Our vulnerable air travel system – Hiking on the Appalachian Trail – At the winery after the hike – McCarthy and Trump – The end of the investigation by the special grand jury in Georgia – The strange precision of George Santos – The pandemic (officially) continues – Evening statistics
I appear to have been unusually opportune in my timing. Yesterday the computer system that generates NOTAMs (Notice to Air Missions) broke down, causing thousands of flights to be delayed or, in some cases, canceled altogether. I was very fortunate not to have delayed my return to Washington by a day!
Instead, having settled back at home on Tuesday afternoon, I was able to hike with friends yesterday on the AT from the parking area near Linden to the Manassas Gap shelter and back. It was a winery hike, which is why the hike was short: only 6 miles and 1200 feet of elevation gain. But it was of interest as being the first hike I have done since the two great storms of December, which caused numerous blowdowns along the trails. LM, who had hiked on the Dickey Ridge Trail about a week earlier, showed photographs that displayed a trail covered with brush and nearly impenetrable. I was interested to see what the condition of the AT would be at this point. It proved to be in very good repair, with no particular barriers to contend with. Of course one cannot build too much on this single experience. The AT would receive first priority as far as getting the blowdowns cleared and in any case the hike was rather a small statistical sampling.
Afterwards we had lunch at the Rappahannock Cellars. We could not eat in the enclosed patio on the top floor, since it admits air from the outside and the temperature in that area was under 40 degrees, but we ate and drank on the second floor, which provides a more intimate atmosphere than the general dining/tasting area on the ground floor. It is very pleasant, among the more strenuous hikes that I generally undertake, to have the occasional relaxed, leisurely type of hike like this one, allowing much time for leisurely eating and drinking and chatting afterwards. We sat together at the table and enjoyed one another’s company for two hours, and yet we were able to return to our residences before the rush hour began.
Kevin McCarthy has won the struggle to become Speaker of the House. This is disturbing, not account of the selection of McCarthy himself – it was clear from the onset that the GOP was not going to provide any other viable candidate in his place – but because the intervention of Donald Trump advocating his election was the turning point in overcoming the deadlock within the party. In other words, Trump’s stranglehold over the party remains as strong as ever and McCarthy in particular feels indebted towards him, which will naturally inhibit any criticisms he might be capable of. Indeed he afterwards went out of his way to praise Trump, some two years after the treasonous attempt to invade the Capitol and overturn the results of the 2020 election.
It is possible that nemesis will come to Trump for his attempted intervention of the electoral tally in Georgia. But it is not to be counted on. The special grand jury in Fulton County has completed its investigation and has sent its report to Fani Willis. The final decision as to whether or not to press charges remains with her. It is not certain that she will; and even if she does decide to do so, she must first present evidence to a separate, regular grand jury that has the power to indict. Who can wonder that Trump found it so easy during the earlier part of his career, when his lawbreaking was confined to the world of finance, to hoodwink our judicial system? At this point two investigating committees, one national and one state-appointed, have documented his felonies; and yet we seem to be as far from an indictment as ever.
The outcry over George Santos’s numerous fabrications, or perhaps I should more properly say myths, about his past has prompted him to tell reporters that he would step down if “142 people ask for me to resign.” How on earth did he arrive at that particular figure? If he had said “over a thousand” or even “over ten thousand,” it would be understandable. But 142? Surely that seems a very precise number under the circumstances, more appropriate for conducting a scientific experiment than for an informal poll. One can’t make up stories like this one. Satirists are simply out of luck when it comes to the American political scene. Nothing that they could invent can possibly be more bizarre than the reality.
At all events, his conditions have readily been met. The anti-Trump Lincoln Project asked Twitter for 142 calls for Santos to resign, which was quickly surpassed. In addition, a Change.org petition calling for Santos to step down has collected over 200 signatures. We shall see if he is ready to fulfill his promise, but it seems doubtful that his word is to be relied upon on this as in any other instance.
The Department of Health and Human Services has extended the COVID-19 state of emergency that was instituted in January 2020, It is the 12th renewal of the emergency and is scheduled to last 90 days. So officially, at least, the pandemic is not yet over and will not be over until April at the very earliest.
Today’s statistics as of 9:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 669,332,725; # of deaths worldwide: 6,717,570; # of cases U.S.: 103,151,843; # of deaths; U.S.: 1,121,725.