June 25, 2005--Death Of A Salesman

Death Of A Salesman--Willy Loman

June 23, 2020--Men

The latest Quinnipiac poll has Biden widening his lead over Trump by an additional 3 or 4 points. The trends are not looking promising for the embattled president.

More interesting and important than the national numbers are how the candidates are faring in swing states that will ultimately supply the Electoral College votes needed to win and the demographics of each candidate's voter base. 

For example, breakouts from the Q and other polls show how many18 to 29 year-olds say they favor Biden or Trump (60% for Biden and 31% for Tump).

Also revealing is the distribution of voters 65 and older who favor Biden, 52%, to Trump's 40%. And the 80 percent of black voters who say they are for Biden in contrast to the 10 percent who say they are intending to vote for Trump.

In just one demographic does Biden lose to Trump--among men. Not just men who did not attend college, but all men.

While women by 59 percentage points favor Biden just 33 percent plan to vote for Trump. Trump, though, leads Biden among men by 51 to 38 percentage points.

This leads to my question, a very different one than Quinnipiac poses--what is wrong with men?  

51 percent say they're for Trump.

Are we so fragile that our masculinity is threatened by accomplished and assertive women that a majority of us plan to vote for that autocratic bag of fear and wind? That after almost four years of Trump in action it is inexplicable to me that more than 10 percent of men would vote for him.

What do men see happening if Tump manages to get reelected? Restore our wounded egos? So much so that we are OK that his coronavirus policy is leading to the unnecessary death of well over 100,000 Americans? And day by day he is leading us to a nuclear war with North Korea and God knows what with Iran. That makes him OK to vote for?

My friend Al has an explanation as good as any I've heard--He says it's because men are stupid. Simple as that.

June 22, 2020--Flushing

Just when I thought I had assimilated everything I needed to know about avoiding the coronavirus, leave it to the New York Times, the "paper of record," to come up with more things to worry about.

According to the Times, I need to do more than wash my hands 20 times a day while singing "Happy Birthday." I need to do more than maintain a social distance when among people and wear a mask 18 hours a day. It seems I now also have to be careful about how I flush the toilet.

Yes, it's come to that.

In case you missed the Times article, here's what you need to know. 

First, like so much else, it's a gendered issue. Men and women potty differently and since one form of virus propagation is the product of launching infested water globules when flushing, the height from which one does that is critical. Women sit, men stand. Does more need to be said about that?

Scientists have found that flushing a toilet can generate a cloud of aerosol droplets that rises nearly three feet. Those droplets may linger in the air long enough to be inhaled by a shared toilet’s next user, or land on surfaces in the bathroom.

In addition, this toilet plume can carry infectious coronavirus particles that are already present in the surrounding air.

For the science-minded, there is more to know--

A computer simulation of toilet flushing showed that when water pours into the toilet and generates a vortex, it displaces air in the bowl. These vortices move upward and the centrifugal force pushes out about 6,000 tiny droplets per flush and even tinier aerosol particles. All waiting to ensnare us.

So, what is one to do?

Thankfully, people can easily prevent the spread of infections from the toilet plume.

To do so, it is suggested that one should close the lid first and then trigger the flushing process. Though the Times acknowledges this isn’t always possible in public bathrooms. But at least it's a start.

I wonder, though, what the Trump people in Tulsa did. Obviously no face masks, also no social distancing, but after a couple of six packs . . . flushing?

This is where my curiosity ends. There is a limit to what I'm willing to do to try to stay healthy.

June 19, 2020--Swing Time With the Supremes

Considering recent SCOTUS decisions--for L.G.B.T.Q. job protection and saving DACA--I resubmit something I wrote and posted back in October, 2018. About how the Supreme Court might operate with Chief Justice Roberts more and more becoming the court's swing vote--


Adam Liptak, who covers the Supreme Court for the New York Times, in a postmortem after the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh, wrote that with the departure of Justice Anthony Kennedy, the court is now left without a swing vote. Expect, he says, very conservative decisions, among others, about abortion (severely restrict or end them), affirmative action (sack it), redistricting (what states are doing is OK), and voting rights (not to worry too much about them).

While I'm not so sure Kennedy did all that much swinging, it is true that on subjects such as gay rights he usually voted with the liberal minority. Mainly, though, he joined conservatives on the court in a series of 5-4 decisions about presidential power, corporate reach, and the funding of political campaigns.

There may be, though, another way to think about this. Even with Kavanaugh seated, instead of a predictable suite of conservative 5-4 decisions, we may find a surprising number, still 5-4s, tipped in a surprisingly liberal direction. 

We could see more moderate and even occasional progressive judgements then anticipated with someone other than Kennedy or, God help us, Kavanaugh agreeing with the four-member liberal wing of the court.

I see the strong possibility that Chief Justice John Roberts may turn out to be an occasional swing vote, especially when issues are of such magnitude that he does not want his court to be perceived as acting too regressively or with too much partisanship.

Case in point, the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) where Roberts struggled to find a way, a rationale that would work for him and allow him to vote to uphold it. Which he did. (Swingman Kennedy voted with the other three conservative judges and argued vigorously to get Roberts to join them.)

Stretching the language of the actual Obamacare legislation, he saw the individual mandate of the ACA to be funded by a tax and not by either subsides or penalties. And, thus, constitutional. A stretch but revealing--he was so eager to find the ACA upholdable that he became inventive when it came to finding a way to sustain it.

Why might that be? Judicial rationalization trumping ideology and even belief?

Because it's his court. Robert's court. Forever in history, whatever the court does or does not do, finds constitutional or lacking in precedent will be attributable to the Robert's Court.

It wasn't the Scalia Court, nor was it the Thomas Court, or for that matter the Ginsberg Court. It's the Robert's Court as it was the Warren Court, the Burger Court, and Rehnquist Court.

History-minded, as all chief justices are, Roberts may not want his court to be known ever after as heartless and insensitive to the lives of Americans and our institutions. For him to be perceived that way.

I may be indulging in wishful thinking. But, then again, let's wait and see. Stranger things have happened with the Supreme Court.

June 10, 2020--Kool Aid

Desperately in need of the oxygen they provide, an embattled Trump announced he will soon resume mega-rallies. Perhaps as soon as later this week in Texas. 

Polls show Trump and Biden in a statistical dead-heat in the Lone Star state. Four years ago Tump carried Texas by nine points. But Texas is now trending blue, and that has Tump's attention. One thing he knows is how to count. For example, if Biden wins Texas, he will be elected. It's as simple as that.

At these rallies there will be no social distancing, masks will not be in evidence, just thousands of defiant Trumpers in MAGA hats packed together in stifling, virus-ladened arenas.

No matter what health risks his most fervent followers will be exposed to, all that matters to Trump is that they will be there for him, to lift his spirits during this his darkest, most politically perilous hour.

This lack of concern for their very lives reminded me of the victims of the Jonestown cult.

Remember it? Back in 1978 charismatic cult leader, Jim Jones got hundreds of followers from his California-based Peoples Temple to join him at his compound in Guyana to wait for the end of the world.

Settled there and feeling the encroachment of governmental authorities who were concerned about what they were learning Jones was up to, he cranked up the intensity of orgiastic life in the compound.

Then one afternoon Jones assembled his people for a Kool Aid party. What they didn't initially know was that the Kool Aid was laced with cyanide. 

But in spite of this they kept downing the sugary concoction.

As a result 909 died, making it one of the largest non-governmental mass murders in history.

Resisting the temptation to link Jones and Trump too cavalierly, it does not feel too much of a stretch to suggest that Trump's lack of concern for his people (and the rest of us) is not so dissimilar to Jones's disregard for members of his "temple."

Thus, by the end of this election season, Tump is likely to be responsible for the sickness and deaths of scores of his most passionate supporters. 

He claims he is the leader of a movement. To me it seems more like a death cult.

June 8, 2020--I'd Rather Die Than Be Like You

Without any comment, this was forwarded to me by JJ, a Maine friend. It was a bit of a surprise in that he is quite conservative and has been a consistent Trump supporter. It is well worth reading.

I’ve had numerous people approach me and ask me my opinion regarding the police use of force in Minneapolis. I normally don’t speak out like this in such a public forum but my heart is broken with what I am witnessing across the country and right here in our own state and I feel the need to say something.

I have been a police officer for 19 years. For 16 of those years, I have taught Use of Force and Police Arrest & Control techniques at the recruit level at the Municipal Police Academy and at numerous departments throughout southern New England on an in-service level. I have trained thousands of cops. My training not only includes physical tactics and techniques to control a violent and combative individual but also the physiological, psychological and legal aspects that officers face during this type of event. I am a certified Force Analyst through the Force Science Institute and also teach a course in police diffusion and de-escalation techniques. I have conducted numerous Police Use of Force reviews throughout the state and am considered a subject matter expert by the RI Attorney General in the area of Police use of Force. I’m not saying all this to impress anyone. I really don't care what anyone thinks about me. I’m saying it because I want to establish credibility with anyone that reads this post. I know what the f**k I’m talking about.

I have watched and reviewed the George Floyd video countless times. In all my years doing this, I have never seen a more blatant disregard for human life than what I witnessed in that video. It haunts me. It made me sick to my stomach. I can’t stop thinking about it. I’ve seen plenty of suffering and death in 19 years but have never watched a man die while the people who are supposed to protect them watched it happen and did nothing.

Kneeling on someone’s neck is not a technique that is taught or accepted anywhere that I’m aware of. As a matter of fact, we specifically tell recruits and cops NOT to kneel anywhere near the spine or neck because you can paralyze or kill someone. There are countless other ways to control someone on the ground that don’t involve putting your knee into a person’s neck with all your weight for over 8 minutes. 

That is my professional opinion. Now for my personal feelings on the matter:

To “Officer” Derek Chauvin, who is the officer seen kneeling on Mr. Floyd’s neck, I have this to say to you: You Bastard. You Son of a Bitch. You and two other officers knelt on George Floyd’s neck and back and you watched him die. George Floyd was handcuffed and proned out on his stomach. Please don’t say you were holding him down because he couldn’t have pushed himself up off the ground if he wanted to. He was controlled. Once someone is controlled the use of force ends. Period. It is then the officer’s duty to check the well being of the subject to be sure he is not hurt or in distress. I don’t care how hard he fought you. I don’t care if he was on drugs. You had a duty to act! The smug look on your face said it all. You didn’t care that Mr. Floyd was begging for air and calling out for his Mother. You have no honor. And the other three officers are just as culpable. They didn’t act to stop you. You are all cowards. I wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.

Now the country is burning down. And you were the spark. Your fellow officers are getting injured and killed. Even officers in your own city. Your brothers. I hope you can live with that for the rest of your life. I hope you can live with the suffering and pain you started. You have put us all in a position where we now have to defend ourselves against angry mobs with bricks and bats and other weapons who group us in with you. Well I am not like you. We are not like you. You are the 1%. I will NEVER be like you. I would rather die than be like you.

To my family and friends and those I care about who are not police officers and maybe don’t understand, please know that no one hates a dirty, piece of shit cop more than a good cop who does this job with honor and pride. I beg you, do not judge the 99% of good police officers based on the actions of an ignorant and evil few. 

If you want to protest what happened, please do. Reach out to me. I will march with you peacefully just like thousands of other cops across the nation and mourn what has happened. I will kneel and pray with you. And when I put my uniform on, I will protect your right to peacefully protest because I took an oath to do so.

To my brothers and sisters that put on this uniform every day. Do not let what you see on TV jade you into thinking that this is what it is all about. The majority of people out there are good, honest hard working people who support you and what you stand for. Remember that. We don’t want to be judged by the actions of a shameful few and neither do the people we serve. Support the people we are sworn to protect. Hold your heads high and serve with honor and integrity. 

To the rioters, I speak for all of law enforcement when I ask: PLEASE STOP. Your actions are solving nothing. You are not mourners or protesters. You are thugs and opportunists. You are cowards. You are destroying people’s lives and your behavior will not be tolerated. People are going to get hurt. Please do not test our resolve when it comes to protecting our flock. Enough is enough. This is not the legacy that George Floyd deserves. 

Thank you for listening.

June 1, 2020--Under Siege.

With our cities under siege and Tump cowering in his White House bunker, I am thinking again about the Apocalypse and something I wrote and posted two years ago on June 12, 2018.

I thought it might be sadly appropriate to reprise it--

In something I wrote and posted in May, "What's He Up To?" I speculated that the he, Donald Trump, obsessed with making as much money as possible, but fearing he is compromised by the goods the Russians have on him, and the still-leaking revelations about his tangled sex life that includes, now admittedly, paying hush money to a porn star, Stormy Daniels, faced with this, Trump will do all he can to undermine the various probes underway into these and other malfeasances, especially smearing the Mueller investigation which is clearly most comprehensive and threatening.

I ended with what I thought would be a smirky throwaway line--  

"Then, if this fails there is the Gotterdammerung scenario where Trump goes up in flames and brings the metaphorical house down on all of us."

Well, fewer than three weeks later the Wagnerian scenario seems to be the one unfolding with Trump and Rudy Giuliani [remember him?] in an operatic duet that eventually will bring on the flames.

Trump like Siegfried is on his own Rhine Journey. Siegfried first kills a dragon and then subsequently is murdered while Rudy, in familiar drag, channeling Brunnhilde, is ready for his own Immolation Scene. In the Gotterdammerung ("Twilight of the Gods"), Brunnhilde assembles her own funeral pyre and after igniting it rides her horse into it where she is consumed by flames.

Of course I'm being metaphoric.

But the best recent example of the approaching political Gotterdammerung was Trump, acting out of a geopolitical death wish, basically blowing up the G-7 summit meeting held last week in Canada with our allies. Or should I say, "former allies"? 

"There's a special place in hell for Justine Trudeau" intoned Peter Navarro, a senior Trump economic advisor, because the Canadian prime minister wouldn't roll over for Trump when it came to accepting Trump's outrageous trade demands.

Not getting his way on trade, our petulant president in a improvised smirky aside said that if the other G-7 nations will not give in to his ruinous requirements on trade and tariffs maybe the U.S. should take home its "piggy bank" and stop trading altogether with EU and Asian members.

Sensing this, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (who Trump called "weak" and his economic team on the record accused of "stabbing Trump in the back") quipped that maybe the G-7 should reorganize itself into the G-6 Plus-1. Or, an actual possibility, just the G-6 with us and the Russians dealt out.

Since de facto this is already underway, when I heard this, I said to Rona I'm glad the stock market is closed for the weekend since acting-out Trump is in the process of bringing down the world.