There is a new blog post entitled, “The perniciousness of kyriarchy.”
I hadn’t known about “Dry January” (figure 1), but I’m happy to throw in a plug for going vegan.
Fig. 1. Cartoon by Matt Pritchett, January 7, 2020, via his Telegraph newsletter.
Fixed it for her (figure 2):
Fig. 2. Screenshot of tweet by Hillary Clinton, corrected by author, January 12, 2020.
When I woke up and looked at the weather report this morning, it was 59° F. As I was driving home—I quit around sunset—the thermometer reading in my dashboard told me it was 72-73° F. As I was fixing dinner, I received repeated warnings of impending thunderstorms—it might be quite a night. There is, of course, no snow on the ground.
I’ve been remembering, from my time here 50 years ago, walking door-to-door with a snow shovel, realizing that as I walked up people’s walks through freshly-fallen snow, I was compacting it beneath my footsteps such that it would adhere to the concrete below, making my own job harder. I had no idea what to do about that.
It’s certainly not a problem this year. The maintenance folks at my apartment complex usually (they missed one day) douse the walks and parking lots heavily with salt whenever snow or ice threatens.
Don’t get me wrong. There have been cold days and even snowy days. But the snow melts within a few days and I’m still not wearing winter clothing—I wear a Gore Tex windbreaker I bought for San Francisco Bay Area rain, not my heavy winter coat, and I’m still wearing sandals—because the effort required to don winter clothing seems wildly disproportionate to any fleeting discomfort I might feel in my brief exposures to the cold.
Fig. 1. Pittsburgh snowfall by decade. Graphic by Ray Petelin, January 9, 2020.[1] Fair use.
But if a local meteorologist is to be believed, it actually turns out that this has not been an exceptionally low-snow decade.[2] I honestly don’t know how to reconcile his chart (figure 1) with, for examples, my mother’s ongoing terror of a Pittsburgh winter (she grew up here in the 1940s and 1950s) or what I hear from just about everyone. Something’s clearly off kilter there because contrary to what he says, what I hear even from younger folks is that there is less snow than there used to be. Those who were here for it recall an exceptional blizzard in the late 1990s, a much lower-snow decade than the 2010s, let alone the 1960s (I was here for a couple years in the 1960s).
I have to think that total snowfall in each decade is somehow—this would actually be a good human science question—the wrong measure for people’s experience of snow and cold.
Robinson Meyer, “Australia Will Lose to Climate Change,” Atlantic, January 4, 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/01/australia-caught-climate-spiral/604423/
Ray Petelin, “Pittsburgh Weather: Did You Really See More Snow When You Were A Kid?” KDKA, January 9, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/01/09/did-you-really-see-more-snow-when-you-were-a-kid/
Kate Devlin and Oliver Wright, “DUP and Sinn Fein agree deal to revive Stormont assembly,” Times, January 11, 2020, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/northern-ireland-s-power-sharing-government-is-expected-to-be-restored-within-days-after-sinn-fein-and-the-democratic-unionist-party-signed-up-to-a-draft-deal-brokered-by-the-british-and-irish-governments-three-years-after-sinn-fein-walked-out-gsk0sph39
Times of Israel, “In blow to Netanyahu, Knesset legal adviser said set to okay immunity debate,” January 10, 2020, https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-blow-to-netanyahu-knesset-legal-adviser-said-set-to-okay-immunity-debate/
Patrick Kingsley, “Trump Says California Can Learn From Finland on Fires. Is He Right?” New York Times, November 18, 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/18/world/europe/finland-california-wildfires-trump-raking.html
Nico Savidge, Annie Sciacca, and Casey Tolan, “‘I don’t want to do this again’: Blackouts and wildfires put Sonoma County on edge,” San Jose Mercury-News, October 26, 2019, https://www.mercurynews.com/2019/10/26/i-dont-want-to-do-this-again-blackouts-and-fires-make-sonoma-county-residents-question-their-home/
Patti Davis, “My father’s library will likely survive the fires, but the California of my youth is gone,” Washington Post, October 30, 2019, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/10/30/my-fathers-library-will-likely-survive-fires-california-my-youth-is-gone/
Annie Lowrey, “California Is Becoming Unlivable,” Atlantic, October 30, 2019, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/10/can-california-save-itself/601135/
Dale Kasler, Ryan Sabalow, and Sophia Bollag, “Can California handle this many wildfires at once? Crews and equipment already ‘depleted,’” Sacramento Bee, August 19, 2020, https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/fires/article245083025.html
Summer Lin, “How are wildfires named? What’s the Lightning Complex? Answers for California fire season,” Sacramento Bee, August 20, 2020, https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article245117530.html
Michael McGough, “More weekend thunder, lightning in Northern California forecasts stoke wildfire concerns,” Sacramento Bee, August 21, 2020, https://www.sacbee.com/news/weather-news/article245139635.html
David Wallace-Wells, “California’s Last Fire Season Was a Historic Disaster. This One Might Be Worse,” New York, June 16, 2021, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/06/why-2021-could-be-californias-worst-fire-season-ever.html
I thought I forgot to publish this on January 9. So it now covers January 10 as well. There’s actually not much that’s changed.
I’m seeing a conclusion without a properly developed argument:
I don’t know why so many of my colleagues are reluctant to say in print or on the air what many of us saw in the room during today’s Iran speech. @realDonaldTrump appeared sedated.
He slurred his speech and had trouble pronouncing words.
He sniffed constantly.
— Andrew Feinberg (@AndrewFeinberg) January 9, 2020
I assume there’s more to this than something like a cold or the flu? And please, if there is, help me to know how I should know that there is.
There’s a new blog post (as of January 9) entitled, “These disunited states.” I had written this prior to finding the article by Annalisa Merelli in Quartz, which helps to illustrate the mythology that preserves the status quo.[1] I’ve updated the post accordingly and also with a more accurate formulation of the means of “persuasion” in an exchange system.
Annalisa Merelli, “New study finds most Americans don’t really care about inequality,” Quartz, January 9, 2020, https://qz.com/1780450/new-study-finds-most-americans-dont-really-care-about-inequality/
Fuck the monarchy.
No one should marry into such an abhorrent institution. How was Meghan’s marriage to Harry ever celebrated?
There is no reason for a monarchy to still exist anywhere. We tell civilians not to join the military. Don’t marry a royal either.
— Mona Eltahawy (@monaeltahawy) January 9, 2020
Had all this Meghan and Harry “We’re stepping back from royal family really but not really” nonsense happened before they got married, perhaps it would’ve sounded a bit more sincere. https://t.co/REXLEbr92r
— Mona Eltahawy (@monaeltahawy) January 9, 2020
I have to say that I really don’t buy Mona Eltahawy’s antipathy. The photographs I’ve seen of the couple seem to me to show a woman who has genuinely fallen in love with a man—everyone should have someone who loves them the way she appears to love him.
But Eltahawy seeks to regulate whom that woman may fall in love with, whom she may marry. Which is an awfully odd position to adopt for someone who campaigns so vigorously against the patriarchy.
Yes, from an anarchist perspective, and as residents of East Sussex seem to have noted,[2] monarchy is, perhaps, at or near the epitome of illegitimate authority. But it’s hard not to acknowledge a point here:
The novelist Hilary Mantel once compared the royal family to pandas. There is one big difference, though: Zoos are nice to pandas.[3]
(Assuming one regards captivity as “nice.”)
Helen Lewis highlights a parallel between the treatment of Harry’s mother (Diana) and his wife (Meghan Markle) and, at some point, you have to say, wait, the sort of coverage that, as many of us remember, pursues a woman to her death at high speed in a French tunnel and then photographs her while she’s dying[4] is by no means a legitimate form of journalism.
There are other forms of authority besides monarchy that can be every bit as cruel. We need to attend to those as well.
Helen Lewis, “Harry and Meghan Won’t Play the Game,” Atlantic, January 9, 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2020/01/prince-harry-meghan-markle-sussex/604657/
Rebecca Mead, “Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Royal Flush,” New Yorker, January 10, 2020, https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/prince-harry-and-meghan-markles-royal-flush
When you discount @BernieSanders as yet another old white man, I suspect that in your zeal to address gender and race inequality, you intend, yet again, to omit class.
And having been denied gainful employment for nearly 19 years, you antagonize me with your ageism.
— David Benfell, Ph.D. (@n4rky) January 8, 2020
There is a new blog post entitled, “Every gun that is made, every warship launched . . ..”
I’m just leaving this here.
Iran gave notice to the Iraqis before the missile strikes. Similar signals sent to the US.
This is why there were no causalities. They didn’t want any.
This is what Trump did before he struck Syria.
Iran did something they knew Trump would understand, to avoid escalation.
— Trita Parsi (@tparsi) January 8, 2020
It’s Pittsburgh in January. And there is no snow. We have had some 50° days, even a couple where the mercury touch 60°. It’s not at all what I remember from 50 years ago.
There have been occasional snowfalls. But any accumulation melts away within a few days.
And while the driving is easier, as an Uber and Lyft driver, it isn’t helping business. I just had one of the worst days I’ve ever had doing this. I really can’t afford days like this because I’m too close to the margin as it is.
Meanwhile my fury about my job hunt situation just grows.
I don’t even know what I’m doing this for. I can’t afford to take any time off or any time to explore what Pittsburgh has to offer besides the white supremacism that is in my face with nearly every corner I turn. All I do is work. I take abuse from the companies. I take abuse from other drivers. That’s my entire fucking life.
And I have a Ph.D. But hey, I’m supposed to be satisfied with driving for Uber and Lyft. Sorry, this needs to end.
Today, I followed a thread on the decision-making process that led to Qasem Soleimani’s assassination. The various versions of the story include that no one really fucking knows[1] and that Donald Trump has “Obama envy.”[2] Which is pretty much par for the course for this presidency. Also, nobody knows how we’re going to avoid a war with Iran. Which, of course, is just fucking brilliant.
These geniuses are running the country while I’m driving for Uber and Lyft. How do I rationalize this to myself? I can’t.
Missy Ryan et al., “How Trump decided to kill a top Iranian general,” Washington Post, January 3, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/how-trump-decided-to-kill-a-top-iranian-general/2020/01/03/77ce3cc4-2e62-11ea-bcd4-24597950008f_story.html
David Nakamura, “In confrontation with Iran, Trump wrestles with the shadow of Obama, ‘the metric he has to beat,’” Washington Post, January 5, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/in-confrontation-with-iran-trump-wrestles-with-the-shadow-of-obama-the-metric-he-has-to-beat/2020/01/04/2bd11a80-2e49-11ea-9b60-817cc18cf173_story.html
Paul Waldman, “Trump’s rationales for the Soleimani killing are falling apart,” Washington Post, January 5, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/in-confrontation-with-iran-trump-wrestles-with-the-shadow-of-obama-the-metric-he-has-to-beat/2020/01/04/2bd11a80-2e49-11ea-9b60-817cc18cf173_story.html
Peter Baker and Maggie Haberman, “Pentagon Rules Out Striking Iranian Cultural Sites, Contradicting Trump,” New York Times, January 7, 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/06/us/politics/trump-esper-iran-cultural-sites.html
There is a new blog post entitled, “Every bit as stupid as World War I, if not more so.”
The first article here is actually from yesterday, but it’s been updated and worth a re-read. One part is especially weird: Donald Trump threatened Iraq with harsh sanctions and demanded repayment for the costs of an air base should the country indeed force U.S. troops out.[1] The U.S. military, nonetheless, may—or may not—be preparing to withdraw.[2]
Normally I wouldn’t care much about words from third parties, but a comment from an Israeli Defense Force general is interesting for his characterization of the assassination of Qassem Soleimani as part of a contest between Iran and the U.S. over control of Iraq.[3] Which is to say, pretty fucking bluntly, that Iraq is a colony, albeit with a yet-to-be-determined colonizer. Iraqis won’t appreciate that but there’s some real truth to it. This is a contest that’s been going on for a while.
“[Qassem] Soleimani hurt American interests and represented a significant danger to Americans in the region. We must look at the assassination as part of a fight between Iran and the United States over Iraq’s character. That is the story,” said IDF Southern Command head Maj. Gen. Herzi Halevi.[4]
Erin Cunningham, “Iran announces it is suspending its commitments to the 2015 nuclear deal,” Washington Post, January 5, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/body-of-commander-slain-by-us-strike-arrives-in-iran-to-crowds-of-mourners/2020/01/05/4ca3281a-2f17-11ea-bffe-020c88b3f120_story.html
John Hudson et al., “Killing of Soleimani follows long push from Pompeo for aggressive action against Iran, but airstrike brings serious risks,” Washington Post, January 5, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/killing-of-soleimani-follows-long-push-from-pompeo-for-aggressive-action-against-iran-but-airstrike-brings-serious-risks/2020/01/05/092a8e00-2f7d-11ea-be79-83e793dbcaef_story.html
David Smith, “Suleimani killing: Donald Trump defends threat to target cultural sites in Iran,” Guardian, January 6, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/06/suleimani-killing-donald-trump-defends-threat-to-hit-cultural-sites-in-iran
Times of Israel, “IDF general distances Israel from Soleimani killing in first public comment,” January 6, 2020, https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-general-distances-israel-from-soleimani-killing-in-first-public-comment/
Times of Israel, “US military says it’ll ‘move out’ of Iraq, but defense secretary denies pullout,” January 6, 2020, https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-military-tells-iraq-it-is-preparing-to-move-out-official-letter/
There is a new blog post entitled, “Tit for tat and the path to war, raging narcissist-in-chief style.”
These Media Posts will serve as notification to the United States Congress that should Iran strike any U.S. person or target, the United States will quickly & fully strike back, & perhaps in a disproportionate manner. Such legal notice is not required, but is given nevertheless!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2020
Isabel Coles, “Iraqi Parliament Votes in Favor of Expelling U.S. Troops,” Wall Street Journal, January 5, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/iraqi-parliament-votes-in-favor-of-expelling-u-s-troops-11578236473
Erin Cunningham, “Iran announces it is suspending all commitments to the 2015 nuclear deal,” Washington Post, January 5, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/body-of-commander-slain-by-us-strike-arrives-in-iran-to-crowds-of-mourners/2020/01/05/4ca3281a-2f17-11ea-bffe-020c88b3f120_story.html
An intelligent president might have been able to avoid a war with Iran. Given the raging narcissist-in-chief we have, I see zero reason for optimism.
Matt Purple, “This is Trump’s War,” American Conservative, January 3, 2020, https://www.theamericanconservative.com/state-of-the-union/trumps-war/
Jared Malsin, “Thousands March in Iraq for Iranian Commander Killed in U.S. Strike,” Wall Street Journal, January 4, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/thousands-march-in-iraq-for-iranian-commander-killed-in-u-s-strike-11578145358
There is a new blog post entitled, “The problem of non-vegan restaurants.”
Jenny Kirkham, “‘Hands up this isn’t great’: KFC admits selling chicken instead of vegan burger to vegetarians,” Liverpool Echo, January 3, 2020, https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/kfc-vegan-burger-chicken-vegetarian-17511479
There is a new blog post entitled, “The binary between “Black” and “Blue” Lives.”
Andrew Sheeler, “Black drivers in California stopped and searched more than others, state study shows,” Sacramento Bee, January 2, 2020, https://www.sacbee.com/article238915598.html
For historical reference:
Reuters, “Iraq war, the notable quotes,” March 11, 2008, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-war-quotes/factbox-iraq-war-the-notable-quotes-idUSL212762520080311
That[1] didn’t go well. But war is the answer. War is always the fucking answer.
I’m not a Middle East expert and you should discount what I think about it. But I am not getting the warm and fuzzies that there is a coherent well-thought out plan.
— TwoArticleHat (@Popehat) January 3, 2020
Of course, it isn’t. It assumes, unwisely, that only a small portion of the Iraqi population wants the U.S. out and that the rest won’t care about U.S. incursions on Iraqi sovereignty.
This is very likely a #neoconservative fantasy. https://t.co/VuZjLJmups
— David Benfell, Ph.D. (@n4rky) January 3, 2020
Oh, and just sayin’, ’cause I’ve said it before, Iran won’t go any better.[2]
War with Iran has nothing to do with Jews, Muslims, Shias or Sunnis.
Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia are regional powers with geopolitical interests.#Israel has been pushing US to a war with Iran since Bush, Obama and now Trump.
Business as usual.@MintPressNews pic.twitter.com/FR1HCEbJwp
— Carlos Latuff (@LatuffCartoons) January 3, 2020
Carlos Latuff, in the above, raises an interesting point. For all the apparent hostility between Barack Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu,[3] Obama gave the Israeli government nearly everything it wanted except for two things:
Julian Borger and Martin Chulov, “Iran general Qassem Suleimani killed in Baghdad drone strike ordered by Trump,” Guardian, January 3, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/03/baghdad-airport-iraq-attack-deaths-iran-us-tensions
Zachary Evans, “State Department Warns Americans to Leave Iraq ‘Immediately’ in Wake of Soleimani Killing,” National Review, January 3, 2020, https://www.nationalreview.com/news/state-department-warns-americans-to-leave-iraq-immediately-in-wake-of-soleimani-killing/
Telegraph, “Veganism is a philosophical belief and is therefore protected by law, judge rules,” January 3, 2020, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/01/03/veganism-philosophical-belief-therefore-protected-law-judge/
