Have an excellent weekend and see you bright and early Monday morning.
'Girl Living Off Grid, Building Water Filter for Clean Water'
Friday, January 29, 2021
She Got Out
“Q managed to make us feel special, that we were being given very critical information that basically was going to save all that is good in the world and the United States,” she said. “We felt we were coming from a place of moral superiority. We were part of a special club.”
Trampled
The footage shows how rioters, in their effort to attack the police, trampled on Ms. Boyland even as her friend, Justin Winchell, shouted that she was dying and needed help.
Asset
Guardian UK: ‘The perfect target’: Russia cultivated Trump as asset for 40 years – ex-KGB spy by David Smith
“This is what they exploited. They played the game as if they were immensely impressed by his personality and believed this is the guy who should be the president of the United States one day: it is people like him who could change the world. They fed him these so-called active measures soundbites and it happened. So it was a big achievement for the KGB active measures at the time.”
Doom
NY Times: The G.O.P. Is in a Doom Loop of Bizarro But will it doom the rest of us, too? By Paul Krugman
The Republican Party is stuck, probably irreversibly, in a doom loop of bizarro. If the Trump-incited Capitol insurrection didn’t snap the party back to sanity — and it didn’t — nothing will.
Ties
Mr. Gosar had paid a visit to the local Oath Keepers chapter a few years earlier, Mr. Arroyo recounted, and when asked if the United States was headed for a civil war, the congressman’s “response to the group was just flat out: ‘We’re in it. We just haven’t started shooting at each other yet.’”
The Market On Friday
Good morning. At 6:35 a.m. ET DOW futures are -210; the market is poised to open significantly lower.
CNN: Inside the Reddit army that's crushing Wall Street Story by Jon Sarlin,
Thursday, January 28, 2021
Death Threats
Jae Crowder is an NBA basketball player and not a politician.
Yahoo News: Jae Crowder says he's been receiving 'overwhelming number of death threats' by Jason Owens
Tips
NY Times: 17 Cooking Tips Our Food Staff Swears By Reporters and editors share the advice that changed their home cooking. By Becky Hughes
Who Knew
Washington Post: Who could have predicted the Capitol riot? Plenty of people — including Trump allies. By Aaron Blake
The day before the attack, former top Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon said on his podcast, “All hell is going to break loose tomorrow. Just understand this: All hell is going to break loose tomorrow. It’s going to be moving. It’s going to be quick.”
Variant
Washington Post: Coronavirus variant first seen in South Africa identified in South Carolina By Joel Achenbach and Carolyn Y. Johnson
The B. 1.351 variant, first identified in South Africa in December and containing mutations that appear to enhance transmission, is considered by scientists to be even more worrisome than the more widely publicized B.1.1.7 variant first seen in the United Kingdom.
Nut
Washington Post: The GOP’s Marjorie Taylor Greene problem is spinning out of control By Aaron Blake
She also liked comments suggesting execution for FBI agents who were viewed as working with the “deep state” against then-President Donald Trump.
The Market On Thursday
Good morning. At 7:35 a.m. ET the DOW is +53; the market is poised to open moderately higher.
CNN: Europe has a vaccine shortage. So why is it fighting with AstraZeneca? By Charles Riley
Wednesday, January 27, 2021
Trump's Cannon Fodder
AZ Central: Jake Angeli, Phoenix man who raided U.S. Capitol in fur hat and horns, transported to D.C. by Richard Ruelas
Angeli was initially charged in Phoenix, but a more extensive grand jury indictment was filed in D.C. As charged, Angeli would face 28 years in prison.
Son
As for others grappling with whether to come forward about someone they believe could be involved in something dangerous, “you’re not just protecting yourself, but you’re protecting them as well,” he said.
Warning
Washington Post: Homeland security bulletin warns Americans about violence by grievance-fueled domestic extremists By Nick Miroff
“Throughout 2020, Domestic Violent Extremists (DVEs) targeted individuals with opposing views engaged in First Amendment-protected, nonviolent protest activity,” the bulletin states. “DVEs motivated by a range of issues, including anger over covid-19 restrictions, the 2020 election results, and police use of force have plotted and on occasion carried out attacks against government facilities.”
Road
“Once people buy into the concept that the government is an evil organization trying at every turn to harm them, it is easy for people to essentially radicalize themselves and find others who agree..."
The Market On Wednesday
Good morning. At 6:25 a.m. ET DOW futures are -161; the market is poised to open significantly lower.
CNN: Walmart's latest strategy to get your stuff to you faster By Nathaniel Meyersohn
Tuesday, January 26, 2021
Ended
Axios: The week the Trump show ended by Neal Rothschild, Sara Fischer
Stories about Biden generated 36 million more interactions (likes, comments, shares) on social media than Trump last week, according to exclusive data from NewsWhip. During the campaign, Biden was never within 18 million interactions of Trump.
Emerging
Washington Post: The Trump era’s depredations are still emerging Opinion by Editorial Board
At the time, the nation did not know how close it got to a nightmare scenario: a defeated president using his residual power over the Justice Department in an effort to cling to power.
The Market On Tuesday
Good morning. At 6:45 a.m. ET DOW futures are +24; the market is poised to open slightly higher.
CNN: MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell has been banned from Twitter By Donie O'Sullivan
Monday, January 25, 2021
Flag
But it has also been flown by white supremacists, appearing next to Confederate flags at the 2017 ‘Unite the Right’ rally in Charlottesville.
Why
Washington Post: Why is it so hard to deprogram Trumpian conspiracy theorists?
But to find the right antidote, we need to at least accurately diagnose who has taken the poison. And that means acknowledging that those who sympathize with the Capitol insurrectionists are not far-off lunatics. Some, most likely, are your neighbors.
Dominion Sues Giuliani
Yahoo News: Dominion Voting Systems sues Rudy Giuliani over false election claims, seeks $1.3 billion by Rebecca Shabad
...“as a result of the defamatory falsehoods peddled by Giuliani” in conjunction with other Trump allies and pro-Trump media outlets, “Dominion’s founder and employees have been harassed and received death threats, and Dominion has suffered unprecedented and irreparable harm.”
Jon
Guardian UK: Jon Bon Jovi on wealth, love and his ugly tussle with Trump: 'It was seriously scarring' by Hadley Freeman
“I was really shocked at the depths [Trump] went to. He wasn’t even qualified to buy the team, because you have to submit your tax returns, and he never filed the paperwork. Instead, he did this dark shadow assassination thing, hoping to buy the team at a bargain basement price. But I just couldn’t understand how this misinformation was being put out there. It was seriously scarring..."
The Market On Monday
Good morning. At 6:45 a.m. ET DOW futures are +8; the market is poised to open flat.
CNN: CEOs stepped up during the Trump era. They're not off the hook By Julia Horowitz
Friday, January 22, 2021
Weekend!
Have an excellent weekend and see you bright and early Monday monring.
'Under Capricorn' 1949 - full movie - by Alfred Hitchcock with Ingrid Bergman,
'Under Capricorn' 1949 - full movie - by Alfred Hitchcock with Ingrid Bergman,
PBS - Trump Leaves Office Facing Mounting Debt, Devalued Assets And Scarcity Of Willing Lenders
Is this the reason why Trump worked at staging a coup and an insurrection. Is it this simple.
It Gets Worse
The Justice Department’s top leaders listened in stunned silence this month: One of their peers, they were told, had devised a plan with President Donald J. Trump to oust Jeffrey A. Rosen as acting attorney general and wield the department’s power to force Georgia state lawmakers to overturn its presidential election results.
Paid
Bloomberg: Trump Campaign Paid Organizers of Pre-Riot Rally $2.7 Million By Bill Allison
The payments, which span Trump’s re-election campaign, show an ongoing financial relationship between the rally’s organizers and Trump’s political operation.
Survived
And Congress, designed to check and challenge a lawless president, struggled to do its job on account of partisanship and party loyalty.
Action
The orders Mr. Biden will sign Friday would increase the weekly value of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, commonly known as food stamps, for about 12 million families who depend on the program the most, according to White House estimates.
The Market On Friday
Good morning. At 6:25 a.m. ET DOW futures are -268; the market is poised to open significantly lower.
Thursday, January 21, 2021
Crisis
Washington Post: Trump steps out of the White House and into a company in crisis
Ely said the Trump Organization is a relatively small operation, which relies heavily on the work of others — lawyers and real estate brokers, and investors who paid to have Trump’s name on their buildings. Now, some of those outsiders are pulling away. “He’s done enormous reputational damage to himself,” Ely said.
Comment
The Biden-Harris Administration has been in power for little over one day, and we can already feel the positive changes. In my opinion Trump literally became hopelessly unglued especially in this last year, and considering he was on shaky ground mentally from day one, the fall was deep. It would appear that Trump's lust for power and approval really rattled the man, and that lust only grew more powerful and consuming over time just as addiction might be experienced. It feels good with Trump gone, it's a relief, we all are sleeping better. The thought of Trump with his finger on the nuclear button was terrifying. I suspect that over time Trump will appear worse and worse as the depths of his craven administration are brought to light. Already we are reading that Trump had no plan for Covid. That's stunning yet we're not surprised as Trump did not seem to have a plan for anything beyond his own moment to moment edification. Most of Trump's presidency was a deliberate and elaborate shell game which attempted to hide his deep inability to lead and his fundamental ineptness. Most of us never bought in and recognized the con for what it was and is. We are still dismayed at those that fell for the con.
It's a good time for renewal both with how we think about our country and about ourselves. This is a good time to build friendships, become productive and creative in the face of Covid, and to simply stay informed. We can't let this slip away, we can't let the House fall to the GOP in 2022. This is where the energy needs to go politically. The thought of a GOP House filled with more QAnon conspiracy nuts and the like is not good. This can't happen.
Epitaph
Americans have always been divided about troubling events, but until Trump, there was at least broad agreement about what those events were. Arguing with Trump’s supporters, one is presented with narratives that bear as much relationship to what happened as creationism does to the theory of evolution.
Democracy
Washington Post: Democracy survived, barely By Robin Givhan
“We’ve learned again that democracy is precious. Democracy is fragile,” said Biden in his inaugural address. “At this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed.”
Redeemed
Washington Post: A president replaced. A nation redeemed. Opinion by Dana Milbank
The defeated president departed in typically vulgar fashion: He granted late-night pardons to scores of crooks and cronies after some clemency-seeking felons paid Trump allies lavishly; and ordered a last-minute cancellation of his “drain-the-swamp” ban on former aides becoming lobbyists or foreign agents.
Charlottesville
The Market On Thursday
Good morning. At 7:45 a.m. ET DOW futures are +65, the market is poised to open moderately higher.
CNN: Newspapers around the world react to Biden's inauguration By Rob Picheta
Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Today
“The Hill We Climb,”
When day comes we ask ourselves, where can we find light in this never-ending shade? The loss we carry, a sea we must wade. We’ve braved the belly of the beast. We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace. In the norms and notions of what just is isn’t always justice.
And yet, the dawn is ours before we knew it. Somehow, we do it. Somehow, we’ve weathered and witnessed a nation that isn’t broken, but simply unfinished. We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting for one.
And yes, we are far from polished, far from pristine, but that doesn’t mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect. We are striving to forge our union with purpose, to compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and conditions of man.
And so, we lift our gazes not to what stands between us, but what stands before us. We close the divide because we know, to put our future first, we must first put our differences aside. We lay down our arms so we can reach out our arms to one another. We seek harm to none and harmony for all. Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true. That even as we grieved, we grew. That even as we hurt, we hoped; that even as we tired, we tried; that we’ll forever be tied together, victorious. Not because we will never again know defeat, but because we will never again sow division.
Scripture tells us to envision that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid. If we’re to live up to our own time, then victory won’t lie in the blade, but in all the bridges we’ve made. That is the promise to glade, the hill we climb if only we dare it. Because being American is more than a pride we inherit; it’s the past we step into and how we repair it. We’ve seen a forest that would shatter our nation rather than share it, would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy. And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated. In this truth, in this faith we trust, for while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us. This is the era of just redemption. We feared it at its inception. We did not feel prepared to be the heirs of such a terrifying hour, but within it, we found the power to author a new chapter, to offer hope and laughter to ourselves.
So, while once we asked: “How could we possibly prevail over catastrophe?” Now we assert, “How could catastrophe possibly prevail over us?”
We will not march back to what was, but move to what shall be: a country that is bruised, but whole; benevolent, but bold; fierce and free. We will not be turned around or interrupted by intimidation, because we know our inaction and inertia will be the inheritance of the next generation. Our blunders become their burdens. But one thing is certain, if we merge mercy with might, and might with right, then love becomes our legacy, and change our children’s birthright.
So, let us leave behind a country better than one we were left. With every breath from my bronze-pounded chest, we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one. We will rise from the gold-limned hills of the West. We will rise from the wind-swept Northeast where our forefathers first realized revolution. We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the Midwestern states. We will rise from the sun-baked South. We will rebuild, reconcile and recover in every known nook of our nation, in every corner called our country our people diverse and beautiful will emerge battered and beautiful.
When day comes, we step out of the shade aflame and unafraid. The new dawn blooms as we free it. For there is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.
Undo
NY Times: On Day 1, Biden Moves to Undo Trump’s Legacy - President Biden signed a series of executive orders on issues including immigration and criminal justice. And he moved to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord. by
And in a strike at Mr. Trump’s most cherished ambition, the construction of a border wall between the United States and Mexico — which was devised to keep immigrants out of the country — Mr. Biden halted construction as his administration examines the legality of the wall’s funding and contracts.
46 Is Here
Washington Post: Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th president, pleads for unity in inaugural address to a divided nation By Toluse Olorunnipa and Annie Linskey
“This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge,” Biden said in an inaugural address that called on the nation to end its “uncivil war” and embrace a united front amid a series of daunting problems. “Unity is the path forward. And we must meet this moment as the United States of America. If we do that, I guarantee you we will not fail.
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'Tara Owl'
4 feet by 2 1/2 feet acrylic paint on canvas
