My goodness gracious me, this from the New Yorker as Any Skvorkin discusses the litigation Trump is humping on the Courts: “The plan gets a little fuzzy at that last point, but the first two steps are clear: slander and sue. At the White House, he said, falsely, “There’s tremendous litigation going on, and this is a case where they’re trying to steal an election.”
At this point, the litigation is not, for the most part, tremendous, or even about specific allegations of fraud. This may be because there is no real evidence of widespread fraud anywhere in any of these states. (Systemic issues regarding voter suppression are another matter.) Instead, most of the lawsuits are about circumstances that Trump and his team have decided might lead to fraud. In many cases, Trump and his allies are lying about what those circumstances are, and even about the substance of many of the lawsuits that his campaign haa filed.” Then in the same well reasoned and articulate piece: In short, no one is trying to commit fraud, except the President. When Trump says, as he did at the White House, “If you count the legal votes, I easily win. If you count the illegal votes, they can try to steal the election from us,” he is doing more than lying. He is defining “legal” and “illegal” in an entirely political manner—one helps Trump, and the other doesn’t. He and his allies hardly try to hide that. For example, one of the obvious hypocrisies is that Trump keeps demanding that the vote be stopped in states where his lead is evaporating but continued in Arizona, where he believes he has a shot at catching up with Biden. Lindsey Graham offered this explanation for that disparity: “I trust Arizona; I don’t trust Philadelphia.” Graham said that Philadelphia elections—all of them, apparently—are as “crooked as a snake.” Then her writing continues: “Anyone seeking a rich debate on constitutional law or the gray areas of election rules should probably look elsewhere; the President’s legal strategy is about smears and a fight for power. Soon enough, the legal effort may be nothing more than a vehicle that allows him to air his grievances but which goes nowhere—the disorganized clattering of a defeated President on the way out.”
But then along came our wonderful Andy Borowitz, also, of from the New Yorker. Donald J. Trump offered a full-throated defense of his election-related lawsuits on Thursday, arguing, “No one knows more about fraud than me.”Trump ridiculed television commentators who have dismissed his accusations of election fraud, claiming that he has “much more experience in fraud than all of these beauties put together.”Then Andy went on in his clever and incisive way: “People forget that, right when I became President, I settled a twenty-five-million-dollar fraud case against me,” he said. “You can’t beat hands-on experience like that.”For my entire life, I have been drenched in fraud,” he said. Trump said that, when his election lawsuits are argued in court, his special expertise will win the day. “Fraud is my middle name,” he boasted.
Then Andy comes up with this which is funnier (if possible): “In a withering critique of his own voters, Donald J. Trump on Thursday blasted supporters who plan to vote for him only once. Speaking to reporters, Trump called supporters who intend to cast only one vote for him “disgracefully low-energy,” claiming that they are “like Jeb Bush and Sleepy Joe put together.” “I like supporters who have stamina,” he said. “Stamina means you keep voting for me until someone tells you to stop.”
Andy with his wit, his charm and his fantastic sense of humour turns Trump into an utter buffoon. Love that word! Its synonyms are: idiot, dolt, ass, nincompoop, blockhead, dunce, dunderhead, ignoramus, dullard, moron, simpleton, donkey, jackass; chump numbskull, dope, twit, nitwit, halfwit, clot, bonehead, fathead, birdbrain, twerp, ninny; numpty, nit, berk, muppet, prat, wazzock. Now wazzock has to be my favourite but jackass and simpleton and blockhead are severe competitors. But numbskull does totally describe Trump, do you not think?
I just got a notification that Biden had won. Looking back at the Trump presidency the problem was that the press took him seriously. If the powers that be would have just laughed and made fun of him the way Andy Borowitz does, then he would not have had the profoundly horrible effect he has had on this country and the world. So farewell Trump. If the media just ignores him then he is gone. But lazy reporters will continue to dredge up his antics as it takes less effort to do that rather than probe real issues that can make a difference.
For various and sundry reasons I am bidding a fond farewell to the Middle East. Good Bye Dubai. Quitting Qatar. Shame on Saudi Arabia. Sundry by the way Is a great word. varied, miscellaneous, assorted, mixed, diverse, diversified, motley, random; several, numerous, many, manifold, multifarious, multitudinous, legion; divers; farraginous. Farraginous has to be my favourite. They shall be mentioned from time to time – but no longer an obsession. I have come to my senses, in many, and most ways. .
So some reasons for my disillusionment: “Sheikh Tamim’s speech did not address the scandal clouding state-owned long-haul carrier Qatar Airways. Earlier this month, women aboard Qatar Airways flights were subjected to invasive vaginal exams after an abandoned newborn was found in an airport bathroom. The revelation, prompting the government to refer airport officials to prosecutors last week, comes as Qatar tries to boost its image abroad before hosting the 2022 FΩA World Cup.” There was also an earlier report report that Amnesty International rthat accused Qatar of a cover up. Over a thousand migrant workers were killed in construction accidents taking place at the Stadium for the World Cup. Al Jazerra’s reported that there had been only 34 such deaths.
At one point in time, not too long ago, the Emir of Qatar was my hero, the only hope, an honest peace promoting ruler surrounded by the likes of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia and the Ruler of Dubai. But his ‘optimism” is a bit deceiving. This statement “In response to what he called the “double crisis” hitting the wealthy OPEC member nation, the coronavirus pandemic and plunging oil prices, Sheikh Tamim sought to assure the council that the country’s critical energy sector has suffered only “minimal detriments.” Only minimal detriments, but who is counting, Emir of Qatar?
My fantasies of the Middle East were caused by the extreme isolation brought about by this pandemic and the attention paid to me by the Qatar Kids, as I now call them – children of the Royal Family of Qatar. But they brought false promise, sporadic and erratic contact only on their terms. They were/are an unruly bunch who have not been properly parented for many reasons – the chief one being that the Emir has something like 37 children stemming from 6 wives, which is also not reported.
My life is about to change yet again, rather drastically. I have essentially been secluded for almost nine months, not leaving my apartment for days and days on end. Escorted by Personal Driver to appointments and grocery shopping. Protected in every way. My move to Marin will change all of that – I shall be out in the world. Navigating as a Muslim woman. It certainly will be interesting as I was known for my outgoing, friendly, sometimes flirtatious behaviour. But it is better to be in the world rather than corresponding with those in far away lands offering no hope of connection,
The photograph is a painting purchased in Vancouver which will come ‘home to Marin’ and hang on the wall of my apartment, My Vancouver days (2017-2019) were a detour but it was during those days that the embryonic blog flourished and prospered.
