History Rests Its Case

If we'd been around during historically significant events, like those depicted in the Bible or other old texts, I wonder what we would have done. Would we have memorized details to establish oral histories? Would we have produced great written accounts?

Would we have dropped our other duties, like baking bread or herding sheep, to concentrate on every minute detail of the major drama? Would we have left the place where we usually spent our time to relocate to where we could have played a role?

Or would we have turned away, minding our own business, tending to our own concerns, minor though they might be in comparison? Would we have sought the historical equivalent of Netflix?

***

The second impeachment trial of Trump is now presumably history.

His defense yesterday was brief and shameless. It utterly failed to refute the charges that he incited the Capitol riot. On the contrary, the facts in the case indicate that Trump is guilty as charged. But thanks to the many Republican Senators who will vote to acquit him, Trump will not be convicted.

As that happens, so many questions will remain unanswered. Someday we'll know more about relevant events like his phone call with Kevin McCarthy, which only came to light last night. It establishes that he knew what was happening at the Capitol but did nothing to stop it.

So now history will apparently pass us by, and usher in a renewed state of political paralysis, with Republicans trying to block Biden's policy agenda. For two years the Democrats will have to force measures through without any GOP support.

A year into the pandemic and weeks after the Capitol riot, plus this joke of an impeachment trial where the guilty party goes unpunished, I wonder how many of us can summon the strength to keep paying attention?

And I wonder what sort of democracy will survive our short attention spans.

***

Here in Northern California, yesterday was the final broadcast hosted by Michael Krasny of KQED's "Forum." He worked there 28 years, interviewing politicians, celebrities, activists, artists, business leaders, ambassadors and every other type of person in the news.

Most of all, though, he specialized in interviewing authors of both fiction and non-fiction books. It is Michael's deep love of literature that I treasure most.

Congratulations on the next leg of your creative journey, my friend!

***

The heds: 

* In an expletive-laced phone call with House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy while the Capitol was under attack, then-President Donald Trump said the rioters cared more about the election results than McCarthy did. "Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are," Trump said, according to lawmakers who were briefed on the call afterward by McCarthy. McCarthy insisted that the rioters were Trump's supporters and begged Trump to call them off. Trump's comment set off what Republican lawmakers familiar with the call described as a shouting match between the two men. A furious McCarthy told the President the rioters were breaking into his office through the windows, and asked Trump, "Who the f--k do you think you are talking to?" according to a Republican lawmaker familiar with the call. (CNN)

* Trump Was Sicker Than Acknowledged With Covid-19 -- When hospitalized with the coronavirus in October, his blood oxygen levels had plunged and officials feared he was on the verge of being placed on a ventilator. (NYT)

* Mounting evidence suggests Trump knew of danger to Pence when he disparaged him amid Capitol siege (WashPo)

* Nikki Haley says Trump has no future in GOP (CNN)

* A bill introduced in the Tennessee General Assembly this week would allow a man who gets a woman pregnant to request an injunction barring her from having an abortion. The legislation would require a court hearing to be held within 14 days of a petition being filed by the individual seeking an injunction. [HuffPost]

* Christian Prophets Are on the Rise. What Happens When They’re Wrong? -- They are stars within one of the fastest-growing corners of American Christianity. Now, their movement is in crisis. (NYT)

* Former FBI official, a Navy veteran, is ‘key figure’ in Jan. 6 riot, prosecutors allege (WashPo)

* Capitol Riot: 5 More People Allegedly Linked To Proud Boys Are Arrested (AP)

*

 Amazon faces biggest union push in its history (Reuters)

* Researchers believe QAnon has ensnared millions of Americans and is especially popular among baby boomers who are struggling with digital literacy. The formerly fringe movement gained explosive traction in 2020 by seizing on fear and confusion stemming from the pandemic and exploiting political tensions surrounding the election and nationwide racial justice protests. The result is an unprecedented disinformation crisis, and countless families on the frontlines, trying to pry their loved ones from a cult. [HuffPost]

* Drug firms seek tax deductions from opioid settlement (WashPo)

* The Pandemic Emptied Europe’s Cities. What Will Bring People Back? -- City life came to a standstill from London to Berlin when the coronavirus struck. Now worries of a lasting exodus are pushing urban authorities to address long-festering problems. (NYT)

* Spotify to allow employees to work from anywhere (Reuters)

* Tough economies usually push people into more education. It’s not happening this time. (WashPo)

* Attacks on Asian Seniors in Bay Area Prompt a Cry for Help (California Today)

* Airports have taken steps to reduce coronavirus transmission but risks still remain, study says(WashPo)

* Fin whales — 60-ton, 80-foot long, graceful beasts — get their name from the prominent fin on their backs. And as they swim in groups, they gossip with one another by making booming 189-decibel chirps. (NYT)*

The pandemic has left a huge cache of dinosaur bones stuck in the Sahara (WashPo)

* Experts Warn Uptick In Celebrity Boxing A Sign Nation Still Not Ready To Process Last Four Years (The Onion)

***

I knew it from the start
You would break my heart
But still I had to play this painful part
You wrapped me 'round your little-bitty finger
With your magic smile

You kept me hangin' on a lovers cross a while
You put your spell on me
Took my breath away
But there was nothin' I could do to make you stay
I'm gonna miss you

Songwriters: Reuther Franz / Bischof-fallenstein Peter / Kawohl Dietmar

-30-

Never Ever After

Yesterday at breakfast, my six-year-old granddaughter asked: "So Grandpa, you got the vaccine. What if it doesn't work?"

Among their many virtues, children are direct. Grandfathers have their virtues too. "Well, I suppose I'd probably get Covid and fall down dead."

This set off a discussion about vaccines and how the body works to ward off viral infections. She then graphically acted out her interpretation of the body's immune system, looking like a karate master dispatching an opponent.

Once she got that out of her system, our conversation resumed. "So when will kids get the vaccine?"

"It'll be a while yet. Maybe by then the vaccine will be even stronger and even better."

"Yeah like this!" Now she went into full karate attack mode. "Covid will be so scared it will just lay down on the table and die."

"I hope you're right." 

***

Well, now I'm into full-binge mode with Netflix, I can say I am impressed not only with the teenage romance genre, but the social values reinforced by most of the movies and TV series available there. 

Racism, sexism, homophobia, divorce, death, inequality, diversity, sexual attraction, friendship, betrayal, discrimination of all kinds -- these and other important topics seem to be well-covered. The writers who are behind these productions can be proud.

I stumbled into my first TV series, which is called "Never Have I Ever," focusing on an Indian-American girl attending high school in Sherman Oaks, California. The lead actress, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, is fantastic. For reasons a bit hard to fathom, John McEnroe narrates the series. For reasons even more difficult to fathom, Andy Sandberg makes an appearance as a guest narrator.

Maybe they are under contract with Netflix.

Be that as it may, the main character in the series is dealing with the premature death of her father, a controlling mother, two wacky school friends battling their own demons, and a series of confusing relationships with boys.

I burned through all ten episodes of the first season in just a few sittings.

Do I now qualify as a normal American doing what normal Americans do? No comment necessary.

***

The impeachment trial has an air of hopelessness to it. It is the polar opposite of a Netflix series. We all know the bad guy is going to get off scot-free in the end. That phrase originated  from the Scandinavian word, 'skat,' which means “tax” or “payment.” 

Much like a virus, the word mutated into 'scot' to describe a program of redistributive relief to the poor during the 10th century. That's one long time for a phrase to hold up.

*That* phrase, in turn, primarily means to support or prevent something from falling, as in "concrete pillars hold up the elevated section of the railroad."

So, if you follow my reasoning, the impeachment trial is holding up the scot-free ending mainly because our talented Netflix colleagues are not in charge of how the series will end.

With logic like that, I think I prefer the next season of "Never Have I Ever."

***

The heds:

* Impeachment Trial May Hinge on Meaning of ‘Incitement’ -- The Supreme Court has placed strict First Amendment limits on incitement charges in court. But many legal scholars say they do not apply in impeachment trials (NYT)

* State and local GOP committees attack any Republicans who dare turn on Trump (WashPo)

* Dozens of former Republican officials, who view the party as unwilling to stand up to former President Donald Trump, are in talks to form a center-right breakaway party. (Reuters)

* A HuffPost investigation found that multiple men arrested for the U.S. Capitol insurrection have restraining orders against them over domestic violence accusations. Others have faced charges and served prison time for sexual assault. Experts have linked extremism to violent misogyny in recent years, especially in the wake of mass shootings in which the perpetrators had a history of violence against women. [HuffPost]

* A 'Scary' Survey Finding: 4 In 10 Republicans Say Political Violence May Be Necessary (NPR)

* How Right-Wing Radio Stoked Anger Before the Capitol Siege -- Shows hosted by Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and other talk radio stars promoted debunked claims of a stolen election and urged listeners to “fight back.” (NYT)

* Trump’s trial has crystallized the horror of Jan. 6. The Senate must convict him -- Editorial Board (WashPo)

* Donald Trump posted a tweet attacking his own vice president for lacking “the courage” to overturn the election for him ― enraging his Jan. 6 mob even further ― just minutes after learning that Mike Pence had been removed from the Senate chamber for his own safety. Newly elected Sen. Tommy Tuberville told reporters that Trump called him for help in delaying the election certification, but he told Trump that Pence had just been taken from the Senate and he couldn’t talk just then. [HuffPost]

* House managers wrap case, warn Trump could incite more violence (WashPo)

* Desperation grows in battered Honduras, fueling migration (AP)

* “The biggest issue facing dam safety in California is aging infrastructure and lack of money to fund repairs and retrofits of dams.” Fifty years after the Slymar earthquake, California’s dams face new challenges and dangers. [The Los Angeles Times]

* Biden Raises Concerns With China’s Xi in First Call Since Election -- The two leaders developed a friendly relationship during the Obama years, but now face a wide range of contentious issues. (NYT)

* Biden says call with Chinese leader Xi lasted two hours (Reuters)

* BBC World News barred from airing in China: regulator (Reuters)

* Larry Flynt, the founder of Hustler magazine, died Wednesday at 78. Flynt launched Hustler in 1974, and it quickly grew to become one of the country’s most popular adult magazines. In 1978, Flynt was shot and left paralyzed from the waist down. The gunman was a white supremacist and serial killer who claimed he was upset by an interracial photo shoot that appeared in an issue of the magazine years earlier. [HuffPost]

* How Much Does a C-Section Cost? At One Hospital, Anywhere From $6,241 to $60,584 -- New federally mandated disclosures by California’s Sutter Health illustrate the wide disparity in healthcare rates negotiated by insurers. (WSJ)

* The Chevron Refinery in Richmond spilled roughly 600 gallons of “water and petroleum mixture” into San Francisco Bay on Tuesday. [The San Francisco Chronicle]

* The U.S. International Trade Commission banned one of the world’s biggest electric vehicle battery manufacturers from selling in the United States, striking a blow to the Biden administration’s ambitious plan to electrify the nation’s auto fleet. The decision bars South Korean giant SK Innovation from importing its batteries or the components to make them for 10 years. [HuffPost]

* The Killing of George Floyd Tore Minneapolis Apart. Now Comes the Trial. -- As attorney general, William Barr rejected a plea deal days after Mr. Floyd died, worried in part of protesters calling it lenient. Derek Chauvin was set to plead guilty to third-degree murder. (NYT)

* Dave Min, a state senator from Irvine, last month introduced SB-264, a bill that would ban gun sales and shows on all state-owned property in California. [Los Angeles Times]

* ‘There’s Nothing Left’: Why Thousands of Republicans Are Leaving the Party -- Voting registration data indicates a stronger-than-usual flight from the G.O.P. since the Capitol riot, with an intensely fluid period in American politics now underway. (NYT)

* Two cases of the coronavirus variant first found in South Africa were found in Alameda and Santa Clara, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday. The variant reduces the efficacy of some vaccines. [The San Francisco Chronicle]

* A horn made from a conch shell over 17,000 years ago has blasted out musical notes for the first time in millennia. Archaeologists originally found the seashell in 1931, in a French cave that contains prehistoric wall paintings. They speculated that the cave's past occupants had used the shell as a ceremonial cup for shared drinks, and that a hole in its tip was just accidental damage. But some researchers have now concluded something different--the shell, which has been sitting in a museum for decades, was actually modified in sophisticated ways that could help it produce music. (NPR/Science Advances)

* Hawaii's unusual 'o'opu can scale the islands' waterfalls, some more than 300m high. (BBC)

* Report: If Earth Continues To Warm At Current Rate Moon Will Be Mostly Under Water By 2400 (The Onion)

***

"Hold Up"

Hold up, they don't love you like I love you
Slow down, they don't love you like I love you
Back up, they don't love you like I love you
Step down, they don't love you like I love you

-- Songwriters: Beyonce Knowles / Emile Haynie / Deandre Way / Brian Chase / Doc Pomus / Mort Shuman / Ezra Koenig / Thomas Pentz / Uzoechi Emenike / Antonio Randolph / Kelvin Mcconnell / Nick Zinner / Karen Orzolek / Joshua Tillman / Sean "melo-x" Rhoden

-30-

What We Never See

                                                                          (Photo by David Weir, 2006, for Sidewalk Images)

One of most immersive experiences you can have as a reporter is to cover a trial. Usually from the part of the courtroom reserved for the press you can see everybody -- the judge, the jury, the prosecution, the defense, and the spectators.

The accused sits in the front row next to or just behind his or her attorney. If it is a criminal proceeding, the victim or victim's family sits behind the prosecutor.

As an observer, you note the facial expressions, the body language, the whisperings, every gesture of the various parties and, if the trial lasts for days, you pick up the rhythm of the thing. You get a pretty good sense of which side is winning its case or if it's actually too close to call.

Although they are often admonished to not react visibly to what they hear, the members of the jury are human beings just like you and me -- they smile, frown, nod their heads in agreement or stare in disbelief.

Then again, people vary. Those who would be much better poker players than the others keep their expressions inscrutable.

In many courtrooms, an illustrator is also present and he or she captures some of the visual narrative, usually by focusing on the principals. I've purchased the work of illustrators and I love the way they enhanced the written narrative my reporters produced.

In most courtrooms, we cannot tape the proceedings so there is little audio or video to share with our audiences. This deeply affects television and radio coverage, removing their technical advantage over written accounts.

So for me, being forced to watch the impeachment trial almost exclusively through a static camera with a single frame provides too narrow a view on what is happening in the Congressional chamber. Anecdotal accounts suggest some Republican senators are doodling or reading newspapers or otherwise clearly indicating their disinterest in the proceedings; and I'd like to watch that.

If I were in the courtroom as your correspondent, that is some of what I would cover, plus who is dozing off behind his mask.

What we are being given instead is a TV show with one permitted prop -- blow-up slides with quotes highlighted and some stunning video clips. 

This guy is clearly guilty but we need to be able to study the expressions of the jurors during this testimony. After all, we are the ones with the greatest stake in the outcome. 

***

Honestly, by far the coolest news story I found for today is the Times' report that hundreds of pictures taken decades ago in the Shetland Islands were saved from being thrown away and are finding their way online. 

This story touched me in several ways. 

Being of Scottish descent, I find any remnant of useful information about people in that part of the world fascinating. It also seems exceedingly odd that according to ancestry.com, I am overwhelmingly (92 percent) Scots genetically. (How's that for three adverbs in one sentence? Maybe that is a Scots thing.) 

Ancestry.com may well have made a mistake and mixed up my genes, but I'm sticking with their version, since on that side of the family we have no Family Tree.

Anyway, the point is that my mother changed her middle name from McKechnie to Allan or Allen or Alan or Alyn or something that sounds like that. We don't know how she spelled it because she apparently never wrote it down. But maybe somewhere there is a scrap of paper she threw away with the proper spelling on it that someone will find.

Besides, I have long been obsessed by things saved from what other people throw out in the trash. For years I posted photos to a blog I called Sidewalk Images of random bits of trash I encountered in the streets of my neighborhood in the Mission. I stopped doing that in 2015 but added a few random shots from my new neighborhood recently.

The last entry from my old haunt was on March 4, 2019, almost two years ago. No picture, just this entry: "Today all the junk we left out front was hauled away. My first-born and one of her daughters came over and we had lunch." I don't remember that day but it must have been part of our early effort to eliminate my possessions that reached its climax last spring.

The Sidewalk Images site still exists but I see that the name has been appropriated by various commercial operations. Not to worry, I didn't do it for money, but for art's sake. Come to think of it, I don't do anything for money and that is a bit of an issue.

***

The heds:

* ‘The Death Market’: Oxygen Shortage Leaves Mexicans to Die at Home -- With hospitals overrun, Mexicans fighting the coronavirus at home face a deadly hurdle: a lack of oxygen tanks. (NYT)

* About 1 in 3 Americans say they definitely or probably won’t get the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a new poll that some experts say is discouraging news if the U.S. hopes to achieve herd immunity and vanquish the outbreak. (AP)

* Protesters took to the streets of Myanmar for a fifth day on Wednesday, vowing to keep up demonstrations against last week’s military coup even after a woman was shot and critically wounded during clashes the previous day. The United States and United Nations condemned the use of force against the protesters who are demanding the reversal of the Feb. 1 coup and the release of deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi among others. [Reuters]

* A Glimpse of a Bygone Life on Scottish Islands, Plucked From the Trash -- Hundreds of pictures taken decades ago in the Shetland Islands, off northern Scotland, were saved from being thrown away. Now, they are finding new life online. (NYT)

* Biden must make a tough decision on Afghanistan — and quickly -- Editorial Board (WashPo)

* Iran Makes Uranium Metal in Breach of Nuclear Deal (WSJ)

* California should allow all but death row inmates and those spending life behind bars without the chance of parole to request lighter sentences after they serve at least 15 years, an advisory committee recommended to Gov. Gavin Newsom. The nation’s most populated state also should limit sentencing enhancements that can add years to prison terms and are imposed with “extreme racial disparities,” the committee said. [AP]

* Would the Founders Convict Trump and Bar Him From Office? -- They believed as a matter of civic principle that ethical leadership is the glue that holds a constitutional republic together. (NYT)

* Ga. prosecutors open criminal probe into efforts to subvert election results (WashPo)

* During riot, Sen. Mitt Romney saved by Capitol Police officer (CNN)

* V-P Pence and family hustled to safety during riot by secret service (CNN)

* In self-imposed exile, Trump watches with unhappiness as second impeachment trial unfolds (WashPo)

* The U.S. Navy's top admiral on Tuesday condemned two new racist incidents involving hate symbols on warships, which sources said included a noose that was left on a Black sailor's bed. (Reuters)

* Three days after Jeep’s ad featuring Bruce Springsteen became one of the most buzzed-about Super Bowl commercials, the automotive company has pulled the spot after it was revealed Wednesday that Springsteen had been arrested for driving while under the influence last fall. (Rolling Stone)

* A majority of the people arrested in Capitol riot had history of financial trouble (WashPo)

* Will American Ideas Tear France Apart? Some of Its Leaders Think So -- Politicians and prominent intellectuals say social theories from the United States on race, gender and post-colonialism are a threat to French identity and the French republic. (NYT)

* In an avalanche of words, there’s no sign of regret from Trump (WashPo)

* Michigan's Top Republican Falsely Calls U.S. Capitol Attack A 'Hoax' (NPR)

* The Dallas Mavericks have stopped playing the national anthem before home games and have no plans to start again, team owner Mark Cuban said. The Mavericks had not played the anthem at any of the team’s 13 games at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. “It was my decision, and I made it in November,” Cuban said in a brief statement. [HuffPost]

* Twitter's 'Birdwatch' Aims to Crowdsource Fight Against Misinformation (NPR)

* In Indian Himalayas, drones draw blank in search for workers missing in flooded tunnel (Reuters)

* A Chinese spacecraft went into orbit around Mars on Wednesday on an expedition to land a rover on the surface and scout for signs of ancient life, authorities announced in a landmark step in the country’s most ambitious deep-space mission yet. (AP)

* Congressional representatives from California's Central Valley call on Gov. Gavin Newsom to establish more Covid-19 vaccination sites in this hard-hit part of the state. (Alex Hall/Twitter)

* A revived California state bill would limit the ability of state and local law enforcement agencies to buy military-style equipment. Proponents say that protesters last summer were frequently met with excessive force — facilitated by police departments’ access to such equipment — and police groups say such legislation would interfere with their operations. [The San Francisco Chronicle]

* Trump Attorneys Argue He Spoke Metaphorically Of Ripping Chamber Doors Off Hinges, Crushing Pelosi’s Skull (The Onion)

***

And now I think
I hate the internet
Cause every shape
Looks like your silhouette
Avoiding you like I'm
An acrobat
You're everywhere
I'm not okay with that

And now I think
I'll leave you in the past
I'm better off just taking
What I have
And I won't see you around
Or in my head
Not anymore
And I'm okay with that

-- Phangs