Saturday’s Forum
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FILED UNDER: Open Forum
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Can also be said of Trump: one of the greatest brand destructions — that of the good ‘ol USA.
Not content with a first term that led to 400,000 American covid deaths, costly tariffs, assault on democratic process, damage to strategic international relations affecting both economic security and real security, American voters chose the “hair of the rabid dog” that bit them, handing Trump carte blanche for his wrecking ball.
Seriously, how often does “life” rescue us from our own stupidity and overindulgence.
The Florida headline of the day- Florida woman strikes man in MAGA hat at a Largo park before battering an officer
It’s raining pretty good here. All the windows are open, it’s 62 degrees and everyone stayed in bed but me. Even Sadie put her nose back under the covers.
It’s Memorial Day weekend and that’s when my late father is in my mind more often. Actually, the whole summer reminds me of him. Not just because he was an Independence Day baby and we also buried him on that date, or that his favorite song was Nat King Cole singing about “those lazy hazy crazy days of summer”, but because he was such a devoted Patriot. We flew the flag on Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day. We learned to fold and unfold a flag properly, never letting it touch the ground. He would sing the National Anthem or the Marines Hymn (he was twice enlisted and both forearms were tattooed with the insignia) with great gusto and sometimes tears. He taught me to type “Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country.”
When I was in high school, with the Viet Nam War winding down but the Draft still on, I was training as a counselor at Marshall University. Sometimes my instructor would come to my house with Selective Service volumes to go over. If my dad was home, he would walk in and say “I believe in universal conscription myself” and walk out. We disagreed on just about everything political, but free unfettered speech was never an issue. I can still almost hear him “I disagree with everything you say, but I will die for the right for you to say it!”.
@becca:
Well, he certainly raised a great daughter.
The view from rural Missouri:
“Jess Piper”
etc., etc.
Our goofball commander in chief is speaking at USMA’s graduation ceremony, wearing one of his dippy baseball caps and blathering on about trophy wives and yachts.
@Jen:
Has he used the phrase “kissing my ass” yet? It’s not a true Trump commencement speech unless h does.
FUUUCK!
Hours before flying to London: detached goddam retina. Thankfully I did get trip insurance. Not sure if drinking is recommended but not sure I care.
@Michael Reynolds:
Once, after a rather unpleasant interlude in an emergency room, I asked the doctor if a vodka martini would be medically contraindicated.
His reply: “No, I think it would be medically indicated.”
Have the drink.
@Michael Reynolds: A friend had one mid-flight. I’ve never had it happen and don’t know anything about them. Had you been on a flight immediately before?
@Fortune:
Several flights in the last couple days. Noticed it when I woke up and couldn’t read a bottle of Cetaphil to see whether it was cleanser or lotion.
@CSK:
Now they think not a detached retina. May be something called a retinal migraine? Or a side effect of GLP-1. (Mounjaro.) So I’ll go blind because I can’t stop eating donuts. Which would absolutely serve me right. Waiting on an Optho consult. Actually glad I’m in Seattle not Vegas. Both K’s doctor and mine say flatly, ‘don’t have serious medical done in Vegas.’
So, we may still make the trip, just miss a couple days.
@Michael Reynolds: Wishing you a speedy recovery.
@CSK:
BTW, reminds me of the doctor who did my vasectomy many years ago. I asked him whether he objected to me resorting to some liquid courage. The doctor was an Irish guy, so. . .
@Michael Reynolds:
My doctor in this case had an Italian surname, so the medical consensus regardless of ethnicity may be that a decent drink never hurt anything.
@Michael Reynolds: Welcome to Seattle, it’s lovely when you’re not in immense pain.
Since you are in immense pain and have messed up vision, though, I recommend visiting the gum wall. It will likely not make your ailments worse, and your ailments certainly won’t make it worse.
It was cleaned this past November, and I haven’t visited it since, so it might not be up to its previous standards, but hey, free gum!
@Gustopher: Looked up the gum wall. Good to know the area is undergoing some gentrification and rehab. When I grew up in Seattle, the only reason to go onto Post Alley was…
No, I decided to just leave things at people mostly didn’t go down Post Alley and had no compelling reasons to. Maybe Luddite will elaborate.
@Michael Reynolds:
Damn.
Hope it works out.
And I thought I was having a bad weekend.
Car broke down with water pump failure, landline telephone has stopped working, mobile phone almost out of money and can’t access the web to put more credit on.
And RAC insurance recovery telephone menus are utterly insane. *grrr*
Thank heaven for helpful people. A lovely couple gave me a lift from failed car to home!
Then nieces husband helped me out getting back to the car and calling the recovery service.
Recovery guy was a diamond, also
And good old Richard turned up when I got home to check I was coping, and donate a half bottle of wine!
A reminder how important people are.
Also, why I need to get a proper up-to-date smartphone and payment bundle.
Next stop, getting the car fixed.
Sizable bills in prospect, I suspect.
On the plus side, good reason to stay home and work in the garden today, where the roses are just fantastic this year.
Lady of Shalott is really strutting her stuff.
Also the paeonies, nepeta, iris, and just about everything, really.
This has to have been one of the most lovely weather May in the UK in recent memory,