March 22

 Cloudy this morning but temperatures are moderate. It looks like the big pots on the patio are thawing out--I saw rivulets of water running down from the bottom of them. 

I didn't do much yesterday because the news from the Trump circus was depressing. When Trump first announced his cabinet picks I thought he was choosing on the basis of incompetence and lack of experience but looking at what is happening I think he chose people who would do the most damage. An old saying holds that just because you are paranoid doesn't mean someone isn't after you. I never felt paranoid before but it is hard not to feel paranoid when everything I and my mother depend on is under attack. And Trump has commanded that Student Loans will be moved to the Small Business Agency which is not really equipped to handle tens of thousands of new accounts and has just had its workforce slated for a 40%reduction. And the changes to Social Security simply make sure it is as difficult as possible for retirees to navigate the system and get the money most of us were promised in return for a working life-time of paying into it.

I saw most of Trump's news conference announcing the above measures and the new F47 fighter for the Pentagon. Bill Astore has some caustic thought on the new $22billion (for now) program. This isn't the way to cut costs but then I don't think cost cutting has ever really been the goal. What they really wanted was a large pot of money they could skim or throw at their favored recipients. We didn't see a "peace dividend" from the end of the Cold War and I don't expect to see anything out of the Great Demolition.

Stray thought: I remember a scene from John Michael Greer's novel TWILIGHT'S LAST GLEAMING where, during a succession crisis triggered by a 25th Amendment convention which placed a disollusion amendment on the table, one of the main characters says that Americans expected two thing from the Federal Government: win wars and provide services people need. And the Feds hadn't been good at either for decades.

Another stray thought: while the press conference was going on, before I got too disgusted to continue and turned it off, I wondered if all those present were kissing the Trumpian ass to his satisfaction. It clearly wasn't enough that they designated the plane to honor President #47. They all had to constantly praise Trump the Great.

I heard about the travel advisories some European countries and Canada are issuing for their citizens to NOT travel to the U.S. Here is an article on that issue. Who would have thunk it?