Count on Me

I came across this video tonight and it reminded me that when I was in high school, I knew someone who became sort of famous - Craig Chaquico. He was very good with a guitar and was eventually asked to join the Jefferson Starship. In the video below you can see Craig at the beginning, on the far left, sitting on a chair and playing the guitar ...

Dem debate

I'm watching the Democratic debate in South Carolina. It's just beginning but already I hate Bloomberg even more than previously - he's obviously used to getting his way all the time and it really is chapping his ass to have to answer all these pesky questions about his dubious past actions. Can't see him lasting too much longer in this race.

And PS - who knew that people attending the Democratic debates must pay for tickets? The tickets for this latest debate went for $1,750 to $3,200 ... With Tickets $1,750, Debate Audiences Are Elite of the Elite. But That’s Not New. No wonder the audience booed Bernie for criticizing the rich.

The virus

The spread of the Coronavirus in the US is now inevitable. There are already people with the virus in my own town. Trump has been giving out misleading information on the situation, and the government agencies on which we will need to rely have been gutted by his policies. People have often wondered what terrible damage might occur if the Trump admin was ever faced with a real emergency. I think we're there now.

Yay!

Nevada debate

I stayed up late to watch the latest Democratic debate. This one was interesting because Mike Bloomberg was allowed to join in. I'll say up front that I think he would be a terrible candidate for the Democratic party to choose. Bloomberg is a former Republican, an arrogant billionaire with racist and misogynistic baggage. Tonight Elizabeth Warren exposed what kind of man he is ...



Pundits have been going on about how Bloomberg can save the Democrats by rescuing us from a Bernie candidacy. I think they are badly mistaken and have badly misread the Democratic base. We don't want another version of Trump in the White House.

Fixing a hole

A few days ago I had an appointment with the reconstructive surgeon who will fix the hole in my face that the dermatology doc will make in taking away the area of skin cancer. Scary. I can still remember how upset I was when I had to do this before, about 10 years ago. It looked so horrible right after the operation, though now people say they have to look twice to see the scar at all. Still, it takes time for it to look not Frankenstinian and I'm dreading that. I'm lucky, though, because this time my insurance (medicare/medicaid) will actually pay for a plastic surgeon to close it up - last time I didn't even realize that was a possibility.

One disturbing thing was that they sent me to get an EKG first. I haven't had one of those since I was 25, when my mom had a heart attack and my sis and I were asked to get one. The results were sent to me via the online messaging site of the hospital. I'm not sure I understand what it means and no one has talked to me about it, but it seems to say I have PVCs and maybe that I had a previous heart attack (one of the "silent" kind?). I feel ok though and I didn't drop dead mowing the lawn today, so maybe it's not a worry.

Meanwhile, the operations will be at the beginning of March. Gulp :(

Valentine's Day

Love :) ...

The Pope

In the news: Pope Francis Won't Allow Married Men As Priests, Women As Deacons

No great surprise here. Those who had hopes that this pope would be an agent of change on the issues that matter to most Catholics ... clergy sex abuse, married priests, women deacons and priests, birth control, divorce/remarriage, gay people and their relationships, etc. ... have been disappointed. Let's not pretend anymore that Francis is progressive. He is a social conservative, a sexist, a homophobe, and a protective church traditionalist. He won't let the church change, as living things change, and that's why it's dying.

Con man

Chris Hayes reminds the voters of New Hampshire (and us) that Trump is nothing but a con man. W must not let him psych us into despairing of beating him in the next election ....

Trump's revenge

Did anyone doubt this was coming? How could they, knowing we now live in a banana republic, ruled by a despot. We'd better buckle up - the retribution is far from over.

Job well done, Republicans.

Dina ...

Having a snack on the kitty couch ...

Town hall

Here's a bit from a CNN town hall tonight in New Hampshire, with Bernie Sanders answering a few questions, including one about his Jewish heritage ...

Only one

Mitt Romney is the sole Republican who voted to convict Trump ...



In response, Trump tweeted images showing himself as basically the lifetime dictator of America ...





If you guys think he's kidding, I believe you are mistaken. The Republican party has sold out the country to this *thing*. And why? Just to keep themselves in power. What a bunch of scumbags.

Speech of lies

I didn't watch the state of the union speech because I knew if would just be a reality show production of Trump posturing and lying. Others watched and fact checked ... Fact-checking the 2020 State of the Union.

It is terrifying to see Trump not only getting away with every bad thing he's done and is doing, but prospering as well. And now there's nothing to keep him in check - he can't be indicted by the DOJ for crimes, he can't be investigated or impeached by congress, and there is literally no one he answers to. Today he bragged about dumping poor people off of food stamps and his horde of Republican toadies capered and howled. What will he be bragging about at his next state of the union speech if he's re-elected?