is expected to answer questions voluntarily, the person said. His testimony is slated to come after his fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, met with the panel on Monday for a lengthy interview, which the panel had said would focus on her activities the morning of Jan. 6, 2021, including an Oval Office meeting with the former president, and her role raising money for the rally that preceded the attack on the Capitol." The ABC News report is here.
Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "A Florida man has been arrested and accused of pepper-spraying officers at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and then making a menacing call to the FBI special agent investigating his role in the riot, law enforcement officials said. Barry Bennett Ramey, who officials say was affiliated with the Proud Boys, was arrested Thursday in Florida, according to court records.... According to the FBI affidavit, Ramey called the FBI special agent investigating his case this month and read the agent's home address aloud. He then texted the agent's former vehicle identification number, according to the affidavit."
Shayna Jacobs of the Washington Post: "Brian Kolfage, a disabled veteran who headed a $25 million fundraising effort for a U.S.-Mexico border wall with the help of former Trump aide Stephen K. Bannon, has pleaded guilty in connection to defrauding donors for his own gain. Kolfage, an amputee who lost three limbs serving in Iraq, could serve more than five years in prison. He was accused of using more than $350,000 in donations on personal expenses such as home renovations and vehicle payments, after telling 'We Build the Wall' campaign contributors that he would not take a cut of the collections or give himself a salary.... Kolfage, a conservative activist, admitted that he 'knowingly and willfully conspired to receive money from donations' as he pleaded guilty to wire fraud and tax-related charges.... Prosecutors accused Bannon of personally pocketing more than $1 million.... Bannon received a presidential pardon on the eve of Trump's departure from the White House...." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I think it was Rachel Maddow who pointed out Thursday that -- even though the defrauded donors were likely Trump supporters -- Bannon appears to have paid no price for defrauding Trump supporters, and supporters have not punished Trump for pardoning Bannon.
So much of the conversation around disinformation is focused on what people post. The bigger issue is what content these platforms promote. -- President Barack Obama, in a speech, Thursday ~~~
~~~ Steven Myers of the New York Times: "Former President Barack Obama on Thursday called for greater regulatory oversight of the country's social media giants, saying their power to curate the information that people consume has 'turbocharged' political polarization and threatened the pillars of democracy across the globe. Weighing in on the debate over how to address the spread of disinformation, he said the companies needed to subject their proprietary algorithms to the same kind of regulatory oversight that ensured the safety of cars, food and other consumer products." ~~~
Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post: "After Donald Trump lost the presidential election, falsely claiming election fraud, [his former chief of staff Mark] Meadows became senior partner at the Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI), which promotes 'election integrity' efforts. The organization's 'citizen's guide' urges activists to determine that the registrations of their neighbors are legal by checking on 'whether voters have moved, or if the registrations are PO Boxes, commercial addresses or vacant lots' and then ... and 'securing affidavits from current residents that a registered voter has moved.'... Now it turns out that until last week, Meadows was simultaneously registered to vote in three different states -- North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina -- according to state records...." MB: I wonder if Meadows is heartened that the New Yorker's Charles Bethea took CPI's advice & checked out that North Carolina trailer where Meadows was registered to vote but purportedly never even visited.
Lauren Hirsch of the New York Times: "Elon Musk said on Thursday that he had commitments worth $46.5 billion to finance his proposed bid for Twitter and was exploring whether to launch a hostile takeover for the social media company. In documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission dated Wednesday, the world's richest man said he planned to finance the bid with a mix of debt and cash. The investment bank Morgan Stanley and a group of other lenders are offering $13 billion in debt financing and another $12.5 billion in loans against Mr. Musk's stock in Tesla, the electric carmaker that he runs. He is expected to add about $21 billion in equity financing."
CNN Minus. Michael Grynbaum, et al., of the New York Times: "In a move that stunned the media and tech worlds, Warner Bros. Discovery said on Thursday that it will abruptly shut down [its new streaming service] CNN+ on April 30. 'While today's decision is incredibly difficult, it is the right one for the long-term success of CNN,' Chris Licht, the network's incoming president, told staff. The shutdown is an ignominious end to an operation into which CNN sank tens of millions of dollars: from a nationwide marketing campaign to hundreds of newly hired employees to big contracts for name-brand anchors, including the former 'Fox News Sunday' host Chris Wallace and the former NPR co-host Audie Cornish. It collapsed just two days after Netflix reported a quarterly decline in subscriptions for the first time in a decade...." CNN's story is here. CNBC's report is here.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Friday are here: "Four days after Philadelphia became the first major American city to reinstate an indoor mask mandate in response to rising coronavirus cases, the city health department announced that the mandate would be lifted because of improving conditions. Precisely when the mandate, which began on Monday, would be lifted was not clear."
Beyond the Beltway
Florida. Brooks Barnes of the New York Times: "... the Florida House voted to revoke Disney World's designation as a special tax district -- a privilege that Disney has held for 55 years, effectively allowing the company to self-govern its 25,000-acre theme park complex. The Florida Senate on Wednesday voted to eliminate the special zone, which is called the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Having cleared the way to this outcome on Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis will almost certainly make the measure official by adding his signature. It would take effect in June of next year." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ A Billion-Dollar-Plus Cost of Ron's Folly. Robert Frank of CNBC: "A repeal of Disney's self-government status in Florida could leave local taxpayers with more than $1 billion in bond debt, according to tax officials and legislators.... To fund the government services of [Disney's] Reedy Creek [special district], Disney effectively taxes itself. While the precise tax flows of Reedy Creek are unclear, Scott Randolph, the tax collector for Orange County, said the Reedy Creek district collects roughly $105 million annually in general revenue. On top of the $105 million, Disney also pays local property taxes. Public records show Disney is the largest taxpayer in central Florida, paying over $280 million in property taxes to the counties between 2015 and 2020. If the special district is dissolved, Orange and Osceola counties would have to provide the local services currently provided by Reedy Creek. And, the $105 million in revenue would disappear, meaning county and local taxpayers would be on the hook for part or all of the added costs."
Florida. Valerie Strauss of the Washington Post: "Days after announcing that it had rejected 41 percent of math textbooks submitted by publishers -- some of them because of references to critical race theory and other 'prohibited' topics -- the Florida Department of Education on Thursday released four examples of lessons it considers unacceptable.... One of the examples ... shows a social-emotional learning objective that says: 'Students build proficiency with social awareness as they practice with empathizing with classmates.'" MB: As we all know, empathy is a destructive emotion. Well, okay, only if your political fortunes depend upon amplifying & encouraging hatred of "the other."
Kentucky. Caroline Kitchener of the Washington Post: "A federal judge issued a temporary order Thursday blocking a sweeping new abortion law passed last week in Kentucky that had halted all abortions across the state, a decision that allows the two clinics there to resume performing the procedure. U.S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings in Louisville approved the request of Planned Parenthood, one of the abortion providers, for emergency relief. Both clinics plan to restart this week. Last week, the Republican-led legislature overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear's veto to pass the abortion limits. The new law, one of the most restrictive in the nation, imposes limits on medication abortion, requiring abortion providers to be certified by the state pharmacy board and outlawing telemedicine for abortion pills. It also requires the cremation or burial of fetal remains and bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. An exception is allowed if the woman's life is in danger, but there is no exception for rape or incest."
New York. Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "A New York appeals court ruled on Thursday that new congressional districts drawn by Democrats violated the state's ban on partisan gerrymandering, partially upholding a lower-court ruling that would block the state from using the lines in this year's critical midterm elections. A divided five-judge panel in Rochester said Democratic legislative leaders had drawn the new House map 'to discourage competition and favor Democrats,' knowingly ignoring the will of voters who recently approved a constitutional amendment outlawing the practice." Politico's report is here.
Texas. Greggers Buys a "Charity." David Fahrenthold of the New York Times & Keri Blakinger of the Marshall Project: "On television, Twitter and videos, the traditionally nonpartisan nonprofit organization [Crime Stoppers of Houston] has been condemning more than a dozen elected judges -- all Democrats [NYT link], four of whom lost primaries last month -- while praising the crime policies of Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, a Republican.... Financial documents and government records, along with dozens of interviews, show that the organization, with an annual budget of about $2.4 million, has in recent years become reliant on state grants backed by Mr. Abbott.... In the past five years, the Texas government under Mr. Abbott has given the group more than $6 million, state records show.... Many of the Democratic judges Crime Stoppers is slamming have cut into the organization's revenue by curbing a common practice requiring many people sentenced to probation to pay a $50 fee that goes to Crime Stoppers.... The drop in court revenue and the growing reliance on funding from elected officials came as Crime Stoppers went into debt and ran growing annual deficits." MB: The Marshall Project link to this story, which is here, is free to nonsubscribers (I think).
Texas. Abbott Holds up International Trade to Expose ... Underinflated Tires. Uriel J. García of the Texas Tribune: "State troopers ordered by Gov. Greg Abbott to inspect every commercial truck coming from Mexico earlier this month -- which clogged international trade with Mexico -- found zero drugs, weapons or any other type of contraband, according to data released by the Department of Public Safety to The Texas Tribune.... Over eight days, starting April 8, troopers conducted more than 4,100 inspections of trucks. Troopers didn't find any contraband but took 850 trucks off the road for various violations related to their equipment. Other truckers were given warnings, and at least 345 were cited for things such as underinflated tires, broken turn signals and oil leaks."
Way Beyond
France. Kim Willsher of the Guardian: "Emmanuel Macron appears to have opened up his lead against his French presidential rival, Marine Le Pen, according to the latest opinion polls, on the last day of campaigning before Sunday's second-round vote. In an Ipsos survey, 57.5% of those questioned said they intended to vote for the incumbent president, against 42.5% for Le Pen. Even allowing for a 3.3-point margin of error, a result along those lines would give Macron a convincing victory." MB: Nonetheless, I suspect a lot of people are ashamed to admit they are pro-fascist, and they still could vote for Le Pen. I'm still worried.
Honduras, U.S. Benjamin Weiser & Joan Suazo of the New York Times: "The former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández was extradited to the United States on Thursday, where he will face charges in a New York court accusing him of trafficking drugs for decades to further his political career.... A federal indictment unsealed late Thursday in Manhattan charged that over nearly the last two decades, Mr. Hernández 'participated in a corrupt and violent drug-trafficking conspiracy to facilitate the importation of tons of cocaine into the United States.' The indictment charged that Mr. Hernández received millions of dollars from numerous drug trafficking organizations in Honduras, Mexico and elsewhere, including from the former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, the Mexican drug lord known as El Chapo."
Share Article
Reader Comments (18)
“Rachel Maddow, who devoted her opening segments Thursday to McCarthy's false denial, was aghast that a Congressional leader would tell such a bald-faced lie.”
Per a story linked above.
I’m glad Maddow was aghast at such blatant mendacity. But she shouldn’t be surprised.
Lying? Republican? It’s the same thing.
Conversation this morning––P.and J. at their computers:
P: Looks like McCarthy is in big trouble.
J: Nah–-nothing is going to happen.
P: This is serious–--they have him on tape!
J: Yeah––-just another notch in the Republican playbook...
P: But...
J: you watch–--they'll squeeze by this––I hope not but...
P: No buts! His, I want booted out pronto! More coffee?
And we wait with anticipation~~~~~~~
I want to thank Whyte Owen for the Vonnegut yesterday and since today is EARTH DAY it seems fitting to put it on again.
“When the last living thing
Has died on account of us,
How poetical it would be
If Earth could say,
In a voice floating up
Perhaps
From the floor
Of the Grand Canyon,
"It is done."
People did not like it here.”
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
My D.C. friend is having trouble with the McCarthy story and just sent me this:
"It seems to me there is a gaping hole in this story:
Who made the tapes? Where did they come from? How did the reporters obtain them?
Many more tapes to come? From where? Made how? By whom?
If the reporters are protecting an anonymous source, they should at least say that.
To completely ignore the question makes the whole story vulnerable to suspicion."
I say–––wait––-the uncovering will come in due time she says optimistically.
Speaking of those math books...
Marie makes a fine point. Can't have too much empathy sloshing around in a system that depends on rancor for its very existence.
However, this old guy still wonders what that kind of language was doing in a math book. I don't imagine any such educational principle appeared in a math textbook series back in the good old days when America was still great.
Would like to have had a little more context than the WAPO provided, but from the few examples I'd have to say I do detect a difference between my then and the current now in arithmetic education.
Pointing to the advantages of empathy in problem solving or graphing racism is a far cry from sticking to counting pennies and nickels or apples and oranges.
A couple of thoughts.
There has been a change. I dealt with some of that change during my years in schools where there was a push to more group work, called as I remember, cooperative learning, based on the notion that problem solving was more effective when engaged in by a group than by isolated individuals. Don't know if that push is still in place, but I suspect it is, and am not surprised that its ideological message that said cooperation is sometimes more effective than competition makes some on the Right very nervous because it flies in the face of the notion that people pursuing only their own interests will somehow by virtue of the magic hand of Adam Smith do the greatest good for the greatest number.
Then there is the disturbing expectation that since working in groups requires the development of social skills, those skills also become part of the curriculum. A hidden agenda, if you will, that smacks of socialism.
Finally, there is the content. Counting money, graphing sales, and balancing checkbooks fit comfortably into the capitalist world we live in, where we are expected to have our lives defined by financial matters from birth to death. What better lessons to prepare kids for adulthood?
The assumption here is that counting money or fruit is somehow real world "objective," but that those lessons both ignore their intrinsic propaganda value and build a wall between our addiction to money and its social and emotional consequences is also part of the lesson. That it appears some textbook writers have noticed that and by including some social-emotional content are trying to do something about it interests me. Seems a new chapter in the textbook wars that has spilled over from history and literature into the formerly pristine world of math.
So how's this for a math problem? A followup to the notion I put forward last night.
While refusing to recognize or treat any real social, economic, or environmental challenge, what percentage of eligible Democratic voters do I have to disenfranchise to stay in power?
As I said, DeSantis is working on it. But I suspect he's not above cribbing from the smart student sitting next to him.
So angry about this book, AND whomever made, kept and contributed the audio to those two authors. These people are totally selfish. They join all the other "journalists" who have sat on valuable truths/information/condemning events in order to write a tell-all and enjoy the profits. I hope they have been dropped by all their friends and cut dead at church. We might have gotten rid of some of the GQP scumbuckets with their info. The committee might have finished their work in record time and the department of "justice" issued indictments pronto. Well, I guess I don't believe that for a minute, after all...what a country. There is no longer ANY moral sense among any of the people committing acts of treason and those who "report" what they know.
@PD Pepe: Your friend is doing some serious deflecting here. Instead of being angry that McCarthy immediately & blithely lied to the public about what he had previously said, she's mad that Martin & Burns didn't reveal their source. Under the circumstances, that doesn't make a lot of sense.
Obviously, knowing who a source is or at least what the source's motives or politics are is often important: so if the entire story had rested on "a Democratic staffer told us that McCarthy planned to tell Trump to resign," a reasonable person would not feel satisfied she really knew the facts. But when the source is an audio tape that the Times doesn't think was doctored (it ran about an hour), knowing who made the tape is not especially important to the public. For one thing, we know it was a member of House GOP leadership or one of their staff as no one else would have been privy to the conference call. Given what-all has transpired since Jan. 10, 2021, there's a good chance the tape came from Cheney's office with her blessing. But not necessarily.
Your friend doesn't need to wait to find out who recorded the conversation. She should concentrate on the conversation itself -- and McCarthy's lie about it. Not knowing the name of the anonymous source in this case is not vital to the public, tho of course it matters to the principals.
@Ken Winkes: Of course I don't have ready access to rejected Florida math textbooks, but I'll hazard a (very likely incorrect) guess as to what this sentence -- "Students build proficiency with social awareness as they practice with empathizing with classmates" -- was doing in the textbook.
Let's suppose it's part of what we used to call "word problems" (they probably have a fancier name now). Like this one, our "word problems" were supposed to give us concrete examples of how we could use math in everyday life, though why I ever would be interested in where two trains headed toward each other would meet (crash into each other?) if they were going at different speeds has never quite materialized for me.
But maybe the empathy word problem (if indeed there is one) is something like this: Joe and Donald are practicing building friendships and empathy with new classmates who moved to their town from a foreign country. After each interaction, they are tested and scored on an "empathy scale" designed by experts. Joe rated 8 out of 10 on Day 1 and 9 out of 10 on Day 2. Donald rated 3 out of 10 on Day 1 and 1 out of 10 on Day 2. Who is more likely, Joe or Donald, to reach 10 on the empathy scale? Extra Credit Questions: Who is more likely to get in a fight with the new students? Who is more likely to impose a Muslim ban when he becomes president*?
Or maybe the problem goes like this: Joe and Donald are practicing building friendships & empathy with new classmates who moved to their town from another state. The new students say they are white nationalists. After each interaction, Joe & Donald are tested & scored on an "empathy scale" designed by experts. Joe rated 5 out of 10 on Day 1 and 4 out of 10 on Day 2. Donald rated 8 out of 10 on Day 1 and 9 out of 10 on Day 2. Who is more likely, Joe or Donald, to reach 10 on the empathy scale? Extra Credit Questions: Who is more likely to debate the new students in civics class? Who is more likely to call the white nationalists "good people" when he becomes president*?
Here is some of that dangerous math.
I’m guessing those evil text book people are trying to sneak in empathy training under the guise of “math problems”. The idea! Put them out of business!! Call the storm troopers! Clean the guns!
You see, empathy, as well as decency, kindness, tolerance, and (especially) intelligence, are all anathema in right wing world. And it’s been that way for some time.
You guys might recall a brilliant bit Lewis Black once did on the old Daily Show in which he demonstrated that Glenn Beck had Nazi Tourettes. It’s still out there if you haven’t seen it or would like to see it again.
At one point Black rolls a clip of Beck decrying the evils of empathy by stating that it was Hitler’s empathy that caused him to murder millions of Jews. “Empathy” he declared, “leads to very bad outcomes!” To which Black pointed out “Glenn Beck, in one paragraph, connects one of the most positive words in the English language to Hitler’s genocide!”
The trigger for Beck was a clip of Barack Obama praising Sotomayor, after her nomination, for being an empathetic person, and noting that empathy was often important for arriving at just decisions.
Of course that shit doesn’t fly with the traitors. Just look at Alito, Bart, Phony Barrett, Long Dong Clarence, and Die for your masters Gorsuch. I will bet you everything I have ever owned and will ever own (admittedly not a lot, but…) that the first word you think of when looking at that murderer’s row is NOT empathy.
Yes, in right wing Trumpy world, empathy could lead to “very bad outcomes”.
Empathy is right out. And so are text books that have the effrontery to mention it.
Kind of funny that despite ruling the textbook roost for years, Texas is being elbowed out by Florida. Gov Abbott will not be pleased.
AK: Thanks for the Black and I remember Obama's praise of Sotomayor ––how pleased I was about that. Here's something else Obama said about empathy:
"Learning to stand in somebody else's shoes, to see through their eyes, that's how peace begins. And it's up to you to make that happen. Empathy is a quality of character that can change the world."
When my youngest was in grade school there was a boy in class that caused all sorts of problems but it was clear to me that this boy had problems of his own and was taking them out on others. I recall that I used the word empathy when discussing this matter–-Josh and some other kids started making fun of this kid. "What is empathy?" Josh asked, and I said, "It's being able to walk in someone else's shoes." Josh's reply–––"I can't fit into his shoes, they are much too big." And so I started over knowing I had to reach him where he was at that age.
PD,
The truly sad thing is that you had no doubt of your ability to eventually imprint the quality of empathy on a child, but there is little to no hope of imbuing confederate adults with a semblance of empathy, and zero hope of conveying the idea of empathy to their “leaders”. I was going to say that they have little capacity for empathy except for those like themselves, white, far right wing, Christian, Trumpy supporters of lies, hatred, bigotry, and treason.
But here’s the thing: empathy, like mercy and justice, if applied only with surgical selectiveness has nothing to do with true empathy. As Will’s lawyer Portia says, the quality of mercy isn’t directed selectively, it falls (if it’s truly mercy) like the gentle rain from heaven, on everyone.
Except in right wing world. Just think of Trump’s pardons. His “mercy” was bestowed mostly on crooks, liars, and con men. Just like himself.
If that’s mercy, I’ll have to burn all my dictionaries and most of the novels in my bookcases. I’ve been badly misinformed.
Thanks, RAS.
Excellent article.
Legitimate SEL aside, The NYTimes chose an unfortunate example for its first figure in its textbook piece. Clearly racist: the blond babe looks the reader in the eye to set the problem, and the black kid looks away and promotes empathy. If reversed it would be sexist (Barbie: "Math class is hard"). Editor was asleep at the keyboard.
Seems MTG has an advanced case of CRS disease.
Probably caught it from the many other Republicans who, when testifying under oath, can't remember much.
For Larson afficionados on Earth Day:
https://www.thefarside.com/
if tomorrow, go back a day.
Uncritical thinking on the right, part 2 496
So I was reading about Fatty’s illogical declarations ahead of his YUUuuge loss in 2020, and I caught a clip of him trumpsplaining that there was no way Biden could beat him because of…(drum roll and grenade blasts) the Trump Silent Majority!!!
Oofah. That again.
So, okay, here’s where critical thinking, or lack thereof, comes into play. Trump sez “We have a silent majority out there on my side, the likes of which no one has ever seen!”
Therefore, he must needs win the election.
Oooohhhkay, two big things right off the bat. And kids, we’re not talking Wittgenstein type logic here, or the kind of recondite logical propositions one might find in a Gottlob Frege tract.
No. This is 2+2 stuff.
By definition, a silent majority is…SILENT. So who knows how big that group is? Also, who can say, logically, that these people who have been, and remain, SILENT, will vote for Trump?
He is making one of his plethora of unfounded assumptions. What he’s stating is that X number of people protest against him. But they represent a relatively small number. Then, by weirdo, unfounded and unsupported extension, he declares that if X equals 20% of voters, then, by his calculation, 80% MUST be for him.
But they’re SILENT! How does he know? Maybe most of them
Just don’t give a shit one way or the other.
He also doesn’t take into account the fact that, in most American elections, the vast majority of registered voters stay home. So they really are silent. But by Trump’s calculus, they ALL will vote for him. Therefore, the election must have been stolen.
This is like making the argument that any cars that aren’t blue, must be red. Ipso facto.
No, Fatty, that’s ipso stupido.
But let’s take this silent majority idea the other way.
How about the fact that a teeny, teeny, tiny number of voters believe Qanon conspiracy theories. Shouldn’t that mean that everyone else disbelieves that bullshit?
This is really basic stuff, but assholes like Trump and DeSantis and the rest of the Stoopid Horde get away with these kinds of declarations, because A., much of the press can’t be bothered parsing this bullshit, and B., none of the Trumpy voters care if his bullshit doesn’t make sense or not.
But our biggest problem is that few of these dangerous, thuggish traitors keep their mouths shut. They’re clearly not the majority, but they are never silent either.
Never.
After watching Majorette Traitor Gangrene's testimony today I can only think that "...I don't remember..." and "...I don't recall..." are the latest equivalent of the GQP's get-out-of-jail-free card for anything and everything.