Saturday, May 02, 2020

May Day through the years



So is the past due to repeat itself? In many respects, it already has. The battles of 1919 and 1934 are as relevant now as they were then, and despite a century of technological innovation and social progress, many of the same wretched, oppressive, dangerous conditions that 20th-century workers fought so hard against remain today. Those glaring structural flaws — rampant capitalist exploitation, the greed of soulless bosses, government disinterest in workers’ lives, and a lack of proper sanitation, safety measures, or health care — have only been magnified in the harsh light of this pandemic. It’s no wonder that the workers themselves are drawing on the lessons of the past to demand a better future, and if a general strike truly is in the cards, now’s the time to show our hand.

When Emma Goldman wrote, “Ask for work. If they don't give you work, ask for bread. If they do not give you work or bread, then take bread” in her 1910 collection Anarchism and Other Essays, she could not have imagined the exact contours of the crisis workers face today. For many, there is no work, there is no bread, there are no masks. But there are their fellow workers, and for now, that might just be enough to win the rest.











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Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Race for the White House Update: Justin Amash and Jesse Ventura

-- Conventional wisdom (sic) holds that this is bad news for Joe Biden, not Trump.

Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan said Tuesday that he is launching an exploratory committee for the 2020 Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination.

The Republican-turned-independent said on Twitter that the U.S. was ready for new leadership. He also posted a link to a new campaign website.

“Americans are ready for practical approaches based in humility and trust of the people,” Amash said. “We’re ready for a presidency that will restore respect for our Constitution and bring people together.

Amash announced last July that he was leaving the Republican Party, saying he had become disenchanted with partisan politics and “frightened by what I see from it.” He drew ire from President Donald Trump and fellow Republicans when he said the president had engaged in impeachable conduct as described in special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on ties between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia.

I don't see it ...


But the polling shows it.


Do click on that Bulwark link (even though it's The Bulwark; the conservative perspective is important in this calculus).  Amash's bid explains why Gretchen Whitmer (the governor of Michigan) is a finalist in the veepstakes, though she doesn't seem to want the job as much as Stacey Abrams.

It's amusing that #NeverTrump Republicans are already calling Amash the "new Ralph Nader".  He inspires the regularly scheduled fear and loathing among neoliberals as a result.


HuffPo has more detail on the constituencies Amash might draw votes from.

-- So if that's not enough November fun for you ...

Jesse Ventura, who served as Minnesota governor as a member of the Reform Party, said Monday that he is "testing the waters" for a potential 2020 run for president on the Green Party ticket.

In a pair of tweets, the former wrestling star, who has repeatedly floated a White House bid, said he endorses the Green Party's platform and had authorized a letter to the party signaling his interest in running for its presidential nomination.


In my WH Update last week -- and in IPR's account on Monday -- both of us indicated skepticism about Ventura throwing in.  So while we wait for my humble crow pie to come out of the oven, let me reiterate my personal objection to voting for Jesse unless he can clear up a few things about his platform, specifically his lack of support for Medicare for All.

Jonathan Bernstein probably has the right take as of today.  I still see the Green Party nomination going to Howie Hawkins, though I wish Dario Hunter was running stronger.

-- Bernie Sanders thanked his supporters yesterday in an online chat.  He did not release his delegates, as some feared, following the cancellation of the New York primary.  He also did not acknowledge pleadings to unsuspend his campaign or withdraw his endorsement of Biden due to the bubbling scandal related to Tara Reade's rape allegations.

A handful of his top campaign aides started a SuperPAC to support Joe Biden.


"Ye shall know them by their fruits."

-- Hillary Clinton endorsed Joe yesterday.



Don't think for minute that both Trump and the rest of the GOP are beyond making hay out of this "whistling past the graveyard" business on the part of the Democratic establishment.


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Monday, April 27, 2020

Wrangle II, "May the Odds be Ever in Your Favor"







It's difficult not to cheer observe that the vast majority of those who will place themselves in the greatest danger are the same people Trump and down-ballot Republicans are depending on for votes in November.  These are still our neighbors, family, and friends, however, and all of us -- of all political persuasions -- run the risk of contracting the deadly COVID-19 by virtue of a group who will throw caution to the wind.

There's a few bad apples in every barrel.



Just as there are some good ones.

N-95 model face masks have been in high demand during the coronavirus pandemic, but thanks to a Black chief executive nurse at the University of Texas Health System, a new and even more efficient model is now on the horizon.

According to a local ABC affiliate, when nurse Tommye Austin saw on the news how COVID-19 was infecting communities all over the country, she made the decision to proactively create masks for her own colleagues.



"We had this AC filter material we purchased from Houston ..."

[...]

(W)hen they tested their design, they were stunned to find out the new masks’ filtration rates were at a stunning 99.5 percent with one material and 97.8 percent filtration with another. Both were more efficient than the current model which eliminates 95 percent of the virus or bacteria that tries to get through.


Some Texas Democrats doing good ...


Some not.



Some recent court victories include:



And some court cases worth keeping an eye on.



There are two cases.

https://www.txcourts.gov/ (select courts and then 14th Court of Appeals. Select Case Search. Make sure 14th Court of Appeals is selected and enter the Style: Hughs (no ‘E’) v. Dikeman.)

14-19-00969-CV is the state’s appeal of the TRO against imposing the filing fee on applicants for consideration for nomination. Before the appeals court stayed the TRO, most Libertarian applicants had filed.

14-20-00078-CV is the state’s appeal of whether the district court could even consider the case, given state immunity from some lawsuits. There are exceptions. The state can not act in a unconstitutional manner. The law and its implementation is collection of equal protection and due process violations. The SOS can not exercise authority outside the law. The law imposed a filing fee on a specific class of individuals. The SOS is attempting to impose the fee on additional persons.

If the plaintiffs win their case before the Court of Appeals, the case would return to the district court for trial on the merits. At that time (July or later) I assume a court would grant a temporary injunction placing candidates on general election ballot.

An update to this morning's Wrangle article on the Austin PD's ongoing problems.


Without much fanfare, Houston announced the city's Climate Action Plan.


In San Antonio, there has been much quarreling over the plan to relocate the Cenotaph at the Alamo as the first phase of a $450 million renovation of the plaza.  Here's the latest development.


Stormy weather in East Texas made life a little rougher there.


Texas Muslims began their holy celebration of Ramadan.


And Luis Guerra's "Ceremony at San Pedro Springs", posted earlier in the month by LareDOS, is republished by The Rag Blog.  It is a story he wrote nearly ten years ago, inspired by the environmental calamity of Deepwater Horizon, the memories echoing in the time of coronavirus.



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