Now the election season is on us, I'll try to sort through the noise, which is substantial, to locate any signal that seems useful. A dark foreboding cloud hangs over the 2020 Presidential election.
Certain principles are clear. Given the substantial risk of Covid-19, all parties of good will should unite to support voting by mail. There has never been any evidence of systematic fraud in the many vote-by-mail initiatives in multiple states, nor is there any measurable party bias (Republican or Democratic) among those of us who vote that way.
This is purely a safety issue.
As someone a bit on the older side, recovering from pneumonia and therefore with lungs vulnerable to respiratory infection, there is no way I would go to a public polling station this November. Nor would I appreciate any person I might come into contact who voted that way.
In fact, the only safe method we have is voting by mail; it's the method I've used for years. It gives me all the time I need to research the various ballot initiatives that I'm less familiar with.
So let's dispense with those who attempt to politicize the voting process and recognize that this is an option whose time has come.
The San Francisco Bay Area has a candidate on the national ticket for the first time in a long time. Kamala Harris is well-known to us here; she emerged into public view when she defeated Terence "Kayo" Hallinan, the incumbent D.A. in 2003.
I knew Kayo well; he was a colorful, no-holds-barred character out of the Old West, whose nickname stemmed from a boxing career and his propensity to get into fights even when in office.
By contrast, Harris, born in Oakland, raised in Berkeley, has a background that rings many familiar bells for us in these parts. She eventually was adopted by San Francisco's social set, which trust me, is hardly the "hard political left" Trump rails against.
That she is one of the most ambitious mainstream politicians to come from this area is undeniable. She already is part of the elite group of women from San Francisco who hold political influence at a scale no other city nationally can match. Nancy Pelosi, Dianne Feinstein, Kamala Harris -- the Speaker of the House and the two Senators from the most populous state -- that is a female triumvirate no previous city has ever boasted in history.
As many have noted, California is actually a country, not a state. It is under marginal federal control; mainly this region does what it wants to do, regardless of federal direction.
I don't say that as an advocate, or an apologist; I say it as an observer. Within the nation of California, the nine-county Bay Area is the equivalent of a state. There are other huge states here -- Los Angeles Basin, San Diego, the Central Valley -- plus many other cities with spheres of influence: Sacramento, Fresno, Stockton, Bakersfield, San Jose, Santa Cruz, and on and on.
This is a very powerful nation.
Spending the past week in the metropolis of San Francisco had a profound emotional impact on me in both positive and negative ways. So many things happened there for me -- jobs, relationships, huge stories, historic events -- not to mention that all six of my children are native San Franciscans. I wouldn't be able to get over San Francisco even if I wanted to, and I don't.
The way the rest of the country and much of the media views San Francisco is a stereotype without merit. This is not a flighty, trivial city of airheads, this is a tough political minefield that sends strong, battle-tested warriors to the nation's capital.
Let me just put it bluntly. If there is a Vice-Presidential debate, I would not want to be Mike Pence. Harris will slice him to pieces.
On to the news headlines moving this overnight.
* Trump says he’s blocking postal funds because Democrats want to expand mail-in voting -- The president made explicit the reason he declined to approve $25 billion in emergency funding for the Postal Service. (Washington Post)
* Trump Encourages Racist Conspiracy Theory About Kamala Harris -- Trump said he heard that Ms. Harris, the presumptive Democratic vice-presidential nominee born in California, was not eligible for the ticket, repeating a theory that is rampant among his followers. Constitutional scholars quickly called his words false and irresponsible. (New York Times)
* Rushing reopening could have devastating consequences, Dr. Fauci says. (CNN)
* How Trump’s Push to Reopen Schools Backfired -- Distrust of the president and his motives hardened the conviction of some educators that teaching in person was unsafe, helping drive union opposition. (New York Times)
* Thanks to coronavirus and Zoom, we’re looking at the end stages of college as a commodity (Washington Post)
* Never mind meddling by Russia, China or Iran. The most dangerous threat to the integrity of November's election is coming from the man sworn to protect it, the President of the United States.Trailing badly in the polls, overtaken by the worst health crisis in 100 years and deprived of the cruising economy he had hoped to ride to a second term, President Donald Trump is actively trying to discredit an election that could see him turned out of office -- or is at least preparing the groundwork for a bitter legal battle that could drag on for weeks in the event of a close result. (CNN)
* Trump and first lady request mail-in ballots (CNN) [This is what would be known by two words -- irony and hypocrisy -- DW]
***
In case a casual reader thinks I obsess over politics, that couldn't be further from the truth. Yesterday, for example, I spent at the beach, watching my grandchildren play in the water and enjoying the sun. Politics was absent from my mind or stomach, which focused more on In 'n Out Burger (lunch) and It's It (snack).
Meanwhile, when I'm inside I eschew political documentaries and the like in favor of romantic comedies bereft of political meaning. In my entertainment choices, love is the only theme that matters.
Here With Me
I'll do what I want
But I can't hide
And I won't go
I won't sleep
And I can't breathe
Until you're resting here with me
And I won't leave
And I can't hide
I cannot be until you're resting here
And I won't sleep
And I can't breathe
Until you're resting here with me
And I won't leave…
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