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JHawk23
Political independent, moderate, retired diplomat.
Recent Activity
Yesterday, after watching the Thursday broadcast of the latest Congressional Hearings into the attack on the U.S. Capitol, I sat down to write a reaction, but the words just didn't mesh the way I wanted, and I abandoned the effort.... Continue reading
Posted Jul 23, 2022 at Morning Fog
I have read and heard lots of prolix discussion over the past month regarding the legal basis for a right to abortion. Some opine that Roe v. Wade would not now be history if the case had been argued originally... Continue reading
Posted Jul 17, 2022 at Morning Fog
The U.S. and its government are founded on a handful of premises that were understood by (nearly) all as positive statements of principle: equality, individual rights including especially the right to vote, the idea of the fairness of representative government,... Continue reading
Posted Jun 24, 2022 at Morning Fog
Regret the delay in acknowledging the truth of your point that the Court announces its decisions at the end of the current session, i.e. June or July. My oversight. Yet I remain uneasy, in the prevailing climate where norms and even laws are overlooked or overturned, that an excuse for delay could be manufactured.
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Indeed it may. There are so many players in this life-and-death game - the public, Congress, gun owners, gun manufacturers, the NRA, the Courts (Supreme and other), mental health providers, police, even privacy advocates. Each has a potential role to play. No one of them really can solve the problem in isolation. Hope is a pretty limp weapon, yet we have to hope that some voters here and there will coalesce enough support to replace a firm gun nut with an avowed but moderate gun controller.
Toggle Commented Jun 3, 2022 on Gun Nuts? A Contrarian View at Morning Fog
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I heard that President Biden was doing a major statement tonight, so I listened before posting my own view. The President gave a heartfelt, calm, rational statement expressing the hope that we have reached the point where elected politicians may... Continue reading
Posted Jun 2, 2022 at Morning Fog
Everyone is afire about the leak of the U.S. Supreme Court's supposed "draft" decision on Roe v. Wade. Ho-hum. There are things to be said about Roe, which I'd like to address later, but for now, I'm just wondering, since... Continue reading
Posted May 4, 2022 at Morning Fog
Washington Post Political Columnist Dana Milbank recently explored the new Trumpie social media platform "Truth Social" to see what kinds of posts are appearing there. (See "I tried Trump's Truth Social So You Don't Have To" in today's Post.) And... Continue reading
Posted Apr 3, 2022 at Morning Fog
The phrase "second thoughts" usually implies changing an opinion or a decision. But my second thoughts on Ukraine, Russia, and the United States have only brought me to double down on opinions previously expressed, to wit: As regards the U.S.:... Continue reading
Posted Mar 19, 2022 at Morning Fog
I had not wanted nor expected to resume this blog after a year's silence with a war on our hands. Nevertheless, no one can deny the Soviet elephant in the room (or across the border). In Ukraine, Russian President for... Continue reading
Posted Mar 7, 2022 at Morning Fog
The Prosecution: A great job. The presentation just blew us away. But the case was not a difficult one to make. The Defense: Constitutional scholars have debunked the silly notion that the President may not be judged guilty now that... Continue reading
Posted Feb 11, 2021 at Morning Fog
It's really difficult for me to understand why elected Republicans seem so reticent to spend money on economic recovery. Specifically, that besides their general complaint that the Biden plan is too expensive, they want to cut the amount of the... Continue reading
Posted Feb 5, 2021 at Morning Fog
Two weeks ago, in its magazine section of January 17, the Washington Post invited a group of randomly selected "experts," and seven "artists" (?), of many of whom I've never heard, to write essays about "one surprising thing" the incoming... Continue reading
Posted Jan 31, 2021 at Morning Fog
Absolutely. It's too early to suggest that Biden can't bring at least some degree of cooperation in government, though I am less optimistic that he can change voter attitudes - that will take longer but will proceed faster if a few Republicans get involved.
Toggle Commented Jan 26, 2021 on The Art Of The Possible at Morning Fog
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What happens when politics, the "Art of the Possible," tries to survive in a world where nothing seems possible? There are a lot of teeth-gnashing reports in many quarters of our media, worrying that Biden's pledge to unite the Disunited... Continue reading
Posted Jan 25, 2021 at Morning Fog
What's in a name? Columnist George Will's recent column "The Sensitivity Sweepstakes" reviewed the art of political correctness and the extremes to which it went in 2020. It's worth a read. To cite just a couple of his examples, in... Continue reading
Posted Jan 19, 2021 at Morning Fog
For years, the G.O.P. stood for fiscal responsibility and conservative spending. It occurs to me, though, that in recent years, at least the past couple of decades, that has changed. Nowadays, they are for such conservative policies when Democrats are... Continue reading
Posted Jan 18, 2021 at Morning Fog
I praise columnist Eugene Robinson's piece of January 15, entitled "The GOP Is out of Time to Reject Trump's Lies." You can find the entire column on the Washington Post website, or elsewhere online, but I would just quote the... Continue reading
Posted Jan 16, 2021 at Morning Fog
Years ago, there used to be an old joke people would play right before an election day. In a group - your office, your class - somebody would post a notice like this: "To relieve congestion and crowding due to the expected high turnout in tomorrow's election, the government has announced special procedures. All Republicans will vote on Tuesday, while Democrats will vote on Wednesday." (That's the Republican version, of course.) No one in the room was ever fooled by it, and most got a bit of a good-natured bipartisan chuckle from it. But that was in easier-going times. Today,... Continue reading
Posted Jan 16, 2021 at The Tin Lizard
We in the U.S. all tend to think of a new year - whether it's the calendar year, or the chronologically later beginning of a new President's term, as a fresh start. Out with the old problems, on to new... Continue reading
Posted Jan 15, 2021 at Morning Fog
Over the past weekend, in my county, there was an evident uptick in activity to deliver anti-covid vaccine to a broader section of the population. We're still not at the stage where everybody has access, but we've moved beyond the... Continue reading
Posted Jan 12, 2021 at Morning Fog
As the occupation of the U.S. Capitol by Trump dupes unfolded two days ago, I noted, as many did, that planning for the security of the building clearly had been inadequate to the need. This must have been an error... Continue reading
Posted Jan 8, 2021 at Morning Fog
Well, today's events at the U.S. Capitol certainly merit the term "shameful," as rioters egged on by our mentally deranged criminal-in-chief stormed the Capitol, seeking to disrupt the proceedings. There is lots of shame to go around: for the "protesters"... Continue reading
Posted Jan 6, 2021 at Morning Fog
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I wonder if many people these days recall the character in the "funnies," as we used to call them, named "Baby Huey." Read all about him here on Wikipedia (make a donation to support them while you're there); but he... Continue reading
Posted Dec 24, 2020 at Morning Fog
A good point that local conditions make a lot of difference. Definitely there are no easy answers. The news of the vaccines will help, eventually, but that's six months away for much of the population and won't come soon enough to save many small businesses. It's galling to think how Trump could have an extremely beneficial effect, especially with his base, by making a short, simple, statement, but he won't, of course.
Toggle Commented Dec 5, 2020 on Pandemics And Politics at Morning Fog
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