;)
The Commentariat -- March 2, 2021
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
Jaclyn Diaz of NPR: "Without naming [Amazon] specifically, President Biden said in a video posted late Sunday that he supports the organizing drive in Bessemer, Ala. 'Today and over the next few days and weeks, workers in Alabama and all across America are voting on whether to organize a union in their workplace,' Biden said in a video shared on Twitter. 'This is vitally important -- a vitally important choice, as America grapples with the deadly pandemic, the economic crisis and the reckoning on race -- what it reveals is the deep disparities that still exist in our country.'... More than 5,800 warehouse workers at the facility are voting this month whether to join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. The mail-in ballot election runs through March 29 and could be the first Amazon warehouse union in the United States. If successful, it would also be a major victory for labor organizing in the South, a region difficult for union success."
Devlin Barrett & Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "FBI Director Christopher A. Wray said Tuesday that his agents are pursuing roughly 2,000 domestic terrorism cases -- a huge spike as the FBI tries to show it is taking the threat of such attacks seriously in the wake of January-s pro-Trump riot at the U.S. Capitol.... Wray also defended the bureau's handling of intelligence in advance of the attack on the Capitol, asserting that agents rapidly shared what they were learning with other law enforcement agencies, but conceding that FBI officials will review internal practices because Jan. 6, was not an 'acceptable result.'
"Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), the committee chairman, pressed Wray on how the bureau shared a situation report, prepared by the FBI's Norfolk field office a day before the riot, which warned of specific appeals for violence -- including a call for 'war' at the Capitol.... Wray said the report was shared in three ways -- sent by email to the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, which includes the D.C. and Capitol Police; posted on a law enforcement web portal; and mentioned in a command center briefing in D.C....Wray ... said that he had not been briefed on the information before Jan. 6 either. Wray said he believed the report was handled in accordance with standard FBI practice." See also Jeanne's & Anonymous's commentary below. ~~~
~~~ Kyle Cheney of Politico: "FBI Director Christopher Wray said on Tuesday that the Jan. 6 insurrection has been 'an inspiration to a number of terrorist extremists' -- foreign and domestic -- and that the bureau is still eyeing whether any foreign actors might seek to infiltrate domestic groups to exploit vulnerabilities. Wray also said he considers the siege 'domestic terrorism' and is deploying intensive resources in every field office to pursue perpetrators.... Wray declined to disclose the cause of death of Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who died following the insurrection, and he evaded saying whether a cause of death had been determined."
Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "U.S. prosecutors alleged for the first time that a Washington state leader of the Proud Boys was nominated by members of the group to take charge of the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6 and carried out a plan to split into groups to break into the building from as many points as possible. In a 24-page filing Monday, U.S. prosecutors asked a federal judge in Washington, D.C., to keep Ethan Nordean, 30, of Seattle, in jail pending trial, appealing a lower court's Feb. 8 release order. Nordean was 'nominated from within to have "war powers"' to lead activities at the Capitol after the group's chairman, Henry 'Enrique' Tarrio, was arrested by D.C. police upon arriving in the city two days earlier, Assistant U.S. Attorneys James B. Nelson and Jason B.A. McCullough alleged. They do not state whether Nordean and/or others were formally selected to lead events that day."
Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court seemed poised on Tuesday to uphold two Arizona voting restrictions, one requiring election officials to discard ballots cast at the wrong precinct and the other making it a crime for campaign workers, community activists and most other people to collect ballots for delivery to polling places, a practice critics call 'ballot harvesting.' Several members of the court's conservative majority said the restrictions were sensible, commonplace and at least partly endorsed by a bipartisan consensus reflected in a 2005 report signed by former President Jimmy Carter and James A. Baker III, who served as secretary of state under President George Bush. The Biden administration, too, told the justices in an unusual letter two weeks ago that the Arizona measures appeared to be lawful." MB: Yeah, making black people guess the correct number of jellybeans was "lawful" in some places, too, but that doesn't make it right.
Jaclyn Diaz of NPR: "The largest power cooperative in Texas filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, citing a massive bill from the state's electricity grid operator following last month's winter storm that left millions of residents without power for days. Brazos Electric Power Cooperative filed for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, according to court documents reviewed by NPR. The company in court documents says it received an essentially unpayable $1.8 billion bill from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the entity that maintains and operates much of the state's electricity grid. Brazos Electric is the wholesale energy provider for its 16-member cooperative.... Brazos said in court documents that the company was in solid financial shape leading up to the late February cold storm.... Dozens of other energy providers face enormous charges for electricity and other fees during February's freak winter storm in Texas. Many others may also face bills that list billions of dollars in charges." Thanks to RAS for the link. ~~~
~~~ Evidently Gov. Greg doesn't want Texas voters to think about the energy fiasco, so he's changing the subject -- and of course making matters worse for Texans, and for the rest of us: ~~~
Amir Vera of CNN: Texas "Gov. Greg Abbott announced Tuesday he's lifting the mask mandate in Texas, even as health officials warn not to ease safety restrictions. Abbott made the announcement during a Lubbock Chamber of Commerce event where he issued an executive order rescinding most of his earlier executive orders like the mask mandate. Also announced Tuesday, Abbott said businesses of any type will be allowed to open 100% beginning March 10. Abbott's announcement comes as Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to drop across the country. However, health experts say relaxing restrictions now could lead to another surge, especially with the variants spreading." Thanks to RAS for the link.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here.
Laurie McGinley & Christopher Rowland of the Washington Post: "President Biden will announce Tuesday that pharmaceutical giant Merck will help make Johnson & Johnson's single-shot coronavirus vaccine -- an unusual pact between fierce competitors that could sharply boost the supply of the newly authorized vaccine, according to senior administration officials." Politico's story is here.
Anne Gearan & Ellen Nakashima of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration on Tuesday announced punitive sanctions on senior Russian government figures over the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny and reiterated a demand that Navalny be released from detention. The sanctions block access to financial or other assets in the United States for seven top figures around Russian President Vladimir Putin. They are largely symbolic, but represent the first Biden administration action against Russia. U.S. officials who described the measures said they are a signal that the new administration will treat Russia differently than the Trump administration did." A CNN story is here.
Hey, you know all those Antifa guys we've been hearing about who were masquerading as Trump supporters in the January 6 insurrection? Well, there is this guy: ~~~
~~~ Katie Shepherd of the Washington Post: "The day before a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol, William Robert Norwood III texted a group of friends and family to boast he had traveled to D.C. with a plan to fool the police. 'I'm dressing in all black,' Norwood texted a group chat on Jan. 5, according to images included in a federal criminal complaint filed last week. 'I'll look just like ANTIFA. I'll get away with anything.' Then, after joining in the mob, assaulting police officers and storming the Capitol rotunda, federal agents said, Norwood texted the group again to boast that his ploy had been a success. 'It worked,' Norwood texted, along with photos of himself wearing a police officer's vest that he allegedly took from the Capitol. 'I got away with things that others were shot or arrested for.' Norwood was arrested in Greer, S.C., on Feb. 25 and charged with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, obstruction of justice and Congress, theft of government property and other charges."
Amanda Watts & Leah Asmelash of CNN: "Six Dr. Seuss books will no longer be published because they 'portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong,' the business that preserves the author's legacy said. The titles are: 'And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street'; 'If I Ran the Zoo'; 'McElligot's Pool'; 'On Beyond Zebra!'; 'Scrambled Eggs Super!'; 'The Cat's Quizzer'.... Dr. Seuss Enterprises said it made the decision after consulting educators and reviewing its catalog.... Dr. Seuss had a long history of publishing racist and anti-Semitic work, spanning back to the 1920s when he was a student at Dartmouth College. There, Dr. Seuss once drew Black boxers as gorillas and perpetuated Jewish stereotypes by portraying Jewish characters as financially stingy, according to a study published in the journal 'Research on Diversity in Youth Literature.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: When I was a toddler, my favorite book was "And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street." I do recall a blatantly stereotypical Chinese guy in it. I just took a look at the book again. And there's more. There is also an Italian guy, I presume, dressed in Roman garb; some Inuits, I guess, in furry snowsuits; a presumably Indian 'rajah" in a turban, fancy shirt & pointy-toed shoes; and cops, at least one of whom ("Sergeant Mulvaney") is Irish. All of the people are the same color -- white. There are zebras, but no African characters. And here's something: I don't think the book made me even slightly racist. If anything, I thought people in different parts of the world wore different kinds of clothing and rode on different kinds of conveyances (like chariots & sleds & elephants). I guess if the reader (my father, in this case) isn't racist, the little hearer & viewer of "Mulberry Street" won't be, either.
~~~~~~~~~~
Mark Stevenson, et al., of the AP: "As President Joe Biden looks to dismantle the last administration's hardline immigration agenda, he worked Monday to build a partnership with someone who found an unexpected understanding with Donald Trump: Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Biden and López Obrador met for a virtual bilateral meeting, with immigration, the coronavirus pandemic and climate issues on the agenda. Looming large was how the two leaders would get along in what has become an increasingly complicated relationship.... Lopez Obrador came to the meeting with his own checklist of priorities, including pressing Biden to give pharmaceutical company Pfizer permission to sell his country vaccine produced in the United States, something that Canada has also requested from the White House." ~~~
~~~ Zolan Kanno-Youngs & Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden on Monday sought help from President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico in averting a new crisis at the border, hoping for diplomatic cooperation from one of the key supporters of the harsh tactics imposed by Mr. Biden's predecessor to choke off immigration.... Facing an uptick of illegal migrant crossings at some parts of the southwestern border, Mr. Biden is now hoping that Mr. López Obrador wil become a partner in preventing another cycle of out-of-control migration from Central America, but that he will do so without resorting to the full range of policies Mr. Trump embraced. The Mexican president appeared open to collaboration, issuing a joint statement committing to address climate change, the pandemic and migration north."
Michael Stratford of Politico: "The Senate confirmed Miguel Cardona to lead the Education Department on Monday, adding to President Joe Biden's Cabinet a key official who will help lead the administration's efforts to reopen schools amid the pandemic. Cardona, the commissioner of education in Connecticut, becomes the 12th person to be confirmed as secretary of Education. He takes on the role at a time of unprecedented tumult and disruption in the nation's schools and colleges, which have been roiled for nearly a full year by the pandemic.... The Senate voted 64-33 in favor of the nomination, with 14 Republicans joining Democrats to back Cardona."
Brian Slodysko of the AP: "As Congress begins debate this week on sweeping voting and ethics legislation, Democrats and Republicans can agree on one thing: If signed into law, it would usher in the biggest overhaul of U.S. elections law in at least a generation. House Resolution 1, Democrats' 791-page bill, would touch virtually every aspect of the electoral process -- striking down hurdles to voting erected in the name of election security, curbing partisan gerrymandering and curtailing the influence of big money in politics. Republicans see those very measures as threats that would both limit the power of states to conduct elections and ultimately benefit Democrats, notably with higher turnout among minority voters.... Despite staunch GOP opposition, the bill is all but certain to pass the House when it's scheduled for a floor vote Wednesday. But challenges lie ahead in the Senate...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Rashad Robinson, in a USA Today op-ed: "The nature of the filibuster, its rules and norms ... has changed and adapted greatly over the years since it first became popular in the civil rights era. But what hasn't changed is its enduring connection to racism. The filibuster has always stood in the way of racial progress, whether employed by Southern Democrats of the Jim Crow era or the Republican Party today after a major shift in the party's stance on racial equality. When you understand the filibuster's racist past, it becomes clear that it has a racist present as well -- and that we need to get rid of it.... The Republican Party decades ago launched a four-part strategy to hijack government to the will of the minority. The filibuster is the prime (but not only) example of the first part, which is changing and abusing the rules of representative government to give more and more power to fewer and fewer people."
Jim Tankersley of the New York Times: "Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, introduced legislation on Monday that would tax the net worth of the wealthiest people in America, a proposal aimed at persuading President Biden and other Democrats to fund sweeping new federal spending programs by taxing the richest Americans. Ms. Warren's wealth tax would apply a 2 percent tax to individual net worth -- including the value of stocks, houses, boats and anything else a person owns, after subtracting out any debts -- above $50 million. It would add an additional 1 percent surcharge for net worth above $1 billion. It is co-sponsored in the House by two Democratic representatives, Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who leads the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania, a moderate." (Also linked yesterday.)
Neil MacFarquhar of the New York Times: "Just eight weeks after the Capitol riot, some of the most prominent groups that participated are fracturing amid a torrent of backbiting and finger-pointing. The fallout will determine the future of some of the most high-profile far-right organizations and raises the specter of splinter groups that could make the movement even more dangerous.... The shake-up is driven in part by the large number of arrests in the aftermath of the Capitol riot and the subsequent crackdown on some groups by law enforcement.... After the Capitol siege..., accusations about informants and undercover agents have been particularly pointed." MB: What? What? You mean radical, grievance-driven nutjobs can't get along?
Big Lie No. 2. Michael Grynbaum, et al., of the New York Times: "At 1:51 p.m. on Jan. 6, a right-wing radio host named Michael D. Brown wrote on Twitter that rioters had breached the United States Capitol -- and immediately speculated..., 'Antifa or BLM or other insurgents could be doing it disguised as Trump supporters,' Mr. Brown wrote.... What happened over the next 12 hours illustrated the speed and the scale of a right-wing disinformation machine primed to seize on a lie that served its political interests and quickly spread it as truth to a receptive audience. The weekslong fiction about a stolen election that ... Donald J. Trump pushed to his millions of supporters had set the stage for a new and equally false iteration: that left-wing agitators were responsible for the attack on the Capitol.... History was being rewritten in real time.... Nearly two months after the attack, the claim that antifa was involved has been repeatedly debunked by federal authorities, but it has hardened into gospel among hard-line Trump supporters, by voters and sanctified by elected officials in the party."
I requested ... I definitely gave the number of 10,000 National Guardsmen, and [said] I think you should have 10,000 of the National Guard ready.... From what I understand, they gave it to the people at the Capitol, which is controlled by Pelosi. And I heard they rejected it because they didn't think it would look good. So, you know, that was a big mistake. -- Donald Trump, February 28
On the day before the Jan. 6 rally, Trump appears to have mentioned 10,000 National Guard troops at a White House meeting on an unrelated matter. Contrary to his statement, he did not make a request or any sort of order to dispatch the troops.... Trump goes further afield when he claims that his number was raised with the Capitol Police and that Pelosi, in 'a big mistake,' rejected the offer of so many troops. That's just fantasy. -- Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post
Vance Plays Squeeze the Accountant. Ben Protess, et al., of the New York Times: "State prosecutors in Manhattan who are investigating ... Donald J. Trump and his family business are sharpening their focus on the company's long-serving chief financial officer, asking witnesses questions about his dealings at the company, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The increased focus on the executive, Allen H. Weisselberg, could step up pressure on him to cooperate with the investigation if the prosecutors unearth evidence of wrongdoing on his part. He has served as the Trump Organization's financial gatekeeper for more than two decades and could be a vital source of information for the government about the inner workings of the company. In recent weeks, the prosecutors working for the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., have been interviewing witnesses who know Mr. Weisselberg and have asked at least one witness about Mr. Weisselberg's sons, Barry and Jack Weisselberg, according to two of the people with knowledge of the matter. Barry Weisselberg has been the property manager of Trump Wollman Rink in Central Park, and Jack works at Ladder Capital, one of Mr. Trump's biggest lenders."
Reed Richardson of Mediaite: "The Fulton County (GA) district attorney's office will appear before a grand jury starting this week to begin seeking subpoenas for evidence about ... Donald Trump's alleged solicitation of election fraud in January." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution story is here.
Greg Sargent of the Washington Post: “Amid the stream of delusion, depravity, malevolence and megalomania that characterized Donald Trump's speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference on Sunday, one message should be regarded as arguably more important than all the others combined.... The former president told his audience that the Republican Party's success in coming years depends, in no small part, on its commitment to being an anti-democracy party.... As expected, Trump's CPAC speech doubled down on the big lie that the election was stolen from him.... But embedded in that big lie was an unintentional truth. It was revealed when Trump uncorked an extended riff suggesting that the GOP's future prospects depend on what he called 'election reforms.' By 'election reforms,' Trump actually meant a redoubled commitment to making it harder to vote.... We know this, because he said so: He went on to declare that Democrats had used the 'China virus' as an 'excuse' to make vote-by-mail easier." ~~~
~~~ Jim Crow Goes Nationwide. Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post: "The Republican Party's biggest problem is that too many people of color are exercising their right to vote. The party's solution is a massive push for voter suppression that would make old-time Jim Crow segregationists proud.... The GOP may have lost the White House and the Senate, but it remains strong in most state capitols. So far this year, according to the Brennan Center for Justice, Republicans in 33 states 'have introduced, prefiled, or carried over 165 bills to restrict voting access.' The thrust of virtually all these measures is to make it more difficult for African Americans and other minorities to vote."
Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: "Images of the CPAC stage went viral this weekend as many noted a resemblance to the Odal or Othala Rune, a symbol emblazoned on some Nazi uniforms. The Anti-Defamation League has classified the insignia as a hate symbol that has been adopted by modern day white supremacists. CPAC's organizers vehemently denied any link between the stage design and the Nazi symbology, calling the criticism 'outrageous and slanderous.'... As the controversy continued on Sunday, Hyatt Hotels said in a statement that it had addressed the concerns with the conference and denounced any use of hate symbols.... The blowback comes after CPAC organizers disinvited a scheduled speaker, social media figure Young Pharaoh, after liberal media watchdog Media Matters for America reported he had made antisemitic comments on Twitter. Pharaoh tweeted that Judaism is a 'complete lie' and 'made up for political gain,' and said Jews are 'thieving.'... Tim Murtaugh, a spokesman for the Trump campaign, claimed that the shape is an 'antifa symbol.'" ~~~
~~~ Nur Ibrahim of Snopes says claims that CPAC intentionally set the stage, so to speak, in the form of the Nazi symbol is "unproven."
Bushie Michael Gerson of the Washington Post: "The [Republican] party has been swiftly repositioned as an instrument of white grievance. It refuses to condemn racists within its congressional ranks. Its main national legislative agenda seems to be the suppression of minority voting. Trumpism is defined by the belief that real Americans are beset by internal threats from migrants, Muslims, multiculturalists, Black Lives Matter activists, antifa militants and various thugs, gangbangers and whiners.... The largest single group within the new GOP coalition is comprised of people who claim to be evangelical Christians. And the view of human beings implied by Trumpism is a direct negation of Christian teaching (as well as many other systems of belief)."
The Pandemic, Ctd.
The Washington Post's live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here. The Post's live updates for Monday are here.
Alayna Treene of Axios: "Former President Trump and former first lady Melania Trump were both vaccinated at the White House in January, a Trump adviser tells Axios..... Trump declared at CPAC on Sunday that "everybody" should get the coronavirus vaccine -- the first time he's encouraged his supporters, who have been more skeptical of getting vaccinated, to do so." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) MB: Obviously, any real president would have made a big public show of getting a life-saving vaccine to encourage his vaccine-averse base to save their own lives, if only so they might live to vote for him again. ~~~
~~~ Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "The secret approach by Mr. Trump came as a number of his supporters have expressed resistance to the vaccine, and as other officials have tried setting an example by getting the shot in public.... Mr. Trump's concern about the vaccine has generally been about whether he is getting credit for its development while he was president. He never publicly encouraged people to take it while he was in office; the first vaccines were approved shortly after Election Day." MB: In fairness to Trump, he didn't want to disappoint fans of his "strongman" image when they saw him bawl like a baby as the needle penetrated his fat arm.
~~~ "A Number of Supporters" Indeed. Tim O'Donnell of Yahoo! News: "As the United States adds another COVID-19 vaccine to its arsenal and ramps up its distribution drive, potentially pushing the country closer toward herd immunity, concerns about vaccine hesitancy among the population remain. But overall, it seems, people are growing increasingly comfortable with getting a shot.... Additionally, while much has been made about hesitancy, driven by historical distrust in the U.S. health care system, among communities of color, Black and Latino Americans have rapidly and consistently joined the ranks of people who want a shot, polling conducted by Civiqs between November and February shows, per Axios. Overall, white Americans are now less likely to get vaccinated, and the stance is largely split along party lines. [As Deen Freelon tweeted,] 'Black vax hesitancy makes headlines, but the most reluctant group by far is white Republicans -- a much larger group.'" Emphasis added. MB: How many more Trumpists would get vaccines if Donzo & Melanie had made a show of getting their shots?
Beyond the Beltway
Louisiana. Tim Elfrink of the Washington Post: "The George Washington Carver High School basketball team had built a huge early lead in its playoff game in New Orleans on Saturday when John Shallerhorn tried to walk into the gym. But Shallerhorn, 35, wasn't wearing a mask, so a staffer blocked his way, police said. When Shallerhorn punched the staffer, Tulane University police officer Martinus Mitchum, who was working security for the team, rushed to help. That's when Shallerhorn pulled a gun, police said, and fatally shot Mitchum, 38, in the chest, sending players and fans scurrying for safety.... Other deputies on the scene quickly arrested Shallerhorn.... Shallerhorn ... was ... charged with multiple felonies including murder of a police officer, had also robbed someone outside the game before coming inside, according to a criminal complaint reviewed by nola.com. He confessed to the killing, police said, and was ordered held without bail."
New York. Close Encounters of the Creepy Kind. Matt Flegenheimer & Jesse McKinley of the New York Times: "Anna Ruch ... met Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo ... at a crowded New York City wedding reception in September 2019.... The governor was working the room after toasting the newlyweds, and when he came upon Ms. Ruch, now 33..., Mr. Cuomo put his hand on Ms. Ruch's bare lower back, she said in an interview on Monday. When she removed his hand with her own, Ms. Ruch recalled, the governor remarked that she seemed 'aggressive' and placed his hands on her cheeks. He asked if he could kiss her, loudly enough for a friend standing nearby to hear. Ms. Ruch was bewildered by the entreaty, she said, and pulled away as the governor drew closer.... 'It's the act of impunity that strikes me,' Ms. Ruch said. 'I didn't have a choice in that matter. I didn't have a choice in his physical dominance over me at that moment....'... The initial stages of a pending investigation into Mr. Cuomo's actions [are] underway inside the offices of the state attorney general, Letitia James, who was evaluating options [Monday] for an outside investigator." A photo of the encounter accompanies the article. MB: It's clear from the photo Ruch is telling the truth, that Cuomo was bullying her into submission. The Hill has a summary report here. ~~~
~~~ Jesse McKinley of the New York Times: "A former aide to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo who has accused the governor of sexual harassment said on Monday that the governor 'has refused to acknowledge or take responsibility for his predatory behavior' and encouraged other women with similar experiences to step forward. The aide, Charlotte Bennett, said in a statement on Monday that Mr. Cuomo's response to her claims, and that of another former aide, Lindsey Boylan, indicated that he did not actually want the truth of his actions to be reported. 'As we know, abusers -- particularly those with tremendous amounts of power -- are often repeat offenders who engage in manipulative tactics to diminish allegations, blame victims, deny wrongdoing and escape consequences,' Ms. Bennett said. 'It took the governor 24 hours and significant backlash to allow for a truly independent investigation. These are not the actions of someone who simply feels misunderstood; they are the actions of an individual who wields his power to avoid justice.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: Huh. So Bennett doesn't think claiming you were just "being playful" is "taking responsibility for predatory behavior." Imagine that. ~~~
~~~ Sonia Moghe & Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "... as New York Attorney General Letitia James announced she could move forward with an independent investigation on the same day one of [Gov. Andrew] Cuomo's accusers cast him as an abuser who 'wields his power to avoid justice.' Following concerns about Cuomo's role in shaping the probe, James announced that she has received the letter she needs to launch an independent investigation. The letter was sent to James' office by Beth Garvey, special counsel and senior adviser to Cuomo on Monday, and asks James to select an independent law firm to conduct an inquiry into 'allegations of and circumstances surrounding sexual harassment claims made against the Governor.' The letter also directs all New York state employees to cooperate fully with the review and notes that Cuomo will forgo weekly updates on the investigation, to which he would otherwise be entitled."
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Reader Comments (18)
Seuss cancelled?
https://apnews.com/article/dr-seuss-books-racist-images-d8ed18335c03319d72f443594c174513
And to think, we're treating the man who is given credit for creating the word "nerd" so shabbily...
Just good wokeness or good sense?
What you all think?
(One of the things that I think is that cartoonists and satirists just by the nature of their genres already have one foot hovering over the abyss of offense.)
Gotta hand it to the pretend former president:
As we've said before, he did do one (good?) thing.
He got Michael Gerson and Eugene Robinson on the same side.
Man of high authority walks up to an attractive young woman at a wedding reception, puts his hand on her bare back, looks into her eyes and says:
"Can I kiss you."
Her response could/should have been:
"I'm sure you are capable of kissing me but you MAY not."
I think our Governor in question here is under the false impression that he is somehow irresistible––something that many males seem to have in common.
@Ken: I do recall ––see below–-the kerfuffle over this phrase and certainly read about Melania's gift of Seuss books being denied but wow!––would like to actually read and see the illustrations of said controversy. Are we going too far with this?
"A person's a person no matter how small."
"Despite lawsuits and voiced disapproval from Dr. Seuss and his widow, the "a person's a person no matter how small" line has snowballed and is now a de facto motto for the anti-abortion movement."( 2008) wiki
Here's a clip from the marvelous film, Avalon, that someone should send to Mario:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tj_c2UfMSks
PD,
Kinda depends on the definition of "person," doesn't it?
Recall from my Catholic youth that in one vital sense, even the long-since born are not fully responsible persons until they has reached the "age of reason," somewhere around six...and we know of course that if "responsible" is the defining factor how many so-called adults still don't qualify....as people.
Someone more clever than I with interest, talent, time and courage I don't possess might well produce a Suess-like story featuring cartooned gametes, zygotes and blobs of fetal tissue discussing and setting abortion policy in the womb.
No doubt Mother Nature, looking into her far-seeing crystal ball, frequently decides it's best to end a "person's" story before we even know it's beginning.
Wonder what those gametes think of that.
Because I'm a fan of vice-presidents from Indiana: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/03/archdiocese-bans-covid-vaccine-over-tenuous-link-to-abortion.html. And you thought nothing could make Dan Quayle look good.
Here's a response from my neighbor when I sent her an email this morning re: Cardona's confirmation because I knew she knew him.
"I am so proud of Miguel and happy the country will benefit from his leadership. I have known his family since 1980. We also worked together when I was Director of Health. I worked closely with him at Meriden’s Children First. He also served on the Chrysalis Domestic Violence Board when I invited him for 4 years. I also worked with his wife, and ironically hired 2 of his sister in laws to work at the Health Dept.
He is an amazing heartfelt leader, a committed family man and a great guy."
@Ken: We know, for the majority of the anti-abortion critters, that it has nothing to do with concern for those fragile fetuses; it's all about control of women and their bodies. And I think you'd be talented enough to come up with a dandy little tale of gametes, zygotes and jelly like blobs discussing policy within the uterus. I'd even offer to do the illustrations or better yet, ask Akhilleus who has all those nifty pencils that take up so much space in his desk drawer.
Re Seuss:
1. Almost everybody was pretty much a racist in the 40's and 50's, when Geisel's sales took off to meet the Boom. Even if you were all for integration etc. , you most probably thought such a thing as "race" existed as a physical differentiation that manifested in culture, ethics, intelligence, social practice, etc. Even my favorite aunt (a white person) , who lived in a black neighborhood until she moved to a retirement community, and loved her neighbors (mostly black people), clearly considered blacks to be a bit "behind" whites. Like in a large family - some kids are super-smart, some are slower, but they're all family. She was a racist. Probably like Geisel.
So, that kind of racism (Benign? No, but not malevolent either) shows up in the work of social artists of the period (early to mid-century, like Geisel). They thought "Amos and Andy" was funny and harmless. Rochester was a beloved character.
Given Geisel's prime audience ( brains forming perceptions of the world they inhabit ), it is important that those brains are able to interpolate the information accurately. (At what age should you first read "Huckleberry Finn"? I read it around 6th grade, when many of my schoolmates were black, and think I had no problem understanding Huck's "voice" particular to his place and time.)
2. The decision to cease publication is made by the people who own the product, apparently after careful consideration. If they feel that these titles should join "Little Black Sambo" on the social history shelves rather than the kids' tables, because the works are no longer a good idea for child development, OK. The work remains available (no books were burned to bring you this change) but not placed in front of kids as benign or positive material.
There's lots of Seuss out there, and I doubt the absence of these titles laying on the kiddie table will cause harm to the development of any kids.
PD,
Wingers who are ready at a moment’s notice to scream about something are now screeching that liberals are “canceling” Dr. Seuss, “cancel culture” being their bumper sticker slogan of the month, replacing “stop the steal”, which replaced “MAGA”, etc., etc.
Of course it’s not true. Junior showed up at CPAC to scream that liberals were “canceling Sesame Street”, also not true (I can’t in my wildest imagination believe that racist confederates have a special place in their withered, blackened little hearts for a show that invited so many guests of color on as far back as the 70’s...).
So here’s the deal with Dr. Seuss. Studies have identified that of the 2,240 identifiable human characters in the Seuss oeuvre, there are only two who are black, and they, reportedly, are given subservient “dehumanized” roles. I can’t say for sure because I’ve never actually seen a black character in a Seuss book.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises, which controls the estate and owns the publishing rights, has decided to cease publication of six Seuss books. I’ve never seen any of these books. In fact, I’ve never even heard of them (and most parents are pretty familiar with a fair number of Seuss books). “McElligot’s Pool”? “On Beyond Zebra”? “Cat’s Quizzer”? Never heard of ‘em.
But all of the real classics are still available and I’m sure will remain part of the literacy acquisition of many children: “Hop on Pop”, “Green Eggs and Ham”, and my personal favorite, “Horton Hatches the Egg” (“I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful one hundred percent”.)
My feeling is that Theodore Geisel was a product of his generation. I don’t think he was intentionally racist, but a kind of generic racism was baked into the culture. It’s a difficult question. Do we eliminate all racially insensitive books out there? Many think so, but I think it’s one thing for adults to read “Gone With the Wind”, who can appreciate the fact that the depiction of black characters ain’t exactly woke, it’s another thing for children’s literature.
Look, Geisel published almost 40 books. If the people who control his legacy are okay with stopping publication of a handful of those books, I’m fine with that too. Kids get enough questionable influences without adding some that are downright inimical to any sense of equality, decency, or humanity. (The other day, I had to pull the plug on a “game show” my kid was watching that showed contestants being jolted with an electrified cattle prod for a wrong answer. Jesus Christ! WTF! Can you picture Alan Ludden electrocuting a guest who couldn’t get the right answer on “Password”? What the hell!)
Wingers are quick to glom on to any attempt, however well intentioned (and some attempts, I admit, can go a little too far) to right racial wrongs. They are happy living in a 1950’s all white Leave it to Beaver world and despise any effort at inclusivity, screaming that such and such is being “canceled”. Rumors of school boards banning Dr. Seuss are, as far as I’ve been able to tell, complete fabrications designed to whip up white resentment by idiots like Junior.
Dr. Seuss isn’t going anywhere. But if a steppinfetchit character in a couple of his books bite the dust, it’s no great loss.
Now, if someone wants to “cancel” “Atlas Shrugged” or “Art of the Squeal”, I’m all ears...
I think the problem with Dr. Seuss is one that plagues other authors. I read to the grandchildren (5 and 3) several times a week, via Zoom. They eat dinner their nanny fixes, before Mom and Dad come down from the attic, where both work from home. Daughter and I provide a different voice from that of the nanny, and they eat happily while being read-to. Several times I have pulled out books their parents had and been surprised to find that the books I thought were "classics" were dated in phraseology and were not read to the kids. A lot has changed in 40-50 years-- we can't read with the same eyes...Early 20th century authors were writing differently from the ones writing now. Luckily, the nanny has access to a grand library, and so do I, so there is a mother lode of good ones to choose from, but I am a bit sad to see the problem books be rejected.
FBI director Wray is tap-dancing as fast as he can so he doesn't offend the racists and bigots, who are sure "antifa" is the culprit in every case. Senator Whitehouse just gored him over "oversight" which congress used to have, but chooses not to do... Grassley outdid himself in talking about "left-wing" extremists. I don't dislike Wray, but I am so tired of bothsideserism in the Senate-- My mute button gets a real workout during these "hearings." Yep, a lot of quotation marks, as nothing is genuinely a hearing of note.
Texas Energy Co-Op Files For Bankruptcy After Storm, High Bill
"The largest power cooperative in Texas filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, citing a massive bill from the state's electricity grid operator following last month's winter storm that left millions of residents without power for days.
The price for wholesale electricity was set at the maximum price of $9,000 per megawatt hour for more than four straight days. ERCOT also imposed other ancillary fees totaling more than $25,000 per megawatt hour.
The company received invoices for the seven day winter storm event by ERCOT "which, when combined, amounted to over $2.1 billion, payment of which was required within days," the court filings say.
Brazos said ERCOT’s $2.1 billion invoice was nearly three times the cooperative’s power costs for all of 2020"
Possible evidence of the Oath Keepers “quick reaction force”
"On Jan. 6, a group of ten or so men — at least one of whom was wearing a tactical earpiece — watched the storming of the U.S. Capitol from across the Potomac in Arlington.
Previously unpublished photos taken by ARLnow that day show the men loitering near the Marine Corps War Memorial, with the overrun Capitol in the background. Parked nearby are numerous vehicles, mostly pickup trucks and SUVs with out-of-state license plates."
Watching the Wray hearing this a.m., I thought he expertly demonstrated the depth of institutional racism and misogyny in the FBI (and all the rest of US institutions) when he responded to Kennedy (aw shucks I'm just a harmless southern bigot) asking if there was institutional racism /misogyny in the FBI. Of course the answer should have been a resounding fuck yes! Instead it was a "no" followed by an explanation of why he (Wray) has been the standard clueless white boy just trying his hardest to increase diversity because its soooo important. Then explain to me why its sooo important if there is no racism / misogyny. That was a lot high fives to self for a response to, in his belief, is a non issue?
Article by Masha Gessen "Trump's Strategy For Returning to Power Already Clear" https://bit.ly/3bbnvCd
Gessen uses the writings of Bálint Magyar on the rise of autocrats in this piece. Quoting Magyar; "populism offers problem solving without moral constraints—while dogmatic liberals offer moral constraints without problem solving.”
Gessen concludes that: "The challenge for the party in power is to create solutions, proving in practice that solidarity can be more rewarding than selfishness....Will the Biden Administration and the Democratic Congress raise the minimum wage; provide all Americans with accessible and reliable health care; introduce a wealth tax; cancel student debt; and invest in infrastructure, particularly in rural areas? "
You have to love the Bizzaro world, corkscrew logic Trumpy morons employ to try to twist inconvenient facts into a form they find palatable. So, that Nazi (fascist) symbol on the stage at CPAC? It simply MUST be a rune revered by Antifa (anti-fascists).
Sure. Got it.
And BLM members just love sporting Klan regalia.
If just once a single one of these assholes said a true or logical thing, I think clocks would stop all around the country.
I managed to avoid most of the "hearing" today, but I have been thinking about the way Wray said that FBI warning on Jan 5 was distributed to the proper folks... How stupid was that-- it was all on paper/computer, which depends on the receiver getting and reading it, then acting. Do those people forget that the damn phone still works?? Why didn't the Norfolk Fibby pick up the phone and call Wray or his surrogates?? I simply do not understand how they all flubbed this so badly. I would have flubbed it myself, as I didn't believe anyone in these groups would show up, much less thousands, and never in my head were cops being beaten up/killed and threats to lawmakers. I was so slow to comprehend I thought the guys lining up and streaming through either Statuary Hall or the Rotunda or whatever it was, looking around and carrying furled flags were more tourister than rioter... But I am not paid to protect anyone, and the ball was dropped by those that are.
Of course, now all that is forgotten by the other "party" and the chief executive of the country. Very fine people, all of them...
Texas governor lifts mask mandate despite health officials' warnings
"Gov. Greg Abbott announced Tuesday he's lifting the mask mandate in Texas, even as health officials warn not to ease safety restrictions.
Abbott made the announcement during a Lubbock Chamber of Commerce event where he issued an executive order rescinding most of his earlier executive orders like the mask mandate.
Also announced Tuesday, Abbott said businesses of any type will be allowed to open 100% beginning March 10.
Abbott's announcement comes as Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to drop across the country. However, health experts say relaxing restrictions now could lead to another surge, especially with the variants spreading. "
How many more people are going to die because of these Republican idiots being in charge of states? We can all add at least a few more months before things get back normal and a lot more pain for all Americans because the GOP cannot act responsibly for any amount of time.
Whoops: I cutted and pasted the wrong thing: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/03/is-mike-pence-finished-in-maga-land.html. I still think Pence makes Qualye look better.
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/07/29/the-case-of-al-franken. You talk about Seuss; I talk about Al Franken. The woman was not his employee and he was a comic for decades.