Stop the Steal

This time it is an actual thing.  It is truly frightening what Republican legislators and governors are doing to insure Republican victories by making it more difficult, or in some cases impossible, for Democrats to win elections.  

Gerrymandering is the most obvious.  Republicans say, “Well, both sides do it.”  Actually no.  In Pennsylvania the Republican legislature is pushing an amendment to elect the state supreme court by district so they can even gerrymander that.

Mail balloting is under attack.  Drop boxes are being eliminated.  Citizen-led ballot initiatives are being curtailed.  Private donations to help states administer elections are being outlawed.  Polling places are being eliminated.  New ID requirements are being instituted.  

The national Republican Party is setting up a Committee on Election Integrity.  The Pennsylvania Republicans are holding hearings on election law.  This activity has nothing to do with election integrity and everything to do with eliminating votes of Democrats.  This is the real attempt to steal elections, and it shows that when Republicans can’t win fairly, they resort to cheating.

A look back at Rush Limbaugh

Since Limbaugh died I have seen three articles expounding on what a wonderful conservative/friend/great guy he was.  Cal Thomas talked about his kindness to friends.  Victor Davis Hanson said Limbaugh was the “quintessential American success story.”

No, he wasn’t.  If you think of “conservative” as someone who tries to uphold the values of personal responsibility and decency, Limbaugh was not a conservative.  Far from preserving comity and fairness, he did his best to divide America, to question institutions, and to spread hatred.

You can tell the essence of a person by whom that person defends and whom he attacks.  Limbaugh attacked the weak, the hurting, and the down-and-out.  He made fun of people dying of AIDS, he called Chelsea Clinton the White House dog, and labeled women “feminazis.”  

When future historians look back at how the U.S. became so polarized, they will point to Twitter, Facebook, Fox News, Alex Jones, Donald Trump, and one of the earliest and more successful of this ilk, Limbaugh.  This country has been weakened and harmed by Limbaugh in a way that will take years to heal, if it ever does heal.  

Cherokee Freedmen

The Cherokee Nation is one of the largest American Indian tribes in the U.S., approaching 400,000 members.  Most live in Oklahoma.  In the 18th and 19th centuries the Cherokees purchased African-American slaves, and when the Cherokees were driven out of the Southeast, many of those slaves were taken along.  In 1866 a treaty guaranteed the former slaves “all the rights and privileges of native Cherokees.”

The treaty provisions were never fully implemented, and descendants of former slaves were often denied tribal membership because they weren’t Cherokees “by blood.”  

The Cherokees have now rectified the situation, and since 2017 have enrolled over 5000 descendants of former slaves.  The Principal Chief of the Cherokees said the tribe was fulfilling a promise.  “The United States government has broken all of its treaty obligations.  The Cherokee Nation is better than that.”

The United States is a very complicated country.

Info for this post is from Mark Walker, “Cherokee Address Bias Against Slave Descendants,”New York Times, (25 Feb 2021), p. A15.

DeJoy must go

Two days ago I received a Christmas card from my ex-wife.  That in itself is not unusual.  What is unusual is that the card was postmarked in Oakland on Dec. 18.  That means it took over two full months to travel from California to Pennsylvania.  

This is a hangover from the incompetence of the last administration, when DeJoy was appointed with the express purpose of wrecking the postal service both to screw up mail-in ballots and to encourage a demand to privatize the United States Postal Service.

Today DeJoy was at a congressional hearing, unrepentant.  It does get depressing.

Zoom meeting with John Fetterman

 Carbon County Democrats for Progress, a club largely composed of Democratic activists, held a Zoom meeting with Pennsylvania Lt. Governor John Fetterman this evening.  I was one of the 38 people who attended to hear Mr. Fettermans’s opinions and goals.  Fetterman has now been in Carbon County four or five times; he has stressed the importance of Democratic candidates campaigning in Pennsylvania’s small rural counties and listening to what the people in those counties have to say.  

He noted that while Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are important, Democrats must do better in places like Carbon and Monroe if they expect to carry the state.  I thought he was great.

Shooting Suspects

American police shoot suspects far more than British or French or German police do.  I don’t think this is due to bad training, although that may be a factor.  Rather it is due to the prevalence of guns.  When a British officer arrests a suspect, she or he assumes that suspect won’t be armed.  It is the same in Germany or Italy or Japan.  

On the other hand, when an American police officer arrests as suspect, it is quite possible, even likely, that the suspect will be armed, often with very dangerous weaponry.  How many times in the past few months have you read about armed individuals threatening cops  American civilians own as many guns as civilians in all the other countries in the world combined.

If you really “Back the Blue,” then you ought to be backing gun safety requirements and gun limitations.  Instead we are getting people pushing “2nd Amendment sanctuaries.”

Messing up our House

North Cornwall Township officer Joseph Fischer, charged with obstruction of law enforcement on Jan. 6 (he was fighting with cops and forced his way into the Capitol) claimed he had a right to be in the building because “we the people hold the real power.”  

I heard a number of the rioters make similar claims, often referring to their right to be in the Capitol because it was “our house.”  And it is our house.  All 330 million of us.

Evidently these clowns never lived in a communal situation or shared a living space or had roommates.  When you do that, all of you have a responsibility to maintain the house.  You can’t one day come in and decide to steal items, or rub shit on the walls, or beat and kill the other inhabitants.  It was my Capitol too.

Info on Joseph Fischer was in today’s Morning Call, p. 9. 

AOC in Texas

What a contrast to Ted Cruz.  There is AOC, raising over 3 million dollars for Texas relief and helping out in Brownsville.

While she was there, she ripped the Governor of Texas for blaming the Green New Deal for energy problems in Texas.  We know where the blame lies for the failure of the Texas electricity grid, the failure of planning, and the utter incompetence of the state government of Texas.  It ain’t AOC, cowboy.

Stick with me kid, and you’ll learn all kinds of things.  Today’s lesson is on potatoes. 

Every year I plant potatoes.  Usually Red Norlands, Russetts, Yukon Golds, and French Fingerlings.  Potatoes are one of the most versatile vegetables you can grow.  They can be cooked, fried, baked, mashed, or riced.  They can be eaten raw.  I think you can make vodka out of them, though I never tried that.  They keep for a long time; we are still eating potatoes we harvested last fall.  

You can plant them in towers.  You can buy the towers, some of which are very expensive.  Even worse, many are made of plastic.  Wal-Mart sells them to suckers.

My friend Tom, who knows more about farming and gardening than anyone I’ve known, pointed out that potato plants do not produce unlimited amounts.  If you have good soil and enough water, you will harvest the same amount of potatoes planted in the ground as you would in a tower, and you don’t need to buy the tower. 

On the other hand, if you are trying to grow potatoes in your apartment in the city, then you might look into a tower, although it would be easier to buy them at the market.

Two pieces of good news and a joke

Good news #1:  The Mahoning movie theater will again start showing movies, probably in about a month.  It was hanging on by a thread before Covid and subsequently shut down completely.  Now it will be back under new ownership.

Good news #2:  Rush Limbaugh died.  

And a joke from my friend Bill in North Carolina:  Why do people take an instant dislike to Ted Cruz?  

Answer:  It saves time.

Letters to Senators

 It took me some time, but I sent the following letter to Sen. Bill Cassidy of LA and Sen. Burr of NC.  

Thank you for your vote on impeachment.  When a President tries to incite a mob to attack and maybe even kill his Vice President, that to me is an impeachable offense.

It is good to know that there were Republican Senators like you who have integrity and courage.

I had already sent letters to Sen. Toomey, Sasse, and Murkowski.  I didn’t send one to Collins because I find her incredibly annoying, and I didn’t send one to Romney because Utah has a Republican Party that already said it will tolerate differences of opinion, so he is not in trouble.

Then I sent  the following letter to Senators Graham, Blunt, Grassley, Imhofe, Moran, Portman, Shelby, and Thune:

Dear ___:

I understand that you were a Senator when Bill Clinton was impeached, and that you voted guilty.

I am still trying to understand how lying about oral sex deserves a guilty vote, but inciting people to try to kill Mike Pence gets a pass. 

They must have some strange ideas down there in _______.  (Here I filled in whatever state the Senator was from.)

You are probably thinking this was a waste of time, paper, and stamps, but I felt good doing it.

Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina

In September 2020 Sen. Tillis introduced the “Protect and Serve Act.”  The proposed legislation made it “a federal crime to knowingly cause, or attempt to cause, serious bodily injury to a law enforcement officer.  Offenders are subject to imprisonment for up to 10 years.”

Tillis then posted on his website:  “We cannot sit idly by and allow for the streets to be filled with dangerous, violent criminals who face no consequences.”

Last week Tillis voted against impeaching the man who sent a mob to attack and kill police officers. 

Oral sex vs. sedition

Here is a list of 10 Senators who voted to impeach Bill Clinton for lying about oral sex but had no problem voting against impeaching a president who incited a mob to attack the Capitol.

Roy Blunt, MO

Mike Crapo, ID

Lindsay Graham, SC

Chuck Grassley, IN

Jim Imhofe, OK

Jerry Moran, KS

Rob Portman, OH

Richard Shelby, AL

Mitch McConnell, KY

John Thune, SD

The Impeachment Vote

 It was better than I thought it would be.  I have now have two more thank you letters to write to the Senators from Louisiana and North Carolina who voted to convict.  I was expecting only five Republicans to have some courage.  57 to 43 isn't 2/3rds, but it is impressive.

Real Heroes

When United Airlines Flight 93 was headed toward Washington to crash into the Capitol, two F-16 fighter pilots from the 121st Fighter Squadron of the District of Columbia Air National Guard, Marc Sasseville and Heather Penney, were scrambled and ordered to stop the plane.  Their jets were not armed, which meant they were prepared to fly into the airline to intercept it.

They didn’t have to do that, because the passengers on Flight 93 had already risen up and sacrificed their lives to protect our nation’s Capitol.

Now we have craven Republican senators who can’t even have the decency and courage to impeach the man who encouraged an attack on the Capitol.  It makes me sick.

Why Trumpists won't give up the claim of a "stolen election"

Today I heard an explanation of why Republican legislators and governors continue to say the Biden/Harris election was stolen.  It was one of those times when I slap my forehead and say “of course.”

Republicans want to suppress the Democratic vote in upcoming elections.  In many cases the Democratic voters are Black, Latino, American Indian, Asian and young voters.  Republicans need a reason to add I.D. requirements, cut back on drop boxes, eliminate mail-in balloting, and end voter registration on the internet.  They point to the 2020 election, call it fraudulent, and demand new requirements.  If they admitted the election was run fairly and honestly, they wouldn’t have an excuse.

Cowardice

I watched a good deal of the House presentation today.  The evidence that Trump incited his followers to attack the Capitol is clear, and yet a majority of Republican Senators, men and women who were led out of the Chamber to protect them from the rioters, will vote to acquit.

If they vote to convict, they may very well lose their primary.  They won’t get shot, won’t get arrested, won’t get exiled to a foreign country or have their spouses taken away, or be water-boarded.  They might lose an election.

I wonder what it would have taken to get them to vote to convict.  If one of them had been killed by the rioters.  Obviously a few cops weren’t enough.  If Pence had been hanged would they convict?  If somebody had put a bullet into Nancy Pelosi’s brain, as more than one person threatened to do, would they convict?  What would it take?

Lock him up

Today Trump’s attorney, defending him in front of the Senate, said if Trump committed crimes, an acquittal in the impeachment trial did not necessarily mean he would go unpunished.  He said Trump could be charged by the Justice Department; he did not have to be impeached for that to happen.

That’s right.  Trump’s attorney said that.  Sounds like a plan to me.

Second shot

 Today I received my second Moderna shot.  In approximately two weeks I should be immune from getting the Covid-19 virus, although I would still have a one in twenty chance of getting it (95% effectiveness, right?)  And then there is the South African strain and the UK strain.  I may be wearing my mask forever.

Linda has not received her first yet.  She’s been calling, trying on-line, but no luck.  I heard that approximately one million Pennsylvanians have received one injection, but less than 300,000 have both.  Some states have done better (West Virginia, Connecticut), while others are worse (Idaho, Alabama).  

The procedure today (Lehigh Valley Cedar Crest) was much better than when I got the first one.  There’s a learning curve for everything.

Old Guys Rule

Enough said.

Second Amendment Sanctuary movement

People fearful of their guns being taken away are pushing their local municipalities to adopt resolutions making them “Second Amendment Sanctuary” jurisdictions.  Many gun owners are paranoid that the feds or the state government will swoop in and confiscate their guns.  You probably remember how the Obama administration seized not only assault rifles, but shotguns, hand guns, deer rifles, crossbows, lances, Bowie knives, serrated kitchen knives, and cap pistols.  You really don’t remember?  Do your research.

Anyway, in my own township of Towamensing, gun owners are pushing our Supervisors to pass such a resolution.  They feel their Second Amendment rights are in jeopardy, and they are in some kind of panic.  

What bugs me is that no one seems to care about the THIRD AMENDMENT.  How do we know that the government is not planning to force us to house National Guard troops or Navy Seals against our will?  Who can protect us from laws that will turn our very homes into Air B&Bs for Marines or even foreign troops brought over for training?  

I will be writing to my Supervisors demanding that we turn our township into a Third Amendment sanctuary.  No one shall cross my vestibule, and they can’t sleep on my porch either.  This is a far greater threat than someone outlawing my AK47. 

Multicultural Pennsylvania

 Many of our Trumpist voters are uneasy about the changing demographics in Pennsylvania.  Congressman Lou Barletta rode anti-Dominican prejudices right into the House of Representatives.  I’ve heard neighbors complain about Puerto Ricans in Allentown.  Philadelphia and Pittsburgh with their minority populations are heartily disliked by much of rural Pennsylvania.

Some of our worried citizens might consider our history.  In 1687 Thomas Holme completed a map of Philadelphia and the surrounding area for William Penn.  The map includes familiar names such as Radnor and Haverford Townships, the “Dellaware” River, and “New Jarsey.”  Also included are the German Township, the Dutch Township (that would have been Holland Dutch), and the Welsh Township.

We were multicultural from our founding.  It’s in our DNA.  

When Republicans expanded democracy

 The Winter 2021 issue of Pennsylvania Heritage has an article entitled “Pennsylvania’s Ratification of the 15th Amendment” written by Richard C. Saylor.  Saylor explains that the original Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776 permitted tax-paying free Black men to vote.

In 1838 a new Pennsylvania Constitution was passed specifying that only white men could vote.

On March 26, 1869, Pennsylvania became the 12th state to ratify the 15th Amendment.  It says “the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”

The legislature was split.  Democrats opposed; Republicans favored.  That was once the proud heritage of the Republican Party.  At one time Republicans actually wanted people to vote.

Note:  I was partly wrong about Greene and Cheney.  Cheney was allowed to keep her position.  Greene, however, was actually given a standing ovation by the Republicans.  Today the Dems kicked her off all the House committees.  

Possible Republican rebukes

 Today was the day Republicans in the House were supposed to discuss possible rebukes for two representatives.  One is for Marjorie Taylor Greene, a crazy woman who wants to kill Speaker Pelosi and believes Jews with lasers caused the California wildfires and Hillary Clinton drinks blood.  The other is for Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who voted for Trump’s impeachment in the House and has spoken out against his actions.

I have not seen any news tonight, but I’m guessing they went after Cheney.

Positive reinforcement

 Today I sent thank you letters to Senators Toomey, Sasse, and Murkowski and Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming.  In Toomey’s 12 years in office, this is the first time I praised him.  Liz Cheney is someone I’ve really disliked in the past, but her stand on Trump and her vote for impeachment has probably doomed her career, and I recognize that must have been a hard vote for her.  I believe that when people do good things, they should be supported.  We must always be open to the possibility that women and men can change for the better.

Making ice cream

 We bought one of those old-fashioned ice cream freezers some years ago.  It is basically a wooden bucket with a canister that fits inside.  A crank mechanism turns a “dasher inside the canister.  

You put the ice cream mixture (whole milk, half and half, whipping cream, sugar, a bit of salt, and vanilla) outside for about a half an hour to cool, then dump it in the canister.  You pack ice mixed with salt around the canister.  Salt is required because ice by itself won’t be cold enough  Don’t use table salt; get the kind you use to melt snow on sidewalks. 

Then you turn the crank until it is really hard to turn, which means the mixture is ready.  It has the consistency of soft ice cream, but you can then scrape out contents of the canister into plastic dishes and freeze it.  (Or, if you can’t wait, you can eat it soft.)

On Saturday we used the freezer for the first time and made four quarts, and it is delicious.  According to the directions, you can also add ingredients like peaches or strawberries.  We’ll do that next time.