An early Thanksgiving celebration – The recount in Georgia – Speculation about events on January 20th – Evening statistics
I visited my friends DC and JC, during which we had an early Thanksgiving celebration, eating outside on the lawn on what turned out to be a perfect day: temperatures in the 60s, no wind, and a cloudless sky. Time passes quickly in such company; I arrived a little before 11:00 and before I knew it, it was already 3:00 by the time we rose from our seats and decided to stretch our legs after eating. We strolled to the Lee District Park, which is a local recreational area with a pleasant trail through the woods and numerous athletic fields. It will not be easy to repeat an occasion like this for some time. Soon the weather will become too chilly to eat out of doors comfortably. This circumstance, combined with the growing number of lockdowns in various states, will probably result in numerous closures of restaurants and bars; it is doubtful that the majority of them can survive such severe restrictions over a protracted period of time.
As is happening so frequently in recent months, the peaceful nature of my experiences on a personal level forms a vivid contrast to what is happening in the nation at large.
Georgia has completed its hand-recount of the votes and has certified the results, and Governor Kemp has confirmed that he will sign the certification. But no result is considered final by Trump and his myrmidons. Almost certainly they will demand another recount. And recounts in various other states. And other tactic that they can think of to delay the inevitable. During yesterday’s press conference, Trump’s spokesmen went into screaming hysterics as they recited their claims of conspiracy, with attorney Sidney Powell choking down actual tears and Rudy Giuliani sweating so profusely as to cause his hair dye to melt. It would have been risible if the stakes were not so high.
What is going to happen if Trump refuses to leave the White House by January 20th? Technically, he becomes a civilian that day and Joe Biden, as Commander-in-Chief, acquires the authority to order the military or the Secret Service to escort Trump off of the premises by force. Whether he will have the resolution to do so is another matter. I can understand why he would hesitate to make a public spectacle of his predecessor in this fashion, but I can see no alternative. It is clear that Trump will not leave of his own volition.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide 57,894,649; # of deaths worldwide: 1,376,796; # of cases U.S.: 12,274,040; # of deaths; U.S.: 260,273. Our case count increase today was over 200,000 – about 30% of the daily case count increase for the world. It has to be reiterated that we account for only 4% of the global population. Our death toll incidence rate has overtaken that of Chile. And we still have two months of this administration’s misguided policies to endure! When I first heard that Trump himself had been stricken with the virus, I said that I had no particular desire for a fatal outcome. I would now like to retract that remark.