;)
The Commentariat -- January 25, 2021
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
Dave Philipps of the New York Times: "... on Monday ... President Biden signed an executive order reversing the ban on transgender troops that was imposed by the Trump administration. Mr. Biden's order also called an immediate halt to involuntary discharges of transgender troops who were already serving, and for the Pentagon to review the files of any troops forced out under the ban in recent years. The order requires the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to report on progress within 60 days."
Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department's inspector general announced Monday that its office is opening an investigation into whether any current or former department official tried to improperly 'alter the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election' -- a broad review that comes on the heels of a revelation that ... Donald Trump considered replacing his acting attorney general with an official more amenable to his unfounded claims of voter fraud. Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz announced the review in a two paragraph news release, though he noted his jurisdiction would be limited to 'allegations concerning the conduct of former and current DOJ employees,' and he could not examine other government officials [like, say, Donald Trump].... While Horowitz will likely have broad access to Justice Department files and emails, he cannot compel the cooperation of former officials -- which could limit his probe." ~~~
~~~ Sam Dunklau of WITF Radio (Harrisburg, Pa.): "U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R-York, Dauphin and Cumberland) said he introduced ... Donald Trump to Department of Justice lawyer Jeffrey Clark -- who, the New York Times reported, was part of Trump's plan to pressure Georgia to overturn its certified election results. In a statement Monday afternoon, Perry also said he talked with Trump and Clark about claims of election fraud. It's unclear when exactly those conversations took place. An email to Perry's spokesman asking for clarification has not been returned yet."
Sarah Kolinovsky & Molly Nagle of ABC News: "President Joe Biden is set to sign a 'Made in America' executive order Monday, fulfilling a long-time campaign promise to increase the amount of federal spending that goes to American companies. The announcement comes at a time when the government is set to spend expansively on efforts to defeat COVID-19, and after a period during which vulnerabilities in the U.S. supply chain were exposed as state and local governments resorted to foreign manufacturers to obtain desperately-needed personal protective equipment.... Biden's executive order will aim to close ... loopholes and cut down on ... waivers [that allow more spending on foreign products], as well as order an increase in domestic content. It will also redefine what can count as domestic content...."
Teo Armus of the Washington Post: "As the previous administration's coronavirus response coordinator, Deborah Birx provided ... Donald Trump with hard numbers to guide the fight against the pandemic. But all along, she said, Trump was receiving different statistics from someone else. 'Someone out there, or someone inside, was creating a parallel set of data and graphics that were shown to the president,' she said Sunday on CBS's 'Face the Nation.'... 'I saw the president presenting graphs that I never made,' she said. Birx added that she believed at least some of the data had been funneled along by Scott Atlas, then a White House coronavirus adviser. He was widely rebuked for playing down the pandemic despite having no infectious-disease or public health background." The CBS News story is here. CBS News has the full transcript of the interview here.
AP: "The Supreme Court on Monday brought an end to lawsuits over whether Donald Trump illegally profited off his presidency. The justices threw out Trump's challenge to lower court rulings that had allowed lawsuits to go forward alleging that he violated the Constitution's emoluments clause by accepting payments from foreign and domestic officials who stay at the Trump International Hotel and patronize other businesses owned by the former president and his family. The high court also ordered the lower court rulings thrown out as well and directed appeals courts in New York and Richmond, Virginia, to dismiss the suits as moot now that Trump is no longer in office. The outcome leaves no judicial opinions on the books in an area of the law that has been rarely explored in U.S. history." MB: I suppose we'll learn more later, but this doesn't make a lot of sense to me. What about all the money Trump collected while he was in office? That's not moot; it happened.
Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit on Monday against Rudolph W. Giuliani.... The 107-page lawsuit, filed in the Federal District Court in Washington, accuses Mr. Giuliani of carrying out 'a viral disinformation campaign about Dominion' made up of 'demonstrably false' allegations, in part to enrich himself through legal fees and his podcast. The suit seeks damages of more than $1.3 billion and is based on more than 50 statements Mr. Giuliani made at legislative hearings,
Jason Williams, et al., of the Cincinnati Enquirer: "Republican Rob Portman will not seek a third term in the U.S. Senate in 2022, he told The Enquirer -- a move that will unsettle politics in both Greater Cincinnati and Washington D.C.... Portman said he hasn't decided how he will vote on impeachment during ... Donald Trump's trial. 'I'm a juror, it's going to happen,' Portman said. 'As a juror, I'm going to listen to both sides. That's my job.' Portman said Trump contributed to partisan gridlock in Washington, and he also laid blame on Trump for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. 'I don't excuse anything President Trump did on Jan. 6 or in the runup to it,' Portman said."
~~~~~~~~~~
Mike DeBonis & Seung Min Kim of the Washington Post: "When President Biden took office last week, he promised sweeping, bipartisan legislation to solve the coronavirus pandemic, fix the economy and overhaul immigration. Just days later, the Senate ground to a halt, with Democrats and Republicans unable to agree on even basic rules for how the evenly divided body should operate. Meanwhile, key Republicans have quickly signaled discomfort with -- or outright dismissal of -- the cornerstone of Biden's early legislative agenda, a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief plan that includes measures including $1,400 stimulus checks, vaccine distribution funding and a $15 minimum wage. On top of that, senators are preparing for a wrenching second impeachment trial for ... Donald Trump, set to begin Feb. 9, which could mire all other Senate business and further obliterate any hopes of cross-party cooperation.... This reality could force Democrats to choose within a matter of weeks whether they will continue to pursue the sort of bipartisan cooperation that Biden -- and many senators of both parties -- have preached, or whether to pursue procedural shortcuts or rule changes that would sideline the GOP but also are likely to divide their caucus."
Amy Wang, et al., of the Washington Post: "Democratic members of Congress are pressing ahead with preparations for the second impeachment trial of ... Donald Trump, saying there is a 'compelling' case for Trump to be convicted of inciting an insurrection and arguing that moving forward with a trial is imperative for the country's healing. Meanwhile, the fractures within the Republican Party were evident Sunday as GOP senators appeared split over whether it was constitutional to hold an impeachment trial for a president who had already left office. Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), one of Trump's most outspoken GOP critics, stopped short of saying he would vote to convict Trump, while Republican allies of the former president continued to argue that an impeachment trial should be abandoned for the sake of 'unity.'... House impeachment managers are planning to send an article of impeachment to the Senate on Monday, alleging 'incitement of insurrection.'... The second impeachment trial will start Feb. 9...."
Michael Balsamo of the AP: "Federal law enforcement officials are examining a number of threats aimed at members of Congress as the second trial of ... Donald Trump nears, including ominous chatter about killing legislators or attacking them outside of the U.S. Capitol, a U.S. official told The Associated Press. The threats, and concerns that armed protesters could return to sack the Capitol anew, have prompted the U.S. Capitol Police and other federal law enforcement to insist thousands of National Guard troops remain in Washington as the Senate moves forward with plans for Trump's trial, the official said." ~~~
~~~ Andrew Desiderio, et al., of Politico: "... Donald Trump's upcoming Senate impeachment trial poses a security concern that federal law enforcement officials told lawmakers last week requires as many as 5,000 National Guard troops to remain in Washington through mid-March, according to four people familiar with the matter. The contingency force will help protect the Capitol from what was described as 'impeachment security concerns,' including the possibility of mass demonstrations coinciding with the Senate's trial, which is slated to begin the week of Feb. 8." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Katie Benner & Charlie Savage of the New York Times attempt to profile Jeffrey Clark, the DOJ lawyer who bought into conspiracy theories he found on the Internet & conspired with Donald Trump to overturn the results of the Georgia presidential election. MB: The article hints that Clark had left DOJ, so I hunted around & found an article by Bloomberg Law; it's firewalled, so not worth spending a hit on unless you're a Bloomberg subscriber. ~~~
~~~ Ellen Gilmer of Bloomberg Law: "The Trump administration's top environmental lawyer faces career repercussions and possibly ethics probes in the wake of allegations, which he disputes, that he worked with President Donald Trump to try to cast doubt on the 2020 election results.... Clark resigned from the Justice Department Jan. 14, less than a week before the end of Trump's presidency, and didn't have a new job lined up at the time. One legal industry consultant said he'd be 'radioactive' on the job market now." Firewalled.
When You Think Republicans Can't Get More Childish. Reuters: "The Texas Republican senator John Cornyn warned on Saturday that Donald Trump's second impeachment could lead to the prosecution of former Democratic presidents if Republicans retake Congress in two years' time." MB: Hey, let's start with FDR (court packing). Or Jefferson (slaves). But we know their first choice is PresidentObama (too nice). (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ Kelly Hooper of Politico: "Sen. Marco Rubio on Sunday said the argument that ... Donald Trump should be impeached so that he can't seek public office again is 'an arrogant statement for anyone to make.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
AND Rand Paul Is Still Rand Paul. Jack Arnholz of ABC News: "Days after President Joe Biden took office and the Democrats took control of the U.S. Senate, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., would not unequivocally say Sunday that the 2020 presidential election was not stolen and called for an investigation of fraud, without providing evidence. 'The debate over whether or not there was fraud should occur, we never had any presentation in court where we actually looked at the evidence. Most of the cases were thrown out for lack of standing, which is a procedural way of not actually hearing the question,' Paul said on ABC's 'This Week.'... 'No election is perfect,' Stephanopoulos [said]. 'After investigations, counts and recounts, the Department of Justice -- led by (Trump-appointed Attorney General) William Barr -- said there's no widespread evidence of fraud. Can't you just say the words: "This election was not stolen?"' The Kentucky senator responded, 'What I would suggest is that if we want greater confidence in our elections -- and 75% of Republicans agree with me -- is that we do need to look at election integrity.' Paul also did not acknowledge ... Donald Trump's role in sowing doubts about the election."
Sara Sidner & Anna-Maja Rappard of CNN: "In her Ohio hometown [of Woodstock], she's known as an Army veteran who runs a bar and set up a small self-styled militia her boyfriend says she created to help neighbors if tornadoes hit. To the FBI, she's a militant leader who traveled to Washington, DC, and stormed the US Capitol, encouraging others to do the same." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post: "Over time, [Donald] Trump unleashed his falsehoods with increasing frequency and ferocity, often by the scores in a single campaign speech or tweetstorm. What began as a relative trickle of misrepresentations, including 10 on his first day and five on the second, built into a torrent through Trump's final days as he frenetically spread wild theories that the coronavirus pandemic would disappear 'like a miracle; and that the presidential election had been stolen -- the claim that inspired Trump supporters to attack Congress on Jan. 6 and prompted his second impeachment. The final tally of Trump's presidency: 30,573 false or misleading claims -- with nearly half coming in his final year."
Zach Montellaro of Politico: "Republican legislators across the country are preparing a slew of new voting restrictions in the wake of ... Donald Trump's defeat. Georgia will be the focal point of the GOP push to change state election laws.... But state Republicans in deep-red states and battlegrounds alike are citing Trump's meritless claims of voter fraud in 2020 -- and the declining trust in election integrity Trump helped drive -- as an excuse to tighten access to the polls. Some Republican officials have been blunt about their motivations: They don't believe they can win unless the rules change." MB: That's the ticket: scream "election fraud," then pass restrictive laws so "those people" can't commit fake voter fraud. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Bo Erickson, et al., of CBS News: "The Biden administration is expected to repeal the ban on transgender Americans from serving in the military, multiple people informed of the decision told CBS News. The announcement is expected as soon as Monday, one senior Defense official and four outside advocates of repealing the ban told CBS News. The senior Defense official told CBS News the repeal will be through executive order signed by President Joe Biden. The announcement is expected to take place at a ceremony with newly-confirmed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who will order the Pentagon to go back to the policy enacted in 2016 by former Defense Secretary Ash Carter that allowed transgender Americans to serve openly."
Jessica Sidman of the Washingtonian: "A few days into the job, and President Joe Biden has already made his first restaurant visit. After attending mass at Holy Trinity Catholic Church on Sunday, his motorcade made a bagel pitstop at Call Your Mother in Georgetown, according to pool reports. The President didn't actually get out of the vehicle -- a Secret Service agent ducked in to pick up the order. But Biden did wave to the small crowd that quickly gathered at the scene.... Call Your Mother is co-owned by Jeff Zients, who oversees the administration's Covid-19 response.... Biden has now visited the same number of restaurants that Donald Trump did in his entire four years in office. The former President never dined anywhere in DC other than the steakhouse in his Pennsylvania Avenue hotel."
Margaret Sullivan of the Washington Post writes that the only way to rid the country of Fox "News" is for corporations to pull their advertising dollars. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
The Pandemic, Ctd.
Aamer Madhani & Lisa Mascaro of the AP: "Top aides to President Joe Biden on Sunday began talks with a group of moderate Senate Republicans and Democrats on a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package as Biden faces increasing headwinds in his effort to win bipartisan backing for the initial legislative effort of his presidency. Lawmakers on the right question the wisdom of racking up bigger deficits while those on the left are urging Biden not to spend too much time on bipartisanship when the pandemic is killing thousands of Americans each day and costing more jobs amid tightening restrictions in many communities. At least a dozen senators met for an hour and 15 minutes in a virtual call with White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese and other senior White House officials. Many hope to approve a relief package before ... Donald Trump's trial, which is set to begin in two weeks, overtakes Washington's attention." ~~~
~~~ Laura Barron-Lopez & Burgess Everett of Politico: "A bipartisan group of senators told White House officials on Sunday that the stimulus spending in President Joe Biden's coronavirus relief plan provides too much money to high-income Americans, an opening setback in the new administration's complex pandemic negotiations with Congress. Biden's proposal would provide $1,400 direct payments to Americans, some of whom senators say don't need the money. Still, the discussion was civil and there was a 'consensus' on the need to act urgently on vaccine distribution, said multiple senators on the call. It was also a sign that the Biden White House will be more hands on than ... Donald Trump, who nearly refused to sign the last relief bill after making a flurry of last-minute requests after the bill already passed Congress."
Aamer Madhani of the AP: "President Joe Biden on Monday will formally reinstate COVID-19 travel restrictions on non-U.S. travelers from Brazil, Ireland, the United Kingdom and 26 other European countries that allow travel across open borders, according to two White House officials. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the order, also confirmed Sunday that South Africa would be added to the restricted list because of concerns about a variant of the virus that has spread beyond that nation. Biden is reversing an order from ... Donald Trump in his final days in office that called for the relaxation of the travel restrictions as of Tuesday."
Amanda Macias of CNBC: "The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Sunday that the federal government does not know how much coronavirus vaccine the nation has, a complication that adds to the already herculean task before the Biden administration. 'I can't tell you how much vaccine we have, and if I can&'t tell it to you then I can't tell it to the governors and I can't tell it to the state health officials,' CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told 'Fox News Sunday.'... In a dig at the Trump administration, Walensky said the lack of knowledge of vaccine supply is indicative of 'the challenges we've been left with.'"
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Sunday are here.
Donald McNeil of the New York Times: "For Dr. [Anthony] Fauci, 80, [who has been an advisor to seven presidents,] the past year has stood out like no other. As the coronavirus ravaged the country, Dr. Fauci's calm counsel and commitment to hard facts endeared him to millions of Americans. But he also became a villain to millions of others. Trump supporters chanted 'Fire Fauci,' and the president mused openly about doing so. He was accused of inventing the virus and of being part of a secret cabal with Bill Gates and George Soros to profit from vaccines. His family received death threats. On Jan. 21, appearing in his first press briefing under the Biden administration, Dr. Fauci described the 'liberating feeling' of once again being able to 'get up here and talk about what you know -- what the evidence, what the science is -- and know that's it, let the science speak.' In an hourlong conversation with The New York Times over the weekend, Dr. Fauci described some of the difficulties, and the toll, of working with ... Donald J. Trump." An interesting interview, but all in all, what you would expect an intelligent, rational person to say. ~~~
~~~ Best Part of Fauci Interviews: They Infuriate Whozit. Asawin Suebsaeng of the Daily Beast: "In recent days..., Donald Trump has watched from afar as one of his most popular rivals for public attention has been unleashed by the Biden administration to, in part, disparage Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. And the ex-president hasn't even been able to tweet about it. Dr. Anthony Fauci, once a prominent figure on Trump's coronavirus task force who's now a top COVID-19 adviser to President Joe Biden, began his multi-day blitz to different news outlets that included openly expressing his relief that the old crew was gone and that he could now serve in the Biden administration.... [Trump] reacted in a fit of grievance, self-obsession, TV hate-watching that largely defined his presidency and now-defunct policy-making operations. Fauci's re-emergence on prime-time television ... infuriated the exiled Trump, who began whining about how 'incompetent' the doctor was, and how he probably should have fired Fauci when he had the chance, a source close to the former president and another individual familiar with the matter tell The Daily Beast."
Melissa Quinn & Margaret Brennan of CBS News: "Dr. Deborah Birx, the former White House coronavirus response coordinator under ... Donald Trump, revealed that she had no full-time team in the White House working on the response to COVID-19 under the former president.... 'That's what I was given,' she said. 'So ... I went to my people that I've known all through the last years in government, all 41, and said, can you come and help me? And so I was able to recruit from other agencies, individuals.'... A senior adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence, who led the White House coronavirus task force, confirmed to CBS News that the staff who worked with Birx were from her days with PEPFAR..., [but] disputed the premise that Birx was denied necessary staff. 'There were 7-8 full-time staff detailed from other agencies to her. They were paid,' the senior adviser told CBS News. Pence, meanwhile, was also given no additional White House staff, and his existing team worked on the COVID-19 response." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Georgia. Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post: At a meeting of the Cobb County, Georgia, school board, "school district employee Jennifer Susko pleaded with those on the board who were not wearing masks to put them on in honor of Hendricks Elementary School kindergarten art teacher Patrick Key, 53, who died Christmas Day after he was hospitalized for about six weeks with covid-19. Key's obituary mentioned his appreciation for wearing masks.... Then, Susko asked for a moment of silence to honor Key, and for board members to put on their masks 'as a tribute to this teacher who did everything you asked of him, even teaching through a pandemic.' For the next 13 seconds, some members looked down, a few shifted in their seats. All were quiet. Most were already wearing masks, but at least two men, including Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, who were not wearing face coverings remained maskless."
Mexico. Christopher Sherman of the AP: "Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Sunday he has tested positive for COVID-19 and that the symptoms are mild. Mexico's president, who has been criticized for his handling of his country's pandemic, said on his official Twitter account that he is under medical treatment.... López Obrador, 67, has long been criticized for not setting an example of prevention in public. He has rarely been seen wearing a mask and continued to keep up a busy travel schedule taking commercial flights. He has resisted locking down the economy, noting the devastating effect it would have on so many Mexicans who live day to day. Early in the pandemic, asked how he was protecting Mexico, López Obrador removed two religious amulets from his wallet and proudly showed them off."
News Ledes
New York Times: "Jimmie Rodgers, whose smooth voice straddled the line between pop and country and brought him a string of hits -- none bigger than his first record, 'Honeycomb,' in 1957 -- died on Jan. 18 in Palm Desert, Calif. He was 87."
Indy Star: "Five people and an unborn child were killed early Sunday morning in Indianapolis, in what city police say was the largest mass casualty shooting in more than a decade.... Investigators were led to the grisly crime scene around 4 a.m., after making contact with a juvenile male, whose age police didn't disclose, who was found suffering from gunshot wounds just footsteps away in the 3300 block of East 36th Street between Keystone Avenue and Sherman Drive. It is believed that the boy was wounded in the Adams Street incident. If so, he is the only recorded survivor at this time."
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Reader Comments (14)
Just got word that one of my daughters-in-law's parents who live in Florida had to travel four hours into another county to get their vaccines and when arriving had to stand in line for more hrs. They then had to book a room at a motel––exhausted from this ordeal. The mother upon arriving back home exhibited extreme fatigue and headache; the father just drank a lot of wine to fortify himself.
So MB–-even though you run into problems with your getting the shot in N.H., just be glad you ain't in Florida anymore.
@PD Pepe: Thanks for reminding me. Those lines in Florida looked just awful, and of course it was seniors who had to wait in them. I was able to sign up (thru a CDC site, so it may have been Biden's doing) for my first Covid shot over the weekend. It's not to be administered until Feb. 17, but I have an actual appointment for a real date & time, and the state is using a drive-in system in an old Sears store at the local mall (I think they're using the Sears garage), so even if there's a long line, I'll spend most of it in the comfort of my car. Better gas up first, to make sure I don't run out of petrol waiting in line. Also, for the first vaccines administered at the site, the National Guard helped out, so they might be around this time, too.
The reason I think the Biden administration may have had a hand in arranging the sign-ups is that the state changed the first sign-up date four times in the course of three days. The next-to-last time, they pushed the first sign-up date to this week, and then, miraculously (as Trump would say), it got pushed back to last Friday. I think maybe that's because somebody at the CDC helped the state link to the CDC portal so the state didn't have to reinvent the wheel, as was probably the case in the Trumpity "system."
Don't understand the Supremes non-decision decision either beyond suspecting they didn't want to think about what the emoluments clause really means and certainly didn't want to put any of those possibly dangerous thoughts down on paper.
We're back to that old irresponsible responsibility thing, but then this is the same supreme arbiter that doesn't see a quid or a pro when it's staring them in the face.
And, Marie, I'm with you on the court's peculiar logic, which would suggest that an embezzler who is no longer employed by the entity he ripped off would no longer be responsible for his peculation once he had severed ties with his former firm.
There has to be more to this story, doesn't there?
@ Marie.
Well, this should be bizarre but it's real
https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55794674
I'm reminded of the Seinfeld bit with bubble boy, only now everyone has their own bubble.
Just received a "dear friend" email from Sarah Huckabee Sanders advising me that she's running of governor of Arkansas because we governors have to fight all that corruption in D.C. Where was she the last four years during the actual corruption? Turning a blind eye like the
rest of the psychophants , I would presume.
Our state just announced that effective Feb 1 bars and bowling alleys will be open at reduced capacity. Wonder who this directive is aimed at. Maybe to keep the Michigan militia occupied bowling and bar hopping instead of storming the Governor's office.
Reading Montaigne and listening to Mozart's Requiem (not feeling particularly tenebrous, but the Requiem imparts a weird sort of calmness; I know, go figure). But being a tad OCD, I need a third "MO" to round out the triad.
Let's see....morphine? Nah. Gave that up on Inauguration Day. Monasticism? Too late. Well, my kid, this morning, asked me if I knew how to moonwalk, and whether I could or not, did I know how the illusion works. Kids. They kick your ass sometimes. So I guess Moonwalk will have to do for now. I'm resolved that the two of us will visit YouTube University and learn how to do it, and in time perhaps out-Michael Jackson Michael Jackson. Yeah. That'll happen.
Anyway, now that that's settled, back to Montaigne. Lighting upon his essay "On Cruelty", I came across one of Monty's classic around the world, back in time, up and down, in and out ruminations, but this one ties in nicely with a conversation RC'ers had yesterday about the nature of goodness, and whether religious pinions turn the gears of decency.
My first thought was to recall a piece by the estimable Amanda Marcotte in which she took on the claims by Evangelicals that morality, and living a good life without evil was impossible without belief in (their) god. Her comment went something along the lines of "Believers, listen to me. You make the rest of us very nervous when declaring that the only thing separating you from Ted Bundy is belief in an invisible being who lives in the sky and makes it rain."
Montaigne, takes on a similar approach, if slightly less humorous. His opening topic is virtue. And to put it briefly, he suggests that the virtuous man (or woman) is not one who simply goes about his (or her) life of ease not being an asshole. Sorry. That don't get you into the Virtue Pantheon. It's only when tested that virtue comes to the fore. He quotes Seneca (he's a great fan of the Ancients, by the way): "Multum sibi adjicit virtus lacessita" (Virtue gains much by being put to the proof). Nuff said, right?
Then he's on to God. God, they say (and still do), is good. In Montaigne's opinion, this knocks him out of the virtue box. Since God's nature does not allow for any difficulties (no way of being put to the proof, that is), and thus "...we cannot call him virtuous: his works are his properties and cost him no struggles".
(Just run that argument by a right-wing religio (god is not virtuous) and see the steam come out the ears...)
So, what he's saying is, basically, it's all up to us to be good and virtuous, or cruel and evil.
The rest of the essay gets into the weeds of cruelty and would benefit from a longer comment at another time, especially considering that we have emerged from four years of the cruelest administration in American history. But here's something to consider. Montaigne maintains that cruelty (by his lights, the worst of all the vices) can be seen most starkly in someone who kills others not out of anger, but purely for spectacle, for show. Who do we know who has killed (or allowed to die) hundreds of thousands, not because he had any particular grudge against them, but so that he could appear a certain way to his cruelty-loving horde?
Which reminds me of another MO word: monster.
And on that, I'll moonwalk out of here. (Now where are those slippery socks?)
Forrest,
"Psychophants". Good one. Eminently swipable. Consider it swiped.
Republican Unity
Just back from getting my C-19 jab (Modena) at the county health department. They verified my appointment, checked to see I was sufficiently ancient, and then gave me a form to fill out. Took me inside, jabbed me, gave me my reminder card for the second shot (they'll call and set a time) and waited 15 minutes just in case. Just glad I'm not in one of the large metropolitan areas.
@Akhilleus: I do love YouTube U. Without it, I never could have backed up that trailer. There are indeed numerous tutorials on the YouTubes on how to moonwalk, but this 1955 video of Bill Bailey moonwalking himself off the Apollo stage (no tutorial here), is absolutely fabulous.
@periscope: Love the Flaming Lips' Covid-19 solution.
@Forrest Morris: Thanks. We needed "psychophants" a long time ago as a synonym for "Trumpbots."
I am not surprised the Supremes kicked it over. No one wanted to deal with it while it was going on. Cowards all. The man takes everything not nailed down or promised to someone else, and he always will. Imagine how much he has made while he was destroying the country...
Also am not surprised that the Senate finds it impossible to work. After all, they are horribly out of practice. Haven't done anything for years. Every bigmouth that has weighed in on impeachment, regardless of whether two weeks ago they were shocked and appalled, has reneged or indicated they will do so. Of course, more pandemic relief? Certainly not. We did that-- I have no idea why Biden persists in thinking there will be bipartisan anything. Ditch the friggin' fillibuster and go from there. 50-51 every time.
PA remains in the stupid column... We are supposed to contact our "providers" for vaccine. Funny thing, they aren't "providing" anything. They don't have it. Cuz incompetence of the previous administration. We still have dates in March. Completely stupid since they more than doubled the numbers in the first distribution. We are getting nowhere fast. Every day I hate those people more.
So Birx was providing charts/data and they were rewriting them and presenting the made-up ones. Gosh, what to do, what to do...well, guess she decided to do nothing. For a year. Brave brave Birx.
Put her in the column of "I hate those people."
Marie,
The Bill Bailey video is the first thing I checked out. Eye popping stuff. And good to let people know that Michael Jackson didn't invent the moonwalk.
As for YouTube U., I can't tell you how much money we've saved over the years. I've been able to do everything from rewire a vacuum cleaner, replace heating elements in a stove, fix the motor on a washing machine, replace toilet seals, learn some new left hand piano tricks, as well as a variety of car repair operations, not to mention expanding my knowledge of grilling various foods, trying out new computer programming tricks, and researching the best way to teach kids how to hit an outside pitch to the opposite field (turns out it's no different than how I learned--just go with the pitch).
The downside, of course, is the Rabbit Hole Effect. Plus, there's always the insidious non-linear juxtapositions which can get you from best in class brownie recipes to drunken monkeys humping table legs in about three jumps. Oh wait, that monkey looks like Trump! It IS Trump!
Don't know M2c4 but this one makes sense to me.
The Senate filibuster has gotta go, or the new world will look much like the old. And that sure didn't look good.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/1/22/2011117/-Mitch-Is-Forcing-Dems-Hand-On-Filibuster?detail=emaildkre2