Update no.1154

 Update from the Sunland

No.1154

19.2.24 – 25.2.24

Blog version:  http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/

 

To all,

 

Intuitive Machines’ lunar lander Odysseus, AKA Odie, landed on the Moon near the celestial orb’s south pole where water has been previously discovered. The presence of water means there is a ready in situ supply of rocket fuel. The spacecraft had been launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 booster five days previously. After the initial indications were examined more closely with other data, the company determined that the lander had apparently caught one of six legs on a rock and tipped over. They confirmed that the solar array is providing at least partial power. The company is still evaluating the extent of compromise and what they will be able to accomplish with the laid down spacecraft. Not perfect but a useful accomplishment.

 

One particular judicial pronouncement has dominated the Press this week—LePage v. Center for Reproductive Medicine [ALSC SC-2022-0515 (2024)]. The Alabama State Supreme Court rendered its judgment by what was technically an 8-1 decision, although the one dissenting opinion thought the court had not far enough with the result and went too far in the rationale. There were two similar appeals within this ruling; the companion case in this judgment was Aysenne v. Center for Reproductive Medicine [ALSC SC-2022-0579 (2024)]. The defendant, an In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) provider, accidentally destroyed frozen fertilized embryos (sic) in their custody, and the plaintiffs, two couples using the services of the IVF provider, claimed the defendants are legally liable for the wrongful death of their potential children, namely, fertilized eggs they erroneously call embryos. The declared a fertilized human ‘embryo’ is an unborn minor child under an 1872 state law—Wrongful Death of a Minor Act. Justice Cook dissented not in the findings of the court but because of the paucity of full judicial hierarchal review and in the extension of the law by judicial decree—a process disagreement. All that aside, it was Chief Justice Tom Parker’s concurring opinion that garnered the most attention by the Press. The chief justice decided to give us a theology lesson as rationale for his concurring opinion. To be clear, Parker’s opinion was not and is not the opinion of the court, but it was certainly noteworthy as a personal religious opinion rather than a commentary on the law of the state. Although I am reluctant to do so, I believe history and the public need to know precisely what he stated in this judgment of the Alabama Supreme Court. Parker concluded:

The People of Alabama have declared the public policy of this State to be that unborn human life is sacred. We believe that each human being, from the moment of conception, is made in the image of God, created by Him to reflect His likeness. It is as if the People of Alabama took what was spoken of the prophet Jeremiah and applied it to every unborn person in this state: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, Before you were born I sanctified you." Jeremiah 1:5 (NKJV 1982). All three branches of government are subject to a constitutional mandate to treat each unborn human life with reverence. Carving out an exception for the people in this case, small as they were, would be unacceptable to the People of this State, who have required us to treat every human being in accordance with the fear of a holy God who made them in His image.

You may judge for yourself whether such language and rationale is appropriate for an important judicial pronouncement.  Please remember, the above quotation was from a concurring opinion; not one other justice joined in Parker’s opinion.

For clarities sake, the science as we understand it today says that at the instant of fertilization (the penetration of the cellular membrane of an ovum, the ovum-spermatozoa becomes a zygote. Five to six days later, the zygote has divided sufficiently to become a blastocyst. Roughly 10 to 12 days after fertilization, the blastocyst implants in the uterine wall and becomes an embryo. Thus, technically, a fertilized egg, frozen or not, cannot be an embryo until it successfully implants in a woman’s uterus.

It is interesting when social and legal conservatives condemn progressives for stretching the ‘as written’ law, and then turn right around and do it themselves when the subject suits them. I do not believe in or advocate for legislating from the bench, but the law must represent how life is today, not how it was 150 years ago. As we see far too often, it is OK for us, contemptable for them. The court has extended the law too far. This zealotry is likely to continue until some rational standard is established nationwide; we are not close to that balance point. Hey, why not? If corporations have all the rights of citizens, why not an inanimate cell? I can easily imagine these socially conservative moral projectionists eventually attempting to extend their definitions of life to the ovum and spermatozoa, or even to the thoughts of a man or woman before, during, or after intercourse. If they go that far, then why not extend the reasoning to prior generations in the sequence that led to the dividing embryonic cells. In trying to find the necessary legal balance in the associated definition, I still believe the U.S. Supreme Court got it precisely correct in Roe v. Wade [410 U.S. 113 (1973)] [319]—quickening or viability outside the womb. 

The future will bring far more dramatic ethical and moral questions surrounding conception, birthing, and raising children to adulthood. I have offered images of perceived future as stimulant for discussion and debate. Perhaps, one day we shall mature as a society and shape a progressive advancement for us to grow and become better. In that process, we will have to define better; what does better mean? In this discussion, what do we do when we no longer need a woman’s uterus to mature a zygote, blastocyst, embryo, or fetus, or to birth a child? From my perspective, scientifically, the same principles apply—viability. 

If there is one thing LePage case has accomplished it is to illuminate the enormous lag of the law relative to the science. We cannot and must not hold the status quo. We must advance. If our ancestors had sought to maintain the status quo, or worse the status quo ante, they would have never crossed the Atlantic or the Allegheny Mountains, set aside the Mississippi, the Great Plains, or the Rocky Mountains. Life and American society are going to advance, to mature, regardless of what the Republicans, the MAGA bunch, or the social conservatives want or wish for. It is only a question of how much pain we must endure to move forward.

 

Another important but overlooked case rendered last week but overshadowed by the LePage decision was United States v. Smirnov [USDC CA CD Case 2:24-cr-00091-ODW (2024)]. Special Counsel David Charles Weiss, the lead into the Biden family, filed a grand jury indictment against a key FBI informant in the case, Alexander Smirnov. Smirnov is charged with making multiple false statements to the FBI that became centerpiece of Republican accusations of corruption within the Biden family. The evidence against Smirnov is substantial and quite convincing. Beyond the criminal charges against Smirnov, the case clearly illuminates the meddling by Russia, in this case through proxies, in the internal politics of the United States as they have done since at least 2016. Of course, as certain as the daily sunrise in the east and a dog gnawing on a bone, the MAGA bunch in the House are not deterred in unwavering efforts to impeach President Biden. The world continues to turn.

 

Then, we have a ‘non-case’ case ruling on Tuesday, the 20^th. The Supremes declined to even hear the appeal of a pair of lower court rulings against sycophant election denier lawyers for ‘you know who,’ Sidney Powell and Lucian Lincoln ‘Lin’ Wood, Jr. The Supremes offered no reason or rationale, just . . . DENIED. The result is the lower court ruling stands in both cases. The defendants in the two cases—Powell, Wood, and others—are liable for and must pay US$132,693.75 to the city of Detroit and another US$19,639.75 in legal fees to the state of Michigan. They got off easy for what they have done.

 

Our middle son watched “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” show on the 22^nd. He sent along Oliver’s monologue clip from that show.

https://youtu.be/GE-VJrdHMug?si=pnpmf_kigqN_hF65

John Oliver is too late for me. You were spot on correct. That was a magnificent clip, well worth the time to watch it. I will include it in this week's Update. Some of what he talks about I have known and written about, but there is new stuff I had not heard. His "offer" to Justice Thomas is perfect and so bloody appropriate. I hope he takes it while Biden is president and Schumer is Senate Majority Leader, so they can do what the McConnell and the [expletive deleted, AKA the person who shall no longer be named] did. I would just love to hear them scream.

 

We received another jewel of an article from former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich.

“The Emerging Republican Theocracy – White Christian nationalism is the creed of red America”

by Robert Reich

Published: Feb 23, 2024

https://robertreich.substack.com/p/republican-theocracy

Robert Reich is spot on with his assessment. That is exactly as I see Christian nationalism in this country. I am still slogging through the Alabama Supreme Court ruling, and it has already become glaringly obvious that Chief Justice Parker chose to give us a parochial theology lesson rather than commentary on the law. To me, theocracy is just another form of dictatorship, e.g., the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). Both are authoritarian impositions on the whole; that is not freedom. The practical definition of freedom used by white Christian nationalists is their beliefs, opinions, their views, and their positions are the only concepts that are acceptable.

Freedom is freedom, and it is NOT white Christian nationalism defined freedom.

The reason far right Republicans, the MAGA bunch, evangelical Christians embrace conservative politics is they want to go back to a time when they dominated the entire political structure and wrote all the laws to their liking, and more importantly, they enforced those laws to impose their beliefs on every citizen regardless of the social factors. That is NOT freedom. That is NOT what this once grand republic was founded on two plus centuries ago. Either we are free, or we are not. I choose freedom . . . and I do not want or need a theology lesson from Justice Parker.

“That’s just my opinion, but I could be wrong.”

 

Comments and contributions from Update no.1153:

Comment to the Blog:

“The border bill was a gift to the Republicans that they rejected so they could campaign on ‘inaction’ at the border.

“The wheels of justice grind exceedingly slowly for Tiny. His public ranting makes him less and less popular with the non-MAGA voters.

“The current Speaker of the House (it’s a temporary job) is the Christian Nationalist version of Tiny with slightly more verbal restraint.

“Homicide is a common tactic of tyrants, but Putin has made a misstep with Navalny. When people in a place like Russia protest en masse, the tyrant is weak.

“I’ll note that the Democrats still haven’t presented a stronger candidate than Biden.”

My response to the Blog:

Yes, the proposed bipartisan Senate border bill was weighted heavily toward the Republican demands that the House leadership rejected at the behest of ihr Anführer. We shall see if it costs them at the polls this coming November.

Oh so true. The nature of the beast, I’m afraid. We must push through the muddy waters that Tiny strives mightily to make thicker and opaquer. The courts will get through it all. The question is will it be in time to affect the November election as it should.

Good assessment of Speaker Johnson . . . not high on my list.

I think so. I suspect he has misjudged the popular support Navalny carried. The Russians brought down the right wing before; they can do it again.

Correct, no, they haven’t, and they are not likely to do so before summer. We will have what we have, and we must choose.

 . . . Round two:

“My only issue with your reply is ‘We have what we have and we must choose.’ Nope. Voters as a whole can again choose not to bother, as they have before. That's how the Democrats could lose another election to the least popular candidate ever.”

 . . . my response to round two:

Quite so! Every citizen has freedom of choice. They are entitled to vote for whomever they wish, or do nothing whatsoever. Too many Americans take a “What Me Worry” attitude toward voting. Yes, Democrats could lose the upcoming election if they cannot find the means to stimulate citizens to vote. At the end of the day, we will get what we deserve whether it is the orange Jesus or an aging octogenarian. It will be what it will be. As for me, regardless of who the candidates are, I will vote for the best candidate on the ballot . . . that is, unless the orange Jesus is the only candidate, then I will write-in someone else.

 . . . Round three:

“On a more cheerful note, 538 this morning discusses the internal strife in Republican parties in Michigan, Arizona, and Georgia, three key swing states. We're beginning to see cracks in the facade. Remember that in Georgia Republicans are prosecuting Tiny; that ought to be interesting.”

 . . . my response to round three:

Strife, chaos, dysfunction, and desperation are all appropriate descriptors for the craziness of the so-called Republicans at least in Arizona. Every day, there is another idiocy exposed to public scrutiny. One of the most recent and egregious examples is House Concurrent Resolution 2055 [1153], which is not likely to become law, but that is not the point. Republicans are so desperate to retain the power and influence they once enjoyed that they will throw any mud, slop, and excrement at the walls to see what sticks. Semper Vigilantis!

 . . . Round four:

“Just to add to the fun, Robert Reich's column this morning is about whether Biden should step back and let the Democrats have an ‘open’ convention. I differ with his conclusion, as do most of his readers.”

https://robertreich.substack.com/p/my-surprise-at-yesterdays-substack#poll-149081.

 . . . my response from round four:

Interesting argument. It is a valid argument, it seems to me. Added to the rationale is the paucity of any discernible effort by President Biden to disabuse Democrats and the American People from the notion of his frailty. The Democrats are free to select their candidate however they see fit. Based on the state primaries and caucuses so far, I suspect the Democratic National Committee is setting up to do just that or something similar. Regardless, what the Democrats are doing is infinitely better than what the Republicans are doing—voting, smoting, who needs voting; let’s just declare the orange Jesus king and dictator for life.

 

Another contribution:

“Hope you are well and another great blog.I was particularly disappointed in Republican leadership who seemed to take his Nato comments as ‘no big deal, just XXXX being XXXX’. Easy to say, but NOT how our allies and other nations take his comments. I have been overseas a lot in the last couple of months and he is disturbing many of our closest allies – and I would guess – emboldening our enemies.

“Republicans (of which I still am – but in his terms in name only) also are making a grave mistake holding up aid to Ukraine. We support them now, or it will be our service men and women in a few years. The graves then will be his fault.

“Anyway apologize for the rant and really hope you are well.”

My reply:

Great to hear from you, my friend. All is well . . . after we discount the rigors of aging. But I am still upright, above ground, and productive in my passion for writing.

From my perspective, ‘disappointed’ seems like a particularly subdued descriptor. I would have no problem with “no big deal, just XXXX being XXXX” if he was just a private citizen like you and me. He is a citizen and thus entitled to speak his mind as he wishes as we are. What differentiates [the person who shall no longer be named] from you and me is, he is attempting to return to the Oval Office with his slimy hands on the powerful instruments of state. I give him no tolerance or leniency for that reason alone. Historians have long stated the Korean War sparked into armed conflagration by an unfortunate misstatement by Secretary of State Dean Acheson on 12.January.1950. For people in power, words matter a great deal. Tiny does NOT get a pass.

Absolutely, our friends and allies are quite apprehensive about the potential for a second term by the rabidly malignant narcissist. What he does and says affects them, directly and indirectly, which it what I found so telling and chilling in Tiny’s public statement a week ago Saturday. That is what the man does not understand, appreciate, or respect. His dictator-philia absolutely encourages our adversaries. People who encourage and support [the person who shall no longer be named] do not care a hoot about the consequences.

Spot on, correct. Pay me now or pay me so much more later. Putin and his right-wing supporters in Russia will not stop with carving off part of Ukraine. Putin wants to return to the expanse and greatness (fear) of the USSR glory days after WW2. The Ukrainians have not asked for troops; they have only asked for weapons and ammunition. The latter is far less expensive than the former. Once Putin crossed the NATO border, U.S. troops it will be. The Republicans of today are NOT the Republicans I remember of yesteryear. I do not recognize today’s Republicans.

You are welcome to rant anytime you wish about any subject you wish; that is the purpose of his humble forum. So rant away whenever the mood strikes.

 

A different contribution:

“Thanks Cap. Do you know I must really try this ‘snake oil’-maybe our local chemist.

“We’re still experiencing a mild/wet winter. It looks as though this month could be the wettest on record and that goes back a very long time. Our friends in NZ are suffering a very hot but dry summer and are asking for rain. Global warming? What else.

“OK Bud keep punching the keyboard.”

My response:

Oh my gosh, please do not do that. That nasty stuff he peddles is very addictive, whatever it is, and does nothing useful. It is fake like he is. Apparently, when you use it once, you are addicted for life.

California is getting hit again. On the positive side, their reservoirs are nearly full, as our reservoirs are, so the water situation out there has improved significantly, although Lakes Mead and Powell remain too low but rising.

 

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.

Cheers,

Cap                  :-)

Update no.1153

 Update from the Sunland

no.1153

12.2.24 – 18.2.24

Blog version:  http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/

 

To all,

 

The follow-up news items:

-- The House failed to impeach Homeland Secretary Majorkas the first time [1152], so they dragged House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana out of his sick bed (cancer: Multiple Myeloma) to vote on the second attempt. The vote margin could not have been any thinner, but they succeeded {House: 214-213-0-4[4]}—H.Res.863 - Impeaching Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, for high crimes and misdemeanors. The impeachment bill will now go to the Senate. There is no indication, as yet, what the Senate will do with the bill.

This is the first impeachment of a cabinet officer in 150 years, and the second cabinet impeachment in history. On 2.March.1876, Secretary of War William Worth Belknap was impeached for his role in the trading post scandal. He was acquitted by the Senate. 

To me, this is a political retribution sham. The fBICP wants talking points for their Lieber Anführer. If they want someone to blame and be held accountable for the border crisis, all they need to do is look in the mirror. They rejected the best compromise immigration reform bill in decades. The bill did not provide everything either party wanted, but it was the best bipartisan compromise in quite some time. The House rejected it without a vote at the direct orders of their Lieber Anführer.

-- Judge Engoron rendered his decision and judgment against [the person who shall no longer be named] in the New York State civil business fraud case— New York v. Trump [NYSCEF Index No. 452564/2022] [1133]. The judge fined Tiny US$354.9M and his two older sons, Don Jr. and Eric, US$4M each, plus suspended their business license in New York for three years. On the positive side, I suppose the judgment could have been far worse. Tiny is expected to appeal, of course, although it is not clear on what grounds. The court penalties against [the person who shall no longer be named] are approaching half a billion dollars and there are more penalties ahead.

-- Next up for Tiny is his criminal business fraud case in New York City—People of the State Of New York v. Donald J. Trump [NYSC case 71543/2023] [1107]. The pre-trial motions have been adjudicated and the trial date is set for 25.March.2024. This will be the first time he faces prison time. The conclusion and decision of the civil fraud case— New York v. Trump [NYSCEF Index No. 452564/2022] [1133]—do not bode well for Tiny.

 

At a campaign rally in Conway, South Carolina, a week ago Saturday, [the person who shall no longer be named] told his MAGA believers that he had a conversation with the “president of a big country” [otherwise, unspecified] who asked him, "Well sir, if we don't pay, and we're attacked by Russia - will you protect us?" To which, Tiny claimed to have responded, “I said: 'You didn't pay? You're delinquent?' He said: 'Yes, let's say that happened.' No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them (Russia) to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay.” (emphasis mine.)

In most groups of decent, law-abiding citizens, the former president of the United States threated a presumed ally with extortion. The treaty, commonsense, and respect for our friends make no such quid pro quo. This is not how we deal with our friends. Just a reminder, while Tiny likes to cite the 2% of GDP threshold for defense spending for NATO members states, such a demand for dues is not written in the governing treaty. Tiny cites that threshold because he likes it. He needs a bludgeon. Now, that said, should NATO allies and signatories spend comparable amounts on national defense? Yes, absolutely. I agree with the objective. I condemn Tiny’s methods—extortion is not the answer, diplomacy is. The thought of that man becoming president again with very few if any constraints or restrictions on his conduct is chilling to the bone. As it always is (until the Constitution is completely abandoned), the People who vote will decide the future of this once grand republic.

 

Then, [the person who shall no longer be named], being the crass, insensitive, ignorant, nincompoop that he is and always has been, offered another telling anecdote about himself in his attempt to denigrate his adversary, Nikki Haley. Tiny declared, “Then she comes over to see me at Mar-a-Lago. ‘Sir, I will never run against you.’ She brought her husband. Where’s your husband? Oh, he’s away. He’s away. What happened to her husband? What happened to her husband? Where is he? He’s gone! He knew. He knew.”

Well, numbnuts, he is on active duty in the U.S. Army as a member of the South Carolina National Guard deployed to Africa in service to the nation. We know that Tiny holds the military in very low regard since he has so often denigrated those who have sacrificed in service to this once grand republic. And, worse, this [expletive deleted] used his daddy’s money to avoid service with his bogus claim of bone spurs (a typical ploy of the wealthy), and he wants to become our commander-in-chief . . . AGAIN. Tiny is a disgusting, ego-centric, malignant narcissistic malcontent who does not deserve to be a dogcatcher set aside president.

And if anyone tries to tell us he was just kidding, keep it to yourself. We do not need more atmospheric pollution. When will people see the light of reality about this unapologetic grifter, conman, snake-oil elixir salesman? Now, he is hawking flashy sneakers. He is a fraud and has always been a fraud. Yet, despite the nefarious nature of the man, millions of citizens have bought his worthless snake-oil elixir. They have willingly consumed that valueless tincture because they believe.

Lastly, we can now add another moniker for [the person who shall no longer be named]; he is a fraudster of the worst sort.

 

After the Senate passed bipartisan immigration reform bill and the House speaker declared he would not call a vote on the bill, the Senate stripped out the immigration reform provisions and passed Amendment 1388 to H.R.815 that was retitled the National Security Act, 2024 [Senate: 70-29-0-1[0]]. The revised bill provides vital supplemental funding for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and humanitarian relief for the Gaza Palestinians. The House speaker has not yet indicated what he intends to do with the narrowed bill. My guess, he will reject this one as well because the MAGA bunch in the House want all or nothing on border security.

The reality is, the fBICP does not want immigration reform. They want the BIC’s damn wall as if that will solve all the problems with immigration. If only . . . Unfortunately for this once grand republic, [the person who shall no longer be named] believes a compromise immigration reform bill would not be good for his election campaign and also voiced objections to further aid to Ukraine. So here we sit. The former Bully-In-Chief continues his virulent ways to preserve chaos not just in this country but in the world.

 

The dictator Putin has MURDERED another of the opposition voices against him. The Federal'naya Sluzhba Ispolneniya Nakazaniy (Russian Federal Prison Service, we trust them explicitly, don’t we!) announced that Alexei Anatolievich Navalny, 47 years of age, died in a remote Arctic gulag at Kharp, Yamalo-Nenets, on Friday. May God rest his immortal soul.

I suppose we should feel blessed. The dictator-phile [person who shall no longer be named] has not yet murdered any of his opponents, as far as we know. Nonetheless, I am left with the deep-rooted suspicion that we are dreadfully close to realizing that potential with Tiny, or as the evangelical MAGA bunch called him, the orange Jesus (they believe . . . the snake-oil elixir must be very powerful).

 

As readers of this humble forum know and friends who have known me for a longer time know better, I have never been a fan of [the person who shall no longer be named]. His gross personality flaws have been detestable for as long as he has been in the public eye. The thought of him regaining the power of the instruments of state is a clear and present danger to this once grand republic.

If anyone would like to understand why I hold these impressions of [the person who shall no longer be named], I urge you to read the following article from the British newspaper The Guardian.

“Trump’s hubris has brought about the downfall of his family’s business empire – Even the giant fortune Trump inherited from his father did not stop him from steering the family’s dynasty on to the rocks.”

by Sidney Blumenthal

The Guardian (UK)

Published: Sat 17 Feb 2024 06.01 EST

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/17/trump-hubris-family-empire-new-york

To be clear, direct, and blunt, [the person who shall no longer be named] has believed himself to be an entitled prick since the day he was born 77 years ago. For that reality, we have his parents to blame and, predominantly his father, to hold responsible, but they are both long gone. He is what he is. And, we must recognize and acknowledge that reality.

 

If Republicans were not desperate enough, Arizona House of Representatives member Rachel Jones of Tucson introduced Arizona House Concurrent Resolution 2055 on Wednesday. Jones is a staunch fBICP member in good standing and dedicated election denier. The meat & potatoes of HCR 2055 reads:

“Therefore

“Page 1, strike everything after the resolving clause and insert:

"1. To change the manner of the presidential election by appointing the eleven presidential electors to the republican primary winner to offset the removal of a republican candidate from the ballot in Colorado and

“2. That Governor Hobbs sign the election reform measures listed below, and if not, the presidential electors be appointed to protect the 2024 presidential election from another maladministered and illegally run election.

“3. That the 2024 presidential election reform bill should include the following:

(a) Compliance with article VII, section 11, Constitution of Arizona, by having an election on election day only.

(b) A vote by precincts with identification and proof of citizenship, a hand count of ballots in each precinct, ballot results reported from precincts with all signatures verified and without the use of machines and without mailed-in ballots except for absentee ballots.

“4. That the Secretary of State of the State of Arizona transmit a copy of this Resolution to the Governor of Arizona." [emphasis mine]

The audacity and outright disrespect for Arizona voters is beyond description. The fBICP (at least in Arizona) is looking for any excuse to supersede the constitutional votes of the People.  HCR 2055 is bad enough, but I suspect the anti-democratic forces and efforts will get worse before they will improve.

 

Comments and contributions from Update no.1152:

Comment to the Blog:

“Given the number of sketchy Supreme Court Justices, we’ll just have to see what happens with Tiny’s appeals.

“The Democrats humiliated themselves again by giving the Republicans everything they wanted in an immigration bill; then the bill didn’t pass. The USA is in a sad state. I could do without sending billions to Israel unless humanitarian strings are attached.

“At present, 59% of the electorate believe both Biden and Tiny are to old/unfit to serve as President https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/poll-americans-on-biden-age/story?id=107126589. Neither the Democrats nor the Republicans are organizing support for anyone else. That looks like a prime opportunity for disrupting the two-party hegemony.

“Ethan Crumbley was 15 when he shot all those people, and there’s every reason to convict both of his parents for something beyond negligence. I’m glad to see Mrs. Crumbley convicted.

“I’ve seen comparisons of Special Counsel Hur’s report on Biden to Robert Mueller’s on Hilary Clinton. They’re both Republicans who can’t find anything to prosecute but nevertheless do some damage. I’ll note that Hur’s wording could have referred to a potential future defense, not an unprofessional current evaluation. (I still don’t believe either candidate has full mental capacity.)

“The U.S. Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, is back in the hospital. How likely is that to become a serious issue?”

My response to the Blog:

Yes, indeedie! There are potentially so many twists and turns ahead.

Included in the emergency funding bill was US$9B in humanitarian aid to Gaza Palestinians—that is not chicken feed. The fBICP rejected it because Tiny did not want a border security improvement bill during his campaign for president. The procedural vote to move the bill forward failed to achieve the requisite 60 vote threshold [Senate: 49-50-0-1(0)]. It was a bipartisan failure with Republicans and Democrats crossing in both directions. Early Tuesday morning, the Senate passed a pared down funding bill that includes US$9.2B in humanitarian aid to the Gaza Palestinians [Senate: 70-29-0-1(0)]—Amendment 1388 to H.R. 815. Speaker Johnson has declared the revised emergency foreign aid bill is DOA in the House without border security funding that the fBICP rejected because it did not include everything they demanded at the behest of Lieber Anführer.

Neither party appears to be preparing contingency plans, but that does not mean they are not doing so. We just cannot see any evidence. That debate between Newsom and DeSantis was a very curious event in that vein. You may well be correct, but I hope not.

Likewise, I expect James Crumbley to suffer the same fate as his wife. Those parents failed their son and their community. They deserve what is coming to them. More importantly, I want other parents to take a more engaged position in raising and caring for their children, or do not procreate. If they are not up to the task, do not do it.

I was very disappointed in Hur’s report for the political tone his conclusions took. What is done is done. I think Biden deserved at least an official sanction of some sort. While both presidents committed the same violation of classified document handling law, there was a vast and important difference between how the two men dealt with those violations. As such, I agree with Hur’s base conclusion that Biden’s transgressions did not warrant prosecution, and I also agree with Smith’s decision to prosecute Tiny for his transgressions, i.e., obstruction, failure to comply, false statements, et cetera. Monumental difference in the two cases. Regardless, I imagine Tiny’s lawyers will use Hur’s report to press a motion to dismiss or on appeal, overturn any conviction. The Hur report made the prosecution of Tiny messier.

There is always that potential. After my surgery, it took me five months to achieve a semblance of normalcy and stability. I never had to be admitted to the ICU, so there may be more going on with Austin than I experienced. Austin appears to be in a more serious state. I hope and trust they will sort things out.

 . . . Round two:

“We have three de facto parties in Congress, two of which call themselves Republicans. Something has to give.

“Unfortunately, the Crumbleys are only one extreme example of poor parenting. The birth rate in developed nations is less than what’s required to sustain the population, per Numlock News this morning, quoting a Wall Street Journal story on China’s similar problem. There’s not much chance governments will discourage having children, and so far teaching people to parent is pretty low-key too.

“In times of ‘war’ (always, in the USA), the Secretary of Defense is a key person. This might be fascinating.”

 . . . my response to round two:

Quite so. We might recognize four political parties, three in the party formerly known as Republicans. I count a few true Republicans remaining. Then, we have the MAGA bunch, AKA Freedom Caucus, formerly known as Tea Party. I could argue we have another faction that wants to be Republican, but they are too afraid of ihr Anführer and the MAGA bunch to act like Republicans. The latter two I lump together as the fBICP (former Bully In Chief Party). Something definitely has to give. We must vote them out of office; let them scream all they want from the margins of society.

The United States is also in that category; our birthrate is below the 2.2 threshold for sustainability for some time now. We need immigrants that seek citizenship. Parenting has long been a low priority for Republicans (and all their derivatives); they are far more committed to “moral projection” to impose their beliefs on everyone else including the violation of a woman’s absolute right to privacy regarding her medical decisions and treatment.

I certainly hope it does not get too fascinating or interesting. We need a cool, reliable hand on the throttle.

 . . . Round three:

“I'm aware of immigration as a way to address the decline in the birth rate, but I don't know how many Americans share that awareness. The MAGAts are too racist to accept that, but a majority of Americans aren't MAGAts.”

 . . . my response to round three:

Well, frankly, I do not think most Americans care about the facts; they are driven by the emotion of fear fed by the fBICP and Press. Yes, the MAGAts are far too racist for this country and this time. Quite true, the MAGAts are indeed a minority. However, they successfully intimidate and influence a much larger number of susceptible citizens. We have much work to do before they are returned to the peripheral extremist group they have always been.

 

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.

Cheers,

Cap                  :-)

Update no. 1152

 Update from the Sunland

No.1152

5.2.24 – 11.2.24

Blog version:  http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/

 

To all,

 

The follow-up news items:

-- A three-judge panel of the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia heard the appeal of [the person who shall no longer be named] in the case United States v. Trump [USDC DC Case 1:23-cr-00257-TSC (2023)]—United States v. Trump [DC CCA No. 23-3228 (2024)] [1125]. Tiny sought dismissal of the charges based on his contention that he had absolute immunity [AKA the divine right of kings] for any crimes during or after he served as president. The circuit judges were not impressed. They concluded, “Finally, we are unpersuaded by his argument that this prosecution is barred by ‘double jeopardy principles.’ Accordingly, the order of the district court is AFFIRMED.” He will undoubtedly appeal for an en banc ruling, which should be denied as well, and then to the Supremes. We cannot predict any court accepting Tiny’s arguments, but courts are unpredictable. The three-judge panel was quite thorough. The court proceeding for Tiny’s election interference federal criminal trial remains scheduled to begin in early March, but I suspect it will be delayed to allow for any subsequent appeals. We shall see.

-- On Thursday, the Supremes heard oral arguments in the direct appeal of Trump v. Anderson [case no. 23-719 (2024)] [1149], the Colorado disqualification case against him—Anderson v Griswold [2023 CO 63; Case No. 23SA300] [1145]. I listened to the audio broadcast of the oral arguments in Tiny’s appeal of the Colorado’s citation of §3 of 14^thAmendment of the U.S. Constitution as a self-executing disqualification to be on their state ballot. The lawyers that presented and argued before the court were Jonathan Franklin Mitchell, counsel for [the person who shall no longer be named]; Jason Murray, counsel for the Colorado voters; and, Colorado Solicitor General Shannon Stevenson. Lawyers for [the person who shall no longer be named] and the voters and state of Colorado offered sharp, cogent responses driven by queries from each of the Supremes. A ruling by the Court is expected late this month or next.

From my perspective, the Supremes seemed to ignore the elephant in the room—insurrection. No one is doing anything to Tiny; he did this to himself. There is no one else to blame, although he will strive mightily to do so, to portray himself as the victim, a martyr for his believers. The tone and content of questioning by the justices left me with an impression that they are considering the law independent of the context, as if they are purposefully and intentionally ignoring the reality of the January 6^th insurrection. It is like the majority are among the election deniers as well. They focused on procedure rather than content. Colorado was not deciding the national election. It was only doing what is its responsibility under the Constitution. Who is qualified to be on the state ballot for president. Judging by the interrogation of the lawyers by the Supremes, I suspect they will overrule Colorado, which will put Tiny back on the Colorado primary ballot. The Supremes’ decision is expected late this month or next. Again, we shall see.

 

The following eMail thread with a regular contributor may be of interest.

“Here's an issue worth discussing. Also, this is an example of why I usually don't count ideals as motivation in political or corporate life.”

URL: https://popular.info/p/publix-versus-the-public?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=1664&post_id=141372927&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=a27i&utm_medium=email

My reply:

Yes, indeedie! This is a very worthy topic. Once and always, follow the money. And worse, we allow (or rather Congress allows) Francelli to write off her massive donation as a business expense and thus pay lower taxes. Any business person of any size uses revenue - expenses = net income equation as the basis for taxes. The wealthy inordinately abuse the equation under the definition of expenses. That is going to be a tough nut to crack.

We need more prosecution to deal with unscrupulous doctors; they are the root of the opioid crisis.

"That's just my opinion, but I could be wrong."

 . . . follow-up comment:

“While the tax write-off is also a scam, the point of the article is that Publix made an enormous return on investment. Their ‘penalty’ for selling Oxycodone unethically was about $10 million to rent politicians, whereas their competitors paid out hundreds of millions for the same offense. Renting politicians needs a large penalty of its own.

“In this instance, the doctors are also offenders. We don’t know from this article if/how they evaded justice.”

 . . . my follow-up reply:

Quite correct! Dark money is a deep, if not fatal, flaw in our form of governance. The Supremes, even before Tiny’s contribution, gave corporations the rights of citizenship and money is speech. But, these are the times in which we live. Yes, Publix should see the same punishment as Walgreen’s and CVS. Further, the doctors are the real root cause of the opioid epidemic. Of course, we cannot ignore the demand for psychotropic substances. I will say doctors are not ‘also offenders,’ they are THE offenders. Yet, I could also argue the consumers are the ultimate offenders, which is exactly why our laws must undergo major reform to deal with the inherent demand that drives everything. But I digress, Publix must be held accountable for their contribution.

 

The long percolating fBICP effort to impeach Homeland Secretary Alejandro Nicholas Mayorkas failed to pass the thinly fBICP dominated House—214-216-0-1(4). This is yet another embarrassment for Speaker Johnson, who cannot seem to find the handle for herding his covey of cats.

 

The Republican minority in the Senate asked Senator Langford of Oklahoma to negotiate a bipartisan immigration reform bill; several Republican senators joined him in the task. He did so in earnest. After four months of hard work, the negotiating team produced a draft bill that met many of the Republican demands—Senate Amendment 1386 to H.R. 815, re-titled the Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2024. In addition to significant enhancement to border security, the Senate bill included important, if not vital, funding for Ukraine and Israel. The fBICP got nearly everything they wanted, and Democrats did not get many of the changes they sought, e.g. DACA pathway to citizenship. The Senate bill was certainly far short of what I have long advocated for, namely a defense in depth that engages the states in the enforcement task. Then, [the person who shall no longer be named], who is not president or an office holder of any sort, decided that he did not want the bill passed because he needed the border issue to be a festering wound, so he had a hot-button campaign issue. [The person who shall no longer be named] did not care what the language or provisions of the bipartisan, negotiated bill were; he did not want any attempt to solve the problem. He wanted a festering wound, chaos, and tragedy, so he had a subject to campaign on for the coming general election. Further, as a consequence of his opposition for a border solution (partial and incomplete as it was), they also tanked vital aid to Ukraine, Israel, and humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. The cynicism of the man is beyond description. And the fecklessness of his fBICP minions in Congress is beyond description.

 

Then, the House tried to pass a separate bill for supplemental aid to Israel—H.R.7217 - Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024. The bipartisan bill failed to achieve the required 2/3 majority for passage (291 in favor required)—250-180-0-1(4)

 

On Tuesday, Nikki Haley suffered an embarrassing loss  to “None of the above” in the Nevada Republican Primary election, and it was not even close. [The person who shall no longer be named] nor any other living person other than Haley was on the ballot. On Thursday, the Nevada Republican caucuses were conducted and will allocate delegates to the Republican National Convention this summer. Please do not ask me to explain why the Republican Party in Nevada has taken such a confusing and obfuscated process of selecting their delegates to the convention. My only guess is, they intentionally and purposely want the process to be confusing to favor Lieber Anführer, who thrives of chaos. Anyway, [the person who shall no longer be named] won 99.1% of the votes in the caucuses, so he will get 100% of the delegates to the Republican National Convention.

 

On 30.November.2021, Ethan Robert Crumbley, then 15 years of age, armed with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, murdered four students and injured seven people, including a teacher, at Oxford High School, Oxford Township, Michigan, United States, a suburb of Detroit. Crumbley pleaded guilty to all charges and was sentenced to life in prison, without the possibility of parole, for his crimes. What is unique or unusual in this case is the prosecutor decided charge the parents for their culpability in their son’s crime.

On Tuesday of this week, Ethan’s mother, Jennifer Crumbley, was found criminally liable for mass shooting by her teenage son. Ethan’s father, James Crumbley, will be tried separately with his trial scheduled for next month. I expect him to feel a similar fate as his wife. Ethan confessed his mental health struggles and his parents ignored his pleas for help.

The message is clear, or should be, and I truly hope all of society pays attention to this jury decision. Parents are responsible for the conduct of their children and must pay attention to the mental health of their children. They have an obligation to the community in which they live. As such, it is long past due that parents can and should be held accountable for the actions of their children. For all the evidence and testimony against Jennifer, to me, the nail in her coffin was Jennifer’s testimony under oath on the stand when she said, “I’ve asked myself if I would have done anything differently and I wouldn’t have.” OK! Go to prison for a bunch of years and contemplate the errors of your ways. 

 

Special Counsel Robert Kyoung Hur issued a lengthy report concluding that President Biden had, in fact, improperly retained classified documents, but Hur stated that he would not prosecute the president for the crime. He was painfully clear in explaining that the violations of law did indeed occur, but he had decided not to prosecute the president because he was an old man with a poor memory. Hur stated,

We have also considered that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory. Based on our direct interactions with and observations of him, he is someone for whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him-by then a former president well into his eighties-of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness. 

The special counsel did not exonerate the president; he chose not to prosecute; there is a monumental difference.

Regrettably, Hur’s report and findings take on the tone of a political hit job, which is sad. He would have simply presented the facts and left the politics out of his report. Instead, Hur wanted to hand [the person who shall no longer be named] a ripe argument for his political campaign. Tiny will undoubtedly contend and claim that his classified documents case—United States v. Trump [USDC SDFL Case no. 9:23-cr-80101-AMC] [1117]—is no different from President Biden’s classified documents case, and as such, the case against him should be dismissed. While Tiny and Joe share common elements of their crimes—unlawful retention of classified documents—there are significant differences, namely obstruction, failure to comply, et al. If [the person who shall no longer be named] had done what President Biden had done once the documents were discovered, he would not be in the trouble he is in today. Tiny did this to himself. That said, Tiny being Tiny, he will make every effort and more to enhance his grift of the American people and intimidate the justice system to avoid his culpability. I do not think Judge Chutkin or Special Counsel Smith will be affected by Tiny’s whining. However, the believers of [the person who shall no longer be named] will be reinforced by his lies and false claims. These are the times in which we live.

 

Comments and contributions from Update no.1151:

“Thanks Cap for the update. I was a little worried that you didn’t have a personal comment to make this week! However I was pleased when I read on-this is the Cap we know!”

My reply:

Last week was just one of those weeks. I needed a break from [the person who shall no longer be named]. I could not find a topic that inspired me to write and share my opinions. Hopefully, the moment passed.

Looks like this week may be better. We shall see.

 

Comment to the Blog:

“We could discuss how the decline in violent crime conflicts with various marketing claims. (The examples in my blog response are retailers' claims about shoplifting and politicians' claims that Democratic cities are dangerous.)”

My response to the Blog:

Yes, that is a bountiful topic. Politicians exaggerate to instill fear in their believers and the malleable/gullible. Cities are not violent . . . unless you are caught up in an incident by happenstance. The data are the data. The facts are the facts. I trust nothing coming from any politician of any color. Trust but verify, I suppose is the watch phrase. We must start somewhere. In the case of Tiny and his fBICP, as I have written previously, we can reliably take what they say as accusations against the opposition and that will probably describe their conduct, beliefs, and actions; they accuse their opposition of doing what they are in fact doing themselves, e.g., THE BIG LIE. The crime in cities is no different. They select a specific crime and accuse the opposition of enabling that crime, then they generalize to the whole.

 

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.

Cheers,

Cap                  :-)

Update no.1151

Update from the Sunland

No.1151

29.1.24 – 4.2.24

Blog version:  http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/

 

To all,

 

I have nothing reasonable or worthy to report or discuss this week. I trust everyone is doing well and in good health. Perhaps next week will be more fruitful. Until then, Godspeed and following winds to all.

 

Comments and contributions from Update no.1150:

“The political stress continues, it will only subline when politicians start behaving like adults doing the task we set them. If they are incapable of doing that then the exit door must be emphasised and painted a brilliant bright colour.

“Excellent cover for your latest ‘To So Few’ Winston does look good. We need more leaders of his calliper, and we need them now.”

My reply:

Oh my, yes, the political stress continues and is quite likely to intensify as Tiny’s various civil and criminal court cases play out amid the silly season, and we move farther through primaries and to the general election in November. This is going to be a buckle up buttercup year.

Expecting our politicians to act like adults and patriots is a very tall order. Very few among our current crop of politicians have stood to the mark. We must vote the election deniers, anti-constitutionalists, conspiracists, and outright grifters out of office. Everyone must vote.

Thank you for your comment on the cover. Numerous people have offered very positive comments, so I guess we hit the mark on that one. By the way, were you able to find the first book?

Winston was a flawed man as we all are. He had his quirks and beliefs that I cannot accept. Nonetheless, there is a very distinct and palpable reason we chose Churchill alone for the cover of Victory. There is also comparable reasons TIME magazine chose Sir Winston as their Man of the Half Century in 1950. Yes, we need many more like him. If only . . .

 

Comment to the Blog:

“Congratulations on the new book!

“Interesting Bible quote and comment: https://www.threads.net/@mspeacefrog/post/C2qBbFPACIU

“Look for Tiny to go bankrupt again soon, complicated by the fraud findings.

“The RNC can only crown Tiny as the candidate, not the office-holder. He’s making Biden and others look better with each new outburst and conviction.

“Actual issues continue. Biden continues steering us toward another unjustifiable ‘war.’ Chaos at the border continues. Congress is paralyzed by the chaos within the Republican party.”

My response to the Blog:

Thank you very much. The passion fire still burns, and the words continue to come.

Great response to that pastor. Oh so true. As so many on the right, among conservatives and evangelicals of all sorts, define freedom as what they agree with. They seek conformity to their beliefs by whatever means they can muster up. While they occasionally have important, valuable things to say and contribute, the good is masked and clouded by their parochialism.

Perhaps, but from what I see, he still remains successful as a grifter conman convincing gullible people to give him money—give! The court may demand bankruptcy to liquidate his corporate empire to pay for all the accumulating judgments against him. Further, he likes to portray himself as the victim, like Jesus before the Romans, but he has only himself to blame; this is all his doing. There is no conspiracy against him.

True all the way around from my perspective. Unfortunately, the consumers of his snake-oil elixir do not care; they believe they are cured. They believe and that is all that counts to them. Tiny’s outbursts, tantrums, rants, and whining show him for what he is, but his believers apparently like that behavior. He needs to disappear into oblivion, removed from the public eye.

Quite so. Our societal struggles continue. I do not agree with your statement that President Biden is steering toward war. He is obligated to confront those who threaten American citizens, commerce, and presence wherever it occurs. We can eliminate the chaos with the Republican Party by voting them out of office. Let them speak like the rest of us common citizens and get out of the way of progress.

 . . . Round two:

“I realized as a skeptical 11-year-old that the Bible and other sacred texts have enough material to fuel all sides of most arguments. That would leave the fate of society in the hands of a priesthood, but over time more rational governments have arisen.

“Raising $83 million plus the other judgments by fleecing the flock may be difficult even for Tiny.

“The current undeclared war resembles Vietnam and all the rest since. The ‘threat’ we’re defending against is losing Netanyahu as a business partner, and the part few talk about is that there are natural resources off the Gaza coast. The Houthi are attacking shipping bound for Israel and doing self-defense. Meanwhile, Israel is doing siege warfare in hopes of starving all the Palestinians.”

 . . . my response to round two:

It is unfortunate that the separation between church & state was relegated to a single letter from Thomas Jefferson years after ratification rather than preserved in the Constitution and codified in common law. But hey, that is what we have. To me, theocracy is just a different form of autocracy or even dictatorship. Religion of any form does not make autocracy better.

It may be difficult, but Tiny appears to be doing a good job of it. He had reportedly spent more the US$50M in legal expenses alone on his various indictments—all donor money. He is an accomplished grifter and snake-oil salesman. The NY fraud case ruling is due any day now; it is potentially an even greater judgment than the liable / sexual assault judgement.

I cannot agree with your assessment of military action in the Middle East. I do not condone Israel’s iron fist approach to the Hamas situation, but I do not see Israeli actions as “starving all the Palestinians.” They have taken unusual and uncommon initiatives to move the population in an effort to isolate Hamas infrastructure before they destroy it. We have not seen the intelligence. Many of the munitions have been precision, deep penetrator weapon as indicated by the near columnar explosions. I do not want innocent Palestinians injured, set aside killed, but conversely, they cannot permit Hamas to use them as human shields.

 . . . Round three:

“I’ll insert my usual caution about marketing versus fact. Israel is destroying every structure in Gaza, not just things they claim belong to Hamas. In the meantime, they block any and all humanitarian aid. That leads directly to starvation and the absence of any medical care. That, in fact and law, constitutes genocide.”

 . . . response to round three:

The difficulty we have with this topic is neither one of us has access to the intelligence. Sure, we see what appears to be residential and office buildings being leveled and whole swaths of districts being turned into rubble. It appears to be indiscriminate. We have even seen videos of surprisingly well constructed tunnels and chambers. What we do not know is the correlation between the surface buildings and the tunnels presumably underneath those buildings. Israel contends those buildings were acting as shields and hidden access points for the operative tunnel network below them. The videos of the bombs indicate that the IAF was using high yield, deep penetrator, precision guidance bombs. I saw no evidence they were using area bombing techniques.

The conundrum the Israelis face is how to regulate aid to the Gaza Palestinians. How do they keep that aid out of the hands of Hamas? That process was made even more difficult when UN aid workers were found helping and participating in Hamas terror operations against the Israelis.

Let us be very careful with how far we stretch facts to the general situation. I have not seen evidence of genocide as is alleged. The accusation is a Hamas narrative intended to turn world opinion against the Israelis, and it is having some success as we have seen.

 . . . Round four:

“I understand that most Americans favor the government of Israel, even if many of them hate Jews. I assume that it's because of Christianity originating there. I'll note that the Christians in the area are far less enthusiastic about exterminating their neighbors. Somehow you can ignore casualty counts, the destruction of hospitals, and widespread starvation in favor of marketing announcements from Israel. We are not the same.”

 . . . my response to round four:

My oh my, I am not sure if you used the 2^nd person ‘you’ in the singular or plural context. The former is a direct attribution to me personally. Just in case that is your intent, let me emphatically state for the record as clearly and unequivocally as I possibly can. I have not and do not ignore casualty counts. We can see the dead and wounded for ourselves. What I do not trust is any information coming from Hamas; they are tainted by every possible metric. Further, I do not want any civilian of any heritage, ethnicity, race, religion, or any other of the social factors, harmed in any manner—physical, mental, or emotional. I do not and never have ignored the destruction of hospitals for anyone. That said, I loudly condemn Hamas for using hospitals, schools, mosques, and other community property to hide or shield their nefarious operations. I do not and never have ignored the widespread hunger of Gaza Palestinians. No one deserves such treatment. Where we apparently differ is, I blame Hamas solely and fully for the abuse of Gaza Palestinian people rather than the Israelis. Are there abuses and criminal conduct by Israeli Defense Force (IDF) personnel? Yes, no doubt, as there have been in every military body ever gathered. Every military organization is a reflection of the community they serve, and just as there are bad men in communities, there are bad men in military organizations. When abuses occur, they must be investigated and prosecuted. Let us not go too far with generalities.

 . . . Round five:

“If the shoe fits, wear it. I'm not interested in Netanyahu's talking points. I'm trained to write crap like that. The facts are that all the hospitals in Gaza have been destroyed, tens of thousands of non-combatants have been killed, and all humanitarian aid is blockaded.”

 . . . my response to round five:

Indeed! I am emphatically NOT a fan of Netanyahu or any of his right-wing comrades & supporters. They continue to poke the Palestinians with these damnable West Bank squatter settlements and wonder why the Palestinians are angry.

There is no argument. The destruction is Gaza is real, documented, palpable, and tragic. The reasons for the destruction are not so clear.

 

My very best wishes to all.  Take care of yourselves and each other.

Cheers,

Cap                  :-)