We'll start with some random wondering today, and see where we end up.
For example, you know how when you're on an interstate or even some other highways, and there's a long, steep hill, and as you near the crest of the hill, there are signs advising truckers to check their brakes and use a different gear as they progress down the hill? Well, did you ever notice any signs as you near the bottom of the same long, steep hill, going in the opposite direction, advising trucks to check their accelerator or shift into a gear that'll help them get up the hill faster?
Me neither. And I wonder why that is?
And speaking of traveling on interstates and other highways, have you ever noticed how often the weigh stations are closed? I'd guess, in all our years of traveling, it's got to be at least 97% of the time. In fact, they're closed so often we cheer when one's open. And what's got me wondering is, how are we supposed to be protected on the road if no one's inspecting or weighing the trucks? Bueller? Bueller? Anyone?
On a more serious note, the US Senate's GOP minority, plus one blocked an attempt by the Senate Dems (minus one) to codify the abortion protections in Roe. What's interesting here is that the plus and minus one, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-I'm in it to Win it for Coal!) would have supported a narrower bill. And Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Susan Collins (R- I Can't Believe Kavanaugh Lied to Me, the Bastage!) also would have supported a narrower bill. But the Dems wouldn't have any of it, and so it failed, to advance, 49-51.
The point of the vote, which was guaranteed to fail, was to get every senator on record for where they stand on abortion in advance of the midterm election this fall. And the wondering I have here is, will it make a bit of difference, in the overall scheme of things? Only time will tell, but I have my doubts - serious doubts.
What else? Oh, Elon Musk. We must talk about Elon Musk, because it's in the code of conduct somewhere, I know I've read it. Musk says that Twitter's permanent ban on The Former Guy was wrong. Actually, what he said was
I would reverse the perma-ban. ... Banning Trump from Twitter didn't end Trump's voice, it will amplify it among the right and this is why it's morally wrong and flat out stupid.
At the same time, Musk says he is very much of the same mind with proposed new standards for content moderation for EU countries. And, at the same time, TFG says he won't go back to Twitter if his account's reinstated; he'd rather stay on his own platform, Whateveritscalled. So, what am I wondering on all of this? Well, will Musk really go along with local content moderation, causing his teams to do massive amounts of work to meet the standards, which, if we adopt anything like that here, will mean that Trump won't be able to tweet anyway, so what's the point of reinstating him? And does anyone believe him when he says he won't go back on Twitter as soon as he has the chance? I sure don't.
Another random thought... how much did it cost, I wonder, for folks to wash the chalk off the sidewalk in front of Sen. Collins' house in Maine? And, I further wonder, will they wash it off again, now that new messages have appeared?
And finally, thinking about the protests that are happening outside the homes of Supreme Court Justices, I have to wonder how it feels for them to experience something like that women experience on the way from their cars to their medical appointments? It's hard not to wonder why chanting and shouting and singing and waving signs outside a Justice's house is possibly a criminal act, while doing the same, and more, while being in much closer proximity, to boot - to women at a medical facility, and their escorts, is merely an exercise of the 1st Amendment's free speech rights.
What are you wondering about tonight?
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts!