4/3/2026

 Friday, April 3, 2026

1860 Start of the Pony Express; mail was delivered by horse and rider relay teams between St. Joseph, Missouri and Sacramento, California

1948 President Harry Truman signed the Marshall Plan to rebuild war-torn Western Europe after World War II, granting an initial $5 billion in aid to 16 European countries

1955 The American Civil Liberties Union announced it would defend Allen Ginsberg's book "Howl" against obscenity charges

1968 N Vietnam agreed to meet US reps to set up preliminary peace talks

1969 Vietnam War: Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird announced that the United States would start a policy of "Vietnamization", reducing American involvement

2025  Multinational car manufacturer Stellantis announces it will lay off 900 workers across five of its U.S. factories and will pause production at assembly plants in Canada and Mexico in response to the tariffs.

In bed at 9:30, up at 6ish, 0600 136/76/62 204.4

Morning meds at 11 a.m.  Ranolzaline at 6:39 a.m. and 6:05 p.m.  Trulicity injection at 7 p.m.

Symptoms.  Three days ago I wrote ""It's hard to believe how tired I am every day, how often I stretch out on a recliner to rest or nap."  Ditto today.  I had 2 appointments at the VA today, Kali Kisto and the Physical Therapy clinic.  I was like a zombie at both and as I write this at 2:30 in the afternoon, I'm 'coming to.'  Fatigue is not listed as a common side effect of the Ranolazine, so I'm wondering if this problem is just the congestive heart failure at work.  On the other hand, the lightheadedness remains significantly improved, ditto the SOB.  Go figure.  Good news: our new front stoop iron railings were installed the other day and I 'broke them in' this afternoon, i.e., I used them for the first time.  Thanks to the VA.  A big help!  It's more than a little distressing that the one, short step from our sidewalk to the stoop is a risk for me, but so it goes.

An F-15 was shot down over Iran today.  One crew member was rescued, the other is being sought. I'm thinking of Pete Hegseth's public statements about ignoring the Geneva Conventions, "We will keep advancing, no quarter, no mercy for our enemies,' and “no stupid rules of engagement,” “no politically correct wars.”  My greatest concern with his many comments like these is that he puts our own service people in combat zones in greater risk of being mistreated by those they are trying to kill or otherwise hurt.  If America will show "no quarter, no mercy" to the Iranians, why should they show mercy or quarter to our captured airmen? Or to observe the legal requirements of the Geneva Conventions??