Some American politicians – Trump turns upon Barr – Celebrating a convalescence – Evening statistics
Although the news about the election remains comparatively restrained over the past few days, the activities of various politicians from municipal and judicial branches are not without interest. Witness the following:
Ethan Berkowitz, the mayor of Anchorage, Alaska, resigned his position after he attempted to break off an illicit relationship with Maria Athens, the anchor at a Fox/ABC combined station in that city. Ms. Athens took her revenge in a fairly dramatic fashion when he tried to terminate their relationship: she publicly threatened to report that he had posted nude photos of himself on a website directed at an under-age audience. Although he vehemently denied her allegations, he resigned a mere four days afterwards.
In Buffalo, NY, Maria Grisanti was arrested following a dispute with her neighbors in which her shouts and threats were heard the length of the street. Her husband, Mark Grisanti, came running up to the altercation, shirtless, as the police handcuffed her, shoving one of the officers and violently demanding leniency because he is on intimate terms with the mayor and has a daughter and son-in-law in the police force. His abusive behavior towards the police resulted in his being handcuffed as well. Such a display would appear to be typical behavior of a member of what is commonly called “trailer trash.” But it is not. Mark Grisanti is a justice of the New York State Supreme Court.
These two stories have their comic aspect but the story concerning South Dakota’s Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg is anything but laughable. He struck and killed a pedestrian while driving in the middle of the night of September 12th. When he realized that he had been in a collision, he called the 911 dispatcher, leading to the following dialog:
Caller: It sure hit me . . .smashed my windshield…
Dispatcher: Oh no. Okay, do you think it was a deer or something?
Caller: I have no idea…
Dispatcher: Okay…
Caller: Yeah . . . It could be . . . I mean…it was right in the roadway . . .
When it was discovered that the “deer” was in reality one Joseph Boever, who died from his injuries, an investigation was duly launched. This revelation, incidentally, did not occur immediately after the crash but on the following morning, which meant that Boever’s body was lying beside the road for hours. So far, the investigators are not inspiring much confidence. Boever’s relatives have questioned how Ravnsborg could have mistaken a man for a deer, especially in a state where collisions with deer are a common hazard of driving on rural highways. Ravnsborg was tested for alcohol – some fifteen hours after the event, at which point anyone who had been drinking,, even heavily, would not have any detectable alcohol in his system. In all fairness it must be said that Ravnsborg’s voice was not slurred in the exchange with the dispatcher. Kristi Noem, the state governor, has promised a transparent investigation; but she has refused to pressure Ravnsborg to take a leave of absence while the investigation is pending.. Boever’s family have expressed displeasure at the extremely slow pace of the investigation; a month has elapsed since the crash and no report has been issued. In the words of Boever’s cousin Victor Nemec, “I believe this state is going to try to cover this up as much as possible.”
I have mentioned, in an earlier entry, how Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, waited patiently at a restaurant amid other patrons waiting for tables to become available and how she declined to receive priority above any of them. In the same vein, Angela Merkel, of Germany, when asked by a reporter how it happened that she was wearing the same dress that she had donned for an interview with him twelve years earlier, replied that when she ran for office she had done so with the idea of being of service to her countrymen, rather than that of becoming a fashion model. She also does her own grocery shopping and does not disdain to attend to various household chores. But the aggressively egalitarian politicians – egalitarian in word, at least – of our happy democratic land have no patience with such antiquated notions from the effete nations of the Old World; the moment they obtain office they look upon themselves as uncrowned kings and would blush at the notion of being subject to the same laws that mere commoners are expected to obey. Rvansborg, for instance, appears to feel not a twinge of guilt for the man he has killed; he has expressed no remorse, has not taken any leave of office during the investigation, has sent no condolences to the man’s family, and, from the way he described the accident to the emergency 911 team, seems to feel that the entire matter was Joseph Boever’s fault for having gotten in the way of his car. How could Donald Trump, or anyone in his place for that matter, fail to renege on his taxes? It would seem that cheating on an extensive scale and snubbing the law are virtual pre-requisites for the position.
Few, admittedly, are as blatant about it as he. Trump has now announced that he is “not happy” with Attorney General Barr and has hinted that Barr will not serve a second term in that position. And for what reason? A very simple one: Barr has not been able to provide him the support for his allegations of illegality by his political opponents, and time is running out for Trump to fling a spanner into the works of the upcoming election. The investigation conducted by John Bash, a federal prosecutor handpicked by Barr, to determine whether Obama administration officials had mishandled classified intelligence relating to the Russia concluded that it was all a mare’s nest. Similarly, John Durham has obstinately stood his ground and has refused to be pressured into delivering before November 3rd a report that might have given Trump the opportunity to see Biden indicted. (The operative word in that last sentence is “might”; it is quite possible that Durham will conclude that Biden is not guilty of anything in particular.) Barr seems likely to follow the fate of so many who have associated with our President: having abased himself and degraded his office in order to obtain Trump’s favors, he is to be discarded like the rind of an orange after it has been squeezed for its juice. Why anyone consents to enter the employment of that man – I refer to Trump, of course – remains a mystery. Surely by this time it must be common knowledge that the net result will be betrayal and abuse.
I turn with relief from the miry slough of our political scene to something a great deal more pleasant. Several members of the Vigorous Hikers visited BL today, who has had a difficult struggle over the past several months but who is now recovering very thoroughly, thanks to his powers of resilience. From his appearance, indeed, I never would have guessed that he had been so ill. His voice is firm and resonant, his eyes bright, his bearing upright. He is no longer on dialysis, his chemo treatments have ended, and his hemoglobin count is returning to normal levels. We sat outside on his lawn (well apart from each other, of course) and snacked together and conversed about various matters, including the hikes planned under club auspices for November and December, and also possible hiking trips by sub-groups of various members for the coming year. It was a lovely afternoon, warm and clear, as we sat on chairs upon a grassplot amid trees with sunlight slanting through their multi-colored leaves. It is easy to forget, relying on the headlines and social media alone, that placid scenes of companionship like these are still possible amid the turmoil that is continually being reported.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 38,723,557; # of deaths worldwide: 1,096,187; # of cases U.S.: 8,147,358; # of deaths U.S.: 221,807. While the numbers in the U.S. are not declining, Europe is not doing well either. The COVID virus is regaining traction there, and in Italy in particular. Today its case count increased by over 7,300, a record for new infections in a single day. The total number of new infections for all of Europe is nearly 140,000.