Midlife Meditation

Nothing up my trunk... The most conservative thing about today's Republican party is the dirty tricks it's employing to extend its white, male, moneyed gerontocracy well into the future. New York Times  columnist Jamelle Bouie summarizes this electoral abomination beautifully in an op-ed published yesterday. The GOP strategy is so complex, so wide-ranging, so long-term that the 21-movie Marvel Cinematic Universe saga that just concluded in Avengers: End Game  pales by comparison. Reading the signs of the times that foretell the inevitable transformation of the United States to a truly multi-cultural melting pot in the next few decades, Republicans began their work of electoral nullification with the 2000 Presidential election, as they used protests and Supreme Court packing to stymy a full and fair Florida recount that would likely have handed the race to Al Gore. As Bouie points out, in the last seven Presidential elections, only one Republican has achieved a popu...

Joe Biden touches people. A lot. He's always been this way, and he's made no attempt to hide it. Google "Joe Biden touching" and you'll get a page full of pictures, mostly of Biden touching women, but also a few of him with his hands on or his arms around men. There have been occasional efforts by right wing commentators to make an issue of his tactile approach to politics, but they've never taken hold, as there has, apparently, never been a "victim" willing to ascribe any untoward intent to Biden. Never until now, that is--and even now, it's not Biden's intent being questioned. In the last few weeks, several women who've been the object of Biden's affection have come forward to say it made them feel uncomfortable. This is borne out by some of the images in which it appears women are gritting their teeth and tolerating the attention. Those who complain don't accuse Biden of making advances on them, or of groping t...