Annual Appalachian Bat Count

 My dad and I counted bats for the Pennsylvania Game Commission since since the 1990s.  Dad died in 2006, but he always enjoyed sitting out in a lawn chair at dusk counting them as they emerged from our attic, or the porch roof, or the shed.  I have continued in his footsteps.

In 2008/2009 Pennsylvania bats were devastated by a disease called “White Nose Syndrome.”  ln some areas over 90% of little brown bats died, and our own bats suffered something close to that.  The numbers have gotten better, however, and here is a copy of my report for this year.

I’ve enclosed the sheets for the three locations.  As for the house, I think it would be safe to remove that from the data base in future years.  We have not had any bats in the attic for years, nor above the house porch.  HOWEVER, we did have two bats IN the house in June and July.  The first one had the largest wing span of any bat I’ve seen around here, and I assume it was a big brown bat.  The second one, a few weeks later, was a little brown bat.  Both were let out safely after we opened doors to the outside  I don’t know how they got in, but sometimes we leave the cellar door open, and they may have come up that way.

In March a roofer “bat proofed” the Kibler School.  He said he would not guarantee his work.  The problem was that the growing colony of bats in the school were starting to leave a layer of bat crap in the attic.  Anyway, when I went over in August just to check, I counted 21 in an area below where the roofer worked.  The recount the next evening was 29–I think I had a bad angle the first night. 

We had moved the bat house that was on the north side of the school to a dead tree about 20 feet away with a southern exposure.  Unfortunately, no bats have ever gone into the house, so we now moved it to the shed next to an existing bat house.  

As for the previously existing bat house on the shed, we definitely had bats earlier in the year, but in August I did not count one bat coming out of that house.  We did have individual bats in the shed itself judging from little piles of bat guano at two spots on the floor.  I also left open the door to a small shed where we once kept goats, but no bats are using that.  Hopefully, next year the large new bat house will attract some residents.

The mail and Social Security

When House members were questioning Postmaster Louis DeJoy about the delays in the mail, one defense I heard was that the Social Security only mailed out checks to one percent of the recipients, so old people didn’t have to worry.  What was not mentioned was that comes to roughly 850,000 recipients.  Those women and men are also probably the poorest and most vulnerable, since they don’t have bank accounts or credit cards.

The Social Security administration also mails out statements, notices, and other information.  Social Security field offices have also been closed, meaning that even more business is done by mail.  In all the Social Security Administration sends out about 350 pieces of mail annually.

DeJoy said the mail slowdown had nothing to do with the election.  In a way, that makes it worse.  This wasn’t something done deliberately with a purpose.  It was done through sheer incompetence.  

"Systemic racism"

 Both Biden and Harris have used that term in speeches.  I think that was a mistake; I don’t believe most people will understand what it means.

So here is an example of systemic racism.  (Institutional or structural racism are similar terms.)

The Hortons live in Jacksonville, Florida, in a nice neighborhood where homes sell from $350,000 to $550,000.  They decided to take advantage of the low rates for a re-fi and had their house appraised.  The appraisal came in at $330,000, which their own bank thought was low.  The bank ordered a second appraisal.

Ms. Horton, an attorney who happens to be black, was suspicious.  She took down family photos and substituted a series of oil paintings of her husband, who is white, and his grandparents.  She took the Toni Morrison and Zora Neale Hurston books off the shelves.  She put up Christmas cards from white friends.  On the day of the appraisal she and the couple’s six-year-old son went shopping, and her husband talked to the appraiser.  The new appraised value was $465,000.

Do you think the first appraiser was a bigot?  Racially prejudiced?  I doubt it.  But he or she entered that house with certain preconceptions, certain predispositions, certain expectations, all probably subconscious.  And that, my friends, is systemic/institutional/structural racism.

For a detailed account of how appraisals for black and white homeowners can differ, see Debra Kamin, “An Appraisal that ‘Kind of Broke’ One Homeowner,”  New York Times, (Aug. 29, 2020), pp. B1, B4.

Does Trump have dementia

Did you watch Trump’s speech last night?  The one where he violated the Hatch Act by using government property for political purposes.  The one where he spoke for 70 minutes and bored his captive audience half to death, although the other half will probably come from contracting the Covid-19 virus by sitting packed together without wearing masks.  That one.

I didn’t either, but I heard he was stumbling, had trouble reading simple lines from a teleprompter, and fell flat.  Maybe he is getting dementia.  Talking about about bleach cures and UV lights and air force actions during the War of 1812 would certainly indicate that. 

Directing your anger

 Yesterday I noticed that one of my neighbors, George G., had stuck a Trump yard sign in his front yard.  George is probably in his late eighties or early nineties.  His wife is prejudiced against gays.  He could not tell you about separation of powers, the federal system, or how using the White House as political prop violates the Hatch Act.  He may have heard of global climate change, but probably thinks this warming trend will soon go the other way.  He never met a Mexican farmworker.  It is not that he is a “deplorable,” he’s just uninformed–an old Pennsylvania Dutchman whom I once worked with who gave me rides to work.  I like him and his wife, who, I can attest, is a really good baker.

Then there is Pat Toomey.  A U.S. Senator who knows about the Hatch Act, has a good understanding of the separation of powers, and knows Trump is an ignorant clown.  Toomey is part of the Club for Growth, a conservative organization that cares little about anything except making money on the stock market.  The stock market is riding high.  Will Toomey criticize Trump?  Will he call him to account?  Of course not.  He will sell his soul if it brings him a profit.

I can forgive George G.  I cannot, and will not, forgive Toomey.  Toomey is a willing pawn who puts his self-interest above that of the nation.  Toomey is the one with whom we should be disgusted.

Nice people out there

 It is refreshing to realize that while the Trump convention is playing out, there are still very nice and well-meaning people out there.  Tonight I was carrying Biden signs into the Democratic Headquarters in Lehighton.  I said hello to a young woman on the sidewalk.  When I came out she was still standing by my car, and she asked me if I wanted help carrying in the rest of the boxes.  I told her I could do it, but I thanked her and told her how much I appreciated the offer.

Then a guy saw me carrying in the signs and asked where he could get a “Republicans for Biden” sign.  He said he was a Republican who was anti-Trump.  I told him I would find out and let him know.

Later I was taking down the “This is Biden Country” sign on Rt. 443.  We have to do this every night and put it up every morning.  Otherwise the Trumpists steal it.  A guy pulled over and, in an angry voice, said “Why are you taking down that sign?”  I explained why I was doing that.  He said “Good,” and gave me a thumbs up.

Finally, I stopped along Pohopoco Drive to pick up some trash.  A guy stopped and asked if I needed help.  I told him I was fine and thanked him.  

In the space of less than an hour, four very nice people.  

Wild Polio Eradicated in Africa

 The Republican Convention is underway, but I can’t bear to watch it.  I know it will feature nasty people lying and saying mean things.  So instead of writing about that, I thought I’d say something positive.

Wild polio has been eradicated in Africa.  “Future generations of African children can live free of wild poliovirus,” according to Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization’s director for Africa.  

You can still get polio in Africa, but it is a strain that is derived from insufficient vaccinations.  It occurs when not all children in an area are vaccinated, and the virus mutates and affects children who have not received the vaccination.

I am generally opposed to cruel and unusual punishment, but I think anti-vaxxers should be lined up and forced to listen to Trump speeches until they beg for mercy.

Information for this post was taken from Ruth MacClean, “Africa Cheers As Wild Polio Is Eradicated,” New York Times, (Aug. 25, 2020), p. A9.

Pennsylvania Farmers' Union

 Last week I was visited by a recruiter for the Farm Bureau Federation.  He was well-informed, pleasant, and made a case for why I should join.  In a past life I taught a course called “Interest Groups,” and as I remembered it, the Farm Bureau Federation was a very establishment, fairly conservative interest group that mainly represented corporate farms.  

I told the recruiter this, but promised I would do some research and let him know.  I emailed my friend Tom, who is knowledgeable about all things agricultural, and he reaffirmed my instincts.

When I went on the website for the Pennsylvania Farmers’ Union, one of the first things that struck me was the reference to climate change and what farmers could do about it.  That was enough.  Today I joined the Pennsylvania Farmers’ Union.  

Idiots in Cambodia

 In just four days Luon Sovath, a Buddhist monk who spent decades fighting for human rights in Cambodia, had his reputation destroyed in a Facebook campaign instituted by the government.  On Facebook he was accused of sleeping with his three sisters and their mother.  Then the government-controlled religious council defrocked him, based on the Facebook page.  He had to flee the country to live in exile.  

Why would people in Cambodia believe such crap?  That would be as if hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. believed that Hillary Clinton and George Soros were involved in a child pornography ring and actually drank the blood of small children.  And as if our President spoke highly of those people.  

Oh, wait....

The info on the Cambodian monk is from Hannah Beech and Sun Narin, “How a Regime Used Facebook To Tar a Critic,” New York Times, (Aug. 23, 2020), pp. 1, 12.

Arctic Oil Leases

 In any other administration this would be big news, but bad things are happening now with such rapidity that we can’t keep up.

This week the Interior Department announced that it would begin preparations to auction off drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the largest remaining wilderness area in the United States.  

Do we need this oil?  No.

Will this lead to climate problems?  Yes.

Do any of the thousands of people in Northeast Pennsylvania with Trump flags in front of their houses even know about this, and if they do, do they care?  You can answer that one.

See Brad Plumer and Henry Fountain, “U;S. Plans to Auction Oil Leases as Arctic Protections End,”  New York Times, (Aug. 18, 2020), p. A 21.

Democratic Convention Review

 I did not watch every minute, but I did get all of the highlights,.  

I don’t think we will ever see a return to the previous type of convention, with its cheering delegates, cavernous halls, boring speeches, and endless commentary from the talking heads.  It just makes for lousy tv.

This convention was fun to watch.  The four MCs were very good, the roll call of the states was absolutely marvelous, and some of the speeches were both moving and inspiring, including those by Michelle and Barack Obama.  

The Party showcased its diversity; Republicans will try to do that, but their diversity will be from way right to even further right, from the Tea Party to Q-Anon.

One of the best things was having all the defeated presidential candidates speak.  They were like veterans of a war who could reminisce about the battles they fought.  I liked them all, and it is clear that any one of them would have governed well.

I will admit to worrying about Biden’s speech, but I didn’t have to.  If he can repeat that kind of passion and conviction during the debates, he will blow Trump out of the water.

I am not looking forward to the debacle we will be seeing next week.

Save the Post Office

 Today we held a small demonstration in Jim Thorpe to support the U.S. Postal Service.  About 20 people stood along 209 by the Courthouse Annex  with signs.  We  pointed out that Ben Franklin started the Post Office, but now Louis DeJoy was wrecking it.  We noted that vets and seniors got their medicine by postal delivery.  We pointed out that many seniors receive their checks through the Post Office.  We noted that the slowdown was deliberate.

The response was heartening.  People waved, gave thumbs up, honked their horns, and spoke to us.  After the demonstration we took flowers and cupcakes down to the Jim Thorpe Post Office to thank the postal employees for their hard work and service.

It is truly amazing that the Trump administration is doing its best to wreck an American institution as beloved as the Post Office.  Maybe it isn’t amazing. 

Witch hunt? Not really.

The Senate panel, controlled by Republicans, spent three years investigating Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.  The panel issued its report yesterday.  It’s 1000 pages long, and I didn’t read it.  I did read the conclusion:

The Russian government disrupted an American election to help Trump get elected.  

The report showed all kinds of contacts between Russian intelligence figures and Trump campaign personnels, but it did not implicate Trump directly.  

The Russians are doing the same thing, only now they are even more sophisticated.  Trump is the Manchurian candidate, serving a foreign master.  He must not be re-elected. 

14,000 signs

 In today’s Morning Call there’s an article about all the Trump voters in the coal regions to our north.  The article mentions a guy in Olyphant who has been given 14,000 signs by the Trump campaign for pickup.  14,000!  Given!  We had to pay for a measly 200, and who knows when our next shipment will be coming.  What is wrong with these Democratic campaigns?  If I hear one more consultant say “signs don’t vote,” I am going straight for his jugular.

The Democratic Convention

 I love being a Democrat.  All those Latinos, Blacks, Asian-Americans, gays, women, radicals, conservatives, auto workers, teachers, nurses, farmers, old white guys.  What a big tent we have.  

After watching the first night, I am certain that we will never see another convention of the traditional kind.  This one had the hallmarks of a good variety show–excellent MC, great music, a variety of guests (it was nice to see Christine Todd Whitman, one-time head of the EPA when Republicans were environmentalists), and mercifully short speeches.  And Michelle Obama laid out the case for Biden in a masterful way.

Fired up, ready to go.

Let's move to Canada

 Here is an amazing factoid.  Last Tuesday, August 11, Covid-19 killed 1450 people in the U.S.  That same day in Canada Covid-19 killed four people.  

Draw your own conclusions.

Letter to Sen. Toomey on the USPS

I wrote to Senator Toomey tonight about funding the USPS.  It seemed more appropriate to send an actual letter with an actual stamp than it was to call or email.  I tried to keep politics out of it, although I did slam “my” president.  

Here’s a copy.

Senator Pat Toomey

248 Russell Senate Office Building

United States Senate

Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Senator Toomey:

Under my health plan Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plan, administered by the company OPTUM Rx, my monthly prescription drugs are mailed to me by the U.S. Postal Service.  They include pills for high blood pressure and prostate problems.  (I was treated for prostate cancer five years ago.)  

I also am rather old fashioned–I communicate with our daughter and grandson in California by letters.  I think letters are much more personal. 

It is difficult to believe that our postmaster is deliberately trying to delay mail.  I can’t believe that my president would appoint such a man and evidently, from what I’ve read, encourage the mail delays.  If the Post Office needs money to do its job, then Congress should appropriate that money.  Millions of people depend on timely mail delivery.  I’m one of them.

I hope you and your colleagues can fix this.  

Sincerely,

Roy Christman 

Methane madness

 Methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases.  Recent research has found that more methane is leaking into the atmosphere than previously thought.

In answer to this the Trump administration has weakened the rules on methane releases.  Under the new regulations, oil and gas companies no longer are required to detect leaks and fix them.

Sometimes when I drive past a house with a Trump sign, I want to stop the car, get out, go up on the porch, ring the bell, and when someone comes to the door, look at the person and say, “Don’t you understand what is happening?  Are you nuts?”

OK, I have not done that, but I am working to get Biden/Harris yard signs out and to get Biden supporters to vote by mail as early as possible.  Our democracy is under threat (see post office cutbacks), our belief in rationality is under attack (see Q/Anon candidates winning office), our ability to deal with crises is impaired (see over 1000 dead every day for the last two weeks from Covid 19), and our very planet is in increasing danger (see above).  

By the way, the methane information was in today’s New York Times on page A24.  One of the worst things this administration has done on global warming, and it is on page 24.  You can’t keep up with the constant shit storm from this administration.

Ted Cruz, Russian Dupe

Recently a video showed protestors in Portland burning a stack of Bibles.  As the fire burned, they threw in American flags.  Within hours the video went viral.  The New York Post ran a story about it.  Ted Cruz saw the video and released a statement, “This is who they are.”

The problem is that the whole video was produced by Russians doing their best to ensure Trump’s re-election.  The video was made by a Kremlin financed news agency RT.  The Russians also produce videos to enflame racial tensions and spread fear.  

I don’t know how you tell the difference between real and fake videos.  We don’t have independent checks on this sort of thing.  Reliable newspapers are going bankrupt or being bought by hedge funds that don’t care for accuracy.  Fox News certainly won’t investigate.  

We will be inundated with videos and stories produced by countries and individuals who have an interest in wrecking this country.  They are having amazing success.

See Matthew Rosenberg and Julian E. Barnes, “Bible Burning Video Goes Viral, A Win for Russia Disinformation,” New York Times, (Aug. 12, 2020), p. A1, A22.

Letter to Donald Trump, Jr.

Today we received a fund-raising letter from Donald Trump, Jr., asking for money to help re-elect his father.  I thought I should reply.  Here’s what I sent him.

8/12/2020

Dear Donald Jr.,

I got your request to help re-elect your father with a donation.  I don’t think I can do this, given that my personal financial situation is in the tank thanks to the economic crash resulting from the idiotic response to Covid-19 from your daddy’s administration.

Besides, the way you guys plan to cheat on the election makes me wonder why you even need funds.  Are the Russian trolls demanding money?  

Sincerely,

Roy Christman

6495 Pohopoco Drive

Lehighton, PA 18235

Perseid meteor shower

Tonight is the peak night for seeing meteors.  The Perseid meteor shower comes every August, and every August I go out and look for them.  There are supposed to be about 60 an hour, but light pollution is a problem (Blue Mountain Ski resort is a big guilty party), and they move very quickly and are easy to miss. 

After half an hour sitting in the yard looking up, I saw two meteors for sure, one maybe out of the corner of my eye, and one bat.  I also now have a stiff neck.,  You’re supposed to like on a blanket and look up, but I sat on a chair.  Maybe I’ll try again about midnight.

A Republic, if you can keep it

The Founding Fathers who wrote the Constitution were a wise group.  I doubt if that many smart people were ever in the same room before or since.  (Please please don’t tell me that they were rich, owned slaves, were old white guys, and messed up a number of things.  I really do know all of that.)

Why I think they were so smart is because they understood the dangers of concentrated power and did their best to counteract it.  The federal system and the system of checks and balances were instituted to first control the governed, as Madison pointed out, but also to control the government itself.

They knew the people who ran the government had to be hemmed in.  George Mason of Virginia wrote, “Those who have power in their hands will not give it up while they can retain it.”

Two houses of Congress, a Supreme Court, an electoral college, fixed terms, an impeachment process, a federal system, a Bill of Rights opening with freedom of speech and press and assembly and religion–all designed to rein in power.

What they did not anticipate was a spineless Congress, a populace that gets much of its news from Fox and Russian trolls, and a President interested only in his own power to the point where he will do his best to overturn election results.  The Founding Fathers knew people were not angels, but no one in 1787 could have predicted just how evil people could be.

Socialism for the frackers

I am always amused by the willingness of conservatives who bleat about the marvels of free enterprise and the advantages of competition to subsidize their favorite campaign contributors.  In Pennsylvania that would be the fracking industry.  

A little over a month ago Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro released a grand jury report detailing the dangers of the fracking industry.  In response the legislature did not hold hearings or increase regulations to protect us.  No way.

Instead the legislature granted a $650 million dollar tax break to petrochemical companies.  Gov. Wolf signed the legislation.  

Remember when Trump visited the site of a petrochemical plant in Western Pennsylvania.  That plant, owned by Shell Oil, got a $1.6 billion handout.  It was touted as a way to increase employment, since the plant will employ about 300 workers.  That works out to about a $3 million tax break PER JOB.

The earth, in the meantime, grows warmer every year.

Proposed election changes for Pennsylvania

The Registrars of Northampton and Lehigh counties made some suggestions to improve the process of receiving and counting mail-in ballots.  One was to start counting the ballots before the election day.  They said that leaks were unlikely, since only a few staff members were able to pull the results from the computer that scans the ballots.

They also wanted the counties to be able to count ballots that arrive after election day as long as they are postmarked by election day,  Under the present system, ballots that arrive after the election day are not counted even if they are postmarked in time.

Counties now can begin mailing out ballots 14 days before the election.  A suggested change is to start mailing them out 28 days before the election to give the voters time to get them back.  This is especially important now with Trump and his appointee creating delays in the postal system.

They also recommended making it easier to hire poll workers.  In the primary it was possible to hire poll workers who lived outside the precinct where they were assigned.  Current law requires poll workers to be from their voting precinct, and if the Registrar can’t get the workers, polling places must be consolidated, leading to long lines.

Here is the catch.  The Pennsylvania legislature must adopt these changes.  Both houses are Republican.  Republicans are doing their best to call the whole balloting process into question.  I don’t think we will see these changes.

Some of the material from this post is from Tom Shortell, “Officials support proposed election changes,” Morning Call, (Aug. 5, 2020), p. 5.

We don't need no stinkin' badges

I didn’t like the Department of Homeland Security from day one.  It sounded too 1930s Germany, too scary, and was completely unnecessary.  We already had the FBI, the Coast Guard, the Secret Service, FEMA, and immigration agencies, all stuck into the new department.  Civil libertarians at the time questioned the need.  Former Senator Barbara Boxer, who voted for the agency, now says she regrets it.  Recently she said, “Somehow, this has developed into the president’s private military.”

This past February the current head of the agency, Chad F. Wolf, announced on Fox News that New Yorkers were barred from enrolling in expedited air traveller programs because New York had barred immigration authorities from access to DMV records.

It was payback, and the courts have ruled the policy was illegal.  It was Homeland Security personnel who were sent into Portland with no identifying badges.  It was the Department of Homeland Security that separated kids from their parents at the border.  Almost all the high officials in the Department are “acting,” which means they can be fired by the President if they don’t do his bidding.  

As for sending personnel into cities with Democratic mayors, Wolf said on Fox News, “I don’t need invitations by state mayors or state governors to do our job.  We’re going to do that whether they like us there or not.”

Some information for this post is from Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Jesse McKinley, “Under Latest Chief, Homeland Security’s Mission Took a Political Turn,”  New York Times, (August, 5, 2020), p. A16.

Rebranding

I’ve heard a number of my friends refer to Trump supporters as “Trumpers.”  That is not the correct term.  The correct term is “Trumpist,” like fascist, bigamist, racist, misogynist.  Please use the correct term.

While I’m on the subject of Trumpists, I am curious why when we are putting up our “This is Biden Country” signs, the Trumpists yell insults or curses.  I guess they are reflecting the behavior of their boorish leader, who constantly does that kind of thing on Twitter.  Monkey see, monkey do.