Continued fallout from the Atlantic article – Eric Trump’s attempt to belittle Joe Biden – Republican campaign financial difficulties – Hiking to see the “castles” – Evening statistics (both days)
I spent yesterday (the 6th) catching up with various errands such as laundry, lawn-mowing, attending to some correspondence involving my mother’s care, etc., and I felt a bit lethargic about writing as a result. And yet the day’s news was not without significance. The article in The Atlantic that reported that Donald Trump referred to the Marines who lost their lives at Belleau Wood as “losers” appears to have struck a raw nerve. Trump is now calling upon his followers to bombard the journal with protests and has issued denial after denial, accusing the report as being – you guessed it – “fake news,” his favorite phrase for any type of report that does not present him in a flattering light. He does not seem to realize that the more frequently he attempts to refute the story the greater the amount of attention is drawn to it; and one is tempted to say that at last he is over-reaching himself – were it not for the fact that he has said and done many things quite as outrageous in the past and these mishaps seem to have no impact upon his supporters. Still, he does appear to be flailing out in increasing desperation. The blocs who supported him in 2016 are no longer to be counted upon. Moderate, college-educated, suburban women, who supported Trump four years ago, appear to be leaning towards Biden now, while many veterans are not at all placated by his denials, which, it must be admitted, sound extremely unconvincing.
Eric Trump has attempted to speak on behalf of his father and he has done so in a way that is characteristic of the Trump family generally, i.e., by denigrating someone else. On Labor Day he attacked Biden, saying that “Everything this guy does is low energy and awkward.” This assertion appears to have backfired. The response to Eric Trump’s tweet consists of hundreds of others commenting on his father. Their tone is about what might be expected. Comments such as these are typical: “Guess what? It’s called acting like an actual regular person and not a game show host!” and “I’ll take ‘alleged low energy’ any day over a ‘big mouth, hyper, arrogant, lying fool.’”
And on top of this, Trump’s campaign is having financial issues. It has raised $1.1 billion dollars from the beginning of 2019 through July, but already $800 million of it has been spent. Biden’s campaign, by way of contrast, has raised $364.5 million in the month of August alone. Trump has already said that he is willing to spend his own money on the campaign if necessary, and this is one of the few promises he has made that he can be relied upon to keep. So great is his fear of rejection that it overrides even his greed.
I don’t know if I’m the only person who believes that our electoral process could be handled somewhat more economically. At any rate, it was a relief to get away from all these antics today.
I led a hike for the Vigorous Hikers that took a loop to the “castles”: the two piles of rock along Great North Mountain that do, in fact, have a somewhat castle-like appearance and were thereby named, by the German settlers in the area, Big Schloss and Little Schloss (“Schloss” is German for “castle”). It is a long hike – about 18 miles in all, with 3200 feet of elevation gain; but the most protracted climb is done at the beginning along the Little Sluice Mountain Trail to Little Schloss. The spur trail going from the Little Sluice Mountain Trail to Little Schloss is “unofficial” and in the past it has been so overgrown that at times it was difficult to make out a trail at all. But today it was in better condition than I have ever seen it before: recently mowed and very easy to follow all the way up to the top of Little Schloss itself. Someone has taken the trouble to maintain it, even though he may not be officially associated with the PATC.
The other ascents on this hike, while not negligible, are much shorter. We lunched in the Sandstone Spring area, about 3 miles from Big Schloss. Because of the distance in driving we were forced to start at 9:00 AM, which is somewhat later than our usual starting time. At it happened, however, those who participated in the hike were among the fastest hikers of the Vigorous Hikers group, and we were able to get back to our cars before 3:45 PM, even with breaks for a fairly leisurely lunch and for taking in the vistas of the Trout Run Valley and the ridgeline of Great North Mountain from both of the Schlosses. The weather was sunny but not overly hot; in the morning, when we were ascending towards Little Schloss, the temperature was blessedly cool. The hike involves walking along a forest service road at the end, and this last part was less enjoyable than it could have been on account of the gnats that were buzzing everywhere. Still, it was sunny and clear for the entire day, and the skies were not hazy at all, as they generally are at this time of year.
Yesterday’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 27,476,918; # of deaths worldwide: 896,374; # of cases U.S.: 6,485,426; # of deaths U.S.: 193,511.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 27,718,688; # of deaths worldwide: 900,791; # of cases U.S.: 6, 511,980; # of deaths U.S.: 193,973. Two consecutive days with less than 30,000 new cases and less than 500 deaths apiece. It is a slightly encouraging trend. In the words of Napoleon’s mother: “Pourvu que ça dure!” (if only it lasts.)