I yesterday ended with this cartoon by Mike Lukovich: Something terrible has happened to the Republican Party.  The root cause is Donald Trump.   At one time, smart minds guided the Grand Old Party.  Today, the dregs of society control this organization. That Trump coup attempt on 6January2021 was Act One.  Then consider all the legal problems facing him.  Add the mediocre competitors facing him.  I've long thought Ron DeSantis was an idiot governor, and nothing he has recently done has helped.  Are they doomed on 5 November 2024? They still have two pathways for victory.  If Joe Biden gets seriously ill, that could become a problem for Democrats.  If the national economy crashes by the Fall of 2024, Republicans can cheer.  The one sure way this can occur, beginning now, Act Two, is to default on our national debt.  Sure the country will suffer, and if Republicans succeed, this will just be another way to discombobulate not only our economy, but the foundation of democracy and fre

Before getting into our environment, first a follow-up to my posting yesterday on the coming crisis associated with our Federal debt limit.  I saw this morning an article: Why the Debt Ceiling Matters and What Happens if Congress Refuses to Raise It Our $34.1 trillion debt limit will occur tomorrow, January 19.  To quote: “Failure to meet the government’s obligations would cause irreparable harm to the U.S. economy, the livelihoods of all Americans, and global financial stability,” Yellen wrote in her letter.   The U.S. has never defaulted for failing to raise the debt limit in time, which means the consequences are unpredictable, but economists agree they would be dire. A second digression, about our pandemic and why that feared new COVID-19 wave this winter has instead become a small bump.  From the  New York Times : Why? Because the U.S. population has, collectively, built up immunity to the virus. Much of that is thanks to vaccines and boosters. But repeated exposure to the virus a