tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-158330992024-03-18T02:03:34.588-04:00Behind The (New York) TimesA daily gloss on The New York TimesSteven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.comBlogger3945125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-75749907597340915462022-03-01T05:29:00.003-05:002022-03-01T05:29:59.727-05:00March 1, 2022--Goodbye<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As Putin's forces slogged their bloody way across Ukraine, a dear friend with whom we at times spend an hour on the phone </span><span style="font-size: large;">generally avoiding as best we can, talk about politics or world affairs, this week was different--she got right to what was then in the news, </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Putin's nuclear rocket rattling.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">She said, "If in the middle of the night anything happens (by happening she meant an attack of intercontinental weapons," call me so we can say goodbye."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I don't see this happening and so I was able to cover my fear with a joke or two. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">But I will put her on speed dial.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj_acZQ-J2vf5Jz50pETgg6sCt21Co9WgSHAE3CNZuAwuRjcoOXGaH0pmTo8vyKqAHqqtLUGjiybfdMaBnti2c_vGOR3qnHo6TtvSVgHxXuCDJ7Bc1040q9uwRJs331IrNODTrpiFeJ_kJJH2vusvmhdF029GL4_671Qjr2YP_kqdkicfr9-g" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="299" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj_acZQ-J2vf5Jz50pETgg6sCt21Co9WgSHAE3CNZuAwuRjcoOXGaH0pmTo8vyKqAHqqtLUGjiybfdMaBnti2c_vGOR3qnHo6TtvSVgHxXuCDJ7Bc1040q9uwRJs331IrNODTrpiFeJ_kJJH2vusvmhdF029GL4_671Qjr2YP_kqdkicfr9-g" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-12328001860352992122022-01-30T01:23:00.083-05:002022-01-31T06:29:05.574-05:00January 24, 2022--Wag the Cat<p><span style="font-size: large;">About halfway into it, Rona snapped to attention, and, muttering to herself, stomped out of the room, saying, "I can't stand it anymore."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">She was talking about Joe Biden's two-hour, world-record-long press conference.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The one during which his biggest gaffe (and it was a whopper) was when he signaled to the world, especially Vladimir Putin, that if he orders a "minimum" invasion of Ukraine our response would be equally moderate.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">All well and good, but what about no military invasion at all and why are we discussing strategies of this kind in public?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The White House staff spent the rest of the night cleaning this one up. This is why Biden does't do regular press conferences.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The next morning Rona was still agitated, still talking about Joe Biden. "I know I shouldn't be saying any of this. I don't want to do or say anything that would harm him politically. Most important still is to do anything and everything we can to keep Trump from getting reelected. So I am hesitant to criticize Biden."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I hate to," I said. "But also find it hard to remain silent. I'm not sure what's helpful. Maybe just let it go."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"We can't. We need to light a fire under Biden and Democrats." </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Did you see the article recently in the <i>Times </i>Sunday Review, which reported on a wide ranging focus group they conducted about the state of our politics. One question was to ask those participating (mainly moderates) to share one word they feel best characterizes Biden."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I hate those things," Rona said, "They're just a gimmick."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I don't disagree," I said, "But this one isn't."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"So what did people say?"</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Functional adult, detached, calmness. But then there is also out of touch, clueless, and sleepy. All of which unfortunately have the ring of truth. But then there are harsher assessments like lazy, sleepy, and old."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I'm feeling much the same way and I liked him when he last run for president."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I worry that if this a wide reaching perception w</span><span style="font-size: large;">e have a lot of political work to do."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I also worry that we may be entering wag the dog time in Ukraine.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Rona asked, "Didn't the Bidens just get a cat?" </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"OK. wag the cat, Not much better."</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjv4j7xAifGbTj1QpHPKTSib8KXdVG9stFY1XIfzWSks3BHN_oWx1LdfxvGqXu0oV6vb4i35DnLaxeF3_qoZJ4UuXHM__9z_XzQrYv6gafFtb4ikgMHHTQRHMrWLWn1dJ4vLeqP76uTpoPWXc25i02S8O8rm-NOMSVy-lCc6C5ki6sa3ZYeww" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjv4j7xAifGbTj1QpHPKTSib8KXdVG9stFY1XIfzWSks3BHN_oWx1LdfxvGqXu0oV6vb4i35DnLaxeF3_qoZJ4UuXHM__9z_XzQrYv6gafFtb4ikgMHHTQRHMrWLWn1dJ4vLeqP76uTpoPWXc25i02S8O8rm-NOMSVy-lCc6C5ki6sa3ZYeww" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-29143288912404666642022-01-14T11:03:00.000-05:002022-01-14T11:03:13.658-05:00January 14, 2022--The Supremes<p><br /></p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't know why it's taken me so long, but I just realized that with the possible exception of Clarence Thomas, all members of the Court are likely to outlive me. </span></span><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">So the current Court is my Court for the rest of my life. </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Should I kill myself now?</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUi7dyox8wsLJZWpsdslcsgHX9ppKr3ITOSxw-btvK3l8TUba4535BYUzG8iiekTfOoi7WpFZKX__zye8BsGbI8CoUIwzQXFktHlVx1bjAhvY7_K1guktfksLcuRTQjOuDv1RP/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUi7dyox8wsLJZWpsdslcsgHX9ppKr3ITOSxw-btvK3l8TUba4535BYUzG8iiekTfOoi7WpFZKX__zye8BsGbI8CoUIwzQXFktHlVx1bjAhvY7_K1guktfksLcuRTQjOuDv1RP/" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-79467489827979777632022-01-10T05:06:00.008-05:002022-01-10T05:50:28.608-05:00January 10, 2022--Lost My Mind<p><span style="font-size: large;">Some said I lost my mind more than awhile time ago. I contend it occurred just last week on January 6th. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I am certain I lost my mind during the ceremonies marking the anniversary of the insurrection.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">When I saw Liz Cheney and her father, the hated Dick, on the floor of the House of Representatives.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I wasn't hallucinating. It was them and they were there.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I got tears in my eyes (father-daughter things do that to me).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">But this was more than the usual. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The tears were because I was liking them.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Liking Dick Cheney?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">This can only be if I'm out of my mind.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdI73QDyHPfh1Sjs16_B27LvmilTYQcnQnTAYFCqjdLmKbL6KswhLQu-u-6RlMEtSVRnaAvE7sbsFVQHHfbOju-T1CyPlksTHdfz__ls101nIqNJJ-IzRA2RVpwgZqhyZAv-vY/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdI73QDyHPfh1Sjs16_B27LvmilTYQcnQnTAYFCqjdLmKbL6KswhLQu-u-6RlMEtSVRnaAvE7sbsFVQHHfbOju-T1CyPlksTHdfz__ls101nIqNJJ-IzRA2RVpwgZqhyZAv-vY/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-90834087912205134822021-11-18T04:31:00.075-05:002021-11-18T06:02:19.852-05:00November 18, 2021--One Nation Under One God<p><span style="font-size: large;">Michael Flynn, who for precisely 22 days was Donald Trump's National Security Advisor, now that he is otherwise unemployed is running around the country ranting that since there is but one God looking over America there should be one religion for us to follow.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">We know which one he has in mind.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Forget the Constitution and all that. Maybe this makes some sense.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">As a Jewish person perhaps we are next in line to be thus designated. And since we've been around for 5781 years, we're prepped to take on this one-religion business. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Though I'm certain this is not what Flynn is thinking.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCkK5uF8Xn8oTudMfGfx_7lMNiZczXEFfGi1ru8CPvuH950xQDbowWKuiiCxsCXuAnyxcJw7tTXjjFsbq_yt3IfyEUDCoLjsvrgv5lHcgzImEfIAKbrdNyn-o6hfQqV1TxSDiS/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="159" data-original-width="318" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCkK5uF8Xn8oTudMfGfx_7lMNiZczXEFfGi1ru8CPvuH950xQDbowWKuiiCxsCXuAnyxcJw7tTXjjFsbq_yt3IfyEUDCoLjsvrgv5lHcgzImEfIAKbrdNyn-o6hfQqV1TxSDiS/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-54260719841058952002021-11-03T11:07:00.000-04:002021-11-03T11:07:16.203-04:00November 3, 2021--Winners and Losers<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br />Election debrief</span> <p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">This time it's pretty obvious--</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The biggest loser is Joe Biden. He has no coattails. In fact, he doesn't even have a coat. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Runner up losers--the Democrats. All Democrats.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The two biggest winners--Donald Trump and Joe Manchin.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Expect to see Manchin in Iowa and New Hampshire within the month.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHdgbrsUXxf233s6ad3Li1O5las_q5MBtDJEw1SlXU1-JJt0Jg3x4aSTs903VLg5WP7bGM2Oc4VyrRCbGwFRX5Ayw3y1LWGEQWh-XzYeKeAooEiU06AWjqf20usFdhUbm-ZFy/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHdgbrsUXxf233s6ad3Li1O5las_q5MBtDJEw1SlXU1-JJt0Jg3x4aSTs903VLg5WP7bGM2Oc4VyrRCbGwFRX5Ayw3y1LWGEQWh-XzYeKeAooEiU06AWjqf20usFdhUbm-ZFy/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-2454214722054554262021-10-19T04:35:00.123-04:002021-10-19T06:50:31.976-04:00October 19, 2021--In Jeopardy<p> <span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><i>Jeopardy</i> has helped me make it through the pandemic. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Each evening I can't wait for questions about American History. One of the few categories in which I can come up with answers or do I mean questions?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">It's a great distraction. So I thought to try out an answer for you--</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Thomas Heflin</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Key Pittman</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Walter E. Edge</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Samuel Nicholson</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Andrieus A. Jones</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">William Calder</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Lee Overman</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Edwin Ladd</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Robert L. Owen</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Morris Sheppard</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Carroll S. Page</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Joe Manchin</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Kyrsten Sinema</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">So what's the question?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The last two listed should be a clue.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Would it help you come up with the question if I told you there are just 100 of them?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">I suspect you'll tell me the question is "What's a senator?"</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">You'd be half right. I wouldn't expect you to get it fully correct (even if you were Ken Jennings). That all but two served in the Senate in 1922 during the height of the Teapot Dome Scandal.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">None are really even known to history. They've slipped into oblivion. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As will Manchin and Sinema. Which is a good thing.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">And a lesson.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt5zgjFOiYFGn2DensIR17mcD7XvlvvzwwSwxXkQUnPm4BRdx9Z7Nak3B7HDwa3jk3EQVpgiudhTdnF0e_zEDJfzqhlMNjPuUowD4TXwOoKB6CgPJ_TYlwByBJBz3P9IYYmJxF/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="260" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt5zgjFOiYFGn2DensIR17mcD7XvlvvzwwSwxXkQUnPm4BRdx9Z7Nak3B7HDwa3jk3EQVpgiudhTdnF0e_zEDJfzqhlMNjPuUowD4TXwOoKB6CgPJ_TYlwByBJBz3P9IYYmJxF/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-11230231191211500882021-10-06T04:22:00.053-04:002021-10-06T06:23:54.141-04:00 October 6, 2021--The Most Powerful Woman In America<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">She is not Speaker Nancy Pelosi, nor former First Lady Michelle Obama, not Oprah Winfrey, nor Vice President Kamila Harris. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">In fact she is not only the most powerful woman in America, arguably, she may also be the most powerful American. Female or male. Period.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Also one of the craziest.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">She is Arizona's senior senator, Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, who, with her Senate partner Joe Manchin, is holding her party's caucus hostage--if members refuse to back her domestic priorities she is threatening to vote against Joe Biden's legislative program, which will doom it since to pass it requires all 50 Democratic senators' votes. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;">I</span><span style="font-family: times;">f even one votes against it it may very well be that no meaningful legislation will be passed and this will mean the effective end of Joe Biden's presidency. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">And thus the reelection in 2024 of Donald Trump. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Now, that's powerful.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Here's a little of what Maureen Dowd on Sunday had to say about Senator Sinema--</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">"As one top Democrat called her, she is 'the Greta Garbo of Congress.'</span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"Sinema rarely gives interviews and shuns the scrum of reporters at the Capitol. But she is not shy about drawing the spotlight, whether she is swathed in fur stoles or bedecked in pink, purple and mint-colored wigs or bedazzling in glittering stilettos. It is hard to believe that the Senate had a nutty sexist ban on sleeveless outfits on the floor. But the mandarins quit worrying about it for members once their colleague blithely turned the hallowed marble halls into an iconoclastic catwalk."</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">It's come to this.</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgryKKDVh6nkx74LfdvCOwL5WHSpug2UodPmKoTrFvcZTZPWQMarfMgbHoUZV-Jz-kjF32s1NAtAeQ5wqr6gMnAYDUM9GDBdag-bXAogHGrlZm3sn2cyJa_F3Rn977rNS9_TnN3/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgryKKDVh6nkx74LfdvCOwL5WHSpug2UodPmKoTrFvcZTZPWQMarfMgbHoUZV-Jz-kjF32s1NAtAeQ5wqr6gMnAYDUM9GDBdag-bXAogHGrlZm3sn2cyJa_F3Rn977rNS9_TnN3/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-69785817094669567822021-10-01T03:41:00.057-04:002021-10-01T06:06:31.686-04:00October 1, 2021--Just A Couple of Guys<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">You've </span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">got to hand it to Vladimir. He knows how to have a good time.</span> <span style="font-size: large;">Especially with best buddies such as The Donald.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Now we're hearing about the translators Putin arranged for Trump when they met at guy-guy summits like the one in Osaka in 2019.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">No news was made which then became the news. That is until the other day when we learned that the translator appeared to know less about Russian than looking good. (See linked photo--that's her.)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">We also learned that Putin, knowing Trump is a germaphobe, whenever they met coughed and wheezed all over him.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Some card that Vlad.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Anything to gain an edge.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">So we not only have to look out for Russian bots and cyber warriors, we also need to proceed delicately when hiring translators.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Well, maybe not that delicately.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCZ3Al8sz_viYpu7UbvYzWZ21FWRPPoAsWUSSjSiKMLnMMvUbzz7jYiYdHDMNTxft2SzkcmzOVPiHAAaUBPzYSdhEqhRS1OcHIfLcc2IZ18hV3JUKb1r-hQdxkQtyBRhlgh4A/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCZ3Al8sz_viYpu7UbvYzWZ21FWRPPoAsWUSSjSiKMLnMMvUbzz7jYiYdHDMNTxft2SzkcmzOVPiHAAaUBPzYSdhEqhRS1OcHIfLcc2IZ18hV3JUKb1r-hQdxkQtyBRhlgh4A/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-39805901627884105312021-09-20T04:22:00.219-04:002021-09-20T06:45:38.118-04:00September 20, 2021--Beau<p><span style="font-size: large;">I had</span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"> been wondering how much longer it would be before Republicans begin to attack Joe Biden's on-going, very public mourning for his son, Beau, who died of a brain tumor in 2015.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Wonder no more, it's happening right now in real time.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The president recently has been going through a rough patch. Even his staunchest supporters have been criticizing him for the botched bug out in Afghanistan. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">No one, Democrats as well as Trumpers, has a good word for his bumbling efforts to craft a realistic plan to at least chip away at our border and immigrant crises. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Hardly anyone gives him good marks for the way in which he has handled the rollout of COVID 19 vaccinations. It seems like every day there are new guidelines that contradict yesterday's CDC recommendations. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">And just last week Biden made a mess of our deal to sell nuclear submarines to the Australians, ignoring France who had been our historic partners with deals of this kind. So enraged by this blunder France is recalling its diplomats.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">And now Republicans are going <i>there</i>--criticizing Joe Biden for continuing to grieve for Beau.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">It seems unfair to call Biden out for doing what he is exceptional at--expressing empathy--but he should know more than almost anyone else that politics is an ugly business especially when there is blood in the water.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Then Biden didn't help his cause when he stepped in it at Dover Air Force Base where he went to meet the plane transporting the bodies of eight soldiers who were killed during the surrender of Afghanistan.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">It was reliably reported by family members that Biden said very little about those killed in action but spent almost all his time talking about Beau.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Friends of Biden are beginning to talk about this, at the minimum, as inappropriate behavior for a Commander in Chief who needs to display toughness with compassion.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Those saying this are not necessarily insensitive. But they may be offering good political advice. Like it or not, we will never elect or reelect a wimpy president. Biden needs to understand that and do better.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1omf7nqyEoSN9FtMzLxPHAVcAzQ7MPH0u70LFYvSGAY8bDgGH1e-B3_VuyjZDtVVSwNbt6OXV9x0SCyPqcVvD7jpQv5AW9xRT4JA2zzDW7lXAWCj7oFvfW48lkz55soBf_6OR/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1omf7nqyEoSN9FtMzLxPHAVcAzQ7MPH0u70LFYvSGAY8bDgGH1e-B3_VuyjZDtVVSwNbt6OXV9x0SCyPqcVvD7jpQv5AW9xRT4JA2zzDW7lXAWCj7oFvfW48lkz55soBf_6OR/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-85491757910034947002021-09-09T03:00:00.181-04:002021-09-09T06:34:10.827-04:00September 9, 2021--Trump's Hair<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Trump has me worried. Actually, not Trump but his hair. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">In case you've forgotten, he has this funky orange fly-away stuff on his head that he calls hair. It's colored clearly from a spray can of Rustolium.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Back six years ago I thought his Clarabell the Clown do made it obvious he was not a serious person and had no chance of being elected president. Yes, we have--how shall I put this--we have a lot of angry, stupid people in America and in spite of his hair, or maybe because of it, I was wrong--He was elected.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">What do we now have to look forward to? Trump running for president again in 2024? And, with voter suppression policies proliferating in at least 17 states thus far, he could win.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">But, as in the past, I'm thinking no need to worry too much, with that hair, he has no chance.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Then I read yesterday that he appears to be letting the orange dye grow out. Maybe because of all the gray hair in Florida he wants to fit in. But I wouldn't bet on that.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I would bet, though, that he's doing a Rudy Giuliani with his hair to normalize himself and may be signaling he's serious about running. Unlike in the past when every new TV season he'd talk about running for president but then back away, we knew he was engaged in promoting the return of the <i>Apprentice</i>.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Back then I was sure he was not actually running because as a germaphobe he would never plunge into crowds or show up at a rally without latex gloves and a surgical mask.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">But then he turned out with both. Actually, I made that up--as a preview of coming behavior, there was no mask. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">So do we have something similar underway with the hair business? Also, like traditional candidates, is he losing weight? </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Again, getting it wrong, I assumed he was wearing Spanx. But now, it also looks as if he's giving up his daily Sloppy Joes. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Maybe it's all about not having to go to jail (remember something legally threatening to him is inching its way through the courts).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Whatever the reasons, see if I'm right about the hair and then tell me what you think is going on.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I say 2024.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheWVGYzSXfNY6YuE7lAFx2-xENcOnYL9lxtbv4hdvC1GMLiEj6P5xtcxC1L8V1T-f0YYKcG2bDDJ47t5nSxUYZFzheBf2rxjjI5t-21QRx5xm-Bh4mDaNJ-l6OgdYpjU7S7YqZ/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="174" data-original-width="290" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheWVGYzSXfNY6YuE7lAFx2-xENcOnYL9lxtbv4hdvC1GMLiEj6P5xtcxC1L8V1T-f0YYKcG2bDDJ47t5nSxUYZFzheBf2rxjjI5t-21QRx5xm-Bh4mDaNJ-l6OgdYpjU7S7YqZ/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-88676084736208509192021-09-02T04:08:00.178-04:002021-09-02T05:47:28.716-04:00September 2, 2021--25th Amendment<p> <span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">It appears that a few Republican members of Congress recently discovered we have a Constitution. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">True, they've known something about their favorite part, the 2nd Amendment and bearing arms, but not the worrisome ones that guarantee citizens the right to vote or speak their minds. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Now they have a new favorite--the 25th Amendment that's about how to remove from office a crazy president.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Republicans have been carrying copies of the Constitution in their jacket pockets, which reminds me of the Chinese embrace of Chairmen's Mao's <i>Little Red Book.</i> </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Florida senator Rick Scott has been tracking this one.</span></p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As chair of the Senate GOP campaign committee, he has been raising the prospect of using the 25th Amendment to remove <span class="rollover-people" data-behavior="rolloverpeople" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #2b2c30; position: relative;"><a class="rollover-people-link" data-nid="188332" href="https://thehill.com/people/joe-biden" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #2b2c30; display: inline-block; outline: none; position: relative; text-decoration: none;">President Biden</a> from office and calling for a congressional investigation into his handling of Afghanistan. <p></p></span></span><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #2b2c30;">"After the disastrous events in Afghanistan," he tweeted, "we must confront a serious question: Is Joe Biden capable of discharging the duties of his office or has time come to exercise the provisions of the 25th Amendment?"</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(43, 44, 48);">If Biden made such a mess in Afghanistan why not just stand back and watch things collapse of their own weight?</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: times; font-size: large;">Maybe it's because Biden didn't make a political blunder after all. Maybe he actually scored a political victory. Perhaps after the dust settles we'll discover that he was the only one in high office, including four previous presidents, to have the guts to end the 20-year war and take the political risk for that. It may be that he had the insight and political will to do the right thing even though he knew there would be American <span style="caret-color: rgb(43, 44, 48);">casualties and prices to pay.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(43, 44, 48);">Republicans could be worried about that.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: times; font-size: large;">Or maybe they like Kamala Harris so much that they can't wait until 2022 to vote for her for <span style="caret-color: rgb(43, 44, 48);">president.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(43, 44, 48);"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh8gOK6srMjVVULrd3pQRsuom6wm04eBbq_HUBgQX80rLjxA0UlDrM6b_lEhawAHszoxebxijfWwsysvE7vVAs4zQ5Kf3ahaD1zZ8WVMbI87F8lSCNQfcvWreWsehad_c3VYGW/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="182" data-original-width="277" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh8gOK6srMjVVULrd3pQRsuom6wm04eBbq_HUBgQX80rLjxA0UlDrM6b_lEhawAHszoxebxijfWwsysvE7vVAs4zQ5Kf3ahaD1zZ8WVMbI87F8lSCNQfcvWreWsehad_c3VYGW/" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-37917812075041319272021-09-01T04:57:00.118-04:002021-09-01T06:17:59.362-04:00September 1, 2021--Getting Down With the Dems<p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;">As reported in the <i>New York Times</i>, New York's mayor-to-be, Eric Adams, </span><span style="font-family: times;">clearly knows his political geography. In other words--who runs </span></span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">things.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Well before being sworn in in January, wanting to hang with his people and squeeze them for money, the former cop found most of them on Martha's Vineyard and in the Hamptons.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Sucking up to them, does this mean he's already running for president?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Here's what the <i>Times</i> had to say--</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"On Martha’s Vineyard last weekend, as most residents braced for the possible arrival of Hurricane Henri, a smaller gathering focused on a more certain visitor: Eric Adams, New York City’s likely next mayor.</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"Mr. Adams mingled on Friday with potential donors at a fund-raiser in Oak Bluffs, a historically Black section of the island. A day later, Mr. Adams traveled to the opposite end of the island, for a fund-raiser hosted at the waterfront retreat of Zach Iscol, a businessman who ran for mayor and then comptroller during the June 22 primary election. Caroline "Kennedy attended.</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"The weekend before, Mr. Adams was in the Hamptons, donning a bright red blazer with polka dot elbow patches at a fund-raiser hosted by John Catsimatidis, the Republican billionaire, and attending a separate meeting with the venture capitalist Lisa Blau."</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">What is it with the Democrats? Tone deaf, 600 of them in the Vineyard were </span></span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;">getting ready to attend Barack Obama's 60th birthday party while everyone else was left on their own to worry about COVID boosters and being evicted from their homes.</span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times;">And, yes, enough with the polka dots--John </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-family: times;">Catsimatidis needs to get some new clothes.</span></span></p><p class="css-axufdj evys1bk0" style="border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.875rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.9375rem; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"><br /></span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimTFfiM7zgfHAZfNV2l3Zd-2bXoNdXU3D8nTUZ9Z0qNZMNlWuRvTRe0ANoWq4iiI41rj06sajm8KtHQOGxAak4A0u3SjdGENVOB5uH2U-UBWYKK5NmPsqUTwo_UQYR7vVK6JDq/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimTFfiM7zgfHAZfNV2l3Zd-2bXoNdXU3D8nTUZ9Z0qNZMNlWuRvTRe0ANoWq4iiI41rj06sajm8KtHQOGxAak4A0u3SjdGENVOB5uH2U-UBWYKK5NmPsqUTwo_UQYR7vVK6JDq/" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-23540045930793093172021-08-31T04:08:00.159-04:002021-08-31T05:33:58.132-04:00August 31, 2021--Fox Weather<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;">Some years ago I </span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;">read that on local TV weather reporters and sportscasters earned more than anchors. Simple--more viewers tuned in for sports and weather updates and those who provided them had higher salaries.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;">So it should come as no <span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">surprise to learn that as</span></span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"> viewers tune out cable news, Rupert Murdoch is preparing to launch </span></span><i style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;">Fox Weather</i><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"> to take on the Weather Channel where, as climate is more and more in the news, viewers have been flocking.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">At the three cable news channels (CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News) average viewership for the first half of 2021 declined 38 percent from the previous year. The Weather Channel by contrast was up 7 percent.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">It didn't take Murdoch long to notice and figure out how to make money from the weather.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">Later this year, he is planning to debut <i>Fox Weather</i>, a 24-hour streaming channel that is projected to do for forecasting what Fox has done for (or to) politics, financial news, and sports. </span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">To stay competitive, the Weather Channel announced the creation of its own streaming service, <i>Weather Channel Plus</i>, that the company claims could reach 30 million subscribers by 2026.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;">Weather around the clock needs something to cover and attract viewers even if they have to exaggerate what is going on or, out-and-out, make it up. Thus most of what they present will continue to be bad news about impending storms--especially hurricanes and tornados. <span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">All telegenic.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times;">Local and national weather news also depend on</span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times;"> receiving video from amateur storm chasers. Viewers who roam the countryside with iPhones in hand. Another way to keep people glued to the screen. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times;">And with weather satellites it's possible to begin to cover potential hurricanes many days in advance as we saw and are seeing as Ida makes its way across the Gulf and up through the states that border the Atlantic Ocean.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times;">Of course this coverage makes it possible for those in storms' paths to prepare, but the </span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;">exaggerating and trolling for viewers and subscribers also makes things worse as panic also follows the worst potential storm tracks.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimni57sRTeGj1mFgG5kVDIfIxXvf7fNFoiuyoNJXCj8nuo-YTsw9Rd5zvMKAjkbLetUWeaaJAt2Kcw-rkuK34SXPnKNfM7DFJOcpxIgV23B_jBH4ww_mLEGNUwJuSRkEnzN3Lu/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="281" data-original-width="449" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimni57sRTeGj1mFgG5kVDIfIxXvf7fNFoiuyoNJXCj8nuo-YTsw9Rd5zvMKAjkbLetUWeaaJAt2Kcw-rkuK34SXPnKNfM7DFJOcpxIgV23B_jBH4ww_mLEGNUwJuSRkEnzN3Lu/" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-7975905679814785742021-08-30T04:34:00.131-04:002021-08-30T04:56:40.657-04:00August 30, 2021--Fact Checking Biden<p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: times;">I have a close friend, Maureen, who is so disgusted with what is happening that she refuses to mention the name of the country where America has been fighting for the past 20 years.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">But since she and I are interested in talking about this because it is so much in the news and consequential, we have come up with a few ways to do so.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">We refer to it as "that country," or, "the place where girls are kept from going to school," or "you know, they defeated the Russians in the 1980s."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The compounding issue that has us talking in worrisome private code is the political impact of what is happening in that country.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As a result of American incompetence in rescuing locals who have worked with us and for us, poll numbers show Biden's favorables plummeting. The <i>Hill</i>, for example, is concluding that it is looking more and more probable that Republicans will take control of the House next year and also the Senate. This is conspiring to make it increasingly likely that Biden will be a one-term president. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Over the weekend, the <i>Hill</i> reported that the "tides are turning against Biden."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">And it doesn't help our disposition to notice that the <i>New York Times</i> has started to "fact-check" Biden. Finding him to be not always truthful.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Remember the last fellow they fact-checked?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The thought of the total return of the GOP has gotten Maureen and me sputtering when talking in political parables.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">No wonder we can't bear to mention the name of that God-forsaken country. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">In the meantime I continue to dose-down on the news. I have fully stopped watching the cable. Or any news for that matter except the weather up here in Maine. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">But at least the Yankees are doing well.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhswUWA-Tr8E7PF5yFx9OyA97-s7bs0Zb95LIuIGPu-dPlW4gSqVNytX3H994s-4Da6Ka05v5AuP1aYM1m37EZ8PboILgDKRKyGjz2Qj_2qDaLR38I4gW4pend2XVuhnvQCrisG/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="299" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhswUWA-Tr8E7PF5yFx9OyA97-s7bs0Zb95LIuIGPu-dPlW4gSqVNytX3H994s-4Da6Ka05v5AuP1aYM1m37EZ8PboILgDKRKyGjz2Qj_2qDaLR38I4gW4pend2XVuhnvQCrisG/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-54214056805466890072021-08-20T05:28:00.001-04:002021-08-20T05:46:11.245-04:00August 20, 2021--Failure to Be Intelligent<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">To President Joseph P. Biden:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As of 12:00PM, August 20, 2021, I submit my resignation as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">General Mark Miller</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">To President Joseph P. Biden</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As of 12:00PM, August 20, 2021, I submit my resignation as Secretary of Defense.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">General Lloyd Austin</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">To President Joseph P. Biden</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As of 12PM, August 20, 2021, I submit my resignation as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">William Burns </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwLj5qEZou918tUmaC6TlL4kys_prBRG1ZQKmxIfNn0AxTlIrC-xWUeBe1WuKUYP9s0prpF6hbiWIuAiY8L8hi794vky7mvSonrqiujST_zIlr_ljiwSwPVy-35glC7pM9tjbt/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwLj5qEZou918tUmaC6TlL4kys_prBRG1ZQKmxIfNn0AxTlIrC-xWUeBe1WuKUYP9s0prpF6hbiWIuAiY8L8hi794vky7mvSonrqiujST_zIlr_ljiwSwPVy-35glC7pM9tjbt/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-5939930280931460292021-08-15T04:24:00.006-04:002021-08-15T11:29:10.943-04:00August 15, 2021--Alexander the Great<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Twenty years ago, if we wanted to know the likely outcome of going to war with the Taliban in Afghanistan, rather than listening to the likes of Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld, we should have asked the Russians how to proceed after they had recently lost their war there.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Better (Rona's thought) we should have spoken with Alexander the Great, who, in 330 BC had also been defeated in what is now Afghanistan and needed to retreat.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The Great one would have said--Don't get involved there. It is a bottomless pit, a quagmire, and the local warriors will simply wait you out. As soon as you flag they will move in and quickly take over everything.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Sound familiar? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">It should be as we see the Taliban moving quickly to resume control of the country. It has taken the just weeks. As I write the Taliban are pressing in on the capital, Kabul. When they complete that maneuver, in a matter of just days, the Taliban will control the entire country. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Executions are already underway, girls are already being forbidden to go to school. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The U.S. is left with nothing but humiliation, including pleading with the Taliban to "spare" our embassy in the capital.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">After spending nearly $2.0 trillion on military operations, with 2,312 American combat deaths and 21,000 wounded, we are left with beseeching the Taliban, our enemy, to protect us.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Alexander would have had something to say about that too--big powers lose when they ask their enemies to help them save face, when the asking itself is a form of capitulation and defeat.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">This should be understood as a part of a pattern that we have seen since our defeat in Vietnam.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Will we ever learn?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-8KJzV8ZfyACCU87IBU6c0wGHzCmv3cpb5eLYdS02vkI8F2fYagYI_Fhtsrw1bEGPeSuWy-92beHMotJ1DA3wFGtxLXeWF9NPjUaro4COAfOpy3mpOwFBic-cBiboiM3vdcAu/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-8KJzV8ZfyACCU87IBU6c0wGHzCmv3cpb5eLYdS02vkI8F2fYagYI_Fhtsrw1bEGPeSuWy-92beHMotJ1DA3wFGtxLXeWF9NPjUaro4COAfOpy3mpOwFBic-cBiboiM3vdcAu/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-4742233447687053032021-08-12T04:09:00.159-04:002021-08-12T05:39:29.681-04:00August 12, 2021--Cuomo-Soprano<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Thus far Andrew Cuomo's defense has been more cultural than judicial.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">In effect, here's what he's been spinning--</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"They changed the line on me. The line that separates what's acceptable and what's not" when it comes to working in </span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">today's offices.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"What do they expect of me. I'm a 63-year-old Italian man (note, not 'Italian-American') who grew up with different values than they have today. Back in my day we touched, we did a little stroking, a little flirting, and even a little kissing and rubbing up against each other. It was all considered to be OK. Innocent. Nobody had a problem with any of this. It was just fun. The girls--I mean women--had as good a time as the fellas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"And then it was like I woke up from a three-decade-long sleep and the rules had changed on me. We even stopped having office Christmas parties where the secretaries and bosses were free to do a little fooling around.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"So what would you expect me to do? I'm not a sex harassor but a victim of gender and ethnicity. I know we're supposed to keep our hands to ourself and cut out the racy jokes. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"But Italians talk with their hands. That's the worst thing I did. But it's my nature.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"I get it. I learned. I have three daughters and they're helping to straighten me out. We've been sitting on the couch together, I tell them what I did and they tell me if I did anything wrong.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"I'm learning a lot from them. They're good girls."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">There's one problem--everything Cuomo said is wrong. Even if he's been awake for only a few months he knows this and should not be enabled to get away with it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">For starters, he has to stop watching <i>The Sopranos</i>.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbh414ZnCM6446M4nw4lxa-qge5eur9kC1EKUEth6EIDnafNFrXeqGlpEvuLCAdOs3yP9Tw5a3ZjOJhFIgN1mGoqbVgx6NZuc7b0JF7tL6W0TuufCK4pxJf50ca9AoMYm5-81p/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="171" data-original-width="294" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbh414ZnCM6446M4nw4lxa-qge5eur9kC1EKUEth6EIDnafNFrXeqGlpEvuLCAdOs3yP9Tw5a3ZjOJhFIgN1mGoqbVgx6NZuc7b0JF7tL6W0TuufCK4pxJf50ca9AoMYm5-81p/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-77915472448192014002021-08-10T04:21:00.109-04:002021-08-11T05:30:47.384-04:00August 10, 2021--The Fire This Time<p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: large;">The Fire <i>This</i> Time is a gloss on the Fire <i>Next</i> Time, which <span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124; font-family: times;">comes from a pre-Civil War Negro spiritual that became popular again during the Civil Rights movement. The line is “</span><b style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124; font-family: times;">God gave Noah the rainbow sign, no more water. The fire next time</b><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124; font-family: times;">.” The line's a warning about the consequences of living unholy lives.</span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">Which, in regard to the climate, is how we've been living.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">I have been thinking about this as wild fires ravage much of our West Coast.</span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">The </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">Dixie Fire, estimated to be the second largest in California's recorded history, only 30 percent contained, is <span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">said to be nearly 490,000 acres in size.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"As large as two New York Cities," someone on CNN said yesterday morning. As a New Yorker this captured my <span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">attention.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">If we fail to heed these warnings . . . we know the consequences. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">Even casual readers know I am not apocalyptic. But with Heat Domes, explosive city-size fires, and 105 degree weather now routine in Portland, Oregon and Seattle, I'm no longer so sure. I would be hard put to disagree with anyone who has come to this end-of-world conclusion.</span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">Minimally, there are metaphoric meanings. </span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">I am tempted to stop here. Settle for thoughts about levels of meaning, but we have moved rapidly beyond this. We need to do more. We need to get to work.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha_FIAkvOpd_Amtpug1jtpvqnOybcVAz3hcoPMFVrDTnFiHCfq_gV_qvDNgWSb1-nUs5P16BsTIB8hnZFj-fJsnAwp3rGZ9CC3bmSoGhyphenhyphenc-itdLz1JIm0UKYRadJzRUuRs-KmG/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha_FIAkvOpd_Amtpug1jtpvqnOybcVAz3hcoPMFVrDTnFiHCfq_gV_qvDNgWSb1-nUs5P16BsTIB8hnZFj-fJsnAwp3rGZ9CC3bmSoGhyphenhyphenc-itdLz1JIm0UKYRadJzRUuRs-KmG/" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);"><br /></span></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-43107885636789486132021-07-28T04:24:00.251-04:002021-08-09T06:50:54.479-04:00July 28, 2021--Let 'Em Die<p><span style="font-size: large;">It was 2008 and perennial presidential candidate Ron Paul was again running for the Republican nomination. What he was best known for was on full display during the first debate.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Paul, though a physician, as an orthodox conservative-Libertarian, was on record as being opposed to Medicare and Medicaid.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">In his view, without government funding (and he was in favor of eliminating all federal subsidies) low-income people who did not have medical insurance were on their own when it came to paying for healthcare.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Incredulous, I think it was Chris Matthews, one of the moderators, pressed Paul about these radical views.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">What would happen, Matthews asked, if someone without insurance was hit by a motorcycle and, though with life-threatening injuries, somehow managed to get to a hospital, seeking treatment, who would he pay for this?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Without missing a beat, Dr. Paul, said the injured person or his family and friends needed to come up with the cash to pay his bills.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">What if he was about to die?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I suppose he would die," Paul said, sounding sad. He is a doctor, after all, and pledged, as a physician, to follow the Hippocratic Oath.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Let him die?" Matthews asked.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Let 'em die." Paul responded.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">This was a GOP debate and so there was a burst of applause from the hand-picked, well-heeled audience.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I was reminded of this yesterday when the <i>New York Times</i> reported--</span></p><p><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;">"As coronavirus cases resurge across the country, many inoculated Americans are losing patience with vaccine holdouts who, they say, are neglecting a civic duty or clinging to conspiracy theories and misinformation even as new patients arrive in emergency rooms and the nation renews mask advisories."</span></span></p><p><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;">Will there be confrontations between those who have been inoculated and those who have opted not to be?</span></span></p><p><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;">To complicate matters I'm hearing from liberals when they look at the Unvacs--</span></span></p><p><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;">"Let 'em die."</span></span></p><p><span face="nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-57214056137713214412021-07-27T04:30:00.119-04:002021-08-09T06:51:57.372-04:00July 27, 2021--Too Many Toyotas<p><span style="font-size: large;">I posted something a couple of weeks ago about climate change, claiming, like Thomas Malthus, that unless we do something serious to reduce the earth's population there is no effective way to address the climate crisis. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Too many people means we run out of resources in a hurry and along the way are destined to experience, as we are right now, a collapsing environment, pandemics, and mass deaths.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">For a glimpse of how things are unfolding, I picked up Tom Friedman's slightly outdated <i>The World Is Flat</i>.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">He is not my favorite reporter but occasionally gets things right. In this case what is happening in China as it urbanizes while the population continues to grow.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Here's something from Friedman that a makes things vivid. And, sorry, scary--</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Another enormously powerful threat to the flattening of the world is on the horizon. It is not a human resources constraint or a disease, but a natural resources constraint. If millions of people from India, China, Latin America, and the former Soviet Empire, who for years had been living largely outside the flat world, all start to walk into the flat-world platform--each with his or her own version of the American dream of owning a car, a house, a refrigerator, microwave, and a toaster-we are at best going to experience a serious energy shortage. At worst, we are going to set off a global struggle for natural resources and junk-up, heat-up, garbage-up, smoke-up, and devour up our little planet faster than at any time in the history of the world. Be afraid. I certainly am.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"The resources consumed and the waste put out by each person varies greatly around the world, being highest in the first world and lowest in the third world. On the average, each citizen of the U.S., Western Europe, and Japan consumes thirty-two times more resources, such as fossil fuels, and puts out thirty-two times more waste, then do inhabitants of the third world. But low-impact people are becoming high-impact people.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Indeed, the flattening of the world is making low-impact people into high-impact people faster, in greater numbers, and with greater impacts than at any other time in the history of the world. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"I [Friedman] asked Michael Zhao, a young researcher in the <i>New York Times</i>'<i>s</i> Beijing bureau to check on the increase in the number of motor vehicles in China. Michael wrote back to me the following: </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">"Hi Tom, I hope this email finds you well. On your question about how many cars are added each day in Beijing, I did some research on the Internet and found that car sales in Beijing for April 2004 were 43,000--24.1% more than the same period the previous year. So that is, 1,433 cars were added daily to Beijing. New car sales this month were 30,000 or 1,000 cars each day added to the city. The total car sales, new and used cars, from January to April 2004 were 165,000, that is about 1,375 cars added each day to Beijing over this period. This data is from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce. The city's bureau of statistics has it that the total car sales in 2003 were 407,649, or 1,117 cars added each day."</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">You get the point. We're in trouble and will make it worse if we do not do a better job of controlling population growth. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I urge you to put it high on your list of global concerns.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-29043653035382148342021-07-08T03:48:00.136-04:002021-07-08T05:32:30.141-04:00July 8, 2021--Fake Weather<p> <span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The <i>NY Times</i> reported last weekend that Rupert Murdoch, owner of Fox and Sky News, the <i>Wall Street Journal</i>, and various tabloid rags, is moving in on weather forecasting.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Not as a public service but as a new way for him and his family to further enrich themselves.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">They noticed that viewership of Fox News is in a precipitous decline and they are desperate to make up the loses elsewhere. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">There are 38 percent fewer Fox (and CNN) viewers this year tuning in to Murdoch's version of the news. And this means fewer sponsors and a weakening bottom line.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">In the Fox empire about a billion dollars a year traditionally accrues to their U.S. news division, which has made Fox in America their worldwide profit leader.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">They also noticed that while news reporting is shedding ratings, weather reporting is booming. Weather people from Amy Freeze on down (yes, that's her name) are bringing in big money. Perhaps as much as Sean Hannity.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As a result, weather reporting to attract additional viewers is set to become more and more entertaining and, likely, scarier because they are also discovering people will tune in in bigger numbers when a hurricane approaches (as now with Elsa) or, better for ratings, when cataclysmic tornadoes are in the area.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">I confess to being one of those people watching weather news compulsively while barely catching what's on MSNBC. So I am part of that 38 percent and expect to see on Fox tornado warnings for Times Square.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYnHtkEySIYT2ZTdJbkfccNPWkg_-dIw-YqmdYVgWbcG7sd-7Xgr_p4AubhSH552FhILQSWX9epGuOMTMH0XrfOXmgKfm2asRMxUiIsb9UYPI8s9HBLR3zEICGi7_AaerGDHq4/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="1862" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYnHtkEySIYT2ZTdJbkfccNPWkg_-dIw-YqmdYVgWbcG7sd-7Xgr_p4AubhSH552FhILQSWX9epGuOMTMH0XrfOXmgKfm2asRMxUiIsb9UYPI8s9HBLR3zEICGi7_AaerGDHq4/" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-23803024253334978312021-07-05T04:20:00.131-04:002021-07-05T06:32:14.399-04:00July 5, 2021--Weaselburger<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">As much as we may be eager to see Him in handcuffs and an orange jumpsuit, excited by the implications of last week's indictments in the case of Donald J. Trump, be careful about letting your hopes soar because it will likely be many months, even years before justice will be served.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">That's just the way our system works when it comes to prosecuting a wealthy person for white collar crimes who wants to delay, delay, delay things. Run out the clock, as the TV lawyers like to sum up things.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">So we may have to satisfy ourselves with stories about Trump's CFO, Allen Weaselburger, left twisting in the wind while assorted DAs and attorneys general attempt to get him to flip, to become the key witness in the Trump prosecution. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Worse, it may turn out that Weaselburger is the one person who will take a bullet for Trump and without live corroborating witnesses (as opposed to documentary evidence) these kinds of tax fraud cases have a tendency to go nowhere.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Without the father, Fred, and the son, Donald, Weaselburger would be working for H&R Block in a Long Island mall.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">So he might take a fall especially since even if convicted he would be likely to be sentenced to a year or two of hardish time.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6kte3QieFDOYNOZrSSYwCXzbcS7zCB5us0jZyIqc-QTWgOvmCiQOoKuSr6UFrVQloqqWcmjpC788KzLs4ObOBTfq_uGjq8UCL9mvLEb8t8i5jNd5aWchMs7GmWptQ3-jEk0IO/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6kte3QieFDOYNOZrSSYwCXzbcS7zCB5us0jZyIqc-QTWgOvmCiQOoKuSr6UFrVQloqqWcmjpC788KzLs4ObOBTfq_uGjq8UCL9mvLEb8t8i5jNd5aWchMs7GmWptQ3-jEk0IO/" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-10790147702089234532021-06-28T04:23:00.149-04:002021-06-28T05:28:52.748-04:00June 28, 2021--Malthusianism<p><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large; text-align: left;"><span> </span></span></span></span></div><p></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">A very smart friend, when we were talking about climate change, said--"Though I like the idea of all electric cars, and though I wish this wasn't true, while good in itself, is not going to get the job done.</span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"What will?" I said? "Do you have other, better solutions?"</span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"<span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">Population growth."</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">"You mean what Malthus said about this centuries ago?"</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">"Yes," he said, "Excessive population growth, which we've had for </span>decades, is threatening to overwhelm the food supply which will eventually cause a global population die-off."</span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"Are we seeing any of that now?" I asked.</span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"<span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">Definitely." he said.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"Why isn't anyone talking about this</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">?"</span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"You want to go after the religious right who are opposed even to contraception?"</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"Not until I've had a few drinks," I said.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">You're old enough," he said, "to have lived long enough to see the population of the United States nearly triple from about 130 million when you were born to the current 330 million."</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"I'm old enough?"</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"That's the good news and the bad news," he said. And smiled.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"<i>Malthusianism</i>, right?"</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"Yup," he said.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"I remember from reading him when I was in college about his <span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">overlapping graphs, which showed population growth becoming exponential, while . . . I forgot."</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;">"While food supply and other <span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">resources grow at a much slower rate--linear," he said. "That's when your die-off occurs."</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">I said, "We'd better start talking about this, right?"</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);">"First another drink?" And again smiled.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #202124; font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36);"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdzGaRBF0jFSM0zmdHKKW6x6ut40SYqjabSHwcsJ-UxIah8vp5o-U4htrvosvHmyslySwmhxzLl8vFZ6YgTDgPbNK7NBMAVWrKGTXRMtouRIE8SwBEKVBbC5xv5uRbs44WT6oD/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="184" data-original-width="274" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdzGaRBF0jFSM0zmdHKKW6x6ut40SYqjabSHwcsJ-UxIah8vp5o-U4htrvosvHmyslySwmhxzLl8vFZ6YgTDgPbNK7NBMAVWrKGTXRMtouRIE8SwBEKVBbC5xv5uRbs44WT6oD/" width="320" /></a></span></span></div><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15833099.post-30470061984434505802021-06-22T04:16:00.043-04:002021-06-22T04:40:56.903-04:00June 22, 2021--The Dems Are At It Again<p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">My beloved Dems are about to do it again. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Something at which we are quite expert--shooting ourselves in the foot.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">This time, a number of Democratic Senate leaders besotted by their influence and power are contemplating ending the Biden presidency before it gets started and thereby assuring that Republicans will be returned to power no later than the 2024 election. Even sooner, it is possible the GOP will recapture both houses of Congress after the Democrats lose the 2022 midterms. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">If the GOP takes over Congress say goodbye to American democracy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Bernie Sanders announced yesterday he will not support Biden's domestic agenda unless it includes a massive tax hike. And Joe Manchin says he's also not on board because he's against the voting rights bill.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">If I were Mitch McConnell, these days I'd be feeling pretty good.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQM81gWRrjdYCZiOTpktGcHcXY1I2Fa2bqkTabF5SgYYqliKOwyEug7m3WFdqsC7fEx7Kqeja8XYe-jHC6kg8T9FDUI9H39hrUnkpB7q1XizqIrsMVZS8MzIRqm4coszHFY_l7/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQM81gWRrjdYCZiOTpktGcHcXY1I2Fa2bqkTabF5SgYYqliKOwyEug7m3WFdqsC7fEx7Kqeja8XYe-jHC6kg8T9FDUI9H39hrUnkpB7q1XizqIrsMVZS8MzIRqm4coszHFY_l7/" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>Steven Zwerlinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18237849258580278162noreply@blogger.com0