What a Picture is Worth ….
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Category Archives: health
Island Paradise
We returned recently from our twice-postponed [COVID] celebration of my wife’s birthday and our wedding anniversary. We have generally visited one or the other Hawaiian islands at least every other year. My wife lived there for eight years, and I have traveled there for business and pleasure many times. Hawaii remains one of the great travel experiences in the world.
The pandemic disrupted the rhythm of our visits and at a bad time. The second postponement was necessary because the Governor and health chief publicly announced that the islands could not handle a wave of COVID cases in visitors and, therefore, no one should come for a while. Extraordinary and sad for everyone.
Then the situation improved and off we went. The actual going and coming had some issues but we’ll just leave them unsaid. We want to share a few of the reasons Hawaii is special – photos of the birds, the flowers, the extraordinary trees and the “scenes.” These are a very small sample so, by all means, book yourself a dream trip. And while you’re there, book a birding tour with Oahu Nature Tours. It’s run by Michael Walther who is extremely knowledgeable about the wildlife and t geography/geology/history of the islands. He and his delightful partner Cecilia took on a great ride around the island in a Mercedes sedan. We went places you would never know about on your own and had a great day’s unique experience.
DC – Be More Like Hawaii
We have returned from a twice postponed and much-needed vacation in Hawaii. We spent the entire week in Honolulu but, in our over-priced rental car, we toured the island as we always do, stopping for garlic shrimp at one of the local huts on the North Shore and marveling at the amazing scenery. We had a wonderful birding experience, about which more in another post.
The point now is to highlight an aspect of Hawaii life that we would do well to emulate here in the District of Columbia. It’s not hard to do and would contribute measurably to the quality of life here. Elsewhere as well.
I refer to the fact that virtually no one honks their car horn at other drivers in Hawaii. It is frowned upon as extremely discourteous, rude and … unacceptable. Associated with this wonderful custom is the concept of sharing the road. Traffic on Oahu, the island of which Honolulu occupies a big space and has most of the population, is, well, heavy. And on the few interstates, traffic tends to move fast when fast is possible. It resembles the interstates on the mainland in that regard. If you’re going to survive, you must pay attention to the road and other drivers and not so much the highly distractive surroundings.
That said, when it’s time to exit, giving a signal of your intentions reasonably in advance will almost always result in someone in the lane to your side allowing you to enter that lane and exit. The same is true for changing lanes to get into one whose speed is more comfortable. At congested points within Honolulu, and there are many, drivers, with rare exceptions, alternate with each other at choke points. You don’t have to force your way into the traffic. Other drivers seem to understand that they have been where you are and yield to you, if not willingly, still pretty consistently.
This degree of courtesy on the road can take some getting used to, but it doesn’t take long to realize that this is a culture change, a way of getting along with others who are all trying to do the same thing — reach their destinations safely.
The absence of routine angry horn honking and the common and almost universal courtesy of drivers yielding and sharing space with you makes for a quieter and calmer driving experience and general atmosphere. In DC, where we live now, I am convinced that the propensity of drivers to think they are somehow more important than everyone else and show this with blasting horns and insanely dangerous driving habits, leads to a kind of follow-the-leader atmosphere. Horn honking leads to more horn honking. Hesitation at a light is not tolerated and often no space is given at merge points without forcing one’s way into the line of traffic. The more of this that occurs, the more it becomes the norm. Bad behavior begets bad behavior.
We can do better. Hawaii is proof that we can learn to accommodate each other, at least in this one respect, so that good behavior begets good behavior. You don’t have to visit Hawaii to figure this out, although it will do you a world of good to spend some time there. More about that in future posts. [I took over 1,000 photos in one week there.] Meanwhile, DC, try to be more like Hawaii.
Spring Is Coming – Then Summer
When we moved to DC in December 2020, it was a drab time. Few cars, fewer pedestrians, no commercial activity to speak of, no night life, no entertainment. Compared to New York City whence we came, DC was a ghost town. To a large extent it still is.
One surprise, however, was the extent to which DC was a city of flowers. They seemed to be everywhere, even in the dark winter months. Naturally, I began to take pictures of them. It was easy in Georgetown, a comparative oasis, but there were flower boxes on some of the main commercial streets and in other surprising locations. Whenever I had the camera, I took the shots. Passersby often seemed to think it was strange, but for us, the flowers were life renewed, not just the promise but the reality right then. We were particularly grateful for the colors and for the effort to which so many people had gone to plant and care for them even in our darkest hours.
I have turned to these photos for sustenance more than once during this past winter as we coped with omicron and the lingering dangers of COVID. As hints of spring begin to appear, I want to share these beautiful examples of what is to come. DC truly is a city of flowers. We should be sure to take time to appreciate them in light of the horrors that are visiting the world.
Meme Time Again
These photos and memes were captured from Twitter and Facebook. They present in images and a few words the essence of important messages for these times.
We must not make that mistake again.
The Triumph of Hope Over Experience?
Once again, the rush is on to drop mask mandates and “get back to normal.” Because, Freedumb. This past Presidents Day weekend we visited Wilmington and places along the way. Masks were already the marked exception, even for restaurant staff. Signs referring to masks were mostly gone or disregarded. In our 10-story hotel, one of the two elevators was out of service, many people were perfectly content to, maskless, get on the elevator with you.
As a society we have asked, nay, demanded of our health care workers in hospitals and elsewhere an extraordinary degree of commitment and sacrifice, not to mention life-threatening risk. Small wonder that so many have quit in exhaustion & despair. For a while we made celebrated their sacrifice as we would have for soldiers in time of war (Vietnam excepted)., but that time has passed, it seems.
There are other phrases for what we’re doing now. “Whistling by the graveyard” comes to mind. Dr. Chris Beyrer, professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, summed it up nicely: “… this does look like the beginning of a next phase and let’s hope it lasts.” https://bit.ly/3smMxqk Indeed, let’s hope. Experience suggests otherwise but we’ll see. I will be quite happy to be wrong about my skepticism.
The over-privileged whiny babies seem to have carried the day with their relentless complaining, arrogant ignorance about the science of the virus and violence. Their hatred and fear of the federal government, their obeisance to the Liar King Trump and other factors have led them to a degree of self-indulgence and dangerous behavior to themselves and others that defies understanding. They must have their seat at the bar, their time at the gym, whatever, and many will simply not accept anything else. Freedumb.
Now, we are on the verge of a shooting war with Russia, a nuclear-equipped country dominated by a former and ruthless KGB operative now essentially Russia’s president for life. Republicans around the country and in Congress have now progressed from the Big Lie of Donald Trump to overt support for a country with which the United States may be at war soon. Their traitorous conduct in supporting, perhaps even planning and certainly defending, the January 6 coup attempt has moved on to more adventurous treasons. Here are their names:
Rep. Elise Stefanik
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene
Rep. Lauren Boebert
Rep. Paul Gosar
Rep. Matt Gaetz
Rep. Andy Biggs
Rep. Jim Jordan
Rep. Greg Steube
Rep. Byron Donalds
Rep. Jody Hice
Rep. Thomas Massie
Rep. Kat Cammack
Rep. Jim Banks
Rep. Lee Zeldin
Rep. Bill Johnson
Rep. Dan Crenshaw
Sen. Ted Cruz
Sen. Tom Cotton
Sen. Ron Johnson
Sen. Marsha Blackburn
Sen. Tim Scott
Sen. Rick Scott
Sen. Marco Rubio
Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith
Sen. Cynthia Lummis
Sen. Lindsey Graham
GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel
GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy
GOP Candidate Ronny Jackson
All Republicans.
There was a time when American politicians would not criticize an American president when we was conducting the nation’s business overseas. And while they reserve the right to oppose U.S. engagement in armed conflict or declarations of war/authorization for the use of force, it was rare that they would overtly side with the enemy in an armed conflict.
No so, today’s Republicans. Given their statements and conduct, it does not challenge the imagination to think they would support Russia’s declaring that all of Europe was Russian territory. Recall Hitler. “The troops massing on your border are just a military exercise. Don’t be alarmed. Our territorial ambitions are quite limited. Believe me.”
But that is a subject for another day. In this post, I want to remind everyone, and hope they share it with others I can’t reach, how Donald Trump, in his official capacity as President of the United States, deliberately and repeatedly lied to the American people for over two years about the COVID-19 virus. In his constant lying, he persuaded his gullible followers that the virus was no threat, that masks were evil, that even the vaccine he claimed to have inspired was not to be trusted, and more. He admitted to having deliberately downplayed the threat in his interview with Bob Woodward. Of course, to deny that he downplayed it would have been another blatant lie because the record of his lies is clear and unflinching.
As a result, Donald Trump is personally responsible for the avoidable deaths of, most likely, hundreds of thousands of Americans. If you think that number is too large, remember that, as of February 22, 2022, the U.S. death total attributable to COVID is 932,894. It seems clear we will come near to or exceed a million dead before this is “over,” if it ever is.
Trump is responsible for many of those that could have been, and still could be, avoided if public health advice had been fully respected. Instead, acts of violence are perpetrated every week in airports and on aircraft, in restaurants and elsewhere – all in the name of Freedumb, encouraged by Trump and his cabal of traitors and incompetents.
It’s tempting, of course, to point fingers at the tens of thousands, or millions, of Americans who have fallen prey to Trump’s siren song. And they are worthy of profound disdain, particularly those who followed his call to storm the Capitol on January 6 and steal the election. Many Americans have proved themselves unworthy of the designation, “American.” They are soft, entitled, and unbending in their disrespect of the needs of others.
And, yet, here we are again, making political decisions about medical issues in our rush to deflect the anger of the self-absorbed cry babies who refuse to wear masks, reject vaccines, and generally behave in a way that assures the pandemic will remain with us longer, perhaps forever. Mostly, if not entirely, in the service of the lies told by Donald Trump and the sycophants who continue to surround him and do his bidding to unlawfully reinstall him as president. It’s a pathetic display of ignorance, arrogance, and insolence. It will not end well.
Here is a chronology of Trump’s lies and deflections about COVID-19. I don’t expect you to read all of the detail, but it may be useful in the coming elections. You may want to just skim through it to get the gist of just how many lies and deflections Trump said just in 2020.
The Year 2020 [italics & bolding added]
January 22: “We have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It’s going to be just fine,”
January 30: World Health Organization declares a public health emergency of international concern.
January 30: “We think we have it very well under control. We have very little problem in this country at this moment — five — and those people are all recuperating successfully. But we’re working very closely with China and other countries, and we think it’s going to have a very good ending for us … that I can assure you.”
January 31: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declares a public health emergency for the U.S.
January 31: HHS Secretary Alex Azar announces travel restrictions, effective February 2, prohibiting non-U.S. citizens, other than permanent residents and the immediate family of both citizens and permanent residents, who have traveled to China within the prior two weeks from entering the U.S. No consideration is apparently given to people coming to the U.S. from Europe who had been in China or in contact with Chinese people.
February 7: Trump Interview with Woodward: “It goes through air, Bob. That’s always tougher than the touch … You just breathe the air and that’s how it’s passed. And, so that’s a very tricky one. … It’s also more deadly than your – you know, your, even your strenuous flus. … This is more deadly. This is 5, you know, this is 5% versus 1% and less than 1%. You know, so, this is deadly stuff.
February 10: You know, a lot of people think that goes away in April with the heat — as the heat comes in. Typically, that will go away in April.
February 24: Trump in a tweet: The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA. We are in contact with everyone and all relevant countries. CDC & World Health have been working hard and very smart. Stock Market starting to look very good to me!
February 25: China is working very, very hard. I have spoken to President Xi, and they’re working very hard. And if you know anything about him, I think he’ll be in pretty good shape. They’re — they’ve had a rough patch, and I think right now they have it — it looks like they’re getting it under control more and more. They’re getting it more and more under control. So I think that’s a problem that’s going to go away.
February 26: …when you have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero, that’s a pretty good job we’ve done.
February 27: It’s going to disappear. One day — it’s like a miracle — it will disappear. And from our shores, we — you know, it could get worse before it gets better. It could maybe go away. We’ll see what happens. Nobody really knows.
March 2 — 5 average daily new cases
March 6 — 32 average daily new cases – increase of 5.4 x over 4 days
I don’t think people are panicking. I said last night — we did an interview on Fox last night, a town hall. I think it was very good. And I said, ‘Calm. You have to be calm.’ It’ll go away.
March 10 — 102 average daily new cases – increase of 2.2 x over 4 days
We’re prepared, and we’re doing a great job with it. And it will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away.
March 12 — 201 average daily new cases – increase of 2x over 2 days
You know, we need a little a separation until such time as this goes away. It’s going to go away. It’s going to go away.
March 29 — 15,514 average daily new cases – increase of 76 x over 17 days prior
March 3O: Stay calm. It will go away. You know it — you know it is going away, and it will go away. And we’re going to have a great victory
March 31 — 19,337 average daily new cases – increase of 24 % over two days
It’s going to go away, hopefully at the end of the month. And, if not, hopefully it will be soon after that.
April 3 — 26,081 average daily new cases – increase of 35 % in 3 days
It is going to go away. It is going away.
April 7 — 31,238 average daily new cases – increase of 20 % over 4 days
It did go — it will go away.
April 28 — 28,568 average daily new cases – decrease of 8 % over 21 days
But a lot of movement and a lot of progress has been made in a vaccine. But I think what happens is it’s going to go away. This is going to go away. And whether it comes back in a modified form in the fall, we’ll be able to handle it.
April 29 — 28,171 average daily new cases – decrease of 1 % over 1 day
It’s going to go. It’s going to leave. It’s going to be gone. It’s going to be eradicated. And it might take longer. It might be in smaller sections. It’ll be — it won’t be what we had. And we also learned a lot.
May 5 — 27,134 average daily new cases – decrease of 4 % over 7 days
And I think we’re doing very well on the vaccines but, with or without a vaccine, it’s going to pass, and we’re going to be back to normal.
May 6 — 26.830 average daily new cases – decrease of 1 % over 1 day
Because, you know, this virus is going to disappear. It’s a question of when. Will it come back in a small way? Will it come back in a fairly large way? But we know how to deal with it now much better. You know, nobody knew anything about it, initially. Now we know we can put out fires.
May 8 — 25.475 average daily new cases – decrease of 5 % over 2 days
Well, I feel about vaccines like I feel about tests. This is going to go away without a vaccine. It’s going to go away, and it’s — we’re not going to see it again, hopefully, after a period of time. You may have some — some flare-ups and I guess, you know, I would expect that. Sometime in the fall, you’ll have flare-ups maybe. Maybe not. But according to what a lot of people say, you probably will. We’ll be able to put them out. You may have some flare-ups next year, but eventually, it’s going to be gone. I mean, it’s going to be gone.
May 15 — 22.337 average daily new cases – decrease of 12 % over 7 days
We think we’re going to have a vaccine in the pretty near future. And if we do, we’re going to you had a problem come in, it’ll go away — at some point, it’ll go away. It may flare up, and it may not flare up. We’ll have to see what happens.
May 19: “When we have a lot of cases, I don’t look at that as a bad thing,” the president said. “I look at that in a certain respect as being a good thing, because it means our testing is much better. So, if we were testing a million people instead of 14 million people, we would have far few cases, right?
“So, I view it as a badge of honor. Really, it’s a badge of honor,” he added. “It’s a great tribute to the testing and all of the work that a lot of professionals have done.”
Days later, the U.S. recorded 100,000 known deaths from COVID-19.
June 15 — 21.987 average daily new cases – decrease of 2 % over 31 days
So I think that’s — but even without that [a vaccine or therapeutics], you know, at some point this stuff goes away and it’s going away.
June 16 — 22,613 average daily new cases – increase of 3 % over 1 day
I always say, even without it [a vaccine], it goes away.
June 17 — 23,380 average daily new cases – increase of 3 % over 1 day
…if you look, the numbers are very minuscule compared to what it was. It’s dying out.
But I will tell you, we’re very close to a vaccine, and we’re very close to therapeutics, really good therapeutics. And — but even without that — I don’t even like to talk about that, because it’s fading away. It’s going to fade away.
June 18 — 24,195 average daily new cases – increase of 3 % in over 1 day
And it is dying out. The numbers are starting to get very good.
July 1 — 44,875 average daily new cases – increase of 85 % over 13 days
And I think we are going to be very good with the coronavirus. I think that, at some point, that’s going to sort of just disappear, I hope.
July 19 — 64,754 average daily new cases – increase of 44 % over 18 days
I’ll be right eventually. I will be right eventually. You know I said, ‘It’s going to disappear.’ I’ll say it again. It’s going to disappear, and I’ll be right.
NPR: July 19: Trump Interview: “Many of those cases are young people that would heal in a day,” “They have the sniffles, and we put it down as a test.” He added that many of those sick “are going to get better very quickly.”
At the time of Trump’s interview, more than 3.7 million coronavirus cases had been confirmed in the United States, and more than 140,000 Americans had died.
July 21 — 65,073 average daily new cases – increase of .5 % over 2 days
Well, the virus will disappear. It will disappear.
July 22 — 65,321 average daily new cases – increase of .4 % over 1 day
We’re gonna beat it, yeah. We’re going to beat it. And with time, you’re going to be it — time. You know, I say, it’s going to disappear. And they say, ‘Oh, that’s terrible.’ He said — well, it’s true. I mean, it’s going to disappear. Before it disappears, I think we can knock it out before it disappears.
August 5 — 56,585 average daily new cases – decrease of 13 % over 14 days
This thing’s going away. It will go away like things go away…
It’s going away. No, it’ll go away like things go away. Absolutely. No question in my mind. It will go away. Hopefully sooner rather than later.
August 7 — 54,756 average daily new cases – decrease of 3 % over 2 days
And we’re getting them [manufacturing jobs] even in a pandemic — which is disappearing; it’s going to disappear.
August 13 — 56,371 average daily new cases – increase of 3 % over 6 days
Think of it, we’re almost back to where we were [stock market], and we’re still in the pandemic, which will be going away, as I say, it’ll be going away. And they scream, how you can you say that? I said, because it’s gonna be going away.
August 17 — 51,244 average daily new cases – decrease of 9 % over 4 days
And as soon as the plague is gone — we have vaccines coming, we have therapeutics coming, and it’s going to be gone. And it’s gonna be gone soon.
And the China Plague will fade.
August 24 — 42,123 average daily new cases – decrease of 18 % over 7 days
It’s all coming back so fast and you’ll see it, and the pandemic goes away. The vaccines are going to be, I believe, announced very soon.
August 31 — 41,719 average daily new cases – decrease of 1 % over 7 days
Well, once you get to a certain number — you know, we use the word herd, right. Once you get to a certain number, it’s going to go away.
September 15 — 38,922 average daily new cases – decrease of 7 % over 16 days
It is gonna disappear. It’s gonna disappear. I still say it.
NPR: September 21: Interview: “It affects elderly people, elderly people with heart problems, if they have other problems, that’s what it really affects, that’s it. In some states thousands of people — nobody young — below the age of 18, like nobody — they have a strong immune system — who knows?” Trump said.
“Take your hat off to the young because they have a hell of an immune system. It affects virtually nobody,” he added. “It’s an amazing thing — by the way, open your schools!”
October 10 — 47,466 average daily new cases – increase of 22 % over 25 days
But it’s going to disappear. It is disappearing. And vaccines are going to help, and the therapeutics are going to help a lot.
October 15 — 53,152 average daily new cases – increase of 12 % over 5 days
The vaccine will end the pandemic. But it’s ending anyway. I mean, they go crazy when I say it. It’s going to peter out and it’s going to end. But we’re going to help the end and we’re gonna make it a lot faster with the vaccine and with the therapeutics and frankly with the cures.
October 16 — 55,144 average daily new cases – increase of 4 % over 1 day
Even without the vaccine, the pandemic’s going to end. It’s gonna run its course. It’s gonna end. They’ll go crazy. He said ‘without the vaccine’ — watch, it’ll be a headline tomorrow. These people are crazy. No, it’s running its course.
All of the foregoing occurred in 2020. Through Oct. 19, 2020 more than 220,000 people had died from Covid-19 in the US. Well over a year after Trump’s last quoted remark above, the pandemic death toll in the U.S. is approaching 1,000,000 human beings of all ages and stages of life and health. We will never know precisely how many deaths and other long term/permanent devastating health impacts could have been avoided if Trump had not consistently and repeatedly misled his devoted followers, but it not unreasonable to believe that the pandemic would have entered the endemic stages long ago. Instead, the death and destruction continue. And Trump, well, Trump has moved on. His sole concern is with being restored to the presidency by whatever means – lying, cheating, stealing – will work.
Sources:
NPR: https://n.pr/35rwzSW
Factcheck.org: https://bit.ly/35x0SYd
Guardian: https://bit.ly/3HvJMrm
Vox.com: https://bit.ly/3t4ZJ2c
It’s the Same Old South?
Déjà vu all over again. The ink is barely dry on the conviction papers of the three men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery when two more white men repeat almost exactly the same behavior in Mississippi. White father and son charged for chasing and shooting at Black FedEx driver https://cnn.it/3BeEKO6 The only saving grace here is that the Fed Ex delivery man was not physically injured. Both he and the people in the neighborhood who were at risk of being hit by errant bullets escaped with their lives. Also, the other drivers on the interstate highway where the two white men chased their intended victim.
I acknowledge that I don’t know why Federal Express would have a rented but unmarked van in service for delivery of packages, but it doesn’t matter in the end. According to the reporting, the delivery man, D’Monterrio Gibson, was wearing a FedEx jacket, shirt and pants.
But let’s suppose he was somehow behaving in a “suspicious manner” which is one of those eye-of-the-beholder things. One man’s suspicious behavior is another’s harmless curiosity. But let’s suppose that in the process of delivering packages, Mr. Gibson was lingering a bit at some homes. Maybe his attention was caught by something or other. Let’s further suppose that Mr. Gibson’s “suspicious manner” was observed by the father-son team who shot at him and chased him.
The assailants had one and only one course of action: call the police. If it appeared that the “suspicious” delivery man was about to depart the neighborhood, the only course of action was to record the license plate, take photos is possible and await arrival of the police. In the most extreme circumstance such as an observed kidnapping, which does not appear to be true here, they might be justified in following at a safe distance and staying in touch with 911 dispatch to help the police catch up.
Given the reported circumstances, there was no basis for the assailants to chase and shoot at Mr. Gibson. And, while we’re on this, do Gregory and Brandon Case normally sit around during the day with guns at the ready?
The resemblance of this situation to the murder of Ahmaud Arbery is so obvious I am loathe to point it out.
There are other similarities too.
I wrote about some of the disturbing early developments in the handling of the Arbery case arrests and prosecutions. https://bit.ly/3HRlEAs According to initial reports, many of the same procedures are occurring here: delays in arrests, failure to charge the most obvious and serious crimes. That said, it is entirely possible yet that the Case boys will see their charges upgraded to at least attempted murder.
It seems to me that two forces, at least, are at work here. One, certainly, is the apparent belief among some white men in the South that they are entitled to use deadly force against anyone they deem “suspicious,” serving, in effect, as self-appointed police making what are euphemistically called “citizens arrests.” The second force, all too obvious, is that white men in these places, mostly though not entirely in the South, are all too ready to take matters into their own hands, use violence against unarmed Black men on the thinnest of pretexts. On the face of it, noting here that it is early days in this case, there is little to distinguish this from lynching in old style.
According to the reports, the charges against the Case men were (1) Brandon Case: “feloniously attempting to cause bodily injury with a firearm and a deadly weapon by shooting at an occupied vehicle with Gibson inside.” Presumably a reference to Mississippi Code Title 97. Crimes § 97-3-7:
(2)(a) A person is guilty of aggravated assault if he (i) attempts to cause serious bodily injury to another, or causes such injury purposely, knowingly or recklessly under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life; (ii) attempts to cause or purposely or knowingly causes bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon or other means likely to produce death or serious bodily harm. [emphasis added]
Conviction under that section is “imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year or in the Penitentiary for not more than twenty (20) years.” That curious wording appears to give the sentencing judge massive discretion on where to send a convicted felon and for how long.
The father, Gregory Case, is charged with “unlawfully and feloniously conspiring with Brandon Case to commit aggravated assault by attempting to cause bodily injury.” Under the law, conspiracy can be proved by conduct and does not require proof of an overt or explicit agreement.
The assertion of “aggravation” in relation to the assault is important here because, while “simple assault” in Mississippi is defined this way,
(1)(a) A person is guilty of simple assault if he (i) attempts to cause or purposely, knowingly or recklessly causes bodily injury to another; (ii) negligently causes bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon or other means likely to produce death or serious bodily harm; or (iii) attempts by physical menace to put another in fear of imminent serious bodily harm
It is punishable only by a fine ($500.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six (6) months, or both.
The charges seem correct as far as they go. Time will tell on that. It is concerning, however, thatBrandon Case’s bond was $150,000 and Gregory’s Case’s bond was $75,000. Those seem very light considering that a deadly weapon was involved and that Gibson and people in surrounding homes and vehicles were put at risk by the Cases’ actions (still alleged, of course, and innocent until proven guilty). Also disturbing is Mr. Gibson’s assertion that when he visited the police station the morning after the incident, the police there did not take his claim seriously and, among other things, implied that the incident might have been caused by his own behavior.
I repeat that nothing about this story, so far, indicates or suggests that Mr. Gibson did anything that would warrant his being chased and shot at. It is hard to imagine what circumstances that could have been.
Adding to concerns about the handling of the case is the fact that the perpetrators weren’t arrested for eight days and then only after they came to the station for an interview. The Police Chief said, “investigations take time” and no doubt they do. The Gibson case was likely not the only serious problem the Brookhaven police had on the blotter for the day. However, it involved gunfire and that should have led, one would think, to bringing the suspects in immediately.
Finally, it’s more than a little disturbing that, the day after the attack, FedEx assigned Mr. Gibson the same route. Using the usual cliches that companies almost always use in such circumstances, FedEx’s statement said it “takes situations of this nature very seriously” and that it was “shocked” by the attack. Because, you know “the safety of our team members is our top priority.” Surely someone at FedEx could come up with something more original than those canned statements. And what’s with “leave without pay” in these extraordinary circumstances? FedEx has plenty of resources with which to do better for its employees.
In any case, as noted, it’s early days. The similarities to the Arbery case are stunning and reminiscent of a South many of us had, foolishly, thought was over. The “wild west” character of these incidents is a stark reminder of how far we have yet to go in creating a civilized society that treats all people as worthy of respect until proven otherwise. We will no doubt hear a lot going forward about the legal principle of “innocent until proven guilty.” Fine, but the question remains why the Cases did not apply that principle to Mr. Gibson. Why, indeed.
Terrorism in the Air – Ban the Perps
This blog has twice addressed what the media and airlines continue to call “unruly” passengers who refuse to follow flight crew instructions: Time for Strong Action Against Unruly Air Travelers https://bit.ly/3uyZn6w and An Anti-Masker Walked into a Bar … https://bit.ly/3Jj9xMP
I have noted that the term “unruly” fails to describe the violent conduct of these, mostly, anti-maskers accurately and fully. The current of today’s post describes their behavior as terrorism. That, I submit, is closer to the truth. Bear in mind that these people are almost certainly among those who are fond of telling Black people to “just comply” with police instructions and, in effect, blaming them when they are killed. These events usually occur at traffic stops but there are many other examples. Yet, when these people board aircraft, knowing what the mask rules are, they chose not only to refuse compliance, but they physically assault flight attendants and other passengers.
I have advocated that the situation presents immediate grave dangers that should be addressed with aggressive, immediate and automatic enforcement of the law and common sense.
It is now widely reported that Delta Air Lines has written the Department of Justice to request government creation of a no-fly list for these terrorists. It’s about time.
The main reasons I believe that airlines have been hesitant to simply exchange the names and agree to ban these nuts from flying is the antitrust laws. Someone would no doubt accuse the airlines of conspiring to limit competition. While I don’t believe such a claim has merit, it would be expensive to defend and pointless in the end. The better solution is the one Delta has finally requested. It remains remarkable only that the entire industry has not joined immediately in this request.
I haven’t found the letter yet but continue to believe that a government-approved no-fly list is an excellent idea, although the same outcome could be achieved by DOJ issuing a Business Review Letter, a common technique permitting firms to propose courses of conduct that might raise issues and to ask DOJ to clear them in advance. This is not a subject on which competition is materially involved or that could possibly be jeopardized. It’s a problem of safety about which there should be no “competition.”
As for the administrative difficulties of managing such a list, remember that airlines have always been able to manage connecting flights involving not only their own flights, but also their flights in conjunction with other carriers’ operations. A no-fly list would be a piece of cake compared to that.
So, come on, DOJ, let’s not turn this into another endless investigation. Take the action Delta requests. As for the terrorists, it’s simple: just comply.
A Picture is Worth ….
Are you offended by the Featured Meme above? If yes, you’re probably a Republican. Kind of a litmus test, you might say. It’s art, but it’s art with a message.
Of course, there are reasons to be offended by it. It involves a child. It’s about violence done to children. It also relates, in a manner of speaking, to religion. Yet, it’s not about religion exactly. It simply says that people who are prepared to sacrifice children to school shootings to continue having unlimited access to guns for anyone and everyone while also claiming to be a Christian following the teachings of Jesus is a **** ing hypocrite. Politest way to put it. I’m having a hard time being polite these days, what with anti-vaxxers prolonging the pandemic and Trumpers still believing in phantasmagorical conspiracy theories. The suffering conitnues, and for the anti-vaxxers, anti-mandaters and other aggrieved haters, I have no more f***s to give.
Meanwhile, here is the latest collection of memes/photos/call-them-what-you-will. These items say much about our society and the issues we face now. I provide them for those of you wise enough to stay off Twitter and Facebook from which they have been purloined. But some are very clever and, I think, worthy of wider distribution, a picture being worth a thousand words and all.
WARNING: This is political art. Some of it is harsh. It’s art meant to convey a point of view, not merely an interesting array of shapes, colors and so on. As such, it has jagged edges and sharp points. Our democracy and thus our country, in my opinion, are under extreme threat. If you’re concerned about the jagged edges and sharp points, please stop now and await my next kinder, gentler post.
Wondering in the Third Winter of Our Discontent
We are in the third winter of COVID-19. No let-up in sight, although there are some predictions that the peak of Omicron is imminent. Those predictions say that, after the peak, a precipitous drop will occur. We may then, yet again, be out of the woods, they predict/suggest/speculate/hope.
I don’t know. No one does. But we do know some things, and the things we know raise some questions. Knowing things always leads to more questions because we never know everything. As soon as we know some things, we want to know the others. What comes next, for example. Despite not knowing everything, we have progressed as a species from the muck of the Stone Age to now. As a species, we’ve done many foolish things. But here we are, stumbling along.
Thus, I have some questions. I understand the anti-vaxxers are coming to Washington, my home, to “protest” against vaccination against COVID.
I gather they don’t want to be “forced” to vaccinate and don’t think it’s right that they be penalized in any way for their “choice.” Among other things, they claim this is a matter of fundamental personal freedom – the right to do with their bodies what they, and they alone, decide. They appear to believe there are bad things in the vaccines that will, variously, distort their thinking (really), prevent pregnancy, give them heart attacks, and do other unknown but harmful things to their bodies and minds.
Thus, I have some questions. Here in the third winter of our discontent.
- Do you anti-vaxxers smoke, drink alcoholic beverages, eat processed meat? If you do one more more of those, do you know, really know, what’s in them?
- When a doctor says, “go home and take two of at night before bed, do anti-vaxxers say, “no thanks, doc. I don’t know what that could do to me, so I’ll take my chances on a heart attack.”
- Do anti-vaxxers who do take medicines, either prescription or over-the-counter, ever read the labels/prescribing information on those drugs? You know almost all of them say something to this effect: “if you take this drug, you may experience catastrophic side effects including possible death.” And you take them anyway, don’t you?
- How many global conspirators do you anti-vaxxers believe are involved in the effort to poison/drug/kill/murder people and/or publish falsified information about the infections, deaths and damage done by COVID? 50,000 doctors, nurses, epidemiologists, EMTs? 100,000? A million? Must be at least a million globally, right?
- Do you anti-vaxxers really believe that medical professionals are falsifying the data on infections, hospitalizations, deaths from COVID? It seems so. Why do they suppose all these professionals who have spent years/decades/entire lives working to help people have suddenly decided to attack the population with a deadly virus and/or falsify the information about the damage it’s doing?
- If indeed there is a global conspiracy, where do you anti-vaxxers think all the people who have disappeared due to claimed deaths by COVID are being held? Have they actually been murdered and, if so, by whom? If so, how is it that with more than 870,000 Americans having died allegedly by COVID, no one has come forward with a single shred/scintilla of evidence that those people are (1) being held incommunicado in the dessert out west (that many people would require a lot of space, not to mention places to sleep, food, restroom facilities, etc etc to keep them alive) AND what happens when they are released, or is the government/medical profession going to keep them locked up forever? OR (2) buried somewhere, OR (3) cremated somewhere and their ashes disposed of secretly? Is that even possible?
- Has there ever been a global conspiracy, or even one confined to the United States, in which hundreds of thousands (or millions) of conspirators were involved and not even one came forward to reveal the truth and receive the accolades (and no doubt, a lot of money) of a grateful world?
- Finally, for now, do you have any concerns about the counter-factual? That’s the one where you’ve been wrong about the vaccine and in reality almost all the deaths are among the unvaccinated with a much smaller number of dead being vulnerable people who were infected by unvaccinated people or denied medical care because COVID-infected unvaccinated patients were occupying all the beds and attention of medical staff? Any concerns about that at all?
So, anti-vaxxers, I have these questions. And more, actually, but those will suffice for now.
So, while you’re in town, maybe you could do a few interviews and answer these questions. Then, well, then we can talk about the next round of questions.
If I don’t see you, well, RIP.
SHINING SEA 