Tuesday, January 31, 2023
Apart
Washington Post: Opinion - America is in a ‘Great Pulling Apart.’ Can we pull together? By Danielle Allen
Finally, there’s the challenge that social media has blasted one of the original pillars of our Constitution out from under us. Geographic dispersal of the citizenry was supposed to mean that people had to go through elected representatives to get their views into the public sphere.
Merton
"Do not be too quick to assume your enemy is a savage just because he is your enemy. Perhaps he is your enemy because he thinks you are a savage. Or perhaps he is afraid of you because he feels that you are afraid of him. And perhaps if he believed you are capable of loving him he would no longer be your enemy." - Thomas Merton, monk, writer 1915-1968
Michael Luttig
“What Nixon did was just an ordinary crime,” Luttig says. “What Trump has done is quite arguably the worst crime against the United States that a president could commit.”
It's Improving
NY Times: Will Americans Even Notice an Improving Economy? By Paul Krugman
Imagine that your picture of the U.S. economy came entirely from headlines and cable news chyrons. Would you know that real gross domestic product has risen 6.7 percent under President Biden, that America gained 4.5 million jobs in 2022 and that inflation over the past six months, which was indeed very high last winter, was less than 2 percent at an annual rate?
The Market On Tuesday
Good morning. At 6:50 a.m. ET DOW futures are -145, S&P futures are -17.25, and NASDAQ futures are -72. The market is poised to open significantly lower.
Monday, January 30, 2023
Georgia
Washington Post via MSN: The crimes Trump could be charged with in Fulton County, Georgia Story By Aaron Blake
Solicitation to commit election fraud
This involves inducing someone else to commit a crime involving an election. There are both felony and misdemeanor versions, depending upon whether the underlying crime is a felony or misdemeanor.
Details
Washington Post: Opinion - Awful new details about the Durham probe demand a serious response By Greg Sargent
...the (Senate) Judiciary Committee is in a position to investigate the Barr-Durham escapades.
Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), the Judiciary Committee chair, is signaling such an intent.
Complicit
NY Times: You Don’t Have to Be Complicit in Our Culture of Destruction By David Marchese
In Potawatomi ways of thinking, we uphold humility. Edbesendowen is the word that we give for it: somebody who doesn’t think of himself or herself as more important than others. What that means is that everybody is as important as you are, and what that creates is this sense of vitality and community and family.
Case
Fascinating, this article comes out on the heals of a CNN clip on why Trump was not indicted for Stormy Daniels. Who do we believe. The proof is in the pudding, either Trump is indicted or not.
A conviction is not a sure thing, in part because a case could hinge on showing that Mr. Trump and his company falsified records to hide the payout from voters days before the 2016 election, a low-level felony charge that would be based on a largely untested legal theory.
War
Washington Post: Along front-line river, this deadly road shows toll of Russia’s war By Siobhán O'Grady and Anastacia Galouchka
The (Dnieper) river limits territorial advances, permitting — for now at least — only destruction from a distance.
Pattern
Washington Post: Opinion - The economy keeps defying media expectations. It’s part of a pattern. By Jennifer Rubin
(Biden said) “I’m not sure the news could have been any better — economic growth is up stronger than experts expected, 2.9 percent...I don’t think it’s unfair to say that this is all evidence that [the] Biden economic plan is actually working.”
Blame
Like any good liar, Mr. Trump succeeded by building his lies off a truth; people no longer trust the federal government because they see its corroded institutions as corrupted for the few against the many.
The Market On Monday
Good morning at 6:50 a.m. ET DOW futures are -254, S&P futures are -41.5, and NASDAQ futures are -170.25. The market is poised to open significantly lower.
Friday, January 27, 2023
Profile
He was very angry about having to pay child support.
Four killed in Rothschild, Wis., on March 22, 2017
Rural
NY Times: Can Anything Be Done to Assuage Rural Rage? By Paul Krugman
...depend on two things: whether it’s possible to improve rural lives and restore rural communities, and whether the voters in these communities will give politicians credit for any improvements that do take place.
War
Washington Post: Ukraine faces logistics hurdles ahead of tank deliveries By Loveday Morris, Emily Rauhala, Dan Lamothe and David L. Stern
But the broader package pieced together this week by the United States and other European nations includes a hodgepodge of tank models, each with different delivery times and unique logistical hurdles.
North Carolina
NY Times: Anti-Gay? Anti-Science? Antisemitic? Run for Governor of North Carolina! By Frank Bruni
The likeliest Republican nominee, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson...He’d be the state’s first Black governor...and he’s extremism incarnate: gun-loving, gay-hating and primed for conspiracy theories, with a garnish of antisemitism to round out the plate.
The Market On Friday
Good morning. At 7:05 a.m. ET DOW futures are -21, S&P futures are -9.75, and NASDAQ futures are -55.25. The market is poised to open moderately lower.
Thursday, January 26, 2023
The Deep Corruption Within The Trump Administration
Mr. Barr and Mr. Durham never disclosed that their inquiry expanded in the fall of 2019, based on a tip from Italian officials, to include a criminal investigation into suspicious financial dealings related to Mr. Trump. The specifics of the tip and how they handled the investigation remain unclear, but Mr. Durham brought no charges over it.
Reckless
Facebook gives Trump a second chance and Trump hasn't changed in the least little bit, in fact he's worse than ever.
DeSantis
DeSantis is the new Lester Maddox.
Washington Post: Backlash grows against DeSantis decision to block AP African American studies class By Lori Rozsa
His legal team noted that a federal judge found a 2010 law in Arizona that banned a Mexican American studies program from Tucson schools unconstitutional and officials “motivated by racial animus.”
R.N.C.
In a way this is a meaningless article. What is of interest is that Trump does not have 100% support. In my opinion he is the presumptive nominee for the GOP for 2024.
“This isn’t 2016,” said Mac Brown, the chairman of the Republican Party of Kentucky. “People have moved on.”
GDP
NY Times: G.D.P. ReportThe U.S. Economy Is Set for Solid Growth
Forecasters predict that a rise in fourth-quarter gross domestic product will exceed the pace seen before the pandemic, as a strong job market and cooling inflation allowed Americans to keep spending.
The Market On Thursday
Good morning. At 7:00 a.m. ET DOW futures are -23, S&P futures are +6.75, and NASDAQ futures are +68. The market is poised to open mixed.
CNN: Stocks mixed ahead of America's economic report card By Paul R. La Monica
Wednesday, January 25, 2023
Plan
Washington Post: Opinion - Democrats have a two-part plan to use the debt ceiling against Republicans By Jennifer Rubin
Part 1: Lay out the simple argument that Republicans are recklessly inviting an economic meltdown even by talking about a possible default.
Part 2: Force House Republicans to put forward a plan on the table and watch as they struggle with the fallout.
Rural
In terms of major factors driving the urban-rural split, our analysis shows that rural Republican areas are becoming more Republican predominantly due to voters in these places switching their partisanship to Republican. This is in contrast to urban areas becoming increasingly more Democratic largely due to the high levels of Democratic partisanship in these areas among new voters entering the electorate. These new voters include young voters registering once they become eligible and other new voters registering for the first time.
Have An Excellent Wednesday
Artwork By Jo Stephen, contemporary UK photographer, ecologist and artist
Putin
Washington Post: Opinion - Are we seeing the beginning of the end of Putinism? By Michael McFaul
The only reasonable conclusion: Putin understands that Russia is losing in Ukraine.
Wisconsin
The April race, for a seat on the state’s evenly divided Supreme Court, will determine the fate of abortion rights, gerrymandered legislative maps and the governor’s appointment powers — and perhaps even the state’s 2024 presidential election if the outcome is again contested.
War
NY Times: Russia-Ukraine War - Germany Confirms It Will Send Leopard Tanks to Ukraine
Germany says it will send an initial shipment of 14 tanks to Ukraine.
Leopard 2 tanks could help Ukraine in a new Russian offensive.
The Market On Wednesday
Good morning. At 7:30 a.m. ET DOW futures are -194, S&P futures are -33, and NASDAQ futures are -160.25. The market is poised to open significantly lower.
Tuesday, January 24, 2023
Grant
One of the very few incidents where a presidents got into hot water with the law.
LOL
Please tell me I'm not the only person in America who does NOT have classified documents in their garage.
Stephanie Ruhle - Former Top FBI Counterintelligence Agent Arrested
Answer
Washington Post: Opinion - The only way to stop senseless mass shootings? You know the answer. By Eugene Robinson
According to the Switzerland-based Small Arms Survey, there are 393 million firearms in the United States, which has a population of roughly 334 million.
Unmask
Washington Post: Opinion 4 big ways Democrats can unmask MAGA extremism — and help the country By Greg Sargent
1. Use amendments to highlight GOP divisions
DeSantis
NY Times: Ron DeSantis Likes His Culture Wars for a Reason By Jamelle Bouie
By leaning into high-profile battles as a culture warrior par excellence for the most reactionary segment of the American public...DeSantis has made himself the hero of conservative elites...
The Market On Tuesday
Good morning. At 7:35 a.m. ET implied DOW futures are -104, implied S&P futures are -11.25, and implied NASDAQ futures are -48.25. The market is poised to open significantly lower.
Monday, January 23, 2023
Climate
Carbon Brief: State of the climate: How the world warmed in 2022
Greenhouse gases: Concentrations reached record levels for CO2, methane and nitrous oxide.
Last year was the warmest on record for the heat content of the world’s oceans.
37
I posted that there were 36 mass shootings in 2023 in the USA up to January 23rd. I posted too soon. The 37th mass shooting has occurred.
E.P.A.
...the exodus of more than 1,200 scientists and policy experts during the Trump administration.
Pence
Washington Post: Opinion - Mike Pence sits alone in a corner of sadness By David Byler
According to the latest data from Civiqs, he’s the only potential GOP presidential candidate who is well-known but not well-liked.
Extremists
“I will never leave that woman,” Mr. McCarthy, a California Republican, told the friend...
Shooting
The dance hall is popular with older Chinese Americans and draws marquee teachers and high-level performers from around the world.
The Market On Monday
Good morning. I will be using the implied opening numbers starting today. At 6:20 a.m. ET the implied DOW opening is -9.85, the implied S&P opening is -6.34, and the implied NASDAQ opening is -17.21. The market is poised to open moderately lower.
Balkan
The picture tells the story.
Euronews: Big embarrassment': Balkan river becomes floating rubbish dump By Euronews
Friday, January 20, 2023
Not Exactly Our Best And Brightest
Washington Post: Opinion - George Santos is exactly where he belongs By Dana Milbank
Also earning a slot on the committee: Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), a QAnon admirer who helped hatch the claim that Democrats would be arrested en masse after the 2020 election.
Downtown
Washington Post: Opinion - Downtowns are lifeless. It’s a once-in-a-generation chance to revive them. By the Editorial Board
The nation is in the midst of one of the biggest workforce shifts in generations: Many now have experienced what it is like to work from home and have discovered they prefer it.
Garden
"The Poison Garden at the Alnwick Garden in Northumberland, England, is home to more than 100 toxic, intoxicating and narcotic plants. And it's open to public."
