Nothing to see here (except desperate power grabs)

 

   I am no fan of Liz Cheney, the conservative congresswoman from Wyoming and daughter of George Bush’s vice-president and dirty-deeds-doer Dick Cheney. But it was unfortunate, to say the least, when she was booted from her leadership role for continuing to condemn former President Trump for insisting – still! – that Joe Biden stole the election from him. 

   Not only is it alarmingly evident that Trump still has power over the Republicans.  The Republicans want to get this messy, inconvenient truth out of the way so they can focus on Biden, especially with, believe it or not, mid-term elections coming up.

   This can also be seen in the effort to establish an independent committee to find out what happened on January 6 at the Capitol, such as those that looked into the Kennedy assassination and 9/11. The Democrats are pushing for this, and the American public, if not also the world, deserve to know what happened, but the Republicans are balking.  They don’t want Trump to look bad, and they don’t want their likely chances to win back the Senate and also gain in, if not retake, the House to be marred by a focus on the shocking, violent insurrection attempt.  (The party opposing the president historically has the advantage in the mid-terms.)

   This desperation is also evident here in California, where Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom is facing a recall election.  In this dark blue state, where Democrats control the legislature and no Republican has won a statewide office in over a decade – and Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger won, yes, in a recall election, the only successful one in the state’s history – the Republicans are hoping this will be their entry to power.  Newsom has made a few blunders, like attending a mask-less birthday celebration at an exclusive restaurant during the height of the pandemic when he ordered everyone to stay home and wear masks, but most of what the Republicans are blaming him for – stay-at-home and masking orders to prevent the spread of COVID-19, power outages during wildfires, etc. – is beyond his control.  And unlike during the last recall election, when Democratic Governor Gray Davis was unpopular and Schwarzenegger therefore managed to win in a circus of an election with something like 135 candidates, polls are showing that Newsom will likely hold his seat, with the public having little appetite for an expensive recall election less than a year before the regularly scheduled gubernatorial election.  Talk about desperate!   

The strangeness of the normal (or is it the new normal?)

 

   It’s strange that, even as I go out to the movies on the weekend, I think it’s strange that downtown is hopping, with groups of people walking around and plenty of people eating at the restaurants.  At least, it feels strange. 

   After all, COVID-19 cases have gone way down here in Los Angeles County, and we’re about to go into the least restrictive tier.  Kids are back in the schools, at least part time (but not at the colleges).

   Still, I rush home after the movie, like I’ve snuck out, like I’m not supposed to be out. I don’t feel right milling around the downtown area, and I’m not ready to eat at a restaurant.  No, I rush back to my home, to my bubble, where I stay, hide out, cocoon for the next few days.  I go back to only going out for appointments and to go to the market, until the next time I venture out to the movies. 

   Clearly, judging by the foot traffic downtown, there are plenty of people who don’t feel this way, who have no qualms about being out and about, business as usual.  Clearly, judging by all those eating at restaurants, there are a significant number of people who think the lock-downs were unnecessary, z silly waste of time, and are going on with life as if there was – or is (look at India) – no pandemic. 

   When will I stop thinking these people are wrong, that they’re fools, to put it kindly, who don’t think of others? When will I stop looking at people to see if they’re wearing masks – and then having negative thoughts about those that aren’t? 

   There is now talk that there will never be herd immunity, that COVID-19 will never go away, that it will just be another illness, like the flu, that we’ll have to live (hopefully) with.  This might well be the case, based on the fact that much of the world (not just India, etc, but also some European countries) is getting vaccinated at a far, far lower rate than here in the U.S, not to mention the fact that a sizable group here – those who aren’t wearing masks? – are saying no to the vaccine. 

   I’d like to think that knowing this will make the transition back to normal or to the new normal easier, will make the landing softer.  But it’s probably at least as strange as thinking that people walking around downtown is strange.