December 4, 2020

Hiking Old Rag – Media bias – Why Republicans still support Trump – Trump vs. Twitter – Certification is approaching – Evening statistics

Old Rag is a mountain in the Blue Ridge range with a rocky exposed summit that features a 360-degree view.  It contains one of the most popular hikes in Shenandoah National Park, and is considered to be something of a rite of passage for hikers in this area.  The last segment of the ascent to the summit (which is about 3½ miles from the parking area) consists of a continuous rock scramble that, although it does not require special equipment, at times involves supporting your body weight with your arms and lowering yourself down (and occasionally sliding down) very large boulders.  Yesterday I went on the hike with HG, who was doing the hike for the first time.  The day proved to be ideal for completing this hike.  It was a weekday in December, which meant that it was much less crowded than usual; in fact, I don’t remember seeing so few people on the summit during the numerous times I’ve done the hike in the past.  Then, too, the weather was the best we had all week:  sunny, chilly but not frigid in the early morning and going up to the 50s well before noon, and all but windless.  It is always an enjoyable hike but completing it in the company of HG gave the hike an added dimension; since it was her first time, hiking Old Rag in her company was like seeing it through new eyes.  For example, I have tended in the past to speed along the fire road (the last segment of the hike) without noticing much, whereas yesterday we were remarking on the views of the summit from which we had descended and of the water in the river that runs beside the path cascading over the rocks and creating a series of waterfalls in several areas. 

The trail has been significantly altered.  It now begins from the new parking lot, eliminating much of the walk along Rte. 600 that used to comprise the first mile of the hike, and this new section of the trail is extremely well-maintained, with very few rocks and so free of fallen leaves that it almost appears as if someone had gone through and swept it out inch by inch.  Then, too, the route of the rock scramble has changed in some places.  There used to be one part of the trail that involved hoisting oneself up between two smooth and all but perpendicular boulders close together with no traction, no obvious places to anchor the feet, and no useful handholds within reach.   Getting past it depended a great deal on the strength (and length) of one’s arms.  It frequently tied up pedestrian traffic as a result of awaiting the painful efforts of the people just ahead to try to get through it.  This obstacle has now been eliminated.  Certain other problem spots are no longer on the trail as well.  It is still quite strenuous, but the most obvious points for tying up hiker traffic are no longer an issue.

The hike evidently tired me out more than I thought.  I didn’t feel at all tired when I returned home, but later in the evening, after dinner, I became quite sleepy and went to bed early.  After all, it is not necessary to have a journal entry for every single day.

During the drive to the parking area I listened to the radio.  While I have (as should be apparent) little love for Donald Trump, I am bound to say that his claims about biased media have some justification.  Yesterday I heard one news report that said something along the lines of: “Trump gave a rambling 46-minute demented rant filled with the by-now familiar diatribe about election fraud, wild conspiracy theories, and downright lies about how he won in states that he actually lost.”  That may not have been the actual wording, but it is not far removed from it.  I can understand why his remarks would be summarized in such a fashion, but such a style cannot be considered impartial reporting.  There is no need to embellish matters with emotionally laden adjectives; the mere facts of his behavior are damning enough.  I certainly have shown no restraint in referring to him in my entries, but I do so as a private individual.  If I were reporting in the role of journalist I would make an attempt, at any rate, to sound less obviously biased.

I recently learned why some members of the Republican Party continue to be so muted about Trump’s conduct concerning his claims of election fraud.  Hitherto I could not imagine how such a self-centered man was able to inspire any feelings of loyalty.  It appears, however, that the outcome of the two runoff elections in Georgia will determine whether or not the Republicans can retain a majority in the Senate; and since Trump continues to exert great influence upon the rank and file of Republican voters, the leaders of the party think it prudent not to repudiate him, no matter how he may behave.  This at least is a motive I can understand, however much I may disapprove of it.  Mitch McConnell in particular might thus be compared to Lucy Steele in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, “a most encouraging instance of what an earnest, an unceasing attention to self-interest, however its progress may be apparently obstructed, will do in securing every advantage of fortune, with no other sacrifice than that of time and conscience.”

Twitter has indicated that Trump may be banned from the platform once January 20^th rolls around and he becomes an ordinary citizen.  As a world leader, he is exempt from the rules that Twitter has imposed on other users, but he has broken them so often that the Twitter administrators are – to use a somewhat inelegant phrase – fed up with him.  Trump set up a Twitter account in 2009 and has since generated over 29,000 tweets.  They have become such a persuasive force that Joe Biden has seen fit to reassure the Twitter administrators and the public at large that “You won’t have to worry about my tweets when I’m president.”

The date for certification of the election results in all states is rapidly approaching (just four days from now) and all but four states have already certified:  California, New Jersey, Hawaii, and Missouri.  Of these, only Missouri has displayed a Republican majority; the others in the past election have been solidly Democratic.  There are no lawsuits filed against the results of any of these:  not even Donald Trump could have the audacity to claim that California voted for a Republican candidate. 

Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 66,211,027; # of deaths worldwide: 1,523,556; # of cases U.S.: 14,772,535; # of deaths; U.S.: 285,550.