;)
March 8, 2022
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
** Guilty, Guilty, Guilty. Alan Feuer of the New York Times: “A Texas man who helped lead a pro-Trump mob in an advance on the police at the Capitol last year was convicted on Tuesday of obstructing congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election, bringing an end to the first criminal trial to stem from the violent assault. The guilty verdict against the defendant, Guy Wesley Reffitt, came only about three hours into the first day of jury deliberations and after a weeklong trial that included testimony from police officers, a Secret Service agent, one of Mr. Reffitt’s compatriots in the Texas Three Percenters militia group and Mr. Reffitt’s son. The jury also convicted Mr. Reffitt of wearing an illegal pistol on his hip during the attack and of later threatening his teenage son and daughter to keep them from turning him in to the authorities. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on the obstruction count alone.”
Jeff Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: "The United States will ban imports of oil and natural gas from Russia, President Biden announced Tuesday, a decision reached after days of behind-the-scenes talks that revolved around protecting the global economy from an energy shock. The move represents one of America’s most far-reaching actions to penalize Moscow since the beginning of its invasion into Ukraine. It would carry enormous geopolitical consequences, as the price of oil has already skyrocketed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, creating huge new costs for businesses and consumers.... Europe, which is far more dependent on Russian energy than the United States, announced Tuesday a plan to cut gas imports from Russia by two-thirds this year. If successful, this move would sharply reduce but does not completely sever energy ties to Moscow.... Russian oil accounts for about a quarter of the European Union’s oil imports, but just 3 percent of the United States’ imports." ~~~
~~~
Rowena Mason of the Guardian: “The UK will phase out imports of Russian oil by the end of 2022 and is exploring options to ending gas imports, the energy secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has confirmed. The decision ... came as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky prepared to address the House of Commons. The day after Boris Johnson said western nations would need a 'step-by-step transition period' away from Russian hydrocarbons, Kwarteng warned businesses they should 'use this year to ensure a smooth transition so that consumers will not be affected'.”
Mark Thompson of CNN: "Shell (RDSA) said Tuesday it was breaking completely with Russia's giant energy industry, halting all purchases of Russian crude oil immediately and shutting its service stations in the country. The UK-based company, which last week announced it was dumping its investments in Russia, said its decision to abandon all trade in Russian fossils fuels was 'aligned with new government guidance.'... Shell will also immediately begin to shut down its service stations, aviation fuels and lubricants operations in Russia in 'the safest way' possible, and begin a phased withdrawal from Russian petroleum products, pipeline gas and liquified natural gas."
Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: “The New York Times said on Tuesday that it was temporarily removing its journalists from Russia in the wake of harsh new legislation that effectively outlaws independent reporting on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 'Russia’s new legislation seeks to criminalize independent, accurate news reporting about the war against Ukraine. For the safety and security of our editorial staff working in the region, we are moving them out of the country for now,' a spokeswoman for The Times, Danielle Rhoades Ha, said in a statement.”
Alan Feuer of the New York Times: “Enrique Tarrio, the former leader of the Proud Boys, has been charged with conspiring with other top lieutenants of the far-right nationalist group to attack the Capitol last year, according to an indictment set to be released on Tuesday by federal prosecutors.... Mr. Tarrio was not in Washington on Jan. 6, having been arrested two days earlier for having vandalized a Black Lives Matter banner at a Black church in the city after a pro-Trump rally in December 2020. Mr. Tarrio, who was also charged at the time with carrying two high-capacity rifle magazines, was ordered to leave Washington by a local judge as part of his release agreement. But prosecutors say that he issued orders before the attack on the Capitol for members of the group to be dressed 'incognito' when they arrived in Washington on Jan. 6. He also took part in a private Telegram group chat as several leaders and members of the Proud Boys stormed the Capitol.” An NBC News story is here.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here: "Mask mandates have disappeared rapidly in the last few weeks in the United States as Omicron cases have receded. But some school districts, cities and one state are holding out, and some teachers, parents and students fear that dropping mask mandates in schools is premature. As of Monday, Hawaii remains the only U.S. state that is not lifting its statewide indoor mask mandate. About a third of the school districts in the United States still require masks, according to the school tracking site Burbio...."
Pam Belluck of the New York Times: "Covid-19 may cause greater loss of gray matter and tissue damage in the brain than naturally occurs in people who have not been infected with the virus, a large new study found. The study, published Monday in the journal Nature, is believed to be the first involving people who underwent brain scans both before they contracted Covid and months after. Neurological experts who were not involved in the research said it was valuable and unique, but they cautioned that the implications of the changes were unclear and did not necessarily suggest that people might have lasting damage or that the changes might profoundly affect thinking, memory or other functions." MB: And I'd like to add that this is no excuse for Donald Trump, Ron Johnson, Rand Paul & all the other Republicans who contracted Covid, often because they were careless. They were dopes three years ago, and they would be dopes today if they'd never had Covid.
~~~~~~~~~~
Putin's War, Ctd.
The Washington Post's live updates of developments Tuesday in Russia war on Ukraine are here: Hey, Ukrainians, Welcome to Russia! “Russia said Tuesday it was opening humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians from several besieged Ukrainian cities after Ukraine accused Moscow of violating previous cease-fires and shelling people who were trying to flee to safety. Russia said the routes were from cities including Ukraine’s second largest, Kharkiv, and hard-hit Mariupol — and that evacuees from Kyiv would be flown to Russia after arriving in Gomel, Belarus. Ukraine has rejected the idea of evacuation corridors leading to Russia or its ally, Belarus, and said Tuesday that the only agreed routes were for regions in Ukraine.... Two million people have fled Ukraine since Russia’s invasion nearly two weeks ago, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said Tuesday.... In a video interview that aired Monday night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russian soldiers of being 'war criminals.' A growing number of Western leaders are also raising questions about possible war crimes — which Moscow denies — citing reports of attacks on civilians.” ~~~
~~~ CNN's live updates for Tuesday are here. The Guardian's live updates are here.
Yuras Karmanau of the AP: "Evacuations of people fleeing embattled Ukrainian cities along safe corridors began Tuesday, while U.N. officials said the exodus of refugees from Russia’s invasion reached 2 million.... Previous attempts to lead civilians to safety have crumbled with renewed attacks. But on Tuesday, video posted by Ukrainian officials showed buses with people moving along a snowy road from the eastern city of Sumy and yellow buses with a red cross on them heading toward the southern port of Mariupol."
Michael Schwirtz, et al., of the New York Times: "Increasingly indiscriminate Russian shelling that has trapped and traumatized Ukrainian civilians magnified fears on Monday of an intensifying humanitarian crisis that has already left tens of thousands without food, water, power or heat in besieged cities of southern Ukraine and elsewhere.... The biggest conflict to engulf Europe since World War II has turned at least 1.7 million Ukrainians — half of them children — into refugees, according to the United Nations. Many are trapped in their own cities, pinned down by intense barrages from Russian forces."
From the Washington Post's live updates of developments Monday in Russia's war on Ukraine, also linked earlier yesterday: “A third round of talks between Russia and Ukraine ended without a breakthrough, Ukrainian officials said, as Russia continues to press Ukraine to give up Crimea and a large slice of eastern Ukraine as a condition for Russian to stop its attacks. The talks, which began as the war entered its 12th day, yielded some progress in logistical arrangements for local cease-fires and evacuation corridors, said Ukrainian negotiator Mykhailo Podolyak after several days of failed efforts to enable civilians to safely leave areas under Russian attack. 'So far, there weren’t results that significantly improve the situation,' said Podolyak.... Moscow is turning to Syria to help fuel its war effort as 'nearly 100 percent' of Russian troops pre-positioned around Ukraine have been sent into the country to fight, according to a senior U.S. defense official. 'We know that they’re trying to recruit Syrians for the fight,' the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity....” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Yuras Karmanau of the AP: "The humanitarian crisis in Ukraine deepened Monday as Russian forces intensified their shelling and food, water, heat and medicine grew increasingly scarce, in what the country condemned as a medieval-style siege by Moscow to batter it into submission.... In one of the most desperate cities, the encircled southern port of Mariupol, an estimated 200,000 people were hoping to flee, and Red Cross officials waited to hear when a corridor would be established. The city is short on water, food and power, and cellphone networks are down. Stores have been looted as residents search for essential goods.... In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, heavy shelling slammed into apartment buildings....Russian forces also continued their offensive in Mykolaiv, opening fire on the city some 480 kilometers (300 miles) south of Kyiv, according to Ukraine’s military. Rescuers said they were putting out fires caused by rocket attacks in residential areas." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Martin Farrer of the Guardian & Agencies: “Moscow has stoked fears of an energy war by threatening to close a major gas pipeline to Germany after the US pushed its European allies to consider banning Russian oil imports over its invasion of Ukraine. In an address on Russian state television, Russian deputy prime minister Alexander Novak said: 'A rejection of Russian oil would lead to catastrophic consequences for the global market', and claimed the price of oil could rise to more than US$300 a barrel. Novak cited Germany’s decision last month to halt the certification of Nord Stream 2, a secondary pipeline, saying: 'We have every right to take a matching decision and impose an embargo on gas pumping through the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline'.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: This could be an idle threat if Russia is as dependent upon oil sales abroad as reports indicate; the late Sen. John McCain and others have called Russia "a gas station with nukes," or some variation thereof.
Helene Cooper, et al., of the New York Times: "... nearly two weeks into President Vladimir V. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine..., the image of a Russian military as one that other countries should fear, let alone emulate, has been shattered. Ukraine’s military, which is dwarfed by the Russian force in most ways, has somehow managed to stymie its opponent. Ukrainian soldiers have killed more than 3,000 Russian troops, according to conservative estimates by American officials. Ukraine has shot down military transport planes carrying Russian paratroopers, downed helicopters and blown holes in Russia’s convoys using American anti-tank missiles and armed drones supplied by Turkey, these officials said, citing confidential U.S. intelligence assessments. The Russian soldiers have been plagued by poor morale as well as fuel and food shortages. Some troops have crossed the border with MREs (meals ready to eat) that expired in 2002, U.S. and other Western officials said, and others have surrendered and sabotaged their own vehicles to avoid fighting.... The result: Militaries in Europe that once feared Russia say they are not as intimidated by Russian ground forces as they were in the past." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I'm of the impression that Russia didn't send in its elite forces, assuming it has elite forces. Rather, the Russian soldiers I see on teevee are either policemen or young recruits, many of whom thought they were going to Belarus for training exercises. Russia's military establishment must have calculated that a ragtag Ukrainian army would lay down its rusty weapons as they fired the first shot into Ukraine. ~~~
~~~ AND/OR. Polina Beliakova in Politico: "... , there is another factor that might have contributed to Russia’s incorrect pre-war assessments and poor performance on the ground — systemic corruption in the country’s defense and security sectors. On the operational level, the corruption in defense procurement has also likely undermined logistics, manifesting in soldiers receiving inadequate equipment and supplies on the ground. Poor logistics slows down the advancement of troops, undermines their morale and hinders military effectiveness."
Annie Linskey, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Biden White House inched closer Monday to a modest rapprochement with oil-rich Venezuela, a bitter foe due to the oppressive policies of President Nicolás Maduro, as it urgently sought ways to stave off the economic, diplomatic and political impact of soaring gas prices that nudged over $4 a gallon. The potential thaw arrives as the White House sent a delegation to Venezuela over the weekend to discuss energy sanctions imposed by the United States several years ago and to address the fate of American citizens who have been jailed in the country, including six oil executives from Citgo.... The potential for warming relations between the Biden administration and Maduro’s regime, which is being investigated by an international criminal court for crimes against humanity, illustrates how global relations and values are being scrambled during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Biden faced some strong pushback from allies on Capitol Hill."
Tony Romm of the Washington Post: "Senior congressional Democrats and Republicans on Monday announced they had reached a deal on a bill that would punish Russia for invading Ukraine, as they seek to ban U.S. imports of Russian oil while further empowering President Biden to impose tariffs on the country’s products. The announcement evinced the vast new flurry of legislative activity on Capitol Hill, even as lawmakers began to warn that the U.S. strategy threatened to further raise the cost of gas and other goods. Unveiled by the top lawmakers overseeing tax and trade on Capitol Hill, the new, bipartisan agreement would limit Russian energy imports, suspend normal trade relations between the U.S. and the Kremlin and task the Biden administration to seek Russia’s suspension from the World Trade Organization. The trade penalties would also apply to Belarus.... The proposed package of punishments is only one prong of a broader congressional response to the rapidly worsening crisis in Ukraine." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
David Sanger, et al., of the New York Times: “In less than a week, the United States and NATO have pushed more than 17,000 antitank weapons, including Javelin missiles, over the borders of Poland and Romania, unloading them from giant military cargo planes so they can make the trip by land to Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, and other major cities. So far, Russian forces have been so preoccupied in other parts of the country that they have not targeted the arms supply lines, but few think that can last.” U.S. “cybermission teams” also are conducting defensive & offensive cyber-warfare on Ukraine's behalf. “It is, in many ways, a more complex effort than the Berlin airlift three-quarters of a century ago.... U.S. officials say Ukrainian leaders have told them that American and other allied weaponry is making a difference on the battlefield.” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Big Mak. Jacob Bogage & Aaron Gregg of the Washington Post: "... consumers can still get a Big Mac in Moscow. Or a Starbucks coffee. Or KFC’s chicken and Papa John’s pizza. As Western corporate titans flee their Russian connections — citing moral and economic imperatives — others, especially in food service and natural-resource-based industries, say they are stuck. McDonald’s, Starbucks, Papa John’s and Yum Brands — the conglomerate behind KFC and Pizza Hut — have all stayed mum on their plans for business in Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, as they come under growing pressure on social media and from large investors to quit Russia.... McDonald’s owns the vast majority of its more than 900 locations in Russia and Ukraine, though it sold off 15 percent of them to franchisees after Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. But other food brands don’t have as much control over their Russian operations. Most Starbucks, Papa John’s, KFC and Pizza Hut locations in Russia are owned by franchisees.... "
Dino Grandoni of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration on Monday proposed curbing pollution pouring out of the tailpipes of new tractor-trailers, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles that forms smog, along with emissions warming the planet. The Environmental Protection Agency proposed a new rule to cut the emission of nitrogen oxides — poisonous and reactive gases that can cause asthma attacks — from engines in some of the biggest vehicles on roadways. In the same proposal, the agency will also consider further limiting the amount of carbon dioxide these vehicles spew into the air. The proposed smog rule marks the first update to heavy-duty tailpipe standards in two decades and comes as Biden is seeking ways to advance his environmental agenda outside Congress. The standards would apply to not only huge 18-wheelers hauling freight on highways, but also many school buses, delivery vans and moving trucks." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Carol Rosenberg of the New York Times: "The Biden administration on Monday repatriated to Saudi Arabia for mental health care a prisoner who had been tortured so badly by U.S. interrogators that he was ruled ineligible for trial as the suspected would-be 20th hijacker in the Sept. 11 attacks. The prisoner, Mohammed al-Qahtani, in his 40s, is the second to be transferred from the wartime prison under the administration. A government panel recommended recently that Mr. Qahtani, who had spent 20 years at Guantánamo Bay, be released after a Navy doctor advised that he was too impaired to pose a future threat — particularly if he was sent to inpatient mental care. The doctor last year upheld an independent psychiatrist’s finding that Mr. Qahtani suffered from schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder, and could not receive adequate care at the U.S. military prison."
Ali Zaslav of CNN: "The Senate passed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act of 2022 on Monday night by unanimous consent. The bill, which would make lynching a federal hate crime, now heads to President Joe Biden's desk for his signature. The legislation was approved by the House of Representatives last week by a vote of 422-3. Passage of the bill is a long-sought goal of advocates, who have been working for years to secure its approval in Congress. 'After more than 200 failed attempts to outlaw lynching, Congress is finally succeeding in taking the long overdue action by passing the Emmett Till Antilynching Act. Hallelujah. It's long overdue,' said Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in remarks on the Senate floor after the bill's passage. That it took so long to pass is a 'bitter stain' on America, the New York Democrat added." MB: Yes, but isn't it gratifying to know that Senate Republicans aren't racists, after all? I mean, they're willing to allow an anti-lynching bill to pass.
Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "Federal prosecutors rested their case Monday against the first Capitol attack defendant to go to trial, telling jurors in closing arguments that Guy Reffitt of Texas was 'ecstatic about what he did' when he tried to storm the U.S. Capitol while armed on Jan. 6, 2021. Reffitt was the first Capitol attack defendant to take his case to trial out of hundreds who have been charged. Prosecutors, quoting Reffitt, argued that he 'lit the match' at the Capitol during the attack and relied upon testimony from Reffitt's son (who tipped off the FBI about his father before the attack) and Reffitt's friend (who took a weapon to the Capitol and testified with immunity)."
Kyle Cheney & Josh Gerstein of Politico: “A federal judge has thrown out an obstruction charge against a defendant charged with breaching the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, a ruling that could reverberate across hundreds of cases stemming from the attack on Congress. In a 29-page opinion issued Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Carl Nichols ruled that ambiguities in the federal obstruction law required him to narrow the case against defendant Garret Miller, who is facing multiple felony charges connected to the attack. Under that narrow interpretation, Nichols ruled, defendants can be charged with obstruction only if they directly attempt to affect 'a document, record, or other object' in order to hamper the ability of Congress to count Electoral College votes.... The ruling from Nichols, an appointee of ... Donald Trump, is at odds with a series of decisions from other judges in Washington who have considered similar issues in cases stemming from the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol....”
Josh Gerstein of Politico: “A judge warned the Justice Department on Monday that it might be seeking to pursue so many cases stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Riot that some defendants’ rights were being trampled. U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui delivered the stern rebuke to federal prosecutors at a hearing for a Texas man who the judge said was 'lost' in the court system after being arrested in December [2021] and accused of assaulting police officers during the storming of the Capitol.”
Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Monday allowed congressional maps that had been approved by state courts in North Carolina and Pennsylvania to stand, giving Democrats an advantage in this year’s election in two key states. In issuing the orders, the Supreme Court rejected requests by Republicans to restore maps approved by G.O.P.-controlled state legislatures. Those district lines were thrown out and replaced by courts in both states after challenges by Democrats.... But in the North Carolina case, there were signs that at least four of the court’s more conservative justices could later rule that state courts are powerless to change congressional maps adopted by state legislatures.... The court’s three most conservative members — Justices Samuel A. Alito Jr., Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch — said they would have blocked the North Carolina map because it was likely that the State Supreme Court had violated the Constitution in overriding the State Legislature.... Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh filed a short concurring opinion agreeing that the question posed by the case was a substantial one. But he said the court should address it in the ordinary course rather than in response to an emergency application." The AP story is here.
Graham Bowley of the New York Times: "The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected the bid by prosecutors in Pennsylvania to reinstate Bill Cosby’s criminal conviction for sexual assault. In an order issued Monday, the court said that it had declined to hear the case filed by prosecutors last November.... The Supreme Court’s decision leaves in place a ruling by an appellate court in Pennsylvania earlier last year that overturned Mr. Cosby’s conviction on due process grounds. In June, Mr. Cosby walked free after serving less than three years of a three-to-10-year prison sentence." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Mariana Alfaro of the Washington Post has yet another story on former chief-of-staff & fake trailer-trash Mark Meadows' personal voter fraud: “Meadows, who served as a congressman for North Carolina’s 11th District from 2013 to 2020, sold his official residence in Sapphire, N.C., shortly before becoming ... Donald Trump’s chief of staff in March 2020. After the election, Meadows pushed Trump’s false claims that widespread voter fraud cost him the election.... Meadows did not purchase a new home in North Carolina..., nor did he register as a voter for the general election until Sept. 19, 2020, when he filed his registration using the address of the mobile home, the New Yorker said. In his form, he wrote that he would move into the mobile home the next day. But Meadows 'did not come. He’s never spent a night in there,' the former owner told the New Yorker. It is illegal to provide false information on a voter registration.... To register to vote in North Carolina, a citizen must have lived in the county where they are registering and have resided there for at least 30 days before the date of the election, according to the state’s board of elections. Steven Greene, a professor of political science at North Carolina State University, said that after reading the New Yorker’s reporting, he found it 'honestly hard to see how this is not a clear violation of federal law.'” (See also Mediaite summary of the New Yorker story linked early yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ AND Meadows' Wife Is a Scofflaw, Too. Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post: “Meanwhile, Debra Meadows appears to have voted twice under suspicious circumstances — first in the runoff primary from the address of a home that had been sold three months earlier, and then by signing a form under 'penalty of perjury' that her primary residence was a trailer home in the mountains when she did not live there.” MB: Maybe Club Fed can set up a special marital cell for the Meadows. What with his being such a VIP and all. ~~~
~~~ OR, Execute Them! Meagan Flynn of the Washington Post: "Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.) has endorsed Jarome Bell, a far-right candidate who has flaunted support for ... Donald Trump’s false claims of a stolen election, in his bid for the Republican nomination in Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District.... On Twitter last September, he called for the execution of people convicted of voter fraud...."
Donald Trump writes a letter to NBC News' Lester Holt. Via Axios. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post: "Few Americans are as invested in the importance of television and television news as [Donald] Trump, and the advent of NBC News interviewing [Bill] Barr about a new book in which he offers constrained criticisms of Trump prompted the former president to extend his typical galaxy of complaints into full paragraphs.... It’s a document offered in response to questions from the network that’s transparent in its dishonesty but also one that collects a number of Trump’s favorite false claims in one place.... Here are claims made by Trump ... — and the reality." ~~~
~~~ Scott Stump of NBC's “Today”: “Former Attorney General Bill Barr has been called 'lazy' and 'cowardly' by ... Donald Trump, while Barr has described Trump as 'off the rails' and called his push to discredit the 2020 election 'a farce.' Yet despite the ugly back and forth between the two, Barr said on TODAY Monday that he would still vote for Trump in the 2024 presidential election if Trump becomes the Republican nominee. 'Because I believe that the greatest threat to the country is the progressive agenda being pushed by the Democratic Party, it's inconceivable to me that I wouldn't vote for the Republican nominee,' Barr told Savannah Guthrie.” MB Translation: "Child care tax credits are far more dangerous than a lunatic with his finger on the nuclear button & an itch to push it to see what happens." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
A Convoy of Loons, Ctd. Ellie Silverman, et al., of the Washington Post: "Hundreds of trucks, cars and SUVs protesting the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic circled the Capital Beltway on Monday for a second day as the group announced it secured a meeting in Washington with two senators.... Authorities said traffic disruptions Monday were minimal and there were no reports of convoy-related incidents during the group’s single loop of the 64-mile Beltway.... Members of the convoy will meet Tuesday with Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), although it wasn’t clear whether that would alter the convoy’s plans for the rest of the week." MB: IOW, the usual suspects.
If Russian Nukes Don't Get You, Then Huge Flying Spiders Might. Ben Turner of Scientific American: "New research, published Feb. 17 in the journal Physiological Entomology, suggests that the palm-sized Joro spider, which swarmed North Georgia by the millions last September, has a special resilience to the cold. This has led scientists to suggest that the 3-inch (7.6 centimeters) bright-yellow-striped spiders — whose hatchlings disperse by fashioning web parachutes to fly as far as 100 miles (161 kilometers) — could soon dominate the Eastern Seaboard.... Since the spider hitchhiked its way to the northeast of Atlanta, Georgia, inside a shipping container in 2014, its numbers and range have expanded steadily across Georgia, culminating in an astonishing population boom last year that saw millions of the arachnids drape porches, power lines, mailboxes and vegetable patches across more than 25 state counties with webs as thick as 10 feet (3 meters) deep, Live Science previously reported."
The Pandemic, Ctd.
David Rising of the AP: "The official global death toll from COVID-19 eclipsed 6 million on Monday — underscoring that the pandemic, now entering its third year, is far from over. The milestone, recorded by Johns Hopkins University, is the latest tragic reminder of the unrelenting nature of the pandemic even as people are shedding masks, travel is resuming and businesses are reopening around the globe." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Florida. Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: “Florida’s governor and chief health official announced a new state policy Monday that will recommend against giving coronavirus vaccine to healthy children, regardless of their age — a policy that would fly in the face of recommendations by every medical group in the nation. The announcement came at the conclusion of a 90-minute forum that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) hosted in West Palm Beach. 'The Curtain Close on COVID Theater' was live-streamed from a studio with hundreds of participants appearing on a towering screen behind the panelists. Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo prefaced the change by deriding the school closures and mask and vaccine mandates issued by many states since the start of the pandemic as 'terrible, harmful policies.'... National data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that nearly 1,600 youths ages 0 to 17 have died of covid-19. More than 40 of those deaths were in Florida.” A Tampa Bay Times story is here. MB: Once again, we see Republicans affirming that the right to life ends at birth. ~~~
~~~ Steve M. "Florida governor Ron DeSantis spends literally every waking hour of his life trying to own the libs, boasting about how he owned the libs, or thinking of new ways he can own the libs in the future. Captain Ahab, if he knew Ron DeSantis, would probably say, 'Dude, even I think you have a bit of a problem with monomania.'... As The Washington Post's Philip Bump writes today, Dr. Ladapo 'announced not that the state was declining to recommend vaccination but ... that children shouldn’t be vaccinated.'" Steve points out how Ladapo introduces the New York Times into his argument, even tho the Times had nothing to do with a Trump policy Ladapo disparaged. Why? Because "Among media objects of right-wing hate, only CNN is a rival to The New York Times."
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Reader Comments (16)
Ian Bremmer, speaking on MSNBC last night, pointed out that it is not hard to believe that many Russians believe the party line on the Russian invasion. After all, many people in our country still believe the 2020 election was stolen.
In some ways, I think it is even worse here. Certain outlets still promote the stolen election nonsense, but the consumers who chose those outlets have access to actual information, and chose not to believe it.
@Nisky Guy: Couldn't agree more. And this is why wingers, as Steve M. points out in the post linked above, have made outlets like the New York Times & CNN dirty words. I'm not claiming the MSM always get it right -- they don't -- but, within the limits of their own prejudices and their desire to sell their product, they do seem to try.
@Nisky Guy
Had the same thought last night.
Why would Russians, living in a country where the media is deliberately controlled and not merely subject to the vagaries of capitalism's pursuit of profit, be more likely to have a firm grip on reality than we do?
This morning having, hardly for the first time, real trouble with this "war crimes" concept. War is a crime. Period.
It's not football, wrestling or even boxing. Its purpose is murder and destruction and outright theft; and pretending there is a nice, legal, even moral way to conduct it is one of then biggest lies of all of those that we like to tell ourselves.
@Ken Winkes: I would guess (and it's merely a guess) that the concept of war crimes stems from a time when European armies went out on an otherwise empty battlefield and shot at each other, or shot at each other from ships at sea. They didn't engage in guerilla warfare or target civilians. The international community, again in concept, established the "rules of war," like not purposely killing civilians. Or soldiers who had surrendered. And treating prisoners of war humanely and not engaging in torture. You don't have to think too hard to recall times when the U.S. committed such war crimes.
It's hard to think of a war where both sides are justified in fighting, especially when it's relatively easy to reach diplomatic solutions. For instance, the diplomatic solution in Russia-Ukraine would be, "Get the hell out, Russia." Look at our own Revolution, too. It could have been avoided, with a little patience. That "Give me liberty or give me death" stuff was mighty stupid, although it did take Canada, for instance, a long time to get out from under the king's boot. Still, there were prominent British politicians who were on the colonists' "side." (Dylan Matthews of Vox, BTW, thinks up three other good reasons the American Revolution was a mistake.)
It must stick in the craw of the horde of white supremacists in the Party of Traitors that an anti-lynching bill was finally passed, after 200(!) previous attempts, ALL blocked by Republicans.
Oh, but wait. In the House, there were three votes against this bill. Yup. Again, all Republicans, from Kentucky, Georgia, and Texas. Wow. Who’d have guessed those states would be anti anti-lynching?
But Kentucky has the distinction, if you wanna call it that, of having a member of both chambers rail against the Emmet Till bill. Guess who held it up on the senate side? Of course! It was the Littlest Casuistrist, Li’l Randy, who whined that making it a federal hate crime to beat a black man, drag him to a tree and hang him might result in “too harsh a penalty” for the killers.
Say what? This from a fucking guy who supports no punishment—not even an investigation!—of violent Trump thugs who stormed the Capitol looking to shoot Nancy Pelosi and hang mike pence.
On the house side, Rep. Massie, (PoT-Ky), sed an anti-lynching bill would impair his Freeeedoms.
What.The.Fuck??
It’s even worse in Texas! Rep. Chip Roy sez lynching is perfectly A-OK. I am not even kidding. “Down here in Texas, we get a long rope and find a big tree. That’s justice!”
Christ on a scaffold. Where do these people come from?
The Republican Party.
Because of course.
I’m surprised it didn’t take 400 tries. I’m guessing that the less vocal white supremacists who voted for this bill figured they don’t need to lynch black people anymore. They have plenty of better ways of knocking them off. And if those ways don’t work, there are plenty of cops ready and willing to do the job for them.
Looks like we are of one mind this morning re: the Ian Bremmer comment, as I, too, was struck by his description of Russian division compared with our own. Even though there are hundreds of brave, courageous Russians protesting in the streets there are many others whose fealty to Putin is steadfast.
And speaking of rulers who rule badly–- that letter to Lester Holt from our dolt in residence I suspect was carefully edited by someone. I doubt Fatty could comprise this on his own. I get such a kick out of how he manages to crush those who turn against him –- but praising them profusely before the letdown. Wouldn't you think this would be embarrassing for him? Bad sense of character and all that? Hell. No! as John B. once yelled out as Speaker of the House but Trump ain't ever gonna fess up to any wrong doing cuz he be the master and just like his pal Putin–-he's going for broke!
The Meadow's foul field of hypocrisy is stunning. Again, an example of power players thinking they can get away with anything.
"and he's such a nice looking man" said by one of his neighbors.
And the three that voted nay on the lynching bill are?????
I'll rattle this kettle again: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/2022/03/08/olympics-putin-ioc/. These business men just remind me of the high school drug dealers who got away with it and are now grown up. We in civilized society let them live with ill-gotten gains because we avoid confrontation. They have sucked all the oxygen out of the Olympics to where people don't watch nor miss the Olympics. Big business men and women are awful.
Marie,
Yes. There are, as you say, historical roots to our notions of a gentlemen's war, as loony as they were and remain.
Before the Ukraine War erupted, I had read, recently again, accounts of both WWI and the Spanish Civil War. Both were so laden with war's deadly contradictions and genuine awfulness, they were impossible to ignore.
WWI: On the one hand the gentlemanly manner in which prisoners of war on all sides were often treated. But then there was the deliberate and by no means gentlemanly use of poison gas on the entrenched enemy.
The Spanish Civil War: On the one hand, the romance (for me) of the Lincoln Brigade and all those who flocked from the U. S. and other nations to the side of Spanish freedom and liberty, and on the other (there were many hands in this struggle against Fascism--frequently many on the same side) the pogroms carried out by both the "good and bad guys" on innocent civilians...
We know all this. War is a mess--as is most of the thinking we devote to justifying it.
But we persist.
"... it did take Canada, for instance, a long time to get out from under the king's boot."
Canadians (who, at the time of the American Revolution, did not exist qua Canadians) were more than happy to remain with the king, who gave them what they wanted: in the Quebec Act of 1774, among other benefits Britain assured the recently-acquired francophone Quebecois that they could retain their language, laws, customs and religion without interference from London (*).
When Americans sought to persuade the Quebecois to join the Revolution, Congress could not offer any improvement, and in fact could not even think of allowing a Catholic bishop in North America. Canadian territory became a refuge for many Loyalists who fled the colonies, at first expecting a short sojourn but then staying on and changing the nature of the country from Francophone to Tories + French. The Tories made even more of a point of loyalty to the king than did the French.
Anyway, Canadians never thought of themselves as under the king's boot, rather they considered themselves under the king's protection. We have only invaded them a few times, but no hard feelings, eh?
* "The Last King of America" ; Andrew Roberts; 2021
@PD Pepe: As I noted when I linked the story of the House's passage of the anti-lynching bill a few weeks back, "Three Republicans — Representatives Andrew Clyde of Georgia, Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Chip Roy of Texas — opposed the anti-lynching bill." (NYT link)
I did not, however, know that two of the three had given "reasons" they opposed the bill, so Akhilleus's commentary here was much appreciated.
AK: We must have been writing at the same time so now having read your post you answered my questions as to whom voted nay on the lynching bill. No surprise there.
"Christ on a scaffold. Where do these people come from?" you ask–– Dante would have a special circle for them–- but I just had breakfast and I don't want to envision the horror right now.
Ken: Interesting that I wrote about the Spanish Civil War yesterday–- were you reading that piece from the NYRB that I was? I have always been fascinated by that war because of its complexity and like Ukraine, how so many others rallied round to get involved. My youngest son's father-in-law was born and bred in Spain and he tells of how hard it was to leave even though he knew he would perish if he stayed.
Marie: Yes, sorry I missed you mentioning the three nay sayers before–-evidently I can only retain so much––like a small pail that can contain only so much water.
The lists of who is doing and not doing business with Russia: https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/over-200-companies-have-withdrawn-russia-some-remain. Wanna bet there is overlap with the IOC crowd?
This one could explain a lot:
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/lead-gasoline-blunted-iq-half-us-population-study-rcna19028
Would guess those are the old gasoline sniffing white folks who still believe the 2020 election was stolen.
And P.D.:
Sent this earlier but don't see it posted.
It was "Spain in Our Hearts" by Adam Hochschild--of whom I am a great fan.
Mask mandates are dropping all over the place, but the NYTimes reports 1,473 people died from Covid yesterday. That's half of a 9/11 each day.
I know death rate lags behind current infection rate, and the death rate will probably go down some, but my gut says that today's virus victims are younger and stronger than the victims 18 months ago when the rates were about the same as they are now.
As much as I want to be done with this damned virus, it does not appear to be done with us yet.
Heather Cox Richardson on Ukraine:
https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/march-7-2022?s=r
Perhaps too optimistic? But a good read.