February 29

Sunny but very chilly today. Happy Leap day in this Leap Year. The snow is mostly gone--again. It has really not been much of a winter at all. We had to go out today to pay our rent so I stopped off at Michaels to get some floral pieces to put into a couple of spring arrangements for inside the house. I am not the only one who changed the door wreath early. One of the employees at Michaels said she did the same two weeks ago. Mine got changed about three weeks ago.

Mom and I both had "senior moments" yesterday because we couldn't remember if we had paid our rent during our errands over the last couple of weeks. She couldn't find any entry in her check book. I couldn't find it on the bank records. So we stopped by today and told the secretary at our landlord's office that we had a silly question: did we pay the rent. We hadn't according to her records so we paid it.

So President Biden and Former (hoping to be next) President Trump are both going to the Texas border to highlight immigration problems. I laughed when they said Trump is headed for Eagle Creek. He should get a very friendly reception because that is where that pathetic MAGA caravan went. I don't know if they are still there. I wondered at the time if they had jobs to go to and how they financed their adventure. About the only thing that will come out is some nice dueling visuals. What a waste!!

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has decided that he won't run to be leader of the Senate GOP contingent next year. He was elected to his current term in 2022 so he won't be up for re-election again until 2028. But I won't miss him as GOP leader but given who the news media are speculating might replace him, I don't expect any kind of real bi-partisan cooperation after he leaves.

The pictures of a relief convoy in Gaza City being mobbed by desperate people was horrific enough but that was compounded by the actions of Israeli troops nearby who felt threatened as some of the mob appeared to be approaching them. They opened fire. Casualties mounted to over 100 both from Israeli fire and from people being run over as convoy drivers tried to get through the mob. The news said that the French have had some good results from parachuting aid in and our government is thinking of doing the same. The whole thinking reminded me of a messy Berlin airlift.

Loved this from DIRECT eZine:

Heather Cox Richardson posted a good summary of the political events. She notes that Trump's take over of the Republican appears to be complete.

February 27, 28

Warm this morning--starting in the 40s. But it is wet. The rain may move out and it may dry out enough for me to get outside and clean up a bit. I won't do much because one of our errands yesterday was grocery shopping and both of us were exhausted by the time we finished. I can see a time in the not too distant future when we will have to set up the delivery service with the grocery we use most. Age does catch up with you.

Antidote du jour. Tim H: “Same pair that you featured last year in Ouroboros mode. They ignored those cat beds until they were appropriate housed.”

I loved this photo posted on Naked Capitalism today. I have two cats so this resonates. It is at the bottom of the post.

I saw the ad mentioned in the CNN article. Evidently it is getting some criticism for telling people to have cereal for supper to spare the food budget. I wan't thinking of the budget when I saw it. I was thinking of the added sugar and additives in most cereals today. We haven't had those in several years and have stuck with old fashioned (as in not quick or instant) rolled oats and farina. 

Found Indian Punchline by way of Naked Capitalism and it has an interesting article on the effect of Russia's victory in Avdiivka Ukraine. The focus of our news media seems to be blinkered and focused solely on Europe, Russia, and (to a lesser extent). But there is a complex set of relationships beyond and those countries don't have a very friendly relationship with the U.S. They have a far more favorable view of Putin and Russia than they have of the West.

28**********************************************************************

 Cold today and snow. Not much accumulated but the wind is definitely not comfortable. Thankfully we didn't get the hail or tornadoes the weather forecasters predicted we might have.

CNN published this article today detailing an interesting parallel between Putin and Xi. I thought a long time ago that both were trying to recover a, to them, glorious past. A past when their countries were rich, powerful and could influence the course of history. The problem for each is that with the passage of time large parts of the past empires have splintered off and aren't necessarily willing to resume their old subordinate relationship. But they aren't the only ones who are trying to recover an imagined past. A lot of our own people want a return to the 1950s, or the 1930s, or even 1900. Back when women remained in the home, before the pill, before abortion, when America could pretend it was a Christian nation just like they dreamed the founders established it.

Lyz at Men Yell At Me has a good analysis of the effect of laws from Texas, Alabama, Missouri, and Arizona which prohibit pregnant women from getting a divorce. The justifications usually involve ensuring the continuing care and well-being of children. But keeping women in abusive relationships, or relationships that aren't working (at least for the women) may actually be detrimental to the children. But the whole aim of these laws are the same as the aim of abortion bans is to keep women in subservient and impoverished positions. As the article says, keep women doing all of the unpaid and undervalued work that keeps society functioning. I remember, some decades ago, when the news media always featured a report on how much it would cost to actually pay women for all of the caring work they weren't, and still are not, paid for. I haven't seen even that minimal acknowledgement of women's work for forty years. 

February 26

 We have errands later today. It is nice and sunny with temperatures reaching the 60s--much above normal. It is supposed to continue tomorrow so I hope to get some of the patio cleaned up. After that the temperatures go back to a more normal 30s and low 40s.

We spent Sunday watching soccer and rugby. The local news was as depressing as usual--shootings, auto accidents, Chicago politics. The national news is both depressing and infuriating. The sports are much more pleasantly entertaining.

I started hearing the Democrat message that appropriating the billions of dollars for Ukraine and Israel isn't like sending gobs of money overseas because it will, mostly, be spent in this country for armaments. Bill Astore has an appropriately sarcastic blog about that cynical government argument. I don't think it is going to fly with Palestinian voters who object to their government spending their tax dollars to help Israel kill their family members in Gaza. Nor will it fly with younger voters who think supporting genocide is good foreign policy. If we are honest, and some of us aren't, we have to acknowledge that Israel's actions are genocide.

William Hartung also has a good article on Tomdispatch on the issue of military spending. 

I do wish there was a choice other than bad (Biden and business as has been usual) and much worse (Trump and despotism/Christian Nationalism/Handmaid's Tale). The assumptions our policies are based on have been baked into our thoughts and actions since the end of WWII. There is an inertia in human affairs just as in physics. What has been will continue to be unless events of sufficient impact force a change. (I.E., A body in motion will continue on its course and speed unless acted upon by an external force sufficient to change it.) 

Well, fire season has started, if last year's season ever ended. Texas has a 4K acre fire that is contained and Colorado has one outside Colorado Springs. The Weather Chanel has a map of fire warnings and watches that stretches from the Gulf to Canada and almost as far east as Wisconsin and Illinois.

Some sun this morning after snow overnight. It is cold now and not expected to rise above 32F.

We watched the Chicago news this morning. As I have mentioned before Chicago is as close to local as we can get on TV. It is a relief from the repetition of the nationally oriented news we watch during the week. Then continued with the pre-game show for the Premier League soccer. The game should start shortly. At the same time I got the salmon patties made up and in the refrigerator ready to fry later. I am resting before fixing our breakfast.

The Hill has a long article about the latest looming budget deadline in D.C. The House is supposed to return, after a couple of weeks in their districts or somewhere, on Monday with the shutdown scheduled for March 1. I keep wondering why we are paying those guys a six figure salary for doing not much at all, except preening before cameras.

Responsible Statecraft posted this article this morning. The headline claims that Biden wants to put the U.S. on a "permanent war footing." After reading it I don't see the U.S. being put on a permanent war footing, rather just the defense industry. Worse I don't think the nebulous goals listed will do move us away from the system we have where the military is "getting less for more." And, in a continuation of George W.'s pronouncements after 9/11, that most of us should support his War on Terror by going shopping.

The New Eastern Outlook has an interesting analysis of our defense industry and expounds on some "fatal flaws" in the system as it is now organized. I haven't read much of this journal so I decided to look up more info. Wikipedia and other sources trace its ancestry back to a Soviet era academic institute specializing in Asia. They say that it is one major conduit for Russian misinformation and propaganda. I didn't see much in the article that got my skepticism antennae moving from normal to extreme. But it is a site to read carefully and skeptically.

February 23

 Sunny and cool so far. The rain yesterday ended mid-afternoon.

GZero has an interesting article that asks an important question: Russia is winning? Winning What? Our government has imposed a new round of sanctions but Russia's economy isn't as sensitive to sanctions as it was originally, and India and China are still very willing to buy the oil Russia sells them at bargain basement prices.

Heather Cox Richardson published a good overview of our current political turmoil. There are several things that make me crazy angry. One is a bunch of men deciding that I, or any other woman, isn't competent to make decisions about my life just because I MIGHT NOT MAKE THE DECISION THEY WANT ME TO MAKE. (I am not shouting here just emphasizing the injustice of the situation.) Second, I resent anyone, male or female, trying to saddle me with their religion based restrictions. I don't sing in their damned choirs. Third, I hate scientifically illiterate people thinking they should opine on science. I could go on but I won't.

By the way, I don't mind people deciding to live according to their religious beliefs and raising their children in those beliefs, but I draw the line with them imposing their beliefs on others. I don't think one parent in a school district should be able to restrict what every student in the school reads just to protect their precious offsprings delicate sensitivities. Expand that to IVF and abortion.

Joyce Vance has another piece on that idiotic ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court extending the legal protections given children to embryos.

One for the "OUCH" file. I have been watching this for a while. By the way, Milei has been described as Argentina's Trump.

OMG, how the hell did the idiot DeSantis appointed ?urgeon General get a medical degree? To send a letter to parents telling them to go ahead and send unvaccinated children to school as cases of measles are rising. Read all about it. 

February 22

 Rain today. I won't complain since the rain will help the soil in my containers fully defrost. That seems to be doing well. I noticed that, though we didn't have rain yesterday, I had small streams of water flowing slowly from the buckets.

Aurelien has a good, but long, post on his substack this morning. It reminds me of Daniel Boorstin's book THE IMAGE published in the 1960. It also reminds me of the new ad for (I think) Audi where the selling point seems to be the notion that you can choose, O Joy,  the configuration of lights in your headlights. Lovely image but how does that improve the performance of the car? Some years ago a book I read on the growth of advertising claimed that as a product became nearly universal in society the advertising became more about the aesthetics and less how the product worked.

Listening to the news this morning about the collapse of the newest base the Republicans in the House claim for their attempts to impeach Biden I was reminded of the Upton Sinclair quote: It is difficult to convince a man of something when his salary depends on him not understanding it. Rep. Jordan was asked about the arrest of the (newest) devastating witness and the document he provided to the FBI which was totally generated by Russian misinformation and the man's imagination. Jordan insisted that it did nothing to debunk the "facts." Unfortunately his facts aren't really facts; they are merely his own fevered imaginings. I think a corollary to Sinclair would read: A man will always believe what supports his ego, position, or salary even if false.

I found an interesting post that claimed 10 Israelis had been killed because of Israeli bombing in Gaza. I followed the link but the site is in Hebrew which I don't know. I tried to see if there was any mention in two Israeli media outlets and in Al Jazeera but found nothing recent which amount to 10 Israeli casualties of Israeli operations. Since I can't verify the claim I have put it in my mental "Maybe" file. The blogger claimed that it put a lie to the Netanyahu government's supposed concern for getting the hostages released. Well, I have always thought the two aims antithetical. I never believed that the "eliminate Hamas" aim was compatible with getting hostages out alive. I also wonder how many hostages are still alive. I wonder if the hostage exchange/pause talks have broken down because Hamas doesn't have all that many bargaining chips left.

 Ouch!!! The Edmonton Journal in Alberta, Canada reports the government has declared an early start to the 2024 fire season. They still have 54 fires (new and continued from last season) burning. The problem: low snow pack and very dry weather. Yesterday the Weather Channel reported that a large area of west Texas, Arizona, and southern Colorado was under fire warnings. Same problems.

 Good morning on a sunny and fairly warm day. We had an errand and I didn't need my heavy sweater. (I avoid wearing my winter coat--just don't really like it but am too cheap to buy another.)

Stray thought: reading this piece by Bill Astore I remember a bit I read in a book on the history of Rome. It recounted the transition from Republic to Empire and said that Augustus managed it by neatly gathering all the strings of power into his own hands while maintaining the illusion that the institutions of the Republic were still effective. The Senate still met but had less and less power as time went on. There were still Tribunes but they were subservient to Augustus. The various priesthoods answered to Augustus who held the supreme priesthood. And the power of ordinary citizens to affect policy, never really strong, was canceled out.

Interesting article on CNN today on the reestablishment of volunteer, corporate armies. Evidently 16 major companies and several minor ones are "recruiting" volunteers from among their employees who do their regular work while also participating in the security forces. These armies appear to function like our National Guard does. I am not at all sure how voluntary the recruitment is.

I love this post by Crooks&Liars. I am no fan of Margery Taylor Green and absolutely do not see why her constituents keep voting for her.

In case any one really thought Navalny died of some unspecified natural cause, this should raise suspicions. There was a debate during the pandemic about how to count the Covid deaths. Did someone die OF Covid or WITH Covid? If a person with diabetes or heart problems (or whatever) who contracted Covid die of the underlying condition or of Covid? I never could see why the distinction was so important. Did Navalny die of an underlying natural cause or from that cause (or no cause) complicated by harsh treatment (a.k.a., torture). I don't think the distinction mattered to Putin who has rewarded the chief torturer with a promotion.

Ouch!!! The drought in Europe is continuing adding to the problems that are propelling farmers to drive their tractors and trucks to protest at various capitals.