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Day 1091

1/16/2020

A GRATUITOUS REFERENCE TO RACE. AND
A LESSON I SHOULDN’T HAVE TO RELEARN

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA in the Oval Office in 2012 with Bo, who was not the least of the First Family's charms. CREDIT: Official White House Photo by Pete Souz

RACE IS A DIFFICULT SUBJECT. It’s easy to take a wrong turn, even for a supposedly “sweet” hound. But one of my most treasured readers has pointed out that’s what I did in my “Tracking Trump - Day 1090” posting yesterday.
   This is my attempt to put things back on course.
   The blog post was headlined:
    2020 DEMOCRATS: Exciting as broccoli. But each one is a healthy choice.
   The veggie theme grew out of my initial disappointment in the blandness of the winnowing Democratic field, showcased in the Jan. 14 TV debate. I wrote that the panel’s charisma was equivalent to that of broccoli and other veggies, as opposed to the menu that Donald Trump’s cooked up for his “Base.”
   I noted the excitement generated by iconic past Democratic presidents:

While Donald Trump has been feeding his supporters red meat for the last three years, we all expected the Democrats would produce a sumptuous candidate – a rare Franklin D. Roosevelt, a well-bred Jack Kennedy, a nicely-browned Barack Obama.

   I’ve underlined the problem area that prompted my reader’s critique, which she began on a kindly note, saying the piece was “well written:”
    "I’m wondering if it’s a poor choice of words however to call Obama nicely browned. It’s just for the other two presidents you mentioned, there is no racial sounding adjective yet an obvious one for Obama. I just don’t think it’s necessary to the story line and I think it’s best if possible to always avoid any adjective with a racial tinge unless you are tackling the issue directly and critically."
   She got that right. I’ve redone the paragraph, hoping to maintain the food references, minus the tasteless attempt to mix humor and race. The changes are highlighted:

While Donald Trump has been feeding his supporters red meat for the last three years, we all expected the Democrats would produce a sumptuous candidate – a rare Franklin D. Roosevelt, a high-protein Jack Kennedy, a refreshing Barack Obama.

I OFFER THE FOLLOWING as an explanation for my original wording, not to excuse the blunder, but because when it comes to race, it may help to be transparent, if that’s possible.
   Obama is a hero in our house, and part of our fury at Trump is the comparison to the man who preceded him. Obama is an eloquent, principled and charming man, whose every moment in the White House seemed an attempt to unite and advance the country; he failed sometimes, but presidents are imperfect. By contrast, Trump is a barbaric, racist and cruel huckster, out to divide and destroy the country he promised to make “great,” and as a sideline, to obliterate Obama’s every accomplishment.
   By including Obama in the pantheon of Democratic greats, I wanted to acknowledge the obvious landmark established when the country not once, but twice, elected a man of color, something that still is astonishing and inspiring.
   The “nicely browned” description was meant to be serious and lighthearted simultaneously (itself a danger sign to a writer), by continuing the food references, and, in referring to his color, assigning the word "nicely" to double-duty, since it was a positive that he’d been elected.
   Also, I was thinking about the disappointing turn of events, in which the 2020 candidate field is steadily losing diversity, with the most recent debate stage featuring an all-white lineup. I thought mentioning Obama’s color was a subtle dig at that failing .
   But my critic is correct in pointing out that nowhere else in the text was race and diversity brought up, and therefore that single reference indeed was gratuitous.
   I should have done initially what I’ve tried to do now, relearning the lesson that a writer should avoid trying to be clever with a subject that is so personal and hurtful to so many people, and that continues to be so destructive to our national aspirations.

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Day 1090

1/15/2020

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THE 2020 DEMOCRATS:
As exciting as broccoli.
But Each One a healthy choice

(This posting has been updated).
ABOUT LAST NIGHT’S Democratic presidential debate, I realized this morning that if dogs had the vote, I absolutely, in no way, under no circumstances, would relish voting for Joe Biden.
   For starters, I just don’t like him. Do you? Be honest. His only claim to fame is fame. People know his name. Not because he’s smarter, bolder, braver than anyone else who’s running. He was Barack Obama’s vice president and good buddy. That’s it.
   But I’d vote for Joe Biden.
   The same reason I eat the kibble that My Humans plop down in front of the kitchen radiator, a warm space, even if the food isn’t so hot.
   I eat things I don’t like to stay alive. And I’d vote for Joe Biden to keep democracy alive.
   Think of this year’s crop of Democratic candidates as vegetables. They aren’t the first thing most of us would look for on any menu. But they are good for you. And when you’re a grownup, it’s what you do. You eat your broccoli, your carrots, celery and your kibble.
   Consider the annoying Food Pyramid, which has been put out in various forms over the years. Most of the structure is stuff you don't look forward to, while right at the tippy-top, which can be seen only with binoculars, is a tiny, juice steak.

WHAT’S THE FOOD PYRAMID have to do with this year’s elections?
      While Donald Trump has been feeding his supporters red meat for the last three years, we all expected the Democrats would produce a sumptuous candidate – a rare Franklin D. Roosevelt, a high-protein Jack Kennedy, a refreshing Barack Obama.
            *** (See note at the end of story about revisions in the above paragraph.) ***
   The Democrats who took to the debate stage last night constituted an all vegetarian crew, and not in great variety.
   It’s a letdown. But it’s reality. And we’re going to have to act like responsible grownups and do the right thing. We're going to have to select one of them.

Joe Biden

BACK TO BIDEN. He’s decidedly the blandest. It doesn’t help that he’s so old that in veggie terms, he'd be headed for the compost bin. He’s 77 now, and if he’s elected, he’ll be 78.
   You’re turning up your nose, aren’t you? Phoebe’s being an ageist. You’d think a liberal could do better. But let’s not pretend. We all start off young, then we die and the final years aren’t pretty.
   Sure, some people age more slowly and better than others. But face facts. Can Joe stay the course another four years, or will we be actually be voting for his vice president, again someone not the most savory choice, since that will be Joe's decision?
   Age aside, Joe Biden is so yesterday. He doesn’t have a clue about the urgency of climate change or how to address the looming loss of jobs in tomorrow’s robot economy, or what to do with an increasingly frightening and technologically repressive China.
   Still, I’d vote for Joe Biden in a New York minute. He means well; has lots of experience; and we’d be lucky to have him, considering the nauseous alternative.

SAME WITH BERNIE.
   Sanders is even older. He’s already 78 and when sworn in, he’ll be 79. Then there’s that heart attack thing last year; no chance of that happening again....
   My real problem with Sanders is that I simply cannot imagine him in the White House. It’s that Mad Professor show he puts on. All that shouting and waving his arms around, the crazy white hair. Which is unfair and childish on my part, and I really do know better.
   There’s a lot to admire about Sanders. No empty calories. He’s inspired a new generation of voters, and for good reason. The socialist makes a lot of sense. I mean, who doesn’t want to go to the vet or the doctor when necessary and not have to take out a second mortgage?
   Of course, I’d vote for Bernie.
   Same with Pete Buttigieg. I liked him when he was a fresh face, and he was very funny as a guest on the NPR comedy new quiz show, “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell.” But the trouble with today’s news cycle is that it moves so fast that fresh faces also wilt fast.
   Plus, there’s the age thing, in the other direction. He may not be ripe enough. On Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, he’ll be 39, and that’s only because the day before will be his birthday. Yes, he’s been a mayor, but a mayor of What?
   I’d vote for Mayor Pete. He's smart beyond his years, easy on the ears and compares well to his peers.
   Elizabeth Warren is more to my taste. I didn’t like her at first, until I did, and then I didn’t so much. And now I’m liking her again, even though she’s 70, getting up there, but not like Joe and Bernie. She has a whole lot of energy. Lots of plans. Learns and teaches at the same time.

   I PREFER AMY KLOBUCHAR. I don’t know why, exactly. She got a nice manner, except when she needs to get tough with an opponent. Nice and tough. Good combination; some protein mixed in with the vegetables, I’d say. Nicely aged, too, at 59, with lots of experience under her belt - 13 years as a U.S. senator.
   But if go back to our pyramid image, this one rooted on popularity, my favorites are pretty much in inverse order: Joe’s on top at 27 percent, according to Real Clear Politics polling averages; Bernie’s at 19; Liz, 16; the Mayor, 7; and Amy, with just 3. (You’re wondering about the sixth debater, Tom Steyer – vegetable, animal or mineral, he’s too rich for my taste).

SO, HERE WE ARE.
   The Democrats have cooked up a vegetable stew.
   I’d be happy to take your place at the table, if I had the right to vote, thankful to have some wholesome choices. And I hope that I’d do justice to the privilege of acting like a grownup and do what’s good for me and great for the country.
   Donald Trump is a disaster.
   His second term will be a catastrophe.
   So I hope you’ll put any reservations aside and go out to vote.
   Vote for Joe. Vote for Bernie. Liz, Pete or Amy.
   And your reward?
   He or she will be our best chance to save the planet, rescue democracy and live to a long and healthy old age.

(The wording of the paragraph indicated by three asterisks *** has been revised to eliminate a gratuitous reference to Barack Obama's race. CLICK here to read a fuller discussion in a separate post.)

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Day 1080

1/5/2020

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A 'GOOD' ASSASSINATION?
DOGS KNOW: IF SOMETHING SMELLS BAD, IT IS BAD

I KEPT WAITING TO WRITE THIS.
   For clarity. For fairness. For the “full” story.
   For not wanting to look like a jerk when new information would make everything I had written seem wrong, stupid, and idiotic – proof that it was the kind drivel that you'd expect from a dog.
   But now, several days later, I realize there is no good time to write about Donald Trump. Anything we read or see on TV is twisted and suspect, since he’s a sociopath and a liar. And no matter the “story,” it’s instantly eclipsed by a fresh outrage and sacrilege.
   I should have just said my piece. Now, I will.
   We, you and I, the United States of America, our country – our brave fighting men and women, carrying out the orders passed down our commander-in-chief – just performed an assassination.
   Like all assassinations, it was a chicken-shit, cowardly act, in which the person being murdered had no way of fighting back, no warning, no chance to defend himself.
   No different, except in time and place, from when Jack Kennedy’s brains were splattered over his wife in Dallas; or when Bobby Kennedy was shot in Los Angeles; or when Martin Luther King was gunned down in Memphis; or when Abraham Lincoln was shot at Ford's Theater in Washington.
   But, Trumpians would say: there’s a big difference in the death of Qassem Soleimani last Friday and those murdered Americans who are so dear to our history.

AND THEY HAVE A POINT.
   Last Friday, there was no “lone gunman.”   It was a drone that did the killing. Not the sort of robot that prowls Stop & Shop supermarkets, looking for spills in Aisle 6. This was the flying kind, with remote pilots directing a rocket or or two to blow up an Iranian general leaving Baghdad airport.
   But maybe that's not the difference that Trumpsters mean.
They might say you can't equate an Iranian dirtbag like Qassem Soleimani to America's heros. He was the general directing his terrorists to plant bombs on highways to blow up Americans who drove over them. So the difference is that Soleimani was killed from above, while his targets were blasted from below?
   Nope, again.
   How about this? Jack Kennedy was a friend of ours - and a good man. But Qassem Soleimani was no Jack Kennedy; he was an enemy - and a bad man.

BUT NO ASSASSINATION IS GOOD.
   Assassination is the kind of thing Soleimani might do his U.S. counterparts.
   And while people can make good and clever arguments for assassinations, they eventually end up as “end justifies the means” excuses. Every assassin has his good reason. Maybe he does it for the money; or to shut up the voices in his head; and maybe to avoid impeachment.
   Trump’s yes-persons say Soleimani was planning “imminent” attacks on U.S. soldiers and diplomats. Maybe; maybe not. We have to keep in mind the ongoing count by the Washington Post of Trump’s “false or misleading claims," with the president's total number of lies now at 15,413.
   But even a dog like me knows better than to go down that sort of rabbit hole, because that's just chasing justifications for assassinations, when the issue isn't strategic, but moral.
   Nor do I feel like digging a hole to China by trying to unearth legal and dictionary definitions.
   The Associated Press, for example, has a writers' “stylebook” that defines assassination as “the murder of a politically important or prominent individual by surprise attack.”
   That seems pretty clear in nailing Trump's move as an assassination until you get to “murder.” Is one soldier killing another soldier in wartime a “murder?” Are we at “war?” Are we about to be?

I’LL LEAVE IT TO YOUR COMMON SENSE, an area in which my late co-author, Cat, was expert, to agree or not whether the killing that Trump ordered was an assassination.
   In my own case, as a sweet and now mature dog, I know that when something smells bad, it is bad. And that assassinations are and have been bad for America.
   Had Lincoln lived, perhaps regional divisions that plague us today might have healed after the Civil War. Race relations certainly would be different if King had lived longer. Bobby Kennedy might have been a terrific president, and his brother as well.
   Meanwhile, we'll be waiting to see what the assassination that Trump cooked up does to advance peace on earth.
   If the Iranians are the crazed terrorists that they are said to be, and they hurry up in making nuclear bombs in their hidden labs, maybe we won’t have to wait 10 years for climate change to destroy the planet.
   But there is one bright spot.
   We are comforted by this one certainty: Trump’s steady temperament and sound judgment. Just yesterday he Tweeted this reassuring message:

Let this serve as a WARNING that if Iran strikes any Americans, or American assets, we have ... targeted 52 Iranian sites (representing the 52 American hostages taken by Iran many years ago), some at a very high level & important to Iran & the Iranian culture, and those targets, and Iran itself, WILL BE HIT VERY FAST AND VERY HARD. The USA wants no more threats!

   So the plan is becoming clearer.
   First, he orders the drone to take out a general.
   And his next targets will be the museums?
   How about a shot or two at the Sphinx? Never could stand that pile of rocks. What country did they tell me that's in?

THE PRESIDENT OF HER DREAMS? This was posted on Donald Trump's Twitter site, presumably by one of his fans. No mention of whether the fight 'n commander-in-chief's battle gear includes his (bone) spurs.

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Day 1075

1/1/2020

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DEMOCRATS: STOP ACTING LIKE LOSERS
Christmas is over. Santa Claus, bob mueller and nancy pelosi didn't make trump disappear. so, stop wishing and start picking a winning candidate. Now!

   DEMOCRATS, IT’S TIME to face the facts. Whatever you think you're doing isn't working.
   There are only 10 months until the election that will decide whether the country will be run by an outlaw another four year and whether the planet will continue its present revenge mission to kill us all.
   And there’s no better day to turn things around than New Year’s Day.
   Democrats, you do not have to be losers. You have the wherewithal to drive Trump from the presidency and then to clear the way for the United States to lead the rest of the world in healing the wickedly feverish environment.
   But you have to get real, and admit that right now that you're leading us into disaster.
   Everyone can see it coming, just the way we all could see that England’s Labour Party – led by a jerk – had no chance of stopping “I’m-Just-Like-Trump” Boris Johnson from a huge win that could ruin that country.
   The problem?
   Democrats haven’t come up with a credible, charismatic candidate, or a clear message. Both are needed if we're to send Donald Trump back to do the things he does best: cheating at business and talking trash on Tweeter.
   If a simple dog like me can see what’s happening, “higher order” Humans surely can. You don’t need my hyper senses of smell and hearing, to figure it out, just your old fashioned common sense.
   Do I hear you whimpering for advice?
   “Please, please Phoebe….
   “… please, please, Phoebe, just shut up and go back to something you know about, like barking at the mail lady.”
   Wrong answer, People of Earth. Every dog has his day, and mine happens to New Year’s Day, 2020.

   HERE’S MY PLAN to turn losers into winners:
   First, to the Democratic candidates: JUST STOP!
   End the primary. Park your No Malarkey busses. Come back from white-bread New Hampshire and Iowa. Skip South Carolina. Forget Pennsylvania. Suspend the debates, cancel the TV ads and stop the robo calls; halt endorsements by second-tier actors. All of this makes you look less competent than you really are, while simultaneously really, really annoying and discouraging would-be voters.
   Second, head immediately for Plains, Georgia as fast as your chartered jets can take you. Jimmy Carter is out of the hospital again, and we don’t know how long this wonderful, honest and principled man has left.
   Jimmy will take you to the Maranatha Baptist Church, where instead of teaching Sunday school, he can lead you all in in prayer.
   Now, being a dog, I don’t know whether God exists, or whether She intervenes in earthly matters like elections. Just in case She does, it would be silly to pass up the help, and there’s nobody better than Mr. Carter put you in touch with your Higher Power.

NEXT STEP, I’m sure Jimmy and Rosalynn can persuade the church fathers and mothers to let you use the community room to conduct your deliberations.
   The subject: who among you, or anywhere in the country, is best equipped to defeat Donald Trump and Mike Pence?
   You cannot to leave the church until you’ve reached a decision on the Democratic national ticket, both for president and vice president.
   I know, you’re saying:
   “Crazy Dog, that’s what the voters are supposed to do, not the ‘bosses,’ the ‘elites,’ the ‘leaders.’ The Democratic Party has worked decades to come up with the best, most open, fairest process of selecting our candidates. And you’re asking us to throw all that away – just to beat Donald Trump?”
   Correct answer: “Yes.”
   Because right now, the process is working exactly in reverse, the drawn-out primary is likely to produce the worst possible candidate, the one who’s least likely to win.
   Every one of you looks silly. Bernie waving his arms, Liz hectoring, Joe bumbling, Pete growing up right before our eyes. Wasting your time and ours fighting about what’s the best kind of health insurance when Donald Trump is corrupting the presidency, egging on bigots, toying with nuclear war and directing the entire federal government to speed up climate change.
   So just stop all your selfish, egomaniacal and senseless day dreams about becoming president, because it’s not going to happen, and start acting like patriots you say you are.

   FOURTH STEP, you may need some help in your deliberations. I’m suggesting you bring in proven “experts" to guide the discussions. Michelle Obama, my personal choice for the nomination, doesn't seem interested, but she'll make an excellent moderator.
   Also, you might consider including people who actually have won the presidency: Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and, yes, Hillary, because she DID win the most votes three years ago.
   I’d also invite Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, the most accomplished woman politician in United States history (so far), and also, Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, so his feelings aren’t hurt. And AOC – Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – a because she’s the future.
   Fifth step, no bathroom breaks. That should speed things up.

   DEMOCRATS WILL NOT EMERGE with a charismatic candidate, because now know there isn’t one. But we’ll end up with a serious, credible and capable man or woman who has the best chance of convincing enough Americans to leave their homes for an hour or two and vote.
   My guess is that the ticket will look like this: For president, Amy Klobuchar, the Minnesota senator and former prosecutor. She’s likeable, tough, accomplished and, given enough time, can appeal to all the party’s factions.
   And for Veep, another credible consensus builder like Sherrod Brown, the Ohio senator, or maybe a governor who knows how things work, like the climate change champion Jay Inslee of Washington state.
   Once the ticket is decided, and after the bathroom break, Mrs. Obama can convene the second part of the meeting, which is to make sure that everyone present leaves with a specific assignment.
   Mike Bloomberg and Tom Steyer, for example, should pledge their many billions that they’d planned to spend on themselves and instead, direct their fortunes to congressional races, to try to take back the Senate and hold the House.
   Sanders and Warren, along with AOC, should be assigned to persuade their crazy-in-love progressives to stay fully committed and not go back to their parents’ basements to sulk. Teams like Cory Booker and Pete Buttigieg should hit the road as ambassadors to the party’s many factions and energize them so that every possible voter will a) register to vote, and b) will actually vote, “because your country needs you.”

   I GUESS THAT'S ENOUGH New Year’s Day dreaming for this dog.
   If you have a better plan, good for you, just as long as it’s a winning one. Personally, I don’t care who comes up with the solution, only that there is one and that it's a winning one.
   Because, come Nov. 3, everyone, whether they realize it or not, has a dog in this race.

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A "sweet dog" and a smart opossum consider a nation at risk.

The writers

PHOEBE, a "sweet dog" who came to Rhode Island in 2010 as a stray puppy from Missouri, was a political agnostic until Trump's catastrophic election. She tracked his presidency in a blog, which she decided to resurrect it this year when it became obvious that Republicans are committed to Trump's destructive policies

MR. O, an opossum, showed up in Phoebe's backyard somewhat mysteriously. He turned out to have genuine insight into political matters, and he agreed to assume co-author duties of the blog after Phoebe's previous writing partner, Cat, a cat, died.

CAT

Day 1091

A GRATUITOUS REFERENCE TO RACE. ANDA LESSON I SHOULDN’T HAVE TO RELEARN

Day 1090

THE 2020 DEMOCRATS: As exciting as broccoli. But Each One a healthy choice

Day 1080

A 'GOOD' ASSASSINATION?DOGS KNOW: IF SOMETHING SMELLS BAD, IT IS BAD

Day 1075

DEMOCRATS: STOP ACTING LIKE LOSERSChristmas is over. Santa Claus, bob mueller and nancy pelosi didn't make trump disappear. so, stop wishing and start picking a winning candidate. Now!

The writers

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A GRATUITOUS REFERENCE TO RACE. AND
A LESSON I SHOULDN’T HAVE TO RELEARN

THE 2020 DEMOCRATS:
As exciting as broccoli.
But Each One a healthy choice

A 'GOOD' ASSASSINATION?
DOGS KNOW: IF SOMETHING SMELLS BAD, IT IS BAD

DEMOCRATS: STOP ACTING LIKE LOSERS
Christmas is over. Santa Claus, bob mueller and nancy pelosi didn't make trump disappear. so, stop wishing and start picking a winning candidate. Now!