September 22, 2022

Wondering on Wednesday (9/21/22)


Ready... Set... Wonder!

What's flowing from the wondering tap tonight? Random stuff, like an article in the Daily Star that Google traffic in Russia shows a spike in searches for "how to break your own arm," as folks scramble to avoid conscription into the fight against Ukraine. Those who aren't trying to hurt themselves are "leaving the country in droves," causing massive traffic jams at the Russia/Finland border. 

This comes on the heels of reports from several months ago that Russian were shooting themselves in the leg to get evacuated from the front lines. I'm not wondering a whole lot about why they are (or were) doing this kind of thing; rather, I'm wondering what will happen to them when the Putineers find out how hard they're working to avoid the war.

Let's see, what else? Oh - Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is in the news again, but not for migrants this time. Rather, he's signed an executive order declaring Mexican drug cartels 'terrorists' in the Lone Star State.

Texans are victimized by Mexican cartels that produce and import (fentanyl). So, cartels are terrorists. And it's time that we started treating them that way.

His order directs law enforcement to "identify gangs that are supporting Mexican cartels and work to seize assets as well as disrupt cartel networks." And, he's

also directed Texas agencies to alert the public about the fentanyl crisis, including schools and workplaces through mediums like social media and public service announcements to make clear, that truly one pill can kill."

I don't have a problem with anything he did, including asking the White House to make a similar federal declaration; it's reasonable, and certainly defensible, which some of his recent antics aren't. But here's where the wondering comes in: fentanyl's been killing Americans, including Texans, for years, in rapidly increasing numbers. Abbott said that in Texas last year, nearly 1700 fentanyl-related deaths were reported. So, why did it take him so long to order his government to get the word out?

We can finally stop wondering if the January 6th Committee will have a chat with G-G-G-Ginni-and-the-texts Thomas, wife of SCOTUS scoundrel Clarence. Reuters reported that a deal has been struck that'll allow them to chat "in the coming weeks." In fact, her lawyer says, Thomas is 

eager to answer the Committee's questions to clear up any misconceptions about her work relating to the 2020 election.

 I like that - "her work" relating to the election - how cute!

Speaking of "cute," I think that about sums up the Trump team's court filing in response to the DOJ's appeal of the stay ordered by Judge Aileen Cannon. Here's how the NY Times reported on today's decision in the case.

In a strongly worded 29-page decision, the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit blocked part of an order by a federal judge that had temporarily barred the department from using the classified materials in its inquiry into whether Mr. Trump illegally retained national defense documents and obstructed the government’s repeated efforts to recover them. 

The decision has many tasty comments, if you're interested. Yay for us, yay for justice, and yay for not having to wonder if anyone was going to fall for Judge Cannon's overly generous treatment of Trump.

And finally, let's talk about NY AG Tish James and her $250 million civil suit against Donald, Donny, Ivanka, and Eric. Fraud, she says, when the Trumps overvalued their properties by the tens and hundreds of millions, making themselves look more loan-worthy, avoiding taxes, and so on. Two examples? His gold-plated Trump Tower penthouse was allegedly worth over $300 million (and he declared it three times bigger than it is); and he claimed Mar-a-Lago, his Florida document storage facility, was allegedly worth over $700 million, if you built houses on it, which you cannot. 

She got in a dig or two during her announcement, which is to be expected, even if she appeared much less gleeful taking him down than she did in campaign videos when she ran for election in 2018. The deplorable Donald Trump, Jr. posted a montage on Twitter; it's full of her plans and her rage and her threats against his then-president father. 

So, I'm left wondering why I'm sitting here appreciating a tweet from Donny, something I thought I'd never do, and wondering how Tish James is going to defend herself from the onslaught of clearly-documented 'witch hunt' charges, and wondering why it is that prominent Dems always seem to shoot themselves in the foot.

What're you wondering about tonight?

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