With the news continuing to be so depressing let's have a laugh.

 

From The Contrarian

We Cannot Excuse Political Violence

And we must not whitewash abhorrent views

JENNIFER RUBIN SEP 15

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We are grateful that Charlie Kirk’s suspected assassin is in custody. We unreservedly denounce political violence and underscore that speakers, no matter their viewpoint, should never fear for their lives. Nevertheless, we refuse to pull our punches when it comes to Donald Trump, MAGA rhetoric, and the billionaire-owned media’s coverage of both.

Too many journalists seem to find it impossible to acknowledge that Kirks’s extremist views, conspiratorial rhetoric, overt racism, and election denialundermined democracy and that his assassination is abhorrent. (Creating a “watch list” to target certain professors hardly provides a model for civil debate.) We should not be cowed into silence about Kirk’s views and reprehensible comments because we fear MAGA provocateurs’ retribution or mischaracterization. Our democracy requires we defend all speakers, not that we ignore the difference between admirable and malignant messages.

The inclination to whitewash Kirk’s views and lionize his politics—whether stemming from a well-meaning effort “not to speak ill of the dead” or from cowardly avoidance of MAGA blowback—reflects corporate media’s fixation with moral equivalence and its intellectual confusion. Its determination to downplay the MAGA Republican Party’s conspiracy-based extremism and to treat it as a normal political party inevitably enables authoritarianism.

Likewise, we must reject Trump’s groundless, premature, reprehensible remarks about Kirk’s assassin. Before we knew anything about him, Trump blamed millions of left-leaning Americans, thereby inciting his followers against their countrymen. (If nothing else, Trump is consistent in this regard: Trump also blamed the Pennsylvania assassination attempt on his opponents, although the shooter had no discernible political bent.)

“For years, those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans, like Charlie, to Nazis and the world’s worst mass murderers and criminals,” Trump declared from the Oval Office. “This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we’re seeing in our country today, and it must stop right now.” Such vile demagoguery is pure Trump.

Currently, we cannot describe with certainty whether the assassin’s views are right- or left-wing or some incoherent jumble. We should not exclude the possibility that, as the Atlantic’s Charlie Warzel explains, we are dealing with someone enmeshed in “a hybrid threat network of disaffected people that can include Columbine obsessives, neo-Nazis, child groomers, and trolls… [who] perform for one another through acts of violence and cheer their community on to commit murder.”

Baselessly indicting a whole segment of the population for a lone assassin’s crime is an odious, dangerous, and all-too familiar authoritarian tactic. Trump’s insidious habit of inciting violence under the banner of victimhood has not changed since Jan. 6.

Trump’s refusal to condemn political violence on the right underscores his inability to act as president for the entire country. He insisted on Fox News that radicals on the right are just concerned about crime, whereas “radicals on the left are the problem, and they’re vicious and they’re horrible and they’re politically savvy.” For him, right-wing violence is a non-issue or worse, excusable—and he “couldn’t care less” that his admission horrifies people.

Let’s not forget he joked about the near-murder of Paul Pelosi and refused to call the governor after the assassination of Minnesota lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband (taking the moment instead to insult Gov. Tim Walz). He called Jan. 6 a “day of love” and pardoned those involved in a violent insurrection, which injured and killed police officers. He failed to condemn the firebombing of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s Passover sedar. We heard nothing from him in the aftermath of the CDC shooting that killed DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose.

Shapiro condemned Trump’s selective outrage. “I think it is dangerous when the president cherry picks which political violence he's going to condemn and which he's going to allow to just simply pass,” he said. “I think we need to be universal in condemning all political violence.”

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Several MAGA congressmen and more voices online, without a shred of proof, jumped on the anti-left vendetta bandwagon. At least Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who announced his retirement this year, spoke responsibly. “What I was really disgusted by… is a couple of talking heads that sees this as an opportunity to say we’re at war so that they could get some of our conservative followers lathered up over this,” Tillis said. “It seems like a cheap, disgusting, awful way to pretend like you’re a leader of a conservative movement.” 

Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, another retiring Republican, pleaded, “I have to remind people, we had Democrats killed in Minnesota too, right?” 

Two voices outside D.C., from opposite ends of the political spectrum, modeled responsible leadership. “It cannot be a question of political agreement or alignment that allows us to mourn. It must be the shared notion of humanity that binds us all,” New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani said to a group of Jewish voters, continuing: 

That humanity, it reminds us that this news is not just that of the murder of a prominent political figure, but also the news of a wife who grieves her husband, of a 1-year-old and a 3-year-old who will grow up without a father, and the fact that there are families feeling that same anguish right now in Colorado, as they wait for their children, also shot at a school.

Meanwhile, Utah Republican Governor Spencer Cox’s remarks contrasted with FBI leadership’s inflammatory and contradictory statements. “This is our moment. Do we escalate or do we find an off-ramp?” Cox asked. “I hear all the time that ‘words are violence.’” He added, “Words are not violence. Violence is violence, and there is one person responsible for what happened here, and that person is now in custody and will be charged soon and will be held accountable.” 

Americans must hold on to our moral bearings and democratic values if we are to get through this period. We can condemn Kirk’s murder without celebrating the views or perpetrating the falsehood that the parties treat violence in the same way. We must denounce Trump’s pathological quest to demonize and persecute opponents. And more than ever, we must enlist decent, truth-telling allies regardless of ideology to defend pluralistic democracy. Otherwise, violence will escalate, and authoritarianism will prevail.

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This & That

 1. Thank you all for your kind words and well wishes for my recovery from my Covid and flu vaccines. With the help of ibuprophen, the good behavior of granddaughter and two deep naps plus a good night's rest, I'm feeling like myself again. (Isn't that a funny expression?). 

I don't recall having such a reaction in the past except for the Shingles vaccine.  Considering the timing of this reaction, if we'd gotten the shots later in the day on Wednesday, the worst part would have hit me during the day on Thursday.  As it was I awoke in the night with the worst of it and then was dragging all day on Thursday.

Glad it's over!

2. Look at this map.

We live just south of that red area so we are in severe and almost in extreme drought. 

There was this narrative in the local listserve:
Southern part of Grafton County now in “extreme drought.” Lucky us: It’s the only part of the country east of Texas to hit that status. After this, there’s only “Exceptional Drought” to go. The communities in Drought.gov’s red zone basically run from eastern Plainfield and Lebanon (though not W. Leb) up to Warren and Wentworth and over to Campton. Meanwhile, severe drought has spread in Vermont to take in all of Orange and Windsor counties (plus the rest of central VT and much of the NEK).

There was also this from a community north of us.

MERIDEN VILLAGE WATER CONSERVATION NOTICE

To all Meriden Village Water Customers:

    "Due to extremely dry conditions experienced lately, the Commissioners of the MVWD ask that you voluntarily help to conserve water until such time as we receive adequate rainfall to replenish the groundwater supply. We ask that you refrain from all non-essential water use both inside and outside your home. (Example: vehicle washing, irrigation, pool filling, slip n slides, running water while brushing teeth or doing dishes etc.)

 

    Much of the State of New Hampshire is currently experiencing a moderate drought and the northern counties are currently experiencing severe drought. Meriden Village as of 9/8 is right on the line between moderate and severe. In order to assure an adequate water supply, water conservation is essential.

 

    The lack of adequate rainfall began early in July and continues presently. Ground water levels are low and it will take a significant amount of rainfall to turn things around."

***

We are on a well.  We don't have a town water supply like Meriden.  We have no idea how deep our well is, but it is not an old shallow one or dependent upon a spring.  I've been reading in the newspaper how many of those have failed.

It's time I rethink our water usage.  I must admit I leave the water running when I wash my face and brush my teeth.  I like to take long hot showers.  There are other shortcuts I need to embrace.  

Any suggestions?

Send rain our way!

REACTION!!!

I had a terrible night's rest and woke this morning aching all over.

Don't know if I should blame flu or Covid vaccines or the combination of both.

Unfortunately I can't just take it easy today as granddaughter #1 is here for her home schooling day with me while Emily is at work.

As I write Dan is working with her on Spanish.  I'll take over after that.

But ouch do my arms hurt and my whole body aches.

A Variation to Wednesday Walk

 

Setting out on Wednesday at 10 am.  Chilly morning again.  Here's my road heading out of the Flat.

The old double wide is still in the field but ...

the new double wide is up on the hill where the old one used to live.

The variation today was to take the road to the left.  It's at the first rise and

it's all uphill.  I figure it's a good way to condition myself for climbing the Acropolis in Athens in April.

Taking a breather and looking back down the way I came. When the going is steep I tack, zig zagging like a sailboat up the hill.

Only a few houses on this road but a real climb.  I feel it in my lungs.

A shade stop because I'm getting warm.

Ok, time to turn around.  My walking time had to be shortened today because we were scheduled to get our flu and covid vaccines at noon.

Going down is harder on the knees.  Next time I'll bring my hiking stick because I had to watch my foot placement so I didn't slip on the rocky surface.

A closer look at the new double wide on my return.  The two sides are not attached yet and I have to wonder what happens to the tires.

It's placement will give the tenants the best view.

What colors I see are muted.  When I look closer the trees' leaves are just shriveling up and dropping. Our lack of rain is taking a toll on the fall colors.

Heading home.

***

I got a shot in each arm.  I took ibuprophen beforehand.  Don't know if that will help the soreness or not. I'll let you know.

Who has gotten their covid and flu shots?

From the Contrarian

Even Federal Court Judges Know the MAGA Justices are Out of Control

The Roberts Court makes obvious the need for serious reform

JENNIFER RUBIN SEP 8

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Lower court federal judges appointed by presidents of both parties have demonstrated admirable spine in knocking down Donald Trump’s grossly unconstitutional moves. Moreover, they have educated the public by candidly rebuking the government for misleading courts, evading their rulings, and attacking the judicial branch.

The Contemplation of Justice sits on the west side of the United States Supreme Court building

Just last week, federal judges struck down Trump’s attempts to extort Harvard (by trampling on its First Amendment rights), deploy national guard troops for civilian law enforcement, and invoke the Alien Enemies Act to justify summarily deporting immigrants. To top it off, a district court in San Francisco held that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem illegally suspended temporary status for more than 600,000 Venezuelans and Haitians.

Moreover, we saw a batch of federal judges openly slam the Supreme Court, which has repeatedly overturned lower courts’ orders (which have temporarily impeded Trump’s constitutional arson) without full argument and briefing via the so-called shadow docket. In an unprecedented display of frustration and anger, nearly a dozen federal court judges (appointees of both Democratic and Republican presidents including Trump) went to NBC News with their complaints:

Lower court judges are handed contentious cases involving the Trump administration. They painstakingly research the law to reach their rulings. When they go against Trump, administration officials and allies criticize the judges in harsh terms. The government appeals to the Supreme Court, with its 6-3 conservative majority.

And then the Supreme Court, in emergency rulings, swiftly rejects the judges’ decisions with little to no explanation.

Even more telling, the lower court judges accused the justices of enabling Trump’s attacks on the judiciary. Instead of reasoned Supreme Court opinions, they get terse per curiam opinions that suggest “they did shoddy work and are biased against Trump.” Detailing the threats lower court judges now face, they pointed the finger at Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. and the rest of the MAGA majority. One judge argued that the Supreme Court “is effectively assisting the Trump administration in ‘undermining the lower courts,’ leaving district and appeals court judges ‘thrown under the bus.’” Worse, with one exception, Roberts has remained mum while Trump threatens, insults, and smears judges who rule against him.

Perhaps this sort of open revolt from lower court judges will break through the veil of arrogance that seems to insulate Roberts and the other MAGA rubber-stampers from entirely justified criticism. The majority’s anti-textual decisions (most vividly, the sweeping grant of criminal immunity to the president and destruction of voting rights statutes) have distorted the Framers’ constitutional vision.

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In Trump 2.0, the MAGA justices repeatedly have manipulated the “emergency docket” to effectively green light one Trump executive power grab after another, without regard to findings of fact below or the extreme harm inflicted on plaintiffs (e.g., NIH grantees, public employee unions). In doing so they have diminished the authority of lower federal judges and left them exposed to threats and smears, as the lower court judges attested.

Like an abusive spouse, Justice Neil Gorsuch has tried to make the lower courts into the bad guys. Supreme Court legal expert Steve Vladeckrecounted that in a recent opinion, Gorsuch “accused the lower courts in [three cases] of open defiance of earlier rulings by the Supreme Court on emergency applications.” Vladeck explained, “More than that, Gorsuch claimed that the Court’s interventions in many of the Trump cases would be ‘unnecessary’ but for bad behavior by lower courts.”

Vladeck blasted this outrageous accusation:

It would be one thing if Gorsuch had incontrovertible evidence of lower-court defiance. But….the opposite is true. Instead, the real culprit here is the Supreme Court’s own majority, which continues to hand down thinly (or entirely un-explained rulings in these cases and expect lower-court judges to read their minds in the face of entirely reasonable arguments for distinguishing the earlier rulings.

The Court may have the raw power to act that way. But to then criticize lower-court judges—who, unlike the justices, are moving heaven and earth to provide lengthy, written rationales of their decisions—is not just profoundly disrespectful; it is further enabling an increasingly loud (and increasingly dangerous) anti-judiciary narrative on the right….

The lower court judges who spoke to NBC News agreed with Vladeck’s view. Frankly, Gorsuch’s obnoxious bullying only underscores their complaints that the MAGA justices are out of control.

This intra-judicial fight is just the latest installment in the MAGA justices’ record of misbehavior and overreach. It is no surprise that the court’s approval has plummeted. Whether it is receipt of lavish gifts (along with inexcusable disclosure lapses), refusal to accept mandatory ethics rules, utter disregard of precedent to super-charge the extreme right-wing agenda, systematic destruction of voting rights, or nasty partisan attacks on critics, the Roberts Court no longer resembles a panel of dispassionate jurists.

But MAGA justices apparently wrongly assume they are beyond reproach. In fact, Congress controls their jurisdiction, composition, and even the length of their terms, many legal experts argue.

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The Constitution states:

In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.

Congress could, for example, entirely do away with its appellate jurisdiction. An en banc panel of the D.C. Circuit Court could be designated as the highest court for appellate review. A lesser step would be to allow appellate review only of final opinions, thereby eliminating the emergency docket as a means of lifting temporary restraining orders or preliminary injunctions.

Other reform measures such as a mandatory ethics code and term limits already garner overwhelming bipartisan approval. And should the court continue its unprincipled, partisan crusade and/or strike down more mild restrictions, public support to expand the court to 13 members (matching the number of circuits) would likely soar.

Given the unconscionable conduct of the current Supreme Court, a course correction is long overdue. Having lost legitimacy in the eyes of the American people and even in the eyes on lower court judges, they risk a serious backlash if the MAGA majority continues to abuse the emergency docket, slander lower courts, violate ethical norms, egregiously ignore precedent, and facilitate Trump’s quest for dictatorial control. A toothless “Supreme” Court with very limited jurisdiction and term limits would be quite a legacy for Roberts, the self-described “institutionalist.”

The Contrarian is reader-supported. To receive new posts and assist with our work in the court of law and the court of public opinion, consider joining our community as a free or paid subscriber.

 

A Wonderful Interlude

A harp concert in a lovely garden setting.

Sunday afternoon I attended this concert courtesy of two members of our garden club.  The harpist, Pam, donated "2 hours of harp music to the event of one's choice" to the garden club raffle at the fair in August. Our club president, Peggy, had her ticket picked (I was doing the picking) and once she heard that she'd won this prize. one of many others that were offered, she said she'd host it in her garden for the garden club members.

Peggy has had a garden for years that she opened to "pick your own flowers" and tea parties.  She closed it down a couple of years ago because of the work involved.  Her partner keeps the paths mown but the hydrangeas and bushes are huge and no more annuals planted.  The tea house is still there though, so we had tea and carried it to the deck/stage where Pam played for us.

Not sure where Peggy got all the chairs from, but she did rent a port a potty for the weekend.  Below is the tea house.

Here's Peggy!

It was a cool afternoon. One person even brought a blanket to put over her legs.

Peggy got a quick lesson from Pam.

The stage was well decorated from the garden.

Pam is a therapeutic harpist.  She plays at the Dartmouth Hospital for patients being treated with infusions.

Her music is a mixture of Celtic, folk and rock.  She had no music and played all from memory.  She took requests as she does at the hospital.

Here's the inside of the tea house an eclectic mixture of treasures.

We are up on top of the first mountain east of the Connecticut River in NH.  The view is spectacular.

Below is where the annuals were planted and now a chaotic mixture of perennials gone wild and annuals self seeded.

Here are some shortened recordings of Pam playing.  My original recordings were too big to put in here so I shortened them.

The sun was mostly behind clouds for the concert until Pam played Here Comes the Sun and it sure enough came out then.

A lovely time was had by all.

*****

Here is my post from August 2021 when Emily, granddaughters and I visited the Garden for tea and flower picking.  It was likely the last year it was open for this.

Many more photos of how lovely this garden once was.