The Irony Board: Why Not Walk the Talk?

Back in October, Politico broke a story about text messages shared by several young antisemitic, racist Republicans.

The Republican texters were leaders in their state parties; they were the up-and-comers, the future of the party structure. They call Kansas, Arizona, Vermont, and New York home. 

In case you missed the reporting, or if you've forgotten what all the fuss was about, here's a graphic showing examples of the delightful thoughts they shared, from the linked Politico article, including an admission from one person involved that "if we ever had a leak of this chat, we'd be cooked fr fr." That means for real, x2

House Speaker and FOTUS flunky Rep. Mike Johnson (R-MAGA) spoke to reporters about the text controversy. You can watch his comments in this video. If you have a hard time watching and listening to him, as I do, here's a summary: he doesn’t know any of them, and while there was a photo of him standing with one or more of them, they were all wearing tuxedos, so it had to be from the Inauguration and they probably just wanted a selfie, like tons of others.

Johnson also doesn’t know anything about the Nazi flag or symbol that appeared in the background of a Congressional office, other than that it didn’t belong to the congressman, it was a staffer or something, and that’s being investigated, as it should be.

And the point of all of this, he said in the video, was that whatever was said, or shown, and whoever said it or showed it, “obviously” doesn’t represent what the Republican party stands for because “We stand for the founding principles of America. You want me to articulate them for you right now? Individual freedom, Limited Government, Rule of Law, Peace through Strength, Fiscal Responsibility, Free Markets, Human Dignity… the things that lead to human flourishing.”

I can't tell you how many times I've watched him deliver those ideals, but I've moved from scratching my head when I do to outright laughter. The thought of 'human dignity' and MAGA Republicans in the same sentence is really mindboggling. 

Think about what we've seen over the past several months (and before), and reflect on what today's Republicans stand for, either proactively, through state and federal legislative efforts, or passively, by sitting idly by while the FOTUS, the Heritage Foundation, and others put things into motion.

Individual freedom? How about bodily autonomy? Being able to peacefully protest in favor of or against issues that matter to you, even when it involves Gaza and Palestinians, or immigration? Not having another religion’s iconography and beliefs forced upon you, in public buildings, or children in public schools? Not having the federal government intrude into your voting records? Being able to peacefully protest without being shot with pepper balls fired by federal agents from the rooftops above you? Being able to move about freely, speaking whatever language you want, without being interrogated by federal agents?

Limited government? Does this include having the government dictate hiring, research subjects, curricula, tuition, and admission practices at private colleges and universities? The president killing programs that were approved and funded by our elected legislators before he was elected, just because he doesn't like them? Withholding funding, services, or supplies because he doesn't like the voting patterns of a state or municipality? Elevating one religion over another in public K-12 schools? Trying to interfere in the Constitutionally-guaranteed right of states to manage elections? Renaming bodies of water? Imposing the ideas, name, and tastes of the president on the country by executive fiat?

Rule of law? Oh, my goodness! Bald-faced lying to judges in all levels of the court system? Sending the National Guard into places without the approval of the governors who command them? Declaring "emergencies" to justify all kinds of nonsense, from sending in troops to murdering foreigners in open waters, to ignoring the Constitutional requirement for due process, to imposing tariffs when that responsibility belongs to another branch of government? The myriad examples of defying Court orders? Using the government - and our tax dollars - to exact retribution against personal enemies?

Peace through Strength? Hmmm... demanding we get something in return for foreign aid, unless of course it's aid to Israel, which always goes with no strings attached? Working on negotiations with other countries, while allowing Israel to bomb areas in those countries without a response? Offering to give up Ukraine's territory to Russia? Actively seeking regime change in another country through military actions, CIA involvement, and financial incentives?

Fiscal Responsibility? Two words: Qatari jet. You know, the $400M 'gift' that’ll cost us as much as a billion dollars. The entire DOGE fiasco, with bold lies about how much money is being saved, teenagers granted access to the government’s secrets, the repeated firing, rehiring, refiring, and rehiring across the whole of government? More of the same lousy and irresponsible handling of personnel during the recent government shutdown? Allowing millions of dollars of paid-for food and medical supplies to go bad or sit unused, instead of distributing them, selling them, or giving them to Americans in need? Countless gratuitous and tone-deaf trips to sporting events, hugely expensive trips to the president’s properties, including during the government shutdown, and let’s not forget the birthday parade… the jets for Homeland Security… and so much more.

Free Markets? Is that what we call it when the government demands a percentage of the profits American companies make? Demands stock ownership, including a 'golden share' of American companies? Kills subsidies for wind and solar power and electric vehicles (while lamenting how far ahead of us China is with all of those), while adding subsidies for oil, natural gas, and nuclear energy, and providing tax credits and incentives for coal and other mining programs? Bails out farmers when ‘emergency’ tariffs make a mess of things? There’s more, of course. And no, free-market intervention is not unique to this administration; it’s been going on for decades, across multiple administrations. But that’s not a free pass to claim you're for free markets when it's demonstrably untrue.

Human Dignity? Isn’t it Republicans who enacted legislation offering bounties to folks who spy on their neighbors' menstrual cycles, medical appointments, and medications? Who ignore the dignity of patients in favor of the personal beliefs of practitioners? Who hope to deny people the right to marry a same-sex or mixed-race partner? Who find dignity in forcing pre-teen girls to have babies, and in denying people the treatment they desire or need? Who ignore the expressed wishes of patients and/or their families in end-of-life and other situations, and instead impose the government's wishes? Who purposefully misgender a colleague?

It's almost laughable, isn't it, the irony of standing in front of cameras talking about "the things that lead to human flourishing" with a record like that above?

I took more than my fair share of leadership and communication classes in my career, and so I understand the value of having an 'elevator speech' that can be shared when someone asks what you stand for. And I understand that having someone like Johnson who can deliver the message on your behalf without skipping a beat is a gift.

But actually standing for what you say you stand for is much more important than having a speech you can deliver before the elevator doors open one floor up from where you got on. 

And as an unaffiliated voter, I'd love to see both parties walk their talk.

The Irony Board: 45's Cease and Desist Orders

You may have heard someone say that a headline or an article 'almost writes itself.' Well, this is one of those articles.

It seems that the twice-impeached former president has declared his name and likeness off limits to the Republican National Committee (RNC) the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC). 

According to Politico, lawyers for the former president "sent out cease-and-desist letters Friday to the three largest fundraising entities for the Republican Party  - the RNC, NRCC, and NRSC - for using his name and likeness on fundraising emails and merchandise," according to a Trump advisor.

Apparently, still according to Politico,

...Trump was furious that his name has been bandied about by organizations that help Republicans who voted to impeach him - without his permission. Trump, who made his fortune in licensing, has always been sensitive to how his name has been used to fundraise and support members, even while in office.

And, there's also this, again per an advisor.

...Trump remains committed to the Republican Party and electing America First conservatives, but that doesn't give anyone - friend or foe - permission to use his likeness without explicit approval.

That's so rich, coming from Trump - complaining about someone using him without permission. After all, Trump and his campaign have not been at all shy in using other people's intellectual property without permission, suggesting that they are folks who support him and his message. 

From classic American rockers to British artists to the estates of late legends, here’s a look at some of the musicians who have objected to Donald Trump using their songs at campaign events.

John Fogarty, Phil Collins, Bruce Springsteen  Some classic rockers say not only do they oppose Trump using their music, the choice of songs is ironic or downright wrong... 

Neil Young, Eddy Grant Most musicians have stopped at legal threats, but a few have actually sued over the use of their songs... 

Leonard Cohen, Tom Petty, Prince The heirs of dead artists have been as quick as living musicians in objecting to Trump’s use of songs... 

The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Adele Artists from the UK have been as vocal about their songs as their American counterparts... 

Panic! at the Disco, Pharrell, Rihanna It’s mostly Baby Boomer favorites who have objected to Trump’s use of their music, but younger artists have cried foul too, sometimes with foul language...

R.E.M., Guns and Roses Generation X bands have been as angry as anyone about the use of their tunes...

I think it would be interesting if the Republicans treated Trump's cease-and-desist orders with as much respect as he treated the requests from these artists - which was pretty much none. A few of them had to go back a second time when their first demands were ignored.

But what's really going to be fun is seeing how the RNC, NRCC, and NRSC work around not being able to use Dear Leader's name and/or likeness - or how much they'll be asked to contribute to him for the privilege. 

The Irony Board: The 'Silenced' on FNC

I can't help laughing at all of the folks on the right who are up in arms about social media companies restricting their 'free speech' and complaining that they are being 'silenced' by Facebook, Twitter, You Tube, and others. 

Why laugh, you ask? I only know they're complaining about being silenced because they're going on Fox News and telling everyone about it. 

For example, here's California farmer and Medal of Freedom recipient Rep. Devin Nunes, speaking on Sunday Morning Futures, hosted by Maria Bartiromo on Fox News (emphasis added).

But it's more than the just the financial aspect of that. Republicans have no way to communicate. It doesn't even matter if you're Republican or conservative, if you don't want to be regulated by left-wingers that are at Twitter and Facebook and Instagram, where you get shadow-banned and nobody gets to see you and they get to decide what's violent or not violent, it's preposterous.

Yep - this is Devin 'frivolous lawsuit-filer' Nunes, the guy who sued Twitter because a parody account said mean things about him. But censorship is bad... and he gets to decide what's mean or not... Got it. 

And, the part about having no way to communicate? Saying that on a Fox News Channel (FNC) show, on not just the most-watched conservative network, but on the network that "crushed records and delivered the largest total day and primetime audience among total viewers in cable news history" in 2020, according to the Nielsen folks? Some irony there, right? 

And now, we've got this guy, Rep. Tom Kading, a state legislator from North Dakota, who is following in Nunes' footsteps. Speaking on Fox and Friends earlier today, Kading said he had drafted a bill back in December stating that

social media sites would be liable in a civil lawsuit for damages to a North Dakota resident "whose speech is restricted, censored, or suppressed," as long as it is not "obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable."

And, since he introduced the bill, "things have only gotten worse," he said.

I'm frankly shocked at what's happening to our country and censoring does not create unity, it does not help the situation of division in our country, and it does not de-escalate the situation. All it really does is make those who have been silenced dig in deeper and be more suspicious of what's going on.

He's right: censoring doesn't create unity, or de-escalate the situation. Neither does tweeting relentlessly and untruthfully about a stolen election, or that the media are the enemy of the people and everything they report that is not to your liking is fake news, or that everything is beautiful and perfect when the entire universe knows it's not, or that the pandemic is under control, or that those who disagree with you is not a real American, or that people who don't do your bidding deserve to be driven out of office, and so on.  

I'd suggest that suing social media companies also doesn't create unity, or de-escalate things -and, Kading notably doesn't offer anything that does do those things. Not only that, but are social media companies or traditional media companies, including FNC in the unity-creating business anyway

Kading also talked about some other risks.

If a website comes out and selectively publishes information or manipulates true information in order to create a certain desired narrative, this restrictive action can essentially amount to defamation.

And, there's the real irony - the selective publishing, the manipulation of the truth, the defamation he mentions. 

Kading, remember, was talking on Sunday Morning Futures, just one of the FNC shows that had to run a tasty disclaimer - excuse me, a 'fact checking story,' correcting each show's lies.

In a three-minute segment aired on three shows that previously played host to some of the more zany election fraud claims coming from Trump’s advocates—Fox Business’ “Lou Dobbs Tonight,” and Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo’s “Sunday Morning Futures” and Jeanine Pirro’s “Justice with Judge Jeanine”—Fox News appeared to retract allegations made against Smartmatic.

Dominion Voting Systems is not done yet, either; the company also warned Fox and others back in December that legal action is coming. 

Dominion Voting Systems, one of the targets of President Donald Trump’s baseless conspiracy theories about the election that he lost, has warned Fox News, major Fox personalities, other conservative media outlets, radio host Rush Limbaugh and conservative lawyers that defamation litigation against them is “imminent.”

The voting machine company this week has sent 21 letters to the White House, Fox News, its hosts Sean Hannity, Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo, the news outlets Newsmax, One America News Network, Epoch Times and others demanding they stop making defamatory claims about Dominion and that they preserve any documents they have relating to the firm.

Want even more irony? How about a settlement with the family of someone who was disparaged on the network ?

The Fox News Channel has reached a private settlement with the parents of the slain Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich. The network had baselessly reported in May 2017 that Rich leaked thousands of Democratic party emails to Wikileaks during the height of the 2016 presidential campaign. 

The story, reported by Fox News' Malia Zimmerman and retracted seven days later, also suggested without any evidence that Democrats might have been linked to the killing of the 27-year-old Rich, a crime that has not been solved to this day. In response to NPR's questions, a Fox News spokesperson tells NPR that Zimmerman is no longer with the network. 

"The settlement with Fox News closes another chapter in our efforts to mourn the murder of our beloved Seth, whom we miss every single day," Joel and Mary Rich wrote in their statement. "We are pleased with the settlement of this and sincerely hope that the media will take genuine caution in the future."

I don't know about you, but if I was worried about censorship and divisiveness and a lack of unity, I'd probably find a different network to help share my story than the original - and still the best - home of division and loose facts.  

In Case You Missed It (v50)

Last week's posts, at your fingertips.

Sunday School brought us, among other things, another enlightening classroom chat with Trump's 4th Chief of Staff (I can't help pointing that out every time I mention him), Mark Meadows, who talked with Jake Tapper on CNN's State of the Union. Here's a fun deflecting non-answer to a simple question - what's the difference between voting by mail in Florida and say, voting by mail in Pennsylvania: 

So, here's the difference. I can't tell you about Pennsylvania, because I don't know the difference there. All I do know is, the governor of Pennsylvania is talking like he doesn't have any money to pay for enhanced unemployment and some of these other things, when he's got $3.6 billion sitting in the bank. So that was - was a misnomer.

OK - the difference I can tell you is that (a) I know nothing about Pennsylvania, and (b) the governor's got money in the bank for his state, and (c) I'm gonna tell you what I want to tell you, and that's all the blahblahblah you see below. 

But, as we look at that, here's what I can tell you, is absentee no- excuse, what I call no-excuse absentee, say, listen, I'm concerned because of the pandemic, will you send me an absentee ballot that comes directly to me, I certify that, I have a signature requirement that makes sure that it's me that's actually voting, and I send it back...

I promised I'd give you multiple interviews with That Guy From Vermont, the one who finished second in the race for the Dem nod, for your Extra Credit. And I delivered, I hope you noticed.  Here's an excerpt from his chat with George on This Week, on TGFV's former press secretary complaining about "contempt for the base" in the party platform.

Well, I would say that the overwhelming majority of progressives understand that it is absolutely imperative that Donald Trump be defeated, that we have a president who is trying to undermine American democracy, a president who has turned his back on the working families of this country, a president who has done a horrible job in terms of the pandemic, does not believe in science, is not dealing with the existential threat of climate change... A lot of my supporters are not enthusiastic about Joe Biden, you know why? I ran against Joe Biden. But I think there is overwhelming understanding that Donald Trump must be defeated, Biden must be elected, and that the day after he is elected, we're going to do everything we can to create a government that works for all of us and not just the 1% and wealthy campaign contributors. 

I covered the #DemConvention by providing highlights from the speeches given each night.  Here's one from the opening night, where several Republicans spoke on the importance of electing Joe Biden, including former Ohio Governor John Kasich.

We can all see what’s going on in our country today and all the questions that are facing us, and no one person or a party has all the answers. Joe Biden is a man for our times, times that call for all of us to take off our partisan hats and put our nation first for ourselves, and of course for our children. When America chooses the right path and pulls together, like we’ve done so many times before. Yeah, we can dream big dreams and we can see the top of the mountain as a United States of America with a soul that is a beacon of freedom to the entire world. 

From the second night, which brought us some discussion on foreign policy. Among the speakers was former Secretary of State John Kerry.

Before Donald Trump, we used to talk about American exceptionalism. The only thing exceptional about the incoherent Trump foreign policy is that it has made our nation more isolated than ever before. Joe Biden knows we aren’t exceptional because we bluster that we are, we are exceptional because we do exceptional things. On June 6th, 1944, young Americans gave their lives and the beaches of Normandy to liberate the world from tyranny. Out of the ashes of that war we made peace and rebuilt the world. That was, and remains exceptional. It is the opposite of everything Donald Trump stands for. This moment is a fight for the security of America, and the world. Only Joe Biden can make America lead like America again. 

On the third night, some of the conversation focused on the existential threat of climate change. New Mexico's Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was one of the featured speakers.

We know time is running out to save our planet. We have the chance this November to end two existential crises, the Trump presidency and the environmental annihilation he represents. We have the chance this November to attack the climate crisis, invest in green 21st century jobs and embrace the clean energy revolution our country, our young people are crying out for and the leadership the rest of the world is waiting for. The choice is clear. The choice is Joe Biden. 

On the last night, one of the speakers was Pulitzer Prize-winning author and presidential historian John Meacham, who spoke eloquently about our imperfect history, our challenges, and how we are all called to meet them.

From Jamestown forward, our story has become fuller and fairer because of people who share a conviction that Dr. King articulated on that Sunday half a century ago; the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. Bending that arc requires all of us. It requires we, the people, and it requires a president of the United States with empathy, grace, a big heart and an open mind. Joe Biden will be such a president. With our voices and our votes, let us now write the next chapter of the American story; one of hope, of love, of justice. If we do so, we might just save our country and our souls.

In your  TGIF, I offered in full the nominees' acceptance speeches.  Here's an excerpt from each, starting with Kamala Harris, who spoke of her mother's influence.

I accept your nomination for vice president of the United States of America. I do so committed to the values she taught me, to the word that teaches me to walk by faith and not by sight, and to a vision passed on through generations of Americans one that Joe Biden shares. A vision of our nation as a beloved community, where all are welcome, no matter what we look like, no matter where we come from or who we love. A country where we may not agree on every detail, but we are United by the fundamental belief that every human being is of infinite worth, deserving of compassion, dignity, and respect. 

And, from Papa Joe, who wove together personal and professional anecdotes and influences with related policies in a way that was easy to follow, easy to understand, and easy to embrace. And that's exactly what he asked us to do - embrace the challenges, together.  This is not the most-quoted section of his speech; that was the part where he said he'd be an American president, not a Democratic president - but I like this part just as much.

In times as challenging as these, I believe there is only one way forward, as united America. A united America. United in our pursuit of a more perfect Union. United in our dreams of a better future for us and for our children. United in our determination to make the coming years bright.

Are we ready? I believe we are.  This is a great nation. And we are a good and decent people. For Lord's sake, this is the United States of America.  There's never been anything we've been unable to accomplish when we've done it together.

I think the reason why it resonates so much with me is because of the contrast between when Biden says this and when Trump say the same thing. You and I both know that, by all of his other words, and maybe more importantly by his blatant actions, Trump doesn't mean a word of it. Biden does.  

I closed out the week frustrated, again, by the emphasis placed on religion in our politics generally, and specifically the suggestion that Dems are without faith or and don't believe in religion. That led to an Irony Board addressing comments by Rev. Franklin Graham that God was missing from the convention. That's patently false, if you watched or if you read the remarks offered, or if you know anything about Joe Biden. But I guess truth doesn't matter when it comes to religion - is that the takeaway?

In his comments, Graham included the Ten Commandments for us to remember. And while I'm not religious, I remember those, and I remember - and share - the many ways the current president - and Graham favorite - ignores them. 

That's it -- your full and veritable pastiche from last week. I'll be back later with what's sure to be an entertaining Sunday School.

The Irony Board: Rev. Graham and the Democratic Convention

Rev. Franklin Graham lamented the absence of God at the Democratic Convention, an indication that he couldn't have been paying attention.

There were numerous references to God, to faith, to love, to empathy and mercy; there were religious organizations represented; there were many references to the deep and abiding faith of Joe Biden, a faith demonstrated in his empathy for others, in how he listened to, ministered to, counseled, helped, and prayed with others, throughout his career.

And, there is, of course, the well-known history of Biden's personal life, losing his wife and daughter in a car accident, losing his son to brain cancer, and how it was his faith that got him through those tragedies. Ignoring all of that smacks of a person who has a specific message he wants to deliver, but won't come right out and say it.

Yet. I'm sure he's saving it for next week.

Biden's campaign theme is that we are in a "battle for the soul of our country," something about which he spoke quite eloquently as he accepted the nomination, and something that has been set aside during the current administration in favor of more worldly goals, as we know.

Graham also shared the Ten Commandments as a reminder of the standards to which we are held, as a yardstick against which the Dems were measured, and in Graham's eyes, apparently failed. The irony is rich.

Think of them, the Ten Commandments, as you contemplate the current occupant of the White House, a man upon whom Graham has heaped praise, prayer, and blessings.

• Donald Trump stole from a charity, (one of his children ALSO stole from HIS charity) and was given restrictions should he want to be involved with a charity again. Among the ways he used the stolen money? A portrait of himself, the only image he worships.
• He cheated on his first two wives, each wife with the next, and with others, some of whom he paid for their silence; he bragged about sexually assaulting other women and lamented his failures in that regard; prowled backstage at beauty pageants hoping to see young women in varying states of undress, claiming that as his right; and was at least friendly with a sexual predator or two.
• He assaults his neighbors - all of us, really - with false witness, with patently absurd lies, with hostility, and with a profound lack of empathy; mercy is word not in his vocabulary. He mocks the sick, the frail, the disabled, the dying, and those who do not share his exalted opinion of himself. (The examples are legion; citing one or two would be absurd.)
• He takes the Lord's name in vain every time he mentions it, because he is a man without a shred of religious faith. He mocks the faithful even more than others; calls those who pray for him as the holder of the highest office in the land liars; and accuses those who are steadfast in their own faith of being faithless, or worse, of being like him: a person who uses the concept of faith as a way to advance his own interests, or as a weapon against others.
• He uses the faithful, and accepts their benevolence, their prayers, their laying on of hands, the same way he must have made promises as a child not to steal a favored toy from a neighbor - with one hand behind his back, fingers crossed, negating the promise of the faith placed in him - refusing it, truth be told, as if it's meaningless and beneath him.
• He used someone else's Bible as a prop. He lied about belonging to a church. He said the Bible was his favorite book. We know that is a lie, for it doesn't mention him by name.
• He attacks those who have more than he has - more money, more joy, more love, more purpose, more heart, more empathy. By so attacking, he demonstrates just how much he covets all that the others have, and all that is lacking in his own life.
• He places himself above all, before all, and bows before no one. He worships mere mention of his name, the almighty dollar, the almighty ratings, as if those three things are the measure of a man. Those things? They are the measure only of a megalomaniac. They are out of place in the heart, mind, and words of a person of faith.
• He is the graven image upon which his eyes rest most comfortably: his name on a clothing label; on the side of a building, writ in gold; carved in stone on an embassy wall; emblazoned in countless gaudy hotels, his golden club, his golf carts, and more; his giant signature, held up to the cameras for all to see, to bow to, to venerate, no matter how nonreligious, how faithless, how merciless are the words above it.

Tell me again, where is God missing?

In Case You Missed it (v32)

Miss any of last week's posts? Not to worry - here's your week in review.

In our Sunday School classroom visits, I had the opportunity to listen in on Chris Wallace's conversation with Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and a bit of a maverick himself, on Fox News Sunday. They talked about the administration's desire to be back and open for business come May. Cuban doesn't seem convinced.

Will it be open 24 hours a day? No. Will we open some doors and take some baby steps? Yes. How will I decide? When the scientists say it's safe for my employees to come back to work, that's when I'll feel confident enough...

Others making the rounds? The FDA's Dr. Steven Hahn and the WHO's Dr. David Nabarro on Meet the Press.

Our Sunday School Extra Credit this week included interviews with three governors on CNN's State of the Union, and Margaret Brennan's interview with the former Trump FDA head, Scott Gottlieb, talking a lot about reopening, which include him saying

he doesn't think "anyone's optimized really right now" to handle a rolling reopening, and he acknowledged the pressure not just on the administration, but on governors as well. Gottlieb expects a "slow reopening" through May, which could include older people staying home longer, under-staffing shifts, limited face to face meetings, and so on - decisions that will likely fall to local politicians and governors.

I don't know about you, but that gave me pause.

When it was time for Wondering on Wednesday, in addition to the good news stuff that's so much fun, I was wondering about the Economic Impact Payment, commonly referred to as the stimulus checks. Among other things, there was this.

Staying on the stimulus, there are multiple memes floating around wondering if #NeverTrumpers like me are going to refuse the stimulus checks because "they're from Trump" - which of course, they're not - as noted above, it's our money. Because that's where the government gets money -- from us. But now I have to wonder, will the Trumpeters keep the check, you know, frame it or something, like businesses do with their first dollar? 

This week's TGIF was focused completely on the thank goodness part, and included my thanks to everyone involved in helping fight the pandemic, including all the regular folks.

 doing their level best to do what we're being

asked to do, to help protect others, and maybe even ourselves, and to anyone I missed.  

And things wrapped up with an emptying of the laundry pile on the Irony Board. There's so much irony out there, related to the pandemic, and how people are reacting to it, and what things are coming to light and lighting fires under people in a way that would never light a fire under them under anything close to normal circumstances. Which led me to think about the lessons in the irony, and what we can take away from it all.  Among the takeaways?

• Irony is everywhere.
• What we don't want today we might need tomorrow, so when we get what we want, we may come to regret it. 
• Our elected officials are human - and imperfect - as are we.
• Many times, the ideas of one party are the ideas of the other party.
• We'd probably be better served if we focused more on the ideas and less on the people.
• 'We' includes me. 

There you have it - last week's veritable pastiche, ready whenever you are. Don't forget, you can subscribe safely, without a mask, by entering your email in the Instant Gratification box on the right sidebar. 

I'll be back later with today's Sunday School. 

The Irony Board: Time to Fold the Laundry

Looks like I've got quite a pile building up on the Irony Board. I guess it's time I took care of at least the stuff that's related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

First up? Science!
Isn't it at least a little bit ironic that so many science deniers, whether it's climate science or vaccine science or teaching science in schools, are so eager to see people move forward with experimental uses of drugs to fight the coronavirus?

And also isn't it at least a little bit ironic that the folks who say the virus is "a deep state hoax" and "the numbers are a lie" are also gung ho (on social media, anyway, where everything is true...) about drugs like remdisivir? Why would we need to work so hard to solve for something that isn't even a problem?

And isn't it also ironic that, when people are so demanding of other scientists, across a wide spectrum of applications, even down to their political affiliation, none of the same people seem remotely concerned that the tests we're seeing for these drugs frequently don't include control groups, so we don't really understand how they're working compared to people getting a different drug or a placebo?

I totally understand the desire to have some kind of therapeutic meds available to help treat people who end up getting infected with the coronavirus, but I also think that we should practice good science, including informed consent, and trials done under commonly accepted scientific practices - not just fast science, no matter how good the intentions.

Next up? Geography!
I find it at least somewhat ironic that the people who have long complained about how upstate New York - the real upstate, which includes Central NY, Northern NY, the Southern Tier, Western New York, the Fingerlakes region, the Adirondacks, and the Capitol District -  is constantly being screwed and all our money is being stolen to pay for New York City and so on, to the point where we should split the state to get away from downstate  are now all up in arms about two things that happened long ago, but only suddenly are hot topics.

The first issue? Gov. Cuomo not purchasing 16,000 ventilators back in 2015. These folks would have been apoplectic at the thought of the Sonofa Gov spending more than half a billion dollars on ventilators that would be sitting in a warehouse somewhere, doing nothing for who knows how many years, absent a pandemic like the 1918 flu, which at the time was nearly a century back in our rear-view mirror. But because Donald Trump said it on a Fox Town Hall from the Rose Garden, this is now a fact - Cuomo failed to by ventilators.  Never mind the "empty cupboards" of the Strategic National Stockpile, which the current administration failed to refill - because that's different, or something.

The second issue? The realization that many hospital beds have been closed in New York, most of them in New York City where the impact of the coronavirus is being felt most intensely. The anti-Cuomo, anti-downstate folks have been complaining about that as well, because the virus is only an issue there, it's hardly having any impact here and now we are going to have to take their sick people because there aren't any hospital beds for them.

And why aren't there any beds? Here's an op-ed in the NY Post from 2013 on hospital closures, written by the chair of the Pataki administration's Berger Commission, who said that (at that time) 18 hospitals across the state had been closed, including 12 in New York City. That's something that people up here would have been happy about, no longer throwing good tax dollars - good upstate tax dollars - out the window.

But now, also from the NY Post from March of this year, we learn that NY has thrown away thousands of hospital beds and that's going to make it harder for the state to deal with the pandemic.

New York has lost a staggering 20,000 hospital beds over the last two decades to budget cuts and insurance overhauls, complicating local and state efforts to battle the coronavirus, according to records and experts.

Both articles are good reads, presenting the arguments for and against doing something in each of these cases. And in each case, our elected officials, representatives of both major parties, made decisions they thought best for the citizens and taxpayers of New York.

What can we learn from these at least a little ironic lessons?  A few things, I think.

• Irony is everywhere.
• What we don't want today we might need tomorrow, so when we get what we want, we may come to regret it. 
• Our elected officials are human - and imperfect - as are we.
• Many times, the ideas of one party are the ideas of the other party.
• We'd probably be better served if we focused more on the ideas and less on the people.
• 'We' includes me. 

The Irony Board: AOC's Not Paying Dues?

I love me some good irony, don't you?

And that's just what we have today, with this article from The Hill about how progressive favorite Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or AOC as she's known - the very pro-union AOC -  is apparently going to refuse to do the one thing almost all union members do: pay their dues.

According to The Hill's reporting,

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) on Friday defended her decision not to pay dues to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) saying she would seek to funnel money directly to Democrats in tough races. 

Asked by The Hill if she intended to pay dues to the House Democratic campaign arm this cycle, Ocasio-Cortez replied, "I don't think so." 

Huh?  How's that again?

Ocasio-Cortez, who "has emerged as one of the Democratic Party's most prolific fundraisers in the House," outraised all other House Dems in Q3 2019, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She and the Speaker have clashed in the past, and according to the article, she's had issues with the DCCC as well,

particularly after it began sidelining vendors who work with candidates seeking to challenge incumbent Democrats in primaries. 

Instead of paying the ~$250K dues, she's hoping to raise that money and give it to other candidates - House Dems, and "non-incumbent candidates." And, her behavior is not making other members of her union happy. Rep. Gregory Meeks, also from NY, said this in an interview on Fox.

Sometimes the question comes: 'Do you want to be in a majority or do you want to be in the minority? And do you want to be part of a team?'

An unnamed Dem was, according to Fox, "less diplomatic."

Deadbeat Cortez should pay her bills. She's always whining about people paying their fair share and here she is, leaving her friends with the bill. 

And, of course, helping progressive candidates in battles against incumbents like Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas (who has paid his dues) is not sitting well with her fellow Dems. Cuellar said of AOC supporting his primary opponent,

Certainly, these are new times, which is something that we certainly don't agree with. To have people try to purify the caucus because they don't agree with them - 100%, I certainly don't agree with that. Hopefully we will start to get away from this circular firing squad.

 For her part, AOC says she's "happy to support some incumbents, but it's not just a blanket rule."

And speaking of a 'blanket rule', I always thought that everyone in the union was supposed to pay the dues - even people who disagreed with what the union was doing, right? That doesn't get you a pass - not according to politicians, anyway. Some courts have ruled in favor of the 'don't want to pay' crowd, but you won't find a lot of Democrat pols taking that position.

And I thought that union members didn't attack their own? I get that you can support a different slate of candidates for union leadership roles than the incumbents, for example - free and fair elections being part and parcel of the union construct, and all. But refusing to support your fellow members?  That goes against everything the labor movement and the pro-labor politicians stand for, doesn't it? I always thought it did.

I wonder what would happen if all the folks who are in unions today, or who get all the union jobs proposed under the Green New Deal all the sudden decided that paying dues was for the birds? I'm pretty sure a certain congresswoman would have something to say about that...

In Case You Missed It (v10)

In case you missed any of this week's posts, here's a recap for you.

In Sunday School,  I sat in on two classrooms with 2020 Dem presidential candidates, catching Andrew Yang and Mayor Pete, who was asked about policies, and polls, and, well, take a look.

About how his being gay impacts black voters and others, "What can you do about that, if anything?"  he said the biggest thing voters think about when trying to decide who to vote for is

How will my life be different if you're president vs. one of your competitors? That's the question we have got to answer. And when we have the best answer to that question, I think a lot of prejudices and a lot of those other considerations fall away, and it comes down to vision and results.

It was an interesting question, for sure, and I'm not sure there's a better answer. I'd like to think that there are fewer people who wouldn't consider voting for a gay man than there used to be. I mean, we've had a black president, for Pete's sake; now we've got The Apprentice. And as he once said, "what have you got to lose?"

I frequently encourage folks to listen to both sides of an argument, and in that spirit I dropped a Sunday School Extra Credit post, in which the pundits hosted some of the Republicans who were willing to chat. Here's House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy complaining to Margaret Brennan about secret depositions, transcripts and that vote the House took to formalize their impeachment inquiry:

You have members of Congress who just voted to justify what has already happened without ever reading one word of what's gone on.

My thoughts on that?

Brennan did not remind him that we have members of Congress who just voted against what has already happened without ever reading one word of what's gone on, and that the vote that was passed allows all of them to see what's gone on. And, of course, that Republican members of Congress are in the room listening to or participating in the depositions and it defies credulity that the Rs don't know exactly what's been said in those traditionally secret depositions.

Tuesday was Election Day, and that meant it was time to update my annual Election Eve post, which is full of rebuttals for not voting, and encouragement for doing so. This year, I was also thinking about New York's entry into early voting, and what the impact of that would be.

Hopefully, now that New York has added early voting, we'll see new voters participating, not just the same folks who vote every year. Overall, we're told, less than 2% of all registered voters cast their ballots early, but in my area, 20% of the early voters did not vote in 2018. Maybe there's hope after all?

There was some chatter in the Twitterverse about there not being a proclamation for Native American History Month this year; that turned out not to be true, but it did get me looking at Trump proclamations, and as with some of the ones he's issued in the past, it inspired me to drag out my Irony Board. 

This year, in addition to celebrating our Native American heritage, we are celebrating several other things, including National Veterans and Military Families Month, with a proclamation noting that

Each warrior who fights for our Nation, along with their families, has earned our eternal gratitude, and I ask that all Americans thank and support them.  Together, we remain committed to fostering a national community of support for these brave heroes and their families.

If you think about all the "fostering a national community of support" this particular president has done, you'll wonder, as I did, how he can put his signature on this with a straight face.

On Wednesday, I wondered about impeachment, mostly, but also about the election results from around the country, and from Trump country, and what they might mean in the larger picture.

Moving on to yesterday's election results: Virginia turned blue last night, for the first time in a generation. and the lady who flipped Trump off won a seat. Not because she flipped him off, mind you, but because her message resonated with voters and because she worked her fanny off. In Pennsylvania, Republicans lost in Delaware County where they've held seats since the Civil War; Democrats flipped several seats in Central Ohio, and may have narrowly won the Kentucky gubernatorial contest, although a re-canvass has been requested by the Republican incumbent Matt Bevin.

I was at the Update Desk again on Thursday, reviewing emails from the Dems. It's still about money, for the most part - no surprise there - and about both the November and December debates. They're all in for November, but December's going to be much harder for some.  Here's a taste of what one of them is talking about in campaign emails.

Andrew Yang: he's got his first ad on TV, he's worried about qualifying for the December debate; he offered a split donation to Virginia Dems and his campaign,  he's got new merch, including a new hat that will give $1 to the USO for every purchase, and we heard from his wife Evelyn for the first time.

And on Friday, instead of our usual 'good week/bad week' TGIF entry, I tossed out a Knock Knock post on all of the different ways the president's defenders are making fools of themselves on the impeachment stuff. It's really getting embarrassing. I have a suggestion for them, his defenders and, frankly, his accusers, too.

It's time to stop talking and start listening. Hear the evidence, read the evidence (and, can I ask, have you read the Mueller Report yet?), and listen to the official arguments when they are presented. 

And then, stop embarrassing yourselves, all of you.

I have no idea what next week will bring, but I know I'll be here trying to make sense of it. Join me?

The Irony Board: I Hereby Proclaim

There are many things Donald Trump is without: ethics... compassion... empathy... kindness... humility... courtesy... and irony - don't forget irony.

We've long celebrated November as Native American Heritage Month, under President George W. Bush, President Obama and even president Trump.

This year, in addition to celebrating our Native American heritage, we are celebrating several other things, including National Veterans and Military Families Month, with a proclamation noting that

Each warrior who fights for our Nation, along with their families, has earned our eternal gratitude, and I ask that all Americans thank and support them.  Together, we remain committed to fostering a national community of support for these brave heroes and their families.

This president signed this proclamation? This president, the guy who mocked a Gold Star family for speaking out against him; who assaulted the life and memory of John McCain; who deports  immigrant veterans despite the promise of citizenship for their patriotic service or the immigrant families of our veterans and soldiers; and who most recently has turned his "eternal gratitude" on Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman? This is the guy who proclaims

I encourage all communities, all sectors of society, and all Americans to acknowledge and honor the service, sacrifices, and contributions of veterans and military families for what they have done and for what they do every day to support our great Nation.

I can't even.

We're also celebrating, for the first time, National American History and Founders Month, a time for us all to remember that

...the United States will always remain steadfast in our dedication to promoting liberty and justice over the evil forces of oppression and indignity.  This same truth fuels us in our efforts to confront the challenges that face our citizens here at home, including protecting precious religious liberties, securing our Nation’s borders, and combating the opioid crisis.

Unless, of course, you're a Muslim, a person legitimately seeking asylum, a thoroughly vetted refugee, LGBTQ, a person with Temporary Protected Status, a political opponent born in the US or a naturalized citizen, and so on.

But let's include the opioid crisis as an "evil force of oppression and indignity," while we try to strip health insurance away from millions...  Also,

This month, we acknowledge the tremendous strides we have made as a people and recognize that our democracy’s survival is dependent upon a well-informed electorate.  To ensure the success of our future generations, we pledge to continue to build a more educated citizenry. We heed the warning of President Ronald Reagan that “freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”

This is laughable, really, coming from a guy who lies in press conferences, lies in rallies, lies in Cabinet meetings, lies in tweets -- who lies about everything! All of his minions also lie, constantly, boldly, like clockwork, in lockstep with him, as if hearing themselves repeat something false will miraculously make it true. And knowing that if they are hearing themselves repeat something false, the president is hearing them, too, and that is good. For them. Not so much for us, but very good for them. And his supporters? Some of them believe the lies, all the lies, lie the lies right along with him, and call others liars for not agreeing with the lies. And no, 13,435 false and misleading statements do not a truth make... But,

To continue safeguarding our freedom, we must develop a deeper understanding of our American story.  Studying our country’s founding documents and exploring our unique history — both the achievements and challenges — is indispensable to the future success of our great Nation.  For more than two centuries, the American experiment in self-government has been the antithesis to tyranny, and our Constitution has secured the blessings of liberty.

This president doesn't give two hoots about the Constitution - it's just another thing about which he can uneducate the citizenry. His actions fly in the face of our founding documents, except the parts that serve his purpose-of-the-day, and he pretends the parts that don't serve him don't exist - you know, like the oversight stuff, or the Congress appropriates the money stuff, and more.

He proudly and officially compliments dictators, wishing that he had what they have -- an obedient press, subservient women, obscene military parades, and threatening people who don't agree with him. And he's got that last part, in spades.

Emoluments...government spending at Trump properties... promoting his children's personal financial interests... members of his administration doing the same...

As we sit today, he's obstructing Congress in an impeachment inquiry, he has his lawyers on a path of obstruction in ways the likes of which have never been seen before, even to the point of arguing that Trump could in fact kill someone in the middle of 5th Avenue and not even be investigated, much less indicted, while he's in office. (The president just loves that "the likes of which have never been seen before" stuff, so I thought I'd give it a whirl.)

Trump has got this American History and Founders stuff nailed, don't you think?

And the irony part? Yeah, well, that's going to have to wait for another day.