Democracy Chatter

 I sat this morning and tried to watch a VP Harris interview done with Margaret Brennan.  My suspicion is that someone on Harris's staff felt she needed to show/demonstrate national policy chatter.

So the question of national security threats come up.  

VP Harris then starts some odd comment: "​Frankly, one of them is our democracy. There is,​ I think, no question in the minds of people who are foreign policy experts that the year 2021 is not the year 2000​.” 

It was an odd way to start this comment, and for a couple of minutes.....you get some chatter that reminds you of a first-year college student and nothing much makes sense.

Instead of re-assuring you of her skills....you just sit there amused.  It's like some PhD guy sat down with her during the week prior....to educate Harris on X, Y and Z in the foreign policy world, and she got overnight 'smart' but still lacking in a severe way.  

So I will offer this opinion.  In the future, for qualifications for VP....you might as well include a retired Atlanta Braves pitcher, a Las Vegas entertainer, or some Montana rancher....because their skill sets for the job don't matter.  You can even consider some city prosecutor who is known for oral sex routines with the mayor.  

Gut-Feeling Over Airline/Airport Violent Encounters

 For a number of years, I've followed these stories of violent encounters at airports or onboard airlines.

In my entire life....I've only seen one incident....at a ticket-desk in Atlanta where a lady was losing your sanity and behaving like a 9-year old kid.  What the lady wanted to occur....to make up for her trip interruption....was impossible to accomplish. So the agent offered only one solution....at the mid-way point of this planned 9-hour 'trip'.....return the lady to her starting point.  This set off a huge cussing situation, and it hit me about five minutes later that the customer-gal was on some type of mood-enhancement drug.  The agent?  She probably realized the mess going on and just figured getting this gal back home was the only solution possible.

My thoughts....since the 1980s....a lot of people have gone to air travel even though they have anxiety or panic attacks.  To reduce stress and tension....they go to some form of tranquillizer.  Whatever the dose was on the bottle?  They probably doubled or tripled up on what they took at the airport itself.  So an hour into the flight....they just aren't capable of acting in a mature way or taking guidance from the airline crew.

Resolving this?  I don't see anyway.  You just have to move on....reflect upon the incidents that do occur, and then put these people on a 'do-not-fly' listing.  Maybe at some point in the future.....a quarter of the population by age forty will be on a 'do-not-fly' list and things start to calm down a bit.

What Is VP Harris's Problem?

 If you sat down with a dozen people....the chatter would go to a minimum of ten problems/issues.  Some revolve around maturity (the lack of)....some hit on skill sets (she has few to really demonstrate), and some would involve personality traits.

But once you define these....then what?  Can you remake VP Harris into someone totally different?  I just don't see how.

I think in the summer of 2019....touring Iowa and trying to get people pumped up over her candidacy for President, nothing much happened.  She'd give a marginal speech...shake hands, and then talk to her insiders about how wonderful she was.

Joe Biden being given a list of ten-odd people (all women and all of color) was then led down a pretty crappy path.  I'd offer the opinion that if he'd just picked Mayor-Pete.....things might only be half-as-bad as they are today.  (Was Mayor-Pete that qualified for the job?  No, but VP's are typically chosen to just sit in the background and not be noticed)

What happens to Harris in 2022?  More or less....the same crap.  Staff #2 is being recruited now, and I expect most of them to be gone by the end of 2022.  Maybe Biden could do everyone a favor and put Harris on a nuke-sub for 90 days of patrolling....to just have her off the front-page.

Movie Review

 Over the weekend, I watched Netflix's 'Don't Look Up' movie.  I will strongly endorse watching it, but not for the comedy.

So, it's basically a copy of 'Deep Impact' with one little difference.....they take the reality of news, politics, and crisis management of 2021, and make the suggestion of someone trying to save humanity from a asteroid hitting Earth....a joke.

As much as scientist try to make the government aware of the threat....it's all controlled by normal everyday American style fake politics. 

Maybe it tries hard to convey humor and comedy, but about halfway through it.....it's gone to the extreme of reality.  It's not that funny in the end.

So I'll recommend a viewing but it probably won't comfort you in the very least at the end.

Psychosis Now?

 So I kinda noticed several stories over the past week.....where Covid collective psychosis has started up.

Generally, folks feel a bit ill....they get ahold of a Covid test, and they get a positive reading from their at-home test.

So this curious situation starts up.....since they are so hyped-up over news reports....they rush off to the emergency room.

You can imagine....nurse at the front door and trying to halt the couple there.  'We-gotta-get-in' is the response then from the couple.

Nurse finally agrees to test them officially, but then says.....we won't know the results for 24 hours.  Well....that's not enough for the couple.  The fear of Covid...the fear of Delta....the fear of Omikron......all adds up.  

Behind them in the line is probably another five to ten couples/families, and they are just as hyped up.

Pure and absolute psychosis?  Yeah.

You've reached the point now where offering them ivermectin is not possible, because they will read off the NBC or PBS description of horse-medication.  Trying to educate the customers at the door?  Well....that won't work either because they've been personally brief by President Biden.

Talk then starts up.....some folks at the door are fully jabbed-up....some even with a booster shot.  Some folks have no vaccination and that gets some criticism by the other folks at the door, who are jabbed.  'You-ought-not-be-here' then gets uttered by the jabbed folks to the non-jabbed.  

You can laugh about this, but it's all pretty serious doom stuff for the couple at the door. 

Should Hillary Run in 2024?

 Well....here's the thing, if this is mostly led in the 2023 debate/primary-build-up, with Mayor-Pete and VP Harris, with Joe Biden continuing to talk about running again, then I'd say fine....let Hillary run against the three in the primary.

Trouble winning the Iowa caucus?  Well....that's problem number one.  

Does she have any cash free to run in NH, SC and Nevada?  Yeah, she can probably scramble around and get enough to win easily in Nevada and SC. 

Health issues still there?  No doubt.  Plus she's eight years older than last time.

But here's the thing.....there are almost no governors with good enough records and built economic strategies to sell people on their brand.

In simple terms.....Covid has wiped out a whole generation of Democratic  governors.  

So yeah.....let Hillary run, and lets see how the public feels after four years of Joe Biden.  

Where Things Are Headed

 The NBA commissioner came out yesterday and made the comment: 'you folks need to adjust and realize that Covid is never going away.'

In simple terms, he's laying out the problems that will exist.

You might have the greatest NBA team of all time....with 90-percent of the season's games won, and yet arrive on day one of the finals....with three of their key starters now out because of Covid.  Adding to the mess, you might the opposing team to this freakish series....with five of their bench members discovered to have Covid and out for two weeks.  

But why stop there?

For March Madness, you could have two of the top players for one team destined for the final eight....screwed with Covid.  You might have one of the best players of the season who ends up with 'long Covid' and just not physically up to playing more than 20 minutes per game for the March Madness series.

You could arrive at spring training for the Mets....to find their two top relief pitchers affected by 'long Covid' and just unable to pitch at the level required....for the entire season.

You could find six members of the Alabama football team down for first two games of the season because of Covid, and the team loses the first two games in a miserable way (losing by more than 20 points in each game).  

Sports screwed up?  There are a thousand scenarios I could put out there and they all represent a problem in getting hyped-up about sports.  You could have the final five games of a NCAA  season go in some weird way.....that paves the way for a 16-17 season team to get into the final four of March Madness.  

But why stop there?  Why not get into the 2024 primary season, and have some candidate or two get Covid, and end up with 'long Covid'....where they don't have the energy or stamina to hype up the crowd?

Get used to this scenario being played out.