April 2

 Really chilly today and wet. We have some weak sunshine at the moment but the morning began with thunderstorms before light with hard rain. I woke with a headache which I needed a couple of aspirin. That is unusual but it is the second time within a few days. The last really vicious storm that came through the weekend did the same. When we went out on Monday we saw several large trees blown down and splintered. I don't think the storms this morning had winds that strong.

Stray thought: isn't it wonderful Elon Musk spent somewhere in the neighborhood of $23million on a losing effort to buy an election for a MAGA candidate in Wisconsin? He made the election about himself and, secondarily, Trump's MAGA agenda. Unfortunately, though Musk was singed, Trump was unscathed if the interviews I saw with voters is any indication.

Second stray thought: although Republican candidates for the House of Representatives did win the two special elections in Florida, the news wasn't entirely good for them. Matt Gaetz, who nominated to be Attorney General but withdrew when he couldn't get the required votes,  and Mike Waltz, Trump's current National Security Advisor of Signal-gate fame, won those districts by 30+ points. The two winning candidates in this election won by only around 15 points. The seats aren't as "safe" as the Party big wigs thought.

Yet another stray thought: Cory Booker was amazing yesterday and provided an example of the kind of passion Democrats need. Heather Cox Richardson gives the highlights here.

And, again, a stray thought: I thought the whole episode of the Eric Adams predicament was BS. He may be guilty of the kind of corruption alleged but the motion by the Federal prosecutors to have the charges dismissed "without prejudice" (meaning they could be refiled at any time) so a trial wouldn't "interfere" with his ability to "cooperate" with Federal forces officials on the implementation of its immigration policies, was nothing less than a form of extortion. An honest move by the Federal prosecutors would have either moved on to trial (if they considered their case strong enough to proceed or to simply dismiss the case if they were in doubt. They wanted to put Adams on a leash and there was nothing honest about that. The judge, evidently, sees things the same way and ordered the case dismissed "with prejudice" preventing the government from refiling the charges. Good!

April 1

 Happy April Fool's Day. I guess that is why The Stable Genius decided to wait until tomorrow to announce the details of his new tariff list. I have been ignoring most of the news because it is mainly very repetitive speculation. Right now we have a Premier League game on Wolverhampton vs Westham United. Right now Wolverhampton leads 1-0.

Sunny today but storms should move in overnight. No plans so we can stay home. I hope things clear up next Monday because we have a medical appointment.

Found this post by Anne Applebaum. I could only read the first half because the rest is behind a pay wall but I think I got most of her argument that Hungary now is where the U.S. will be in not too many years. She was on Morning Joe yesterday and outlined the details: replace civil servants with loyalists, us economic pressure to destroy a free press and independent universities, reward friends and family with government funds, change the laws and the legal system to retain power and squelch dissent. Seems like the MAGA crowd is rapidly following Hungary's path.

Stray thought: the pundits are going on and on about the Stable Genius teasing about running for a third term. Most point out that the 22nd Amendment prohibits anyone from being elected to the Presidency more than twice. That amendment codified the tradition established by Washington when he left office at the end of his second term which held until Franklin D. Roosevelt successfully ran for four terms and died barely three months into his last term. Some one posited the notion that J.D. Vance could run for president with Trump in the second slot and (assuming he won) could resign immediately letting Trump succeed to the office. I see two problems with that. First, Vance is no Medvedev, Putin's loyal acolyte who traded the top offices in Russia with him to circumvent the law which, at the time, prevented the President from succeeding himself. I doubt Vance would be so accommodating. Second, the last sentence of the 12th Amendment, which formalized the workings of the Electoral College, prohibits the members from voting for any vice-presidential candidate who is ineligible for election as President. We would have to be much further down the Hungarian path to circumvent the Constitutional roadblocks.

The news readers have recited stories for some time about the tattoos which DHS have decided are indicators of gang membership and have used to justify detaining for deportation those sporting those tattoos. I just found this piece on POPULAR INFORMATION showing some of the tattoos in question. What a pile of crap. (I am TRYING to be more polite.) Most members of my family have tattoos. My sister has the most extensive array. I think Mom and I are the only unmarked members of the family. I don't think any could easily identify Venezuela on a map. Most haven't been to Mexico. None, as far as I know, have any fluency in Spanish. But I am not sure, given the thugs in DHS, that would protect anyone. About 20 years ago I found a copy of a DHS pamphlet which listed "questionable activities" which might mark a person as a "sovereign citizen" or some similar "subversive" person. Those traits included: buying supplies in bulk, using cash, buying camo gear, stocking up on guns and ammo. I have known a number of people who did all of that but were in no way anti-government or anti-American. During the pandemic Mom and I kept a full pantry and stockpiled necessary goods so we didn't have to go out very often. We have cut back since then but still keep a full pantry. We also pay cash for most purchases because the charge cards became a pain in the butt to manage on line. A couple of shops we frequent refuse to accept charge cards--cash or check only. We don't have guns and are satisfied with jeans and flannel or sweats. The kakistocracy is alive and we are not well.

Alley Valkyrie makes some interesting observations about American culture and French culture. Makes you realize just how we have come on the "enshitification" path we have gone and the attitudes which have propelled us on that path.