On the McLean Loop – A lost opportunity for the Republican Party – Beijing resumes old levels of pollution – Reminiscences of my visit there – Evening statistics
I went out today to scout the McLean Loop, which hike I am to lead on Tuesday, in order to check how the storm of the past week affected the trails. There was some residual snow and ice in the early hours, and I had to wear micro-spikes during the morning, but as the day wore on the greater part of the footpaths thawed out almost completely. The thaw, however, resulted in a great deal of mud, and it was slow going at times. Also, the stepping stones for two stream crossings were washed out and it was necessary to bushwhack along the other side of the stream to reach the intersection where one turns away from the trail.
As an aside to the outcome of the impeachment trial: of the seven Republicans who voted against Trump, three of them (Susan Collins, Ben Sasse, and Bill Cassidy) have just been re-elected and won’t be running again until 2026, while two others (Pat Toomey and Richard Burr) will soon be retiring. The only ones who are potentially sacrificing their chances for re-election are Mitt Romney and Lisa Murkowski. Mitt McConnell roundly denounced Trump after the impeachment trial was over, but he voted for acquittal; and his example prodded many others into doing the same. The reason that he gave for voting for acquittal is that an impeachment for a president no longer in office is unconstitutional. That might be his sincere belief for all I know, but I doubt it. The sad truth is that he, Mike Pence, and Kevin McCarthy all failed to show any degree of leadership during the aftermath of the riot and as a result the opportunity to rid the Republican party of the Trump taint has come and gone.
I remarked earlier that environmentalists might soon by sighing for the days when the COVID-related restrictions were at their height, and that prediction is becoming true already. Many cities whose air had cleared wonderfully because hardly anyone was commuting are now returning to their old levels of pollution. At the time of the Lunar New Year, Beijing’s smog is so oppressive that a yellow alert has been issued, which has cast something of a damper on the celebrations.
I well remember my own visit to Beijing in 2000. I was there in April, which is generally considered one of the better times of the year: people are beginning to reduce their usage of that poisonous sulfur-laden coal that constitutes the primary fuel for heating in China, and at the same time the season is not too far advanced for emissions to be aggravated by the intense summer heat. Nonetheless, the color of the sky was a dull brown, showing an approximation to blue on very rare occasions. People there were wearing masks to protect themselves against particle inhalation long before COVID was ever heard of. Greatly as I enjoyed my visit to Beijing, with its plethora of museums and cultural sites, its delicious food, and its magnificent parks, I would hesitate to visit the city if given the opportunity of going there again.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 109,380,441; # of deaths worldwide: 2,410,914; # of cases U.S.: 28,260,839; # of deaths; U.S.: 497,140.