6/9/2025

 Monday, June 9, 2025

D+194/138/1321

2016 US President Barack Obama officially endorsed Hillary Clinton as the Democratic Presidential nominee, earning Joe Biden's lasting enmity

2020 US Senate unanimously confirmed General Charles Q. Brown (58) as Air Force Chief of Staff, 1st African American to lead a US armed forces branch.  He was later named as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs by Biden, but was abruptly removed by Trump 

2022 First public hearing of the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack was held.  After the American electorate restored Trump to power, he said the committee members should be investigated and prosecuted.

In bed at 9:30, awake and up at 4:55.  56°, high of 64°, AQI at 106, unhealthy for sensitive groups because of Canadian wildfires, a reminder that nowhere escapes the effects of climate change, notwithstanding Trumpian claims of 'hoax.'  While preparing a cup of honeyed Whispering Wildflower herbal tea, I spotted through the kitchen window a lone deer standing on its hind legs, nibbling a leaf or a new berry on the western County Line tree.  A couple of minutes later, it scratched behind its left ear with its hind hoof.  He moved slowly in the matutinal light, ever alert, its very large ears twitching and reminding me of mule deer.  It seemed to sense my presence at the kitchen window before ambling over to Geri's marginal garden, out of my sight.  Geri works so hard on her gardens and is terribly frustrated that, to the neighborhood deer, rabbits, and other varmints, they are a cafeteria line of delectibles there for their choosing and eating. Two or three days ago, I hung the squirrel-proof tube feeder chock full of sunflower and safflower seeds on the. tree just off the patio.  I looked at it today, and it is empty, almost certainly because of deer, not because of birds.  AQI is 110 from Canada's wildfires.  

Morning meds at 5:25 a.m.  Eye wipes at 6:45 a.m. and at 6:15 p.m.   Blink pill at 6:25 a.m.  Eye mask at 6:50 a.m.  and  7 p.m.  I meditated for several minutes under the eye pads.  I'm very arthritic this morning; even my hands and fingers are stiff and achy.  I had more middle-of-the-night hip pain last night.

Geri is off to Chicago to visit Steve for a day or two.  Nikki is visiting her sister Julie in Washington State.

Sarah will be here this weekend, for Father's Day, coincidentally (or not!?).

A Monday Morning in Trump's America.  I have been sitting in my recliner much of the morning, alternately looking at the news from Los Angeles and at our bird feeders and the foot and vehicle traffic on Wakefield Court.  Earlier this morning, I saw Ghassan Majdalani walking Athena.  Later, two young mothers passed by with children in strollers.  Cars carrying our neighbors to their work sites drive by as they do every workday.  And of course, our neighborhood birds show up for breakfast and bruch ofd sunflower seeds, safflower seeds, niger seeds, suet, or a bit of orange.  It looks like a peaceful, normal morning in peaceful, normal Bayside, Wisconsin.

The tidings in the newspapers and on the television screen tell a very different tale.  Trump has sent, over the objections of the Governor of California and the mayor of Los Angeles, up to 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles because of demonstrations and scattered violence aimed at ICE raids on various worksites looking for undocumented immigrants.  The targets are not violent criminals, but rather immigrants who entered the United States without authorization or who overstayed their visas.  Los Angeles is the second most populous city in America, with approximately 3.8 million residents.  The metropolitan area is home to almost 13 million.  The city is majority minority, with only about 28% non-Hispanic White, 8.5% Black, 12% Asian, and more than 47% Hispanic or Latino.

Yesterday I wrote: 

 Trump has taken a bad situation and made it worse.  He has unnecessarily created a situation of armed conflict between the armed forces of the United States and American citizens.  There will be bad reactions from bad people striving to foment trouble, anger, reactions and overreaction.  The arrival of National Guard troops in Los Angeles today is the arrival of more trouble for the people of LA. . . .  Inflaming and escalating the tension in the city by sending in armed troops is asking for trouble, and we can be sure that there will be people in LA who will be only too happy to accommodate him.  We have to wonder whether Trump, Vance, Bondi, Hegseth, and/or Noem hope that there will be shooting, injuries, and/or deaths.  They all delight in showing strength and nothing demonstrates strength over an opponent like killing him does.

In David French's op-ed in the Times this morning, he says:

It’s worth asking: Does Trump want protesters to get hurt? Recall that Mark Esper, a former Trump secretary of defense, has said that in 2020 Trump asked Gen. Mark Milley, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, “Can’t you just shoot them, just shoot them in the legs or something?” Esper took his comment as both a suggestion and a question.  

As I so often said to my dear Sister in our morning conversations when I made frightening predictions about Trump, I hope I'm wrong, but so far, in addition to skirmishes along police and National Guard lines, a Molotov cocktail has been thrown at a police officer and a motorcycle has been driven into a police line.   The chief of LAPD has said the local police force is already overwhelmed.  Televised news footage makes it very clear that there are many people present at the sites where demonstrations are occurring who are intent on causing trouble, taunting law enforcement officers and Guardsmen, waving Mexican and Salvadoran national flags, throwing rocks, etc.  700 Marines is prepared to deploy from Camp Pendleton to serve in Los Angeles, in what capacity and to what end and under what rules of engagement we are not told.  Here's my thoughts on that atrocity in my text to Geri this afternoon:

Hi,  Sweetie.  Sarah sent me an email days ago saying she will be here  this weekend and, if it’s convenient, it’s our turn to host her.  I told her she’s always welcome and expect her to stay here.  I told her you will be going tp the No King rally at Cathedral Square on Saturday.  Andy and Anne have been talking about brunch on Sunday and I haven’t said anything but it’s Father’s Day and I think I should say we will attend.  That’s assuming someone can get a reservation on Father’s Day.  I’m having leftover spaghetti tonight.  I spent the day watching news out of LA, including the fact that 700 Marines from Camp Pendleton are being sent there which makes me almost sick to my stomach and angry about a flagrant misuse and abuse of Marines.  Also learned of the $45,000,000 military parade on Saturday for Trump’s birthday.  Outrageous.  I also worked on a gouache drawing this afternoon.  I’m surprised and pleased that I’m doing quite OK despite your absence, keeping myself busy around the house, reading, writing, painting, and keeping up on the news so if you’re inclined to stay over tomorrow night, don’t be disinclined by any concern about me.❤️💕

WIP

In 2016, Trump received 62,984,828 votes, 46.1% of the popular vote. In 2020, Trump received 74,223,975 votes, 46.8% of the popular vote. In 2024, Trump received 77,302,580 votes, 49.8% of the popular vote. What does the trend line suggest about where our country is and where our country is headed?