Human flesh is having a bad year. Some sports events will be television-only. A political convention is a bad idea. So is shaking hands, and so is sniffing women's necks, which is how Biden draws the nutrients and vital life forces to continue his pattern of tawdry "service" to the American public.

There's been a month of chatter about conspiracy, but (if I understand correctly)—

• Bernie was independent until 2016 and for some time in the interim between campaigns

• Bloomberg was a lifelong Democrat until 2001, when he switched to the Republican Party to run for Mayor. He switched to an independent in 2007 and registered again as a Democrat in October 2018. (Wikipedia)

• Warren was Republican until she was 47… Some time ago, but well within the memory of voters her age, to whom she needed to appeal.

The emergence of Biden as front-runner is not the work of a conniving, unseen cabal on behalf of a sinister 'establishment': It's a political party doing what established political parties do. Bernie, Warren and Bloomberg are —despite their two hundred twenty-six birthdays— merely arrivistes in the eyes of the party faithful… They're punk kids, pretending to be hotshots while trading buzzwords with children through smartphones.

So, sitch normal. Biden's the Democratic candidate, and we should have seen it coming.

Problems, though!

Biden is as personally weak and unappealing a candidate as Hillary was, with nearly as much corruption and lifelong (long!) self-dealing which will need to be explained away.

Apparently his usual pattern of gaffes is now augmented by a pattern of misstatements which seem like dementia. (I haven't found the heart to watch the clips.)

He probably won't select a relative hipster like Klobuchar or Gabbard as his running mate… He'll almost certainly do what Obama did: Throw the gig to some colorless, hoary apparatchik for career compliance to the Party machine.

This here ☛ Young, naive, annoyed voters will be no more enthused to turn out for a bumbling, septuagenarian Biden than blacks were for a tone-deaf Hillary.

The Democrat have big problems. The Republicans don't even need a convention… And Trump barely needs Republicans. Between social media and coronavirus, we may have seen the last of the conventions in 2016.

Trump's to lose, as of 11 Mar 20.

…compliance with the…

Darn. Otherwise that was a sweet 500 words.



Kaus has good thoughts tonight, including:

I hear Sanders is suspending his campaign, today or tomorrow. Might be mere chatter. (Not sure it would even be good for Biden -- means he's sole target of media scrutiny for 5+ months.)

How does Joe Biden's Return-to-Normalcy pitch fare in the remaning coronavirus-tinged months of the campaign? Is it 1) Now inapposite, given that there is no "normal" we could conceivably return to? 2) More apt than ever since the pre-Trump era will look even more halcyon by November?

I think the former. It's one thing to say "Make America Great Again" and recall the general, enduring virtues of the prosperous 1950s and 1960s — virtues that included a more equal distribution of income (something the left often leaves out when mocking Trumpian nostalgia.) It's another to pledge a return to the specific Obama status quo. Whatever you thought of it, that era now seems unattainably past. The original Biden appeal was like the appeal of rekindling a romance when you’ve broken up for couple of years. Now he’ll be trying to rekindle a romance when the other person has had three kids and a sex change operation.

[…]

Does Biden want to “restore honor to the Oval Office”? Honor? How much do we care about honor right now? We’re trying to stay alive.

• @kaitlancollins
7 hours ago

It is pretty stunning to see someone be the first senator to endorse Trump and give up a safe (I mean really, really safe) Senate seat only to then later have the president endorse his opponent three weeks before the runoff in Alabama.

• @JxhnBinder
8 hours ago

Joe Biden, Feb. 28 2020: “The idea that [the Chinese] are our competition, that they’re going to beat us, is bizarre.”

97% of antibiotics in U.S. and 80% of active pharmaceutical ingredients needed to manufacture drugs in the U.S. come from China

Possibly not Florida Man or Woman.

https://www.bitsandpieces.us/2020/03/09/meanwhile-at-the-corner-of-hold-my-beer-and-watch-this-2/

He probably won't select a relative hipster like Klobuchar or Gabbard as his running mate…

Of course not! The bride can not be outshone by the groom!!

Re: the younger voting cohort. Every election in this century has been the one were they show up to vote in numbers and make themselves felt! except they don't. Sorry, Bern, that's the way it is. The twitter echo chamber amplifies their voices, but twitter isn't real life.

97% of antibiotics in U.S. and 80% of active pharmaceutical ingredients needed to manufacture drugs in the U.S. come from China

That needs to be clawed back. Perhaps not in whole, as it behooves us to not put all our eggs in a single basket, even our own.

One silver lining of the tariff affray was that more than a few manufacturers decided they needed diversify their supply chain. I don't know if that happened quickly enough to provide relief now, but it will pay off down the road for next big issue.

One structural problem of the Chinese economy is that they're dependent on exports. They're really not (yet) a consumer nation. Dry up their exports and their economy takes the hit.

Wait, what?

https://twitter.com/ABC/status/1236959949080625152

Wait, what? part II:

https://www.cnsnews.com/blog/craig-bannister/day-after-canceling-sxsw-and-declaring-coronavirus-disaster-austin-mayor-says

Part III.

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/philadelphia-resistance-bar-association/2020/03/09/id/957553/

Middle East is still simmering just below a boil.

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/03/russia-vs-turkey-syria-joseph-puder/

Disgusting.

https://twitter.com/Tiff_FitzHenry/status/1237717176754360321

I was thinking that if I ever won a million dollars, I would by a racehorse, and name it "My Face." And when the crowd cheers, "COME ON, MY FACE!" I will laugh my ass off!

It's a meme:

https://twitter.com/southernfren/status/1228029485565579269

Not sure it would even be good for Biden -- means he's sole target of media scrutiny for 5+ months. ~ from a link by Crid at March 11, 2020 1:01 AM

He won't hold up well when he has to carry the entire "Trump is bad" messaging by himself. Twitter is already hammering his every gaffe, put down, and confrontation with voters/critics. The Democratic Party needs to dispatch messengers so Joe doesn't have to make 10-12 appearances a week.

He needs to pull a Hillary and limit his public exposure. Each outing only generates more doubts about his health.

He probably won't select a relative hipster like Klobuchar or Gabbard as his running mate… ~ Crid at March 11, 2020 12:39 AM

This election might mark a point at which the running mate is the most important choice the candidates make - moreso than even Reagan's choice of GHW Bush, who was a political choice and not a successor choice.

Biden is showing signs of dementia. The party needs him to pick a Washington stalwart no older than his 50s or early 60s. He needs a hard lefty to excite the party base but a moderate to show swing voters they're in good hands if he 25th Amendments his way out of office. Bernie or Lizzie won't do that. The party will likely dictate his choice of VP and it will be a "safe" one.

Trump is an overweight septuagenarian. Pence is young enough and has gubernatorial experience, but he sets hearts aflutter only with the religious right. I doubt moderate Republicans react to him with giddy excitement. Nikki Haley would be more reassuring to swing and moderate voters (even Democrat ones), but Trump believes in loyalty and Pence has been loyal to him.

The math checks out Conan. Unfortunately finding a hard lefty who excites the base but is also moderate enough comfort swing voters is a null set. The party will have to give something up.

Agreed on the Pence stuff too. Perhaps Pence will decide to quit on his own. Otherwise he will still be the VP.

There should be a comma between "out" and "Conan." You do that every day. It makes it seem likes you're an immigrant.




> That needs to be clawed back.

It's not like the Chinese dropped it into their pockets when we weren't looking: They got into these businesses when we lost interest. Neither the executive nor legislative branches of our government, nor any other authority in our culture, can swing the regulatory composition of our economy to enthuse and defend the small- and medium-scale entrepreneurs who could restore our self-reliance for these sorts of resources... And there are hundreds of thousands of such products. (A few years ago Barnett said "America has the most powerful 3D printer of all time: It's called China." Well, this year, access is limited.)

Our government is ONLY effective at integrating with a few enormous companies, ones who'll readily do as they're told when implementing the Three-Weeks-Off on Independence Day for Nieces of Transsexual Veterans Act of 2022.




> Trump believes in loyalty

1.) Sessions has doubts.

2.) Beyond begging them to "Think about that!," he hasn't done much for his voters, either. Perhaps March '20 is the month when they start to notice.




> Disgusting.

Yes... Why did you share it?

I love writing something and then seeing someone I admire make the same point:

Eric Weinstein
2 hours ago


Many of us, myself included, freely admit to benefits of an interconnected world with a productive China central to its success

This virus and it’s spread, represent a HUGE cost. It thus seems entirely appropriate that we might name the virus after its first epicenter in Wuhan. […]

“Efficiency” has costs. Just-in-time inventory has costs. International trade has HUGE externalities as we’re seeing. Long supply chains have fragility as massive hidden risk.

We‘ve been led here by experts who must now realize they weren’t smarter than all those who dissented. […]

I will not object if one day there is a Seattle virus. Or a New York Flu if that is appropriate. But we need to admit that geopolitical and economic interdependence is a mixed bag. This has to be a normal part of national dialog about costs & benefits of forgoing postnationalism.


19 replies 18 retweets 222 likes

Our government can't handle humans on a human scale, moar.

Here he is, Trumpanoids!…

YOUR HERO!!

"It will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away."

Happy Purim Goddess!

"Only a good man with a sword can defeat a bad man with a sword"

"When someone says they plan on killing the Jews—believe them"

Great post by another Left Coast conservative:

http://www.seraphicpress.com/purim-2020/

Pence, looking on in the background of that clip, highlights this from Ben:

> Perhaps Pence will decide
> to quit on his own.

At some point he'll feel a Christian responsibility to break away.

I need advice.

Dear Commenters,

I currently live in a region a week or two behind Italy Coronavirus-wise.

For the Wiccan Feast of Ostara, I had planned on surprising my kids with some shrubs to plant in the garden. We will celebrate on March 21, a week from Saturday.

Do you think I need to go buy my shrubs ASAP before we are on lockdown? Will they last until the 21 or will I need to plant them immediately? I'm planning Rosa Rugea, Kiwi, and Winter Jasmine. If I buy them tomorrow, can I wait a week?

Thanks,
Planter's Wort in Too close to Italy for comfort

Buy groceries and provisions, otherwise stay home. March 2010 will not be remembered for celebrations. Your kids will figure it out eventually— Their gift will be your continuing good health.

Many in their circles will not be so fortunate.

I'd trust Fauci with my life, and do.

I wouldn't trust Trump with a Snicker's bar.

2020, I meant. You knew.

Meanwhile, less than three hours until perhaps the most backhanded joke in the history of our nation:

Donald J. Trump

I will be addressing the Nation this evening at 9:00 P.M. (Eastern) from the Oval Office.

@NicoleK,

What Crid said. Buy the supplies first, and if after that you can find enough time, go get the plants. But go for the ones that are still dormant such as rasp/blackberry bushes if you think you won't be able to get the plants you were hoping for later on.

Also, stock up on vegetable seeds; root, leafy greens, legumes. This will keep the garden busy. Check if you can improvise a greenhouse to get the seedlings ready for planting the moment the treat of frost is gone.

Vine legumes like regular/sweet/snow peas are great for temperate weather. The green pods can be eaten whole and the leaves are edible too.

Grow some corn, baby corn is great in soups and the corn silk can be used for tea.

Let us all know when you stop being hysterical Crid. Honestly if you don't publicize it we probably won't notice the difference.

Oh Ben, I've got to save this one to disk. You're the Gobert of blogdom.

"Hysterical," you say.

Coronavirus Live Thread. No 14

I figure a plant nursery isn’t super crowded on a Thursday and the risk is minimal... unlike say, the kids school trip to the skating rink today.

The breath of people who carry the virus is the greatest hazard, but it can live infectiously on surfaces for many hours, and in some cases days.

This is just not the time for playful, non-essential shopping. Wait until September, and I'll pay for the shrubs you don't buy this week.

More general info presented at a moderate and listenable pace here:

https://tinyurl.com/wjehryg

Riffing on Crid's posts: I'm going to be curious to see to what extent Biden's campaign thinks it is necessary to try to appeal to the party's leftist base. I get the sense that they prefer to expend their resources trying to claw back the traditionalist-Democrat votes that Trump succeeded in capturing in 2016. I don't think that's an impossible task. In among that group of voters there's a fair amount of what you might call "small-town socialists", to whom Trump has had a certain appeal on things like tariffs and immigration and the repealing of some Obama politics. Nonetheless, Trump has not succeeded in bringing "the plant" back to town (because it's an impossible task), and some of these Teamster-socialists are getting impatient. There's definitely a split in the party, and I think Biden is going to expose it further. What happens then? Could the party leftist wind up as a NeverBiden rump?

As for the Sessions situation: Tuberville has a double-digit lead, and he's hardly lifted a finger to campaign. If he's smart, he'll keep it that way. Football coaches are sainted in Alabama, and there's nothing he can say or do that won't expose him as human. Provided that he continues to dodge exposure, he should defeat Sessions easily. It's what happens after, when he goes to Washington and it becomes apparent to everyone that he's in over his head, that I'm concerned about. Trump has no one but himself (and John Boehner) to blame for this: if he had kept his mouth shut the last time around, Mo Brooks would be holding down this seat for the GOP for the next two decades.

Sessions has doubts. ~ Crid at March 11, 2020 11:49 AM

And Trump had doubts about Sessions' loyalty. Complicating that relationship is that Trump's definition of loyalty is like a mob boss' - you're not allowed to follow a personal code of honor if it inconveniences the mob boss. Never go against the family.

When you're a mobster, you understand that. Perhaps Sessions thought he'd joined the US government and not the Prizzi family. Great movie, by the way.

> to try to appeal to the party's
> leftist base.

Do you think Biden's presumed nomination isn't a victory for the base? In other words, I think this means the base isn't especially leftist, at least not the woo-woo wokie kind.

> Could the party leftist wind
> up as a NeverBiden rump?

That's a fun thing to think about. But it seems like the Democratic identity in these elections is merely obscured; on the Republican side, it's shattered.

> Great movie, by the way.

Wait, which are we talking about? (Don't recognize the name Prizzi.)

Wait, which are we talking about? (Don't recognize the name Prizzi.) ~ Crid at March 12, 2020 9:23 AM

Prizzi's Honor

1985

Jack Nicholson as Charlie Partana "The All-American Hood" and Kathleen Turner as Irene Walker.

Irene: "What kind of creep wouldn't catch a baby?"
Charlie:"He wasn't paid to bodyguard the baby."

Charlie: "I met her in church. It just happened. I knew she was the woman for me."

Charlie: "Do I ice her? Do I marry her?"

"Do you think Biden's presumed nomination isn't a victory for the base? In other words, I think this means the base isn't especially leftist, at least not the woo-woo wokie kind."

I don't know. I'm not actually sure who the party's base is these days. The leftists are definitely the noisiest part. Are they the largest? Maybe not. Or, to put it another way: they might just be the largest numerically, but how engaged are they? We know that most of the Sanders supports are young people, and we know that the young generally vote in lower percentages than older demographics. Obviously some groups are voting for Biden since he's winning primaries. (Barring an absolutely massive vote-fraud program by the party leadership, but I don't think they have the smarts or the resources to pull that off.)

There's what Richard Nixon used to call a "silent majority" in there somewhere. Which way will they swing? Hard to guess. I think Trump is still most likely to win, but if the GOP is smart, they won't take Biden for granted.

> Prizzi's Honor
>
> 1985

Oh… I thought you might have been thinking of Salazzo or Barzini. It sounded like the Don's admonishment of Sonny, or like Michael's warning to Fredo… I never saw Prizzi.

I had a moderate movie-star crush on Turner in the mid-80's, when working too hard to see many movies anyway.

Perusing the today's image pages dispositively demonstrates that no ingenue ever hit the wall so hard or so fast.

I mean, I still would, but sheesh.

> they might just be the largest
> numerically, but how
> engaged are they?

This seems precisely correct. They're the future... So what? The election is *this* year. 'The art of the possible' and all that.

Chris Matthews, who is having a bad eason, wrote a fun & breezy book about politics. One of its most cold but powerful precepts for political operatives was:

Always agree on principle…

I mean, we can be certain that the Democratic base, whatever its genuine inclinations and intentions, listened very patiently —with eye contact, slightly-parted teeth, the whole shebang— as the woke wing expressed its enthusiasms, and will be integrating their fantastic ideas into Party operations just as soon as possible.

> There's what Richard Nixon used
> to call a "silent majority" in
> there somewhere.

Um, ah dunno, Mang. America is really, really more diverse than it used to be.

This isn't racism, though infantile lefties will always assume that's what conservatives are secretly trying to say… … …

Consider the moral and cultural presumptions of the 1900's-1930's in a typical American city, a Dubuque or Fort Wayne or even a near-South place the size of Knoxville. I'm completely making this up, totally pulling it out of my ass, but it feels like the most cornbread of white Christian families had more in common with the poor black families (no matter how the former mistreated the latter) than you see between dissimilar voting blocs today. (Perhaps most importantly, they had similar presumptions about the centrality of marriage and of church.)

Diversity is about much more than skin color now. And as both corporate monsters and boneless lefties work to blow open the doors to unfettered immigration, the idea that there should be some cultural commonality is passé (or worse). Via Szabo: Eventually, this will be North America's human harvest as well.

With a politic peopled by completely untempered immigrant personalities on one side of a gerrymander, and by naive, social-media-inebriated children in the next precinct, I don't think there's a shared appreciation of the world which can cohere —as a 'silent majority'— on a party ticket.

The SM was a brilliant political construction, but perhaps inapplicable in this wretched century.



Sheezus, even the best of them are wretched, aren't they?

Even with the accelerated mortality described by Covid-19's epidemiologists and slippery fistfuls of personal challenge, I really, really love being 61 years old.

I bought the shrubs yesterday. I think lockdown is coming soon. The guy at the nursery said they would last a week.

Is it weird that my inner prepper is thinking long term? This will blow over and hopefully my family will survive... but other disasters would strike and if they strike in November it would be nice to have fresh fruit.

With the kiwis, I'll have fresh food starting with the Dandelions through November/early December. Not tons. But some.

Incubation is 5-9+ days, right? Whatever's going on around you in terms of illness reflects conditions from early March. Be careful and good luck.

Yes, heard a rumor schools will be closed Monday and that today is the last day. Federal council is voting on measures today. So I'll know more by tonight. But everything around me is cancelling.

If they vote for stricter measures we'll be a week or two ahead of Italy was on containing this.

I've formed a group on FB for childcare if the schools close, so that grandparents don't have to watch the kids. If parents have to work, maybe they can do some exchanges. I figure groups of under five kids is probably better than groups of 20 kids.

In the mean time, I have food, I don't really need anything, I can hang out at home, go for walks in the woods, and do yardwork. I'm assuming we will be allowed in the woods, so am planning to do plant identification as a homeschooling project.

My milk doesn't start expiring until May 7, so I won't have to go out much, though I'll probably do a few runs for fresh veggies. I'm thinking farm stands rather than supermarkets so I don't have to interact with the cashier (you just leave your money in a box, honor system)

How are you prepping?

Same as I do for hurricanes. Make sure you've got a week or two of food. Plenty of dry goods that store well. At least in this case you aren't likely to lose power or water. So that makes things easier.

The truth is you aren't going to stop yourself from getting this stuff. Just like you aren't going to stop the flu. So all that can be done is slow the spread so medical services don't get hit with as many dire cases at one time.

> Same as I do for hurricanes.

You're becoming hysterical; you don't believe in Orangeman hard enough. You have to adore him with all your heart, Benjy… That's the way magic works!

"It will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away."

-Tuesday