Pervert glasses

At our last big “No Kings” Rally in Lehighton there was an “agent provocateur” who was walking along wearing a MAGA hat and trying to start a fight.  Somebody told me his glasses contained a camera, and if someone actually did throw a punch, he would then have the film he needed to go to court.  He was unsuccessful, although I think he did claim someone shoved him.

In any case, I read those glasses, Meta’s Ray-Bans, were often used by guys as they pestered women in gyms and changing rooms, secretly recording them.  I also learned those glasses were called “pervert glasses.”  Perfect name.

Cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay has been the end point for various pollutants, most of which wash down on the Susquehanna River from the watershed in Pennsylvania.  A program to curtail these pollutants has been in effect for years and has had a positive effect, although more needs to be done.

The Trump administration did away with the program, according to an article in the latest issue of Lancaster Farming.  I am always amazed that there is no environmental regulation or rule, no matter how small, that the Trump administration can’t mess with or screw up.

They improve nothing but somehow manage to be incredibly thorough at destruction.  Truly amazing.

The Times: Too Pro-Hamas?

Florida’s attorney general, James Uthmeier, said that the New York Times coverage of the Israel-Hamas War had an anti-Israel bias.  He claims that bias is hurting the state pension holders who own stock in the Times, and he is suing the paper.  This was a “shareholder’s suit,” he said, not a defamation suit.

Florida owns about 145,000 shares of Times stock.

Uthmeier also sued Starbucks, claiming it violated Florida’s anti-discrimination laws by hiring too many minority employees.  He also opened an investigation into the NFL for what he said was its practice in hiring minorities.  I hope he doesn’t go after Jalen Hurts.

I also own stocks in the New York Times..  I don’t know exactly how many; I bought the stocks some years ago, and I actually get a dividend.  I think the last one was about $6.00, which pays for one Sunday paper.  I want to make clear that I am not a party to Uthmeier’s lawsuit.  

A woman who doesn't understand democratic government

In a front page article on “Voters’ Distrust,” a woman from Pennsylvania was quoted about her opinion of Gov. Josh Shapiro.  She described his position on a data center in her town as an “about-face.”  

She said, “ I don’t trust him now.  He’s just saying what he needs to get votes.”  Yes, and I love him for it.  He is responding to the will of the people.  That is what is supposed to happen in a democracy.  Politicians are supposed to reflect what we want.

I take pride in changing my mind on certain political issues as I learn more about them and realize I was wrong.  And no, I am not going to embarrass myself and detail what some of those issues were.  And thank you, Gov. Shapiro, for listening to the people of Pennsylvania.

3400 housing units on the West Bank

If there is to ever be an independent Palestinian state, the core of that state would be the West Bank.  But an election is coming up next month and Netanyahu wants to shore up support from his right-wing allies.  The Israeli government has approved a 3,400 unit housing development in the West Bank.  

Bidding opened in August for the project.  It will close on Oct. 19.  The election is scheduled for Oct. 27.  The U.S. has, of course, not publicly opposed the project.

For more information see Isabel Kershner, “ E1, Israel’s Disputed West Bank Settlement Plan,” New York Times, (Oct. 18, 2026), p. A5. 

Annihilating Iran?

I wrote my Ph.D. dissertation on the efforts of the United Nations to end Third World colonization.  I spent a month working as in intern at the U.N. headquarters in New York.  I loved just walking into the building.  I loved being associated, even for a few weeks, with an organization committed to world peace, however inadequate it was in realizing that goal.

Today the President of the United States defiled the U.N.  He gave a speech in which he threatened to “annihilate” the 90 million people of Iran.  Think about that. 

Affirmative Action for Jared Kushner

The latest issue of the New Yorker has an article by Dexter Filkins on Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.  What a crook Kushner is.  What a crook Kushner’s father was, sentenced to two years for tax evasion, witness tampering and wire fraud.  (Today he is ambassador to France.)

Jared wasn’t the brightest student, so how did he get into Harvard?  It’s not like he was a DEI student.  What he did have going for him was that his father gave Harvard two and a half million dollars.  That did the trick.

Now this rich little son-in-law is out making billions from foreign countries because of his connections with Donald Trump.  The corruption of these people is unbelievable.