Pensees

                                                 So some American tried to tell New Zealanders how to handle the pandemic.   He got burned  to the ground.  This is a classic clash between stupidity and a smart guy who knows how to deliver a brilliant insult. New Zealand, by the way, has one of the lowest covid 19 death rates in the world.  25 total deaths.  Sure, it's a much smaller country than the US, but compared to our 210,000 total deaths, it's pretty obvious that they are doing something right.  They don't appreciate anyone challenging their success. "The man, who wasn’t named in a news report about the incident from TVNZ, can be heard on video doubting that the virus exists. “Where’s your evidence that there is a virus that causes the disease?” the man asked, apparently holding something he’d printed out fro...

  "Please understand that I am not asking this to be a wise-ass, but as a genuine and serious question: If Donald Trump was experiencing DXM-induced mania, how would we know?" Thanks to Jonathon at the Bulwark.   Great question.

 PENSEE #12 Donald Trump once claimed he could  "stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody"  and not "lose any voters."  Given their demonstrated loyalty, one could agree with Trump on this. That said, though,  there are signs that there are indeed voters leaking out of the Trump camp.    It certainly isn't a rush to the exits, but it's enough to question his claim that even if he's a murderer, he won't lose a vote from his loyalists. According to one recent poll,  up to 6% of Trump voters in 2016 will not be back in 2020 .  That's not huge, but it's somewhat surprising that the number of disappearing Trump voters is even measurable.  As one voter put it,  “What changed my mind? 120,000 deaths,” Considering how close the 2016 election was, even 6% of his base is a problem for a Trump second term.  I'm not predicting that Biden will win, nor am I predicting that a Trump loss would be solely due to defectors.  T...

PENSEE #10. This is not the time to pile on the President's covid 19 exposure.  "I told you so" can be both true and unhelpful at the same time.  Rather, despite my personal politics, this is the time to wish President Trump the best in his quarantine and whatever treatment he needs. If anything good can come from his exposure, I hope that his base begins to take precautions to protect themselves from the virus.  Their flagrant disregard for those precautions endangers all of us.  For the skeptics, consider what happened to a prominent Republican who attended a Trump rally.  Nobody is safe or immune from the covid 19 pandemic.  The President has been exposed, despite the best medical staff in the world.  If he can't avoid the virus, none of us can. This is a dangerous moment.   The President insisted the virus would go away . He rolled the dice and lost.  It not only didn't go away, but now he's infected. Presuming a quick and full recovery, ...

PENSEE #3.  "Safer at home." So...the coronavirus is still with us after 6 months of varying restrictions to prevent spreading it.  "Safer at Home" is not just a factually provable slogan.  It's got some unexpected benefits, at least for me. The last 6 months of isolation have been pretty easy for me.  I rarely leave the house, except for doctor appointments and treatment.  When I do leave the house, I'm confronted with an array of non-maskers are everywhere I go.  Emotionally, I invariably have an unspoken anger that so many people care so little about their fellow citizens.  Every time I hear the term "we're all in this together," I wince.  Nothing could be farther from the truth. So staying home has the benefit of avoiding the risk of coronavirus and the people who just don't give a damn.  I've found that the less I have to interact with people, the happier I am.  That may seem cynical, because it is.  We're not "all in this...