Posted on by rjonakait

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Whenever I watched the right wing “news” channel during Hunter Biden’s trial, I heard hosts and commentators state that this was a Delaware jury that, in essence, had been captured by the Bidens. The jury would “nullify” and acquit Hunter. This was said again and again, not as a possibility but as a certitude. When I watched Fox News after the verdict, I only heard that the evidence against the defendant was overwhelming and the verdict a slam dunk. I heard no one confess error for any previous statements.

“Think before you speak is criticism’s motto; speak before you think creation’s.” E.M. Forster.

Kristin Hannah’s bestselling The Women is a powerful novel. In 1965, Frankie serves as a nurse in the Vietnam War. She makes strong friendships but also experiences the horrors of battlefield wounds, napalm, and Agent Orange. She returns to a divided America where no one wants to hear about her military service. With no outlet to process what she has experienced, she suffers flashbacks and spirals out of control. And that made me think about one of my friendships. My closest high school friend served in Vietnam. In 1968 I took a road trip with him from Chicago to Georgia where he was going to report for duty to be sent to Vietnam. We did not talk about the correctness of the war. We knew that he was going; we knew that I opposed the war. That reticence continued after he returned when antiwar activities had increased. Although we have spent much time together over the years, we have never talked about his experiences in country. The Women made me realize that I have not been the friend I might have been.

“It isn’t the man who controls events but events that control the man.” David Diop, At Night All Blood is Black.

I don’t understand airport security. For example, why do I have to take a computer or iPad out of my carryon at one airport and not at another? And what’s the deal with shoes? TSA is a national agency, so why do the rules vary?

In one of those surveys, which I am sure is highly scientific, Finland ranked first with the highest percentage of happy people. It has been at the top for the last six or seven years. When I hear these results, I think of my friend who worked for Nokia. She liked the work except for her frequent trips to the headquarters in Finland.  It amused her, though, that Helsinki was the only place where she saw women with blonde roots.

I grew up in a small Wisconsin town, but I grew up hearing the roar of a lion. There was a zoo. It had Japanese macaques, which I liked watching, and other animals I don’t remember — except for Sadie the lion. She was kept in a small cage. Not regularly, but often enough, she roared, which was sufficiently loud to be heard at our house. It never sounded fierce, only lonely and sad.

 “Silence is a virtue in those who are deficient in understanding.” Dominique Bouhours.

Posted on by rjonakait

Snippets

A recent article about a Sarasota bar owner who supports gun rights and gives “lessons” on the Second Amendment in his bar got me to thinking. His version of the Second Amendment — a version espoused by others of his ilk — asserts that American freedom rests not so much with an armed militia, army, or law enforcement but with an armed civilian populace. Without guns we would soon have an oppressive autocracy denying freedoms to the populace. This reasoning simply doesn’t pass muster. Most people in this country do not possess firearms and yet they are able to exercise their rights. They speak freely, go to church, and vote. Their rights have not been taken away because they don’t have a gun.

In fact the pro-gun constituency comes up short in giving us examples of gun-toting masses preserving freedoms. Perhaps it can be claimed that private property has been made more secure by firearms, but what about all those other rights? When has carrying a gun preserved your right of free speech or your right to a jury trial? On the other hand, try to think of when one person carrying a firearm has deprived others of their rights. Our history is filled with examples of guns used to prevent others from speaking freely or peaceably assembling. Every time a gun has been used in a robbery it has been used to deny someone’s right to property. Every time a gun has been used in a murder or a wounding or even in an accidental shooting, the bearer of that gun has denied the individual rights of others.

 Furthermore, our history is replete with instances in which masses of armed civilians denied freedoms to others. For just a couple of the many examples, read David Zucchino’s Wilmington’s Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy or Charles Lane’s The Day Freedom Died: The Colfax Massacre, the Supreme Court, and the Betrayal of Reconstruction.

          Some also proclaim that guns should be carried for self-defense, and that a well-armed citizenry makes us all safer. Good people with guns can stop the bad people. I thought of this while reading about Charles Boles who was in California during the Gold Rush. The author says that Boles “no doubt carried a Colt revolver and a bowie knife—almost all men did in California, for there was very little law enforcement in the early years of the gold rush. Man—and the fledgling state’s few women—knew that they were responsible for their own self-protection.” Thus, California in the early days was a paradise to some self-described libertarians: Little government but widespread gun-packing. This surely must have been a safe place to live. Of course, it was not. “Heavy drinking, coupled with an armed populace, led to astronomical homicide rates, among the highest in peacetime America. In the 1850s, California saw murder rates twenty to thirty times greater than the current national rate.” So says John Boessenecker in Gentleman Bandit: The True Story of Black Bart, the Old West’s Most Infamous Stagecoach Robber.

As Jose Maria Luis Mora said, “The word liberty has often served for the destruction of the substance of liberty.”

I, like others, feel that Hunter Biden is being singled out for his gun violation. I am confident that many good ol’ boys have bought guns without disclosing their substance abuse problems and did not get indicted. If his name weren’t Biden, Hunter would probably not be facing jail. On the other hand, I can’t have much sympathy for him. Without his last name, Hunter Biden would not have made all the money he did. If you are going to take credit for the rain, then you have to accept the blame for the drought.

“A weapon is an enemy even to its owner.” Turkish proverb.

You can check this out: More gun deaths are suicides than homicides, self-defense, accidents, or good people killing the bad.

Posted on by rjonakait

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Shortly before “The Immortal Jellyfish GirlImmortal Jellyfish Girl

” began, I heard a teenage voice say, “This is going to be s-o-o-o awesome. I just love radical puppetry theater.” I had questions, but even though she was sitting behind, I felt I did not know the sixteen-year-old well enough to ask.

When I heard that Tom Brady was yet again retiring, I thought of a European friend. He lives in Munich but went to college in the United States, where he fell in love with American football. He maintains that it is the greatest team game because for a play to be successful, every team member must perform well. I think that is an exaggeration, but he has a point. One player or even two or three is not sufficient for a good play. And, of course, a team with an offense that performs well may not win if the defense sucks, and so on. Even so, commentators regularly talk about a quarterback’s wins and losses, although they don’t say that about other players. Thus, it gets reported that Brady has won 35 playoff games and seven Super Bowls. But, of course, it was the New England Patriots that won those championships. Brady did not do it by himself. Remember that goal line interception by Malcolm Butler in 2015, Remember the entire New England defense when Atlanta fell apart in 2017.) Perhaps it is ok to say that Brady led the Patriots to the Super Bowl wins, but it denigrates all the many New England players who contributed to the victories to say that Brady won the games.

“Conceit is God’s gift to little men.” Bruce Barton.

“There are always people in whose presence it is unsuitable to be over-modest, they are only too pleased to take you at your word.” Louis Pasteur.

I don’t know what to make of the fact that I find a resemblance between Hunter Biden and Aaron Rodgers.

At the conclusion of a tennis match, the loser packs up equipment and heads to the locker room often giving a wave to the audience as they applaud. The winner might them be interviewed on court. However, after the tournament finals, the loser stays on the court, takes part in the trophy awarding, and is interviewed. They almost always say gracious things, but surely that is a hard and awkward thing to do a few minutes after losing something they wanted so much.

Ashleigh Barty Wilkes Booth Tarkington.

I admit there is much about conservatism that I do not understand. I have heard how conservatives worry that school children are being groomed for sexual behaviors. But then conservatives rant that the M&M cartoon spokescandies are not sexy enough. Is that consistent?

I am saving footage of Senators recently quoting Taylor Swift lyrics in a hearing about Ticketmaster practices. I assure you that it is rare—oh, so rare—but on occasion I do something that is embarrassing. When on those oh-so-rare occasions, it helps me to feel better to see “serious” people doing even more cringeworthy stuff.