Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

(Yesterday was) “the darkest hour in the history of Virginia Beach.”        -- Mayor Robert M. Dyer

There have been more than 150 mass shootings in America in 2019;

the shooting in Virginia Beach the most deadly.

We must act to stop the epidemic in America.

It is not acceptable for America to be the only developed country where gun violence is routine.  

Our country is framed by the NRA -

the days of an NRA controlled Congress writing our gun laws must end: 

more people with guns is not the answer.

Love for our country manifests in justice.  

Somehow - guns blazing (with sound suppressors and extended magazines) - the GOP is rolling back voting rights, LGBTQ rights, women’s reproductive rights...  

The House has passed background checks, Mitch McConnell refuses to put the bill forward.  

Gun violence is a public health problem in the US.  

Living in the U.S. we cross bridges at our own peril and know not when/where we will face gunfire.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Congress has a constitutional decision to make.  

We all want the right thing to happen - problem is we don’t agree on what the right thing is.  

Sound bites sound definitive in contrast to a 448 page report.

Trump and Barr ignore the national security issue Mueller documented - we were attacked by Russia.

Why not give Trump a nickname? - “Unindicted Donald” - compliments of Barney Frank.

Mueller made the mistake of trusting Barr.

He also did not interview Trump or other targets.

Stewart Myrent

Just saw a story this AM, that the city of El Paso billed the Trump & Beto O'Rourke campaigns for city services provided to both campaigns for competing rallies this past February.  O'Rourke's campaign paid up, just before the deadline (approx. $28,000).  Can you guess if the Trump campaign has yet paid one penny to El Paso?  Guess what, you're right.  The deadline has passed & Trump's campaign has paid $0 to El Paso, complaining that they were overcharged (almost 1/2 million dollars).  Sound familiar?  Trump is doing what he has always done, stiffing virtually anyone who has provided him with services, always complaining that he was over-charged, ripped off.  Some of these unfortunate businessmen/businesswomen wound up losing their businesses, because they couldn't afford to stay in business, absorbing the Trump losses.  I doubt that this will happen to El Paso, but I did read that the amount Trump owes them, represents approx. 2/3 of their total annual emergency/contigency fund, that wound up paying for public services that resulted from the competing rallies.  I am somewhat mystified as to why the O'Rourke campaign was billed $28,000, as opposed to 1/2 million for the Trump campaign, but I do think that 1/2 million seems like a lot for a political campaign/rally.  However, I am not at all surprised that Trump's rally wound up costing 1/2 million dollars, as I'm pretty sure that Trump's campaign never had any intention of paying ANYTHING to the city of El Paso, as this man has been stiffing people his entire life.  So, what else is new? 

Marvin Irving Blusteln

If there were term limits on congress, I don't believe there would be any doubt congress would protect our democracy.  They are all to busy worrying about relection strategy.

Stewart Myrent

Roger, since my last post, I have finished "Commander in Cheat", and I loved the book.  It is my new favorite Trump book, of the (now) 4 I have read.  There are nuggets in every chapter, too numerous to recount here, but I feel compelled to mention four items.  The past few years, I have been taking notice of the dedications in books.  Usually, they are dedicated to someone I don't know, but the dedication in Reilly's book is: "This book is dedicated to the truth. It's still a thing."  I loved that, and Chapter 1, "The Big Lie", has an epigraph, a quote from P.G. Wodehouse, "To find a man's character, play golf with him."  In the penultimate Chapter 15 "Little Ball, Big Ball", "...But you can't kick and throw and foozle your way through a presidency.  You can't cheat and fudge and fake running the world, for one good reason: You don't own the course."  And, finally, from the final Chapter 16, " You might be thinking, 'What does golf have to do with being president?  What does it matter that he cheats at it?  What's it got to do with leading the country?'  Everything.  If you'll cheat to win at golf, is it that much further to cheat to win an election?  To turn a Congressional vote?  To stop an investigation?  If you'll lie about every aspect of the game, is it that much further to lie about your taxes, your relationship with Russians, your groping of women?  If you're adamant that the poor don't deserve golf, is it that much further to think they don't deserve health care, clean air, safe schools?  I'm glad my dad didn't live to see a Commander in Cheat like Trump.  It would've turned his stomach.  Somebody who wins club championships from the next state is not a gentleman.  Somebody who makes his caddies cheat for him to earn their tip is not a gentleman.  Somebody who bullies and manipulates and yells that his courses are the best in the world when that world absolutely knows otherwise is not a gentleman."  I, however, in a perverse way, am glad I lived long enough to see a Commander in Cheat, because, otherwise, I probably wouldn't have believed it.

Stewart Myrent

Just picked up a new book today, "The Problem of Democracy: The Presidents Adams Confront the Cult of Personality", by Nancy Isenberg & Andrew Burstein.  I have read (I believe) 2 biographies of John Adams, not least, the one by David McCullough.  It was great & really highlighted the warm & supportive relationship between John & Abigail Adams.  I have also read 1 biography of John Quincy Adams, which was also great.  John Quincy was, I'm pretty sure, the only ex-president to return, not to the U.S. Senate, but the U.S. House of Representatives, after his presidential term.  He was pretty much the coolest cat, in the history of our democracy.  They were both ardent abolitionists (although the major thrust for early abolitionists was returning the slaves to Africa - as opposed to true equal rights for the African-Americans - this was pretty much true through the time of Lincoln).  I had assumed that the "cult of personality" was going to be related to George Washington, but found from the liner notes that, in the case of John Q., it also related to Andrew Jackson.  Which reminds me, I have been somewhat astounded that more parallels have not been drawn between Trump & Andy Jackson.  They are very much alike, but Trump owns more property. 

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Natasha here - munching on borscht pizza, looking ahead to Cardinals’ return to Wrigley Field this weekend.  

GO CUBSKIES GO! ! !  

Steve Hirschtick and Ace and Orawan were featured on MLB special about Cubs-Cardinals rivalry that aired last night on Fox Sports 1.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Marvin, I am thinking about term limits... it's not a simple issue.

I totally agree Congress members put re election strategy ahead of protecting our democracy to maneuver their way to re election.

From what I hear - in private, some Republican Congress members are in a totally different place than they are in front of the cameras.  They know Trump is undermining the rule of law but somehow rationalize that protecting their seat takes priority over what they know is right for our country -

Justin Amash is a hero - he has the courage of his convictions.

Mitch McConnell is treacherous - he has convictions but he lacks conscience - he has no respect for the rule of law and continues to damage our government.

I don't know how long (how many terms) for representatives and senators to get up to speed? (Some have served as staffers prior to running for office.)

There's no doubt though, that we benefit from the background, experience, stability returning Congress members bring to public service - which is preferable to unelected, unconfirmed bureaucrats pushing the levers of government.

Incumbents have a tremendous advantage -

term limits empower the minority and frustrate the majority...

It's a lot of work but each election voters have the opportunity to impose term limits.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

D-Day soldiers are in Normandy 75 years

after the boldest military invasion in history -

to stop Hitler and give us a “second chance.”

Think how petrified the young soldiers must have been...

75 years later three 90 something vets parachuted (in tandem jumps) into Normandy -

this time to cheers and applause.

D-Day -

a solemn day of remembrance and gratitude,

a day to honor our American heroes (Macron did too)

and pay tribute to our allies.

Donald Henry Kuehn

Writing about the D-Day invasion:

“They were not a perfect generation, the tendency to romanticize them notwithstanding. But they knew, better than their children, better than their children’s children, how to be a country — what it took, what it meant, and why it mattered. They pulled together and believed in something more important to them than their own lives. And so, they were bound to one another in ways unachievable by social media. It is something you and I might find difficult to imagine.

But we owe it to our country to try.”

Leonard Pitts Jr.         The Miami Herald

Thanks, Dad.  

DK

Stewart Myrent

Don, thank you for the Leonard Pitt, Jr. quote.  It does make you think.  I am slogging through "The Problem of Democracy", about both Adams presidents.  I am slogging through, mainly because of not just the difference in speech patterns, from their time 'till now, but also the writing of that time, was quite a bit more erudite & proper, compared to today.  Both John Adams & JQA (abbreviation of John Quincy), were lifelong bibliophiles & spent much of their time during their endless European diplomacy missions, buying older (classic) books, to build their respective libraries.  They both also kept extensive diaries, for decades.  The other reason it's taking so long to get through this book, is the constant references to classic philosophers, going all the way back to Cicero & Tacitus, and many others that followed.  Both of these guys would read these clasical texts in the original Latin or Greek (they were their own translators).  I have to mention that Abigail Adams sent a letter to husband John in March of 1776 (which somehow has become very well known), "...urging the Continental Congress to 'Remember the ladies' is followed by the graver warning, 'Remember that all Men would be tyrants if they could.'"  Her entreaty, of course, fell on deaf ears (including her husband's), because, of course, the Continental Congress did absolutely nothing for the ladies, despite her epistolary talents.  In fact, it would be another 140+ years before women got suffrage.  (Nice work, ladies.)  But I do feel that "Remember the ladies" would be a great clarion call for this upcoming 2020 election.  "Remember the ladies" has a very nice ring to it & I think it's a very special way to memorialize Abigail Adams, who, until Barbara Bush came along, was the only woman to be married to a president & mother to another.  She was almost too cool, and remember, she grew up at a time when educational choices for women were few & far between.  "Remember the ladies"

Alan A. Alop

Nancy Doyle (Sudlow)

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

There's no place like home -

Cubs sweep Cardinals at Wrigley,

Cardinals sweep Cubs at Busch,

Cubs sweep Cardinals at Wrigley,

Cubs-Cardinal rivalry goes on!

According to astronomers it is yet spring,  

though meteorologists say it’s summer.

Cubs and Cardinals next meet

July 30th, 31st, &  August 1st 

at Busch Stadium

in the dog days of summer -

named not for poor pooches

forever seeking shade in the heat

but for the nighttime sky -

in the summer months Sirius,

the Dog Star, brightest star in the sky,

rises and sets with the Sun...

Ancient Greeks noticed,  

took note and theorized

it was the bright, glowing Dog Star

that was adding extra heat.

GO CUBS GO! ! !

Stewart Myrent

Janis, I was very pleased with the results of this past weekend's result from the Cubs/Cardinals series.  I would have settled for a 2-1 series win for the Cubs, but a sweep is that much sweeter, as the Cubs were swept by the Cards in the last series in StL.  So far this season, the home team has won EVERY game in each series.  I'm pretty sure the pennant race is going to come down to the final week of the season.  We'll see.  Alan, I would say that I cannot believe the bullshit that comes out of the Trump administration on a daily basis, but I guess I'm getting used to it, as it is constant & unrelenting, and never has a shred of honesty or truthfulness to it.  I am still extremely worried that Trump will get us engaged in a war, either with North Korea or Iran (I'm betting on Iran), to increase his chances of being re-elected to the presidency in 2020, as opposed to doing it for any benefit to America.  I mean, what's more important?  The future of America, or Trump getting what he wants personally?  Care to make a guess?

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

We don’t need 23 Democratic presidential candidates.  

20 candidates will be on stage over two nights of two night debate June 26th & 27th.

It will be the largest audience the candidates have had access to

and will ramp up the pressure when the cameras are on a candidate to find an opportunity to stand out.

Even limiting the number of candidates on the stage each night, such a large field increases the importance of the debate,

but with little time for reasoned, careful argumentation the debates are less likely than ever to help primary voters figure out who to vote for.

The presidency matters, so does the Senate.  Some of the candidates might wisely consider running to help win the majority in the Senate to oust Mitch McConnell as Senate Majority Leader.

"Mitch McConnell understands it’s all about power - he could care less about lofty words and high ideals.  Coldly and methodically, he uses his power to block widely supported measures such as gun safety and to pack the federal bench with right-wing judges.  

"Who can forget that McConnell refused to schedule hearings for Merrick Garland, ostensibly because the vacancy occurred during an election year.  He recently said if a Supreme Court seat were to come open in 2020, he would hasten to confirm a replacement.  

"McConnell exercises his power to its full extent - charges of hypocrisy do not trouble him.  

“The only way to stop McConnell is for Democrats to win the Senate.”  

with attribution to Eugene Robinson   June 10    The Washington Post

and to Paul Waldman   June 10   The Washington Post

Stewart Myrent

Just finished "The Problem of Democracy" about John Adams & John Q. Adams & every time I picked up the book, I wondered why the title was "The Problem Of Democracy", instead of "The Problem With Democracy", changing the preposition "With" to "Of".  I decided that this choice by the writers had to do with the apparent fact that they were ascribing the problem of democracy, solely to the institution of democracy itself & its inherent problems.   It turns out that the Adamses believed that the major problem of democracy was the development & expansion of the two-party system during the Revolutionary era.  "Abigail Adams understood the problem of American politics.  Campaign by accusation does not ensure political justice; it destroys it.  By 1800, democracy and monarchy were two absolutes in partisan argument.  In the Federalist idiom, the first was indistinguishable from violent protest and incipient anarchy.  In the Republican idiom, the second was rule by the self-anointed, with 'right' not open to debate and free speech and assembly denied.  'Democracy' was read as an absence of order and an excess of popular pressure on government."  "John and Abigail Adams common appraisal at the dawn of a new century leads us to a momentously unresolved question: Does a representative democracy require parties?  The Constitution was written without any rules or regulations for, or restrictions on, parties.  Parties are, therefore, what they say they are and what they want to be."  Some notable excerpts from the book: "John Adams was absent for the birth of his eldest son, and John Quincy was absent from the United States for all four years of his father's presidency: for the election of 1796, for the March 4, 1797, inauguration in Philadelphia, and for his final day in the new Federal City of Washington, D.C., in March 1801.  He spent all of these years in Europe."  Near the end of his father's life (his mother had already passed), but before his election as president, John Quincy returned to Quincy for a visit.  "Home visits were meant as a reprieve, time away from public business.  John Quincy refused a public banquet in his honor at Faneuil Hall in Boston, professedly because he did not want to appear solicitous of popularity.  He rationalized to himself, and suggested as well to his political friends, that if he agreed to be feted in Boston, it would be reported that he had generated artificial enthusiasm for his candidacy.  Better to err on the side of caution and display necessary humility."  This pretty much sums up JQA's viewpoint of life & his total commitment to public service.  "The presidents Adams were consumed not just with 'party spirit', or partisan fervor, but with parties themselves.  They wrote about them incessantly.  The father targeted three outstanding sins associated with parties: (1) as factions, they ultimately served private interests, and were therefore often driven by greed & fame; (2) they exploited the cult of celebrity, by 'trumpeting' (his word) fake talents; (3) relatedly, they were so stuck on the Washington image that they made it a standard for all others, focusing on gestures, going so far as to praise Washington's silence as a 'gift', and privileging the superficial - mere public performance - over words of import.  As a result of the prejudices built into the party system, voters turned men of wealth, or men with recognizable family names, into idols.  To do so was to ignore the real requirements for good government: established expertise and beneficial public service."  Sounds like things haven't changed that much, to me.  And further, "As the late  historian Ralph Ketcham wrote, parties have to stand for something in order to thrive.  But not only that!  'Their main purpose is to gather enough support to seem all things to all people, and to clarify some issues and obscure others, in order to win elections.'  This is the crux of the dilemma that the two Adamses perceived.  It was impossible for parties to be truthful, because parties were driven by the need to win at all costs."   

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Stewart and all, as we ponder John Adams and John Q. Adams and the major problem of democracy (the two-party system), and before debate begins and competitors tango with Joe Biden comes Father's Day -

the major reason for my post: to wish all the men who are dads (and granddads) 

Happy Father's Day

and wish - even if you're not a dad - that you could be at Smugglers' Notch in Vermont -

for a celebration of HOPS & POPS tonight on the Village Green - 

live music, a carnival for kids, good food and local brewers*...

                                      *Lost Nation, Rock Art, and Stowe Cider

and more family time tomorrow.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

a day for dads and their children...  

Happy Father’s Day

“Our diversity is our strength, our unity is our power.”  -- Nancy Pelosi

Stewart, I am reflecting on Nancy Pelosi’s words in light of the Adamses.

Alan A. Alop

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—A leading candidate to replace the White House press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, was disqualified after telling the truth repeatedly on his job application, the White House has confirmed.

According to the White House chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, the candidate got high marks in his job interview by demonstrating “utter disregard and contempt for press freedoms.”

“We then had him do a practice press briefing in which he was relentlessly abusive, obnoxious, and insulting,” Mulvaney said. “We were all, like, ‘This is our guy.’ ”

But after a thorough examination of the candidate’s job application, “a troubling series of truthhoods emerged,” Mulvaney said.

“It turned out that he was telling the truth about his education and previous employment,” the chief of staff said. “It was a pattern of honesty that we found deeply disturbing.”

Mulvaney said that the “inexcusably veracious” answers had eliminated the candidate from further consideration. “We all feel like we just dodged a bullet,” he said. “This whole episode just demonstrates how tough it is to replace Sarah Huckabee Sanders.”

Stewart Myrent

Janis, thank you for the Father's Day wishes to all (males).  I am not yet a grandpa (thankfully, as my daughter is not yet married), but I am a dad.  I was really hoping for a series split with the Dodgers in LA this past weekend, but it was not to be.  Alan, thanks again for another hilarious column from Borowitz.  I just picked up a new release from the library this past weekend, "Accidental Presidents", which studies the eight men who became president, after the death of the previous president, either due to natural causes or assassination.  Of the eight, four succeeded to the presidency, due to assassination of the previous officeholder.  Only one of the eight is featured on Mt. Rushmore & most were related to ignominy.  Only three had terms that I would consider successful, Teddy Roosevelt, Harry Truman & LBJ, two of three succeeding to the presidency, due to assassination.  Will let you know more, after I finish the book.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

"If Trump starts a war with Iran, he will have kept none of his promises and created an unimaginable disaster in the Middle East."

The Trump administration has attempted to convince European nations that Iran was responsible for the attacks on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman last week,

Trump has successfully estranged our allies -

all but the United Kingdom are skeptical of the Trump administration. 

So much for Making America Great Again and the Nobel Peace Prize... (remember he alone can fix it?

Trump has blown up our national security and the security of our world.

Stewart, does Gerald Ford count as #9 ?

*for succeeding Richard Nixon when he resigned the presidency*

Stewart Myrent

No, Janis, Gerald Ford does NOT count as #9, mainly because he did not succeed a president who died in office, either from natural causes or assassination.  He's a special case, as he's the only V.P. to succeed to the presidency, due to the resignation of his predecessor.  Although, if Nixon did not resign, my guess is that Ford would have been the only V.P. to succeed to the presidency, as a result of impeachment of his predecessor.  But, at this point, it's moot.  And he was NOT listed in "Accidental Presidents", as one who attained office, due to the passing of his predecessor.  Glad you've been thinking of the Adamses, as they were, possibly, way before their time.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Trump is looking to run against Hillary again in 2020 --- it’s amazing to see - not to mention seeing Lindsey Graham and Marco Rubio sitting together in the 5th row at the Trump launch.

Yesterday - the day Donald Trump was in Orlando to launch his re election campaign, the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board announced their endorsement for president in 2020, or, at least, who they’re not endorsing: Donald Trump.  

“(Why) eliminate a candidate so far before an election, and before knowing the identity of his opponent?

“Because there’s no point pretending we would ever recommend that readers vote for Trump.  

“After 2 and 1/2 years we’ve seen enough.

“Enough of the chaos, the division, the schoolyard insults, the self-aggrandizement, the corruption, and especially the lies...

“...Through all of this, Trump’s base remains loyal.  Sadly, the truest words Trump might ever have spoken was when he said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not lose his supporters.”

Stewart Myrent

Yikes, Janis!!!  Tomorrow is the first official day of summer.  It kind of feels like early spring, though.