Still Rising Again after All These Years 0
Mike Pence and monumental stupidity:
“. . . and All the Ships at Sea” 0
Badtux has two posts up about the collision between a USN destroyer and an oil tanker near Singapore.
One addresses the undermanning of Navy ships, a legacy of President George the Worst; the other argues persuasively against the theory that, in some way, the guidance system of one of the ships was hacked. I commend them both to your attention.
Revolving Door 0
Alfred Doblin tries to draw conclusions from the departure of Steve Bannon from the White House. He is not optimistic that it portends substantive or positive changes. A nugget:
Judging from the president’s comments since Charlottesville, in which he has stood up for white supremacists and the Confederacy and, in response to terror attacks in Spain, continued to promote a lie about Gen. John Pershing, pig’s-blood-dipped bullets in the early-20th-century Philippines, and Muslim terrorists, Trump cannot help himself from being Trump. So I have limited hope that the removal of Bannon changes everything. But it is a start.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Familial politeness.
Louisiana authorities say a 7-year-old boy shot his aunt two times after she didn’t get him food.
Webster Parish Sheriff Gary Sexton says the child will not be charged with a crime.
He says Louisiana law states a child under the age of 10 cannot form intent, so they do not have the authority to file charges against the boy… even though he loaded and reloaded the gun during the incident.
The police think counseling may be called for. Y’think?
Aside:
Had the aunt been packing, she could have defended herself.
The Hollow Man 0
E. J. Dionne, no fan of Steve Bannon or Bannon’s politics, nevertheless finds a reason to lament his departure from the Trump administration. He points out that, for all his faults, Bannon at least believes in something, however misguided it may be. A snippet:
Is President Trump a populist or a corporatist?
Is he appealing to white supremacists as a form of political opportunism — or because, deep down, he sympathizes with their views? Is he the hard-core “fire and fury” hawk of his North Korea statements? Or is he actually a noninterventionist who disdains foreign engagement?
The answer to all these questions is: Who knows?
There is absolutely no way of establishing what Trump believes. He says whatever he feels he has to say at any given moment to get attention, strike back at foes, or advance his personal (especially economic) interests.
Freedom of Screech 0
Thom wonders about the limits (and there are already limits, as Thom points out) on freedom of speech.
Selective Perception 0
Will Bunch marvels at the ability to Trumpkins, even Trumpkins who have since regretted their support of Trump, to look at Donald Trump and see a person who does not and never has existed.
Aside:
I read the same article that Bunch writes about. The author’s talent for rationalization does rather take one aback.
Cavalcade of Stupid 0
Lance Dotson, a Republican operative from Maine, offers his diagnosis of the Republican Party’s current pathology:
Follow the link for his reasoning.
The Hollow Men 0
Dick Polman reports that, as Trump administration spokespersons were not to be found on the Sunday yak shows, the networks turned to the D-list. He stands aghast at Jerry Falwell, Jr.’s, performance on Meet the Press. Here’s a bit from his column (emphasis added–follow the link for the whole article):
Ah, nope. Falwell replied: “I didn’t hear anything there that would offend somebody.”
Falwell sorta conceded that perhaps Trump could’ve been more sensitive to “my friends in the Jewish community,” that perhaps “he could be more polished and more politically correct.”
(Hang on a sec. Since when is it “politically correct” to condemn Nazis? Didn’t we conclude as a nation, on a bipartisan basis 75 years ago, that Nazis were bad?)
He goes on to report that Falwell asserted that Trump “spoke from his heart.”
If this is indeed the case, and there is no reason to doubt it, said heart is not a pretty place. Nor are the hearts of ones who would defend it.
Protection Money 0
You can’t make this stuff up.
Secret Service Director Randolph “Tex” Alles, in an interview with USA TODAY, said more than 1,000 agents have already hit the federally mandated caps for salary and overtime allowances that were meant to last the entire year.
This is what happens when you run the government like one of Danald Trump’s businesses–one bankruptcy after another.
Via Juanita Jean.