Debates and Consequences

 For someone who loathes wearing masks and thinks a deadly virus that has so far killed over 210,000 people in the United States alone is no big deal, it came as a shock when President Donald Trump was forced to spend last weekend fighting COVID-19 symptoms in a military hospital.  He has also infected nearly everyone in his path, which includes White House staffers, key associates and wife Melania.  Not to mention those he met along the campaign trail, and in his first presidential debate with former vice-president Joe Biden (who tested negative), all with nary a mask in sight. 

If you thought getting the virus would somehow humble the President into understanding the devastation around the country he helped create, you'd be wrong.  Trump made a dramatic, made-for-TV return to the White House, declared victory even though he's still contagious and should really be in quarantine, and claimed that if he beat the virus, we can too.  That is, if we had the superior medical care Presidents usually get (and even if he weren't President, Trump would still be able to get the best docs available) and experimental drugs that are more powerful than, say, Tylenol.

The first debate with Biden was such a disaster that it was suggested none ever be held again,  But the committee handling the debates insisted on another one, so they scheduled one for October 15.  Because the President got sick, what was supposed to be a town hall setup has been changed to a glorified Zoom meeting.  But Trump said he didn't want to waste his time on a virtual debate, so unless he's persuaded otherwise, there's not going to be one.  Biden will use the time to do his own town hall for ABC News.

The debate between Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic challenger Senator Kamala Harris in Utah did come off Wednesday, plexiglass and all.  Neither candidate answered critical questions from moderator Susan Page of USA Today about whether Trump would accept the results of the election, or whether there would be a peaceful transfer of power if he lost.  Harris won the debate because Pence was too busy talking over both women and going past his allotted time to notice that there was a fly on his head.

Whether you think President Trump is hopped up on drugs and can't think straight as he's recovering, or if he's just being himself, you have to wonder how much longer America and the world can put up with his antics.  Whatever happens on or around November 3, we'll have to live with the consequences.

Random Thougts: Breonna Taylor, RBG, COVID and All That "Schitt's"

 No Justice, No Peace in Louisville

You can say Breonna Taylor's name as much you want, but it doesn't mean she's going to get any justice.  A grand jury in Louisville, KY charged only one of the four police officers accused of her murder, and that was for shooting someone else in the next room.  Taylor's family had already settled with the city for $12 million in a civil trial.  The Feds have yet to complete its investigation into the incident, but they'll be under enormous pressure to satisfy Taylor's supporters, who took to the streets of Louisville and other cities as soon as the verdict was announced.  This does not bode well for what will happen in Minneapolis when the police officers allegedly responsible for George Floyd's death will come to trial.

Change Over RBG's Dead Body

Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death at age 87 on September 18 is a win-win for President Donald Trump.  With a few weeks remaining before the Presidential election, Trump and his Republican pals in the Senate can ignore Ginsburg's dying wish that her replacement wouldn't be approved and seated before the people elect a new leader.  Not only would Trump have an insurance policy in his favor in case of a tight election, but should he lose to Joe Biden (a fact the President has been known to dismiss as his way of staying in power no matter what), the Democratic candidate (and future Presidents) would be stuck with a 6-3 conservative majority for the foreseeable future unless his plan to "pack the Court" (ala FDR) gets past Congress

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who has rightfully been recognized as a role model and trail blazer for women and others who believe in social justice, deserved better than to be a cold body stepped over by those who couldn't wait for a more conservative future for the Supreme Court.  Everything she ever championed on the bench might not survive her death.

A Grim Milestone--And Counting

The death toll in the United States in the six months since a health emergency was declared over COVID-19 has risen (as of 9/24/2020) to over 201,000, with nearly seven million confirmed cases.  This is a tribute to the confusion, denial and mismanagement of the pandemic caused by our elected leaders, choosing fear over the advice of scientists and doctors that they themselves had hired, resulting in untold misery for those who are working from home--or not, kids who are learning from computer screens instead of in classrooms, and for those who could not see their loved ones.  According to those scientists, the pandemic might actually run its course by mid-2021--if all goes well, a safe vaccine can be found, and enough people take precautions.  The politicians and business leaders run the risk of prolonging things unnecessarily if they continue to believe the bottom line is being affected, and if they continue to believe the rising death toll from COVID amounts to, well, nothing.

The Emmys Go Up a "Creek"

The Canadian sitcom "Schitt's Creek", in its final season, swept the comedy category at the 72nd Emmy Awards September 20.  No other show has ever done that.  Awards went to its stars Catherine O'Hara (actress in a comedy), Eugene Levy (actor in a comedy), Daniel Levy (supporting actor), Annie Murphy (supporting actress), and "Creek" itself (best comedy).

Elsewhere, two shows from HBO dominated the Limited Series and Drama categories.  "Watchmen" won for Best Limited Series?Movie, along with stars Regina King (best actress) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen (supporting actor).  "Succession" won for best drama, and Jeremy Strong won for best actor in a drama.

The Emmy telecast was staged virtually from Staples Center in Los Angeles, was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and shown on ABC.  It was, as Kimmel predicted, the lowest-rated Emmy ever.  You can't just blame competition from sports for the low numbers.  Many of the shows that were nominated were ones that weren't familiar to most viewers, and the few that were depended on where they got their TV.  Or are people just tired of awards shows where Hollywood stars preach at them to vote and to end racism and sexism?

Trump vs. "Not Trump"

Well, here it is.  The presidential election season (such as it is) has begun after a summer full of virtual conventions, clashes in the street. possible mail-in voter fraud and arguments over wearing masks and how to open school as the COVID-19 pandemic is on its way to killing almost 200,000 Americans in just a few months. 

President Donald Trump, the Republican incumbent, may not have helped start the outbreak.  But he's certainly responsible for his mismanagement of it, having said as much on tape about downplaying the seriousness as prime fodder for Bob Woodward's new book.  Trump faces former Democratic vice president Joe Biden, who made headlines for making Kamala Harris his running mate.  The current Senator from California, who would be the first of Asian and Jamaican descent to serve in the office if they win, ran against Biden in the primaries.

The President promises to "keep America great" as cities burn, businesses shut down, millions lose their jobs due to COVID, and there's a trade war with China.  Biden wants to "build back better", as if he's a Detroit auto executive trying to sell his fading lineup of cars.  He also wants to do a better job of handling the virus by mandating masks and relying on scientists and doctors instead of promoting questionable miracle cures and "wishing" the virus away.  But mainly what Biden, Harris and the Democrats have to sell is that they're not Trump, and that may be enough for them to win in November.

Nearly two decades have passed since the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks, and America's national security is in danger of being compromised--if it isn't already.  Trump's disdain for climate change and for the "suckers" and "losers" who populated the military he commands past and present are matched only by his unyielding friendship and support of the authoritarian dictators he wants to emulate, if the Constitution would only let him.

We know that race relations is not Trump's strong suit, having long ago sided with white nationalists in his quest for "law and order" instead of immigrants and African-Americans, for whom he has often whined about how much he has done for them than any other President.  Now, to go along with George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other Blacks who have been victims of overzealous police, we add Jacob Blake Jr.  He was shot in the back seven times by Kenosha, WI police for trying to escape capture on a charge of domestic abuse.  Protests on the streets of Kenosha led to a 17-year old white teenage boy accused of shooting two men to death, earning the tacit approval of the President.  Which is not much different than sending armed militias into the streets of Portland and Washington,D.C. because of real or perceived threats by extremists right and left, making things worse.

This is Trump's race to lose, and he's losing it.  Most of the major polls in the battleground states show him trailing Biden, as well as in fundraising for the million or so campaign ads you'll be seeing until November 3.  But Trump is scaring the heck out of those who want to avoid the polls and mail in their votes instead due to the virus by slowing down the U.S. Postal Service, which is now run by one of his campaign contributors. Which means we may not know who won on Election Night, with the voters risking illness to cast their ballots and the tidal wave of mail order ballots to be counted.  And even then, we won't know if Trump will go away peacefully if he loses.

We're still waiting for the "October Surprise".  If it isn't Trump disparaging the troops, downplaying the virus or promising a vaccine by November, then what is it?  Do we really want to know?

"Person. Woman. Man. Camera. TV."=Bad Trouble

As the nation mourns the passing of John Lewis, a Civil Rights icon who risked his life for better treatment of African Americans marching on an Alabama bridge named for a white supremacist, then served in the U.S. Congress making "good trouble" for over three decades, President Donald Trump is doing his best to undo Lewis' legacy by threatening to delay the presidential election that is scheduled for November 3.

His main complaint is that too many people plan on voting by mail beforehand, and that is oh-so-ripe for fraud--never mind that he's done it himself a few times.  So he's named one of his political benefactors to head the Postal Service, an organization not exactly known for speediness or for keeping up with the times without having to raise postage rates.  You might say this is a case of "do as I say, not as I do".

It doesn't matter that the Constitution says any change to Election Day must go through Congress, not through presidential fiat.  But Trump, who is getting thumped in most of the polls by his Democratic rival Joe Biden, is not what you'd call a Constitutional scholar, and seems to be making it up as he goes along.

It also doesn't seem to matter that coronavirus has so far killed more than 150,000 Americans and sickened millions more.  The economy has been tanking because of all the restrictions and business closings, which has left millions unemployed.  The President's response so far has been (A) favoring quack doctors and remedies while shunting aside more learned physicians and scientists from his own staff that the public trusts more, (B) magically thinking the virus will one day go poof, then (C) lamenting things are going to get worse than better because the virus didn't go poof.

In spite of Covid-19 cases spiking across America and some states having to walk back loosening restrictions on commerce and social distancing, Trump insists on starting schools on time and in the classroom lest he takes away their federal funding.  This is freaking out parents, students and educators who would rather be learning online at home than risk getting the virus and passing it along to family and friends.  All you need to do is to look at Major League Baseball for a primer on how not to restart in a pandemic.

One of Trump's mantras in his reelection bid (besides tweeting "MAGA!!") is "Law and Order", which has been demonstrated forcefully in Portland, Oregon and other cities the past couple of weeks by unidentified Federal agents who tried to quell otherwise peaceful protestors marching against police treatment of Black citizens.  Another example is the commutation of Trump crony Roger Stone's prison sentence.  These and others are left to be explained away before a House subcomittee by Attorney General William Barr, another Trump crony.  You do know "Law and Order" is just a TV show, right?

The President seems to be less concerned with Russian president Vladimir Putin's signing off on putting bounties on American soldiers in Afghanistan than in getting rid of popular social media site Tik Tok, a Chinese-based company that allegedly shares its privacy data with the government.  Does Sarah Cooper's one-note mimicking of Trump bother him that much?

Covid-19 has ended the President's plans for a hastily put together public shindig in Jacksonville, Florida to celebrate his Republican renomination.  Instead, the GOP will be going virtual at their original convention site of Charlotte, NC.  Much of it will be closed to the press and public, so presumably any delegate who chooses to renominate Trump can do so without anyone finding out.

Far from the eloquence and leadership John Lewis has shown over the decades, President Donald Trump over the past four years has been doing better as a would-be authoritarian with a penchant for bragging and threatening people than for leaving this country in a better place than he found it. If his legacy is acing a cognitive skills test that determines whether or not his mind is going south, then we are in bad trouble indeed.

A Presidency And A Country Unmasked

As the United States commemorates 244 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, there's not much to celebrate.  Cases and deaths from the coronavirus outbreak continue to spike, causing several states and cities to rethink easing restrictions, which had been originally done due to political pressure.  There is also a national conversation of sorts over the way certain members of law enforcement treat Black people.  Presiding over all this is President Donald Trump, who just told us that this is what we have to live with.

To date (7/3/20), the U.S. leads the world in the number of people getting sick and dying from COVID-19, and it is likely to spike further if people don't start wearing masks.  But Trump wishes it would all go away, because it puts a crimp in his re-election plans.  He doesn't wear a mask, claims to have been checked for the virus every day (which is easy for him to say since we don't know his medical history), and undercuts his coronavirus task force whenever possible (need a reason why Dr. Anthony Fauci isn't on TV much any more?).

Recently, the President went to Tulsa, Oklahoma to relive the good old days of his barnstorming political tour, only to go home with new cases of covid among his staff and a half-empty arena full of people with no masks and hardly any social distancing.

Elsewhere, loyalty is still a big deal to the President.  It's why Attorney General William Barr runs interference for him, sacking those who get too close to the truth about Trump's alleged misdeeds.  It's also why former aide John Bolton and niece Mary Trump were threatened with lawsuits on national security grounds over unflattering books they wrote, but are being published anyway.

Befriending dictators has always been a priority for Trump.  In spite of reports that Russian president Vladimir Putin offered bounties on American soldiers in Afghanistan, Trump--who's also been roasted by critics for watching Fox News instead of reading classified briefings--brushes them off as a "hoax".  He can't afford to offend Putin if he wants to be re-elected.

Even the Supreme Court has been turning on Trump, despite its conservative majority.  They ruled against the President on LGTBQs losing their jobs because of their sexual orientation, and for eliminating protections for "Dreamers" threatened with deportation.  How the justices really feel about Trump will be determined when they eventually rule on releasing his tax returns.

Trump likes to be the star of the show, and no amount of racial insensitivity or killer virus is going to stop him from being in the limelight.  It's why the Republican party bent over backwards (as they have so many times in the past few years) to accomodate the President by moving portions of its convention from Charlotte, NC to Jacksonville, FL, so he can accept his party's nomination in a sold-out arena without bothering with masks or social distancing.

Unfortunately, the GOP convention in late August also coincides with the anniversary of a racial incident in Jacksonville 60 years ago, in which Blacks protesting segregation were attacked by whites with ax handles.  Not that Trump cares about any of that local historical stuff, mind you.

We know Trump wants to keep America safe, so he issues executive orders to protect statues and names of military bases that had something to do with the side that lost the Civil War.  Or turn a blind eye to those in law enforcement who don't believe Black lives matter, and that the killings of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Elijah McClain in Colorado and others were a means to an end.

Much of 2020 so far has been a complete blur, from the President's failed removal from office to the millions infected with a virus that he took too long to deal with.  Donald Trump's leadership (or lack thereof) is driving this country into the ground, and most Americans can't wait until November to vote him out.  Oh, he'll eventually wear a mask.  But it will be used to commit highway robbery at the polls, ensuring himself of another four years (or so) in the White House.  Just like he did in 2016.

Happy Fourth of July.

George Floyd: The Aftermath

It's been more than a week since a Minneapolis police officer was recorded kneeing the life out of George Lloyd, an African American man who was charged with trying to pass a fake $20 bill to pay for groceries, as three of his fellow officers stood by.

What has happened since--the nationwide uprisings of peaceful demonstrations, the agitators who clashed with police and burned down neighborhoods, and the curfews that have resulted from them--have been the reaction to Lloyd's death and to police brutality in general..  Even places where you wouldn't expect this sort of thing:  Fargo, North Dakota and Salt Lake City, Utah are among those that have had disturbances of their own.

There have been two different autopsies of Floyd's death that have been made public, both of which have ruled the matter a homicide.  Hennepin County's medical examiner reported "cardiopulmonary arrest" as one account of what happened to Floyd, while his family"s independent autopsy said he was asphyxiated.

Minnesota's attorney general Keith Ellison has taken over prosecution of the case, in which he has immediately made headlines.  The arresting officer who was seen in the video, Derek Chauvin, had his charges upgraded from third to second degree murder.  The three who were with him were all charged with aiding and abetting.  The Minneapolis Police Department has fired them all. Usually, charges like these are not made so quickly.

As peaceful demonstrations under the banner of Black Lives Matter descended into clashes with police and National Guard troops and looting in major cities, people started wondering where was President Donald Trump and what kind of leadership (if any) he was going to provide.  The answer was yes and no.  On the night of June 7, as demonstrators stood at the doorstep of the White House, the President went into a secure location and the lights were turned off.  The next evening, fifteen minutes before a citywide curfew in Washington went into effect, Trump announced that as the "law and order" President he would sic the military on the protestors and other radical groups (whom he called "thugs") if the states didn't do it themselves.

Then, as demonstrators and others were being cleared by force, Trump made his way to a nearby church to pose for a photo with a Bible in his hand.  Authoritarian as his actions were, it shouldn't surprise anyone who have always believed religion equals politics.

Journalists have also become targets of those police who actually believe that they're the "enemy of the people".  Those who are trying their damndest to cover the protests at great personal risk have been arrested and/or accosted by authorities who took their cues from Tiananmen Square.  The Chinese couldn't be prouder.

How this turns out will depend on whether Chauvin and his fellow officers are convicted or not by a jury.  If past history serves, there's a good chance they might be let go on a technicality.  If that's true, then all hell will break loose.  There will also be efforts to weed out the bad cops by dismantling the system in which they now work.  While it's true not every police officer or soldier is a "bad actor", they are also not your friends.  We do not thank them for their service at this time.

Whether we are affected by the actions of authorities of authorities, we seem to be caught in the middle about how to react.  On the one hand, we are told to speak up because "silence is acceptance".  But if we do speak up, we risk being branded as anti-American traitors or worse.  So what do you want from us?  Whatever happened to just listening?  We want to understand why, after 400-odd years of American history, it's still hard out there for an African American.  And we want to know what we can do about it.

We can't assume that George Floyd, Philandro Castile, Breonna Taylor and others whose lives once and continue to matter would have wanted any of this happening in their name.  We do know that we need to change so that history doesn't keep repeating itself.

COVID-19 and George Floyd: Is This The New Normal, Or Just The Same Old One?

In only a few weeks, more than 102,000 people in the United States have died due to COVID-19, also known as coronavirus.  It is a grim milestone made worse by White House indifference, disagreement over how to handle treatment, and state-mandated stay-at-home orders being eased under political pressure to open up a locked-down economy that's thrown millions out of work.

This rush to get back to what is considered normal got sidetracked on Memorial Day in a Minneapolis neighborhood.  An African-American man named George Floyd was arrested by police for allegedly trying to pay for groceries with a counterfeit $20 bill.  He was also unarmed. Instead of simply taking Floyd into custody, arresting officer Derek Chauvin (who is white) was seen on video taking a knee to the back of Floyd's neck.  He was heard complaining that he couldn't breathe.  After nine minutes of this, Floyd died.  Chauvin and the three other officers with him were all fired.  On May 29, Chauvin was arrested and charged with third degree murder and manslaughter.

Viruses may have changed the way we live, but not how African-Americans have been treated through the centuries by those who have felt threatened by their presence.  In the past few weeks alone:

• Ahmoud Arbery was shot and killed as he was jogging through a Georgia neighborhood in February.  It took until May to charge two white men with his murder. 
• Christian Cooper, who was bird-watching in New York's Central Park, confronted a white woman named Amy Cooper about letting her dog run loose.  She responded by calling 911 on him.  She has since apologized, but not before losing her job and her dog due to the negative publicity surrounding this.

Meanwhile, back in Minneapolis, the death of Floyd sent shock waves throughout Minnesota and the world.  This isn't the first time the Twin Cities have gotten up in arms about tragic incidents between unarmed citizens and cops who should have known better.  Remember what happened to Jamar Clark, Philandro Castile and Justine Ruszczyk?  And all the others who got similar treatment, but without the benefit of cameras rolling?

This time, in addition to the peaceful protests of Black Lives Matter and others, they were joined on the streets and highways of Minneapolis and St. Paul by those who saw an opportunity to plunder and destroy all they saw.  Big box stores were looted.  Neighborhood businesses, many of them minority-owned, were in flames.  Dozens of other stores and public transportation suspended their operations. It all culminated with demonstrators setting fire to the Minneapolis police department's Third Precinct building, a symbol of cops who have gone rogue.

Contrast that to state capitals (Lansing, MI and St. Paul, MN come to mind) being overrun by flag-waving, gun-toting, overwhelmingly white (and maskless) individuals heeding President Donald Trump's call to "liberate" their states from stay-at-home restrictions.  With police presence friendly and at a minimum, they demanded the right to get haircuts and having beers with friends inside their favorite watering hole.

Health experts tell us that the number of COVID-19 patients will likely spike because of all this protesting. Despite pleas from local officials to mask up and stay six feet apart, it's unlikely anyone cares about social distancing right now.

Of course, President Trump felt the need to weigh in on Twitter like he does on just about every other issue.  Taking a break from threatening social media for checking up on him and accusing MSNBC talk show host Joe Scarborough of murder, he called the protestors "thugs" (which is now considered a racial slur) and implied that looters could be shot.

After a slow start, state and local leaders are starting to wake up to the situation and called for peace.  Before the Chauvin arrest was announced, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called out the National Guard to patrol the streets, then apologized to CNN for having arrested an African-American reporter and his crew as they were on TV covering the disturbance.

The cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul and surrounding areas have imposed curfews lasting from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Friday and Saturday, and possibly beyond.

This is 2020.  Everyone's lives are in danger because of a virus that has become more unpredictable and deadly as time goes along.  There is another virus that has been going around for centuries, and that's racism.  No matter how many strides African Americans and other nonwhite citizens have made, the dominant culture has continued to treat them like second-class citizens or worse.  There are no vaccines for either of them.  We have to do what we can with what we've got to survive.