Today is Saturday January 22. Kia ora!

Joe Robinette (?) Biden Jnr is now safely inaugurated as President of the US.

Hey, America, don’t do that again!  I always found America a scarily wonderful place, a vast land of huge contrasts. I’ve been there six times, so I feel I have some right to make statements of fact and opinion. Even when Obama was President, it was a scary place. But the last four years have really been something else.

I have close family members living there, so I have had a quite intimate fear, as well as the fear of the world in general.  America, who’s in charge, and what is done, has a profound effect on the rest of the world, even here in New Zealand.  I know there are many wonderful people in America, for whom I have enormous respect, so how could Trump even be elected? Be the republican candidate? It’s really important who’s in government, if you don’t want the death penalty, or physical punishment in schools; if you want contraception to be freely available; oh, and that black folk be fairly treated – many of these things we take for granted in other civilised nations.

This “aberration”, as RBG called it, has been horrendous. Yes, I realise many Americans who voted for Joe Biden are experiencing a huge sense of relief, but we were terrified too. I followed the election, and all its steps, very closely. Each morning the first thing I would do on waking was see what Trump was up to. It wasn’t just that he didn’t do stuff – he actively interfered when others were trying to do the Right Thing! Most if not all “good people” were fired by him. His handling of the pandemic has been dreadful.

What a relief, then, to have a new administration! Despite much fear and anticipation, nothing bad happened. In fact, like the DNC Convention, it was a joyful, joyous ceremony, full of surprises, which did much to make it truly memorable:

• Biden’s wonderful speech, highly rated by Chris Wallace and many others;
• Despite heavy security, to us watching on television it didn’t seem heavy;
• Many wonderful pop stars, including J Lo singing “This land is your land, this land is my Land”, and then speaking in Spanish;
• The crowds weren’t in the Mall, but thousands of flags (used properly) were;
• An amazing fireworks display;
• Amanda Gorman’s poem, and her utter self-confidence in demonstrating with her arms and reading it;
• Everyone wore masks;
• Ted Cruz and John Hawley were there;
• Pence was there (having declined Trump’s farewell party at Andrews Air Base); Trump wasn’t there, thank goodness.
• The whole scene was incredibly moving, and brought tears to my eyes.

Like many others, I rejoiced when there were so many Democratic candidates for president; I despaired when Joe Biden was chosen. But he has turned out to be a good candidate, and probably the only one who could have beaten Trump. In the end it wasn’t even close, and Biden won comfortably, although it seemed there were innumerable hurdles to jump over. Biden looked frail at times. At the first presidential debate, male Americans were horrified by how “violated” they felt. Some women felt their blood pressure go up, and panic attacks coming on. Would Biden get the coronavirus? How would he cope with the wearying travel requirements?  But the man (and his VP nominee, and his team) rose to the occasion, and it has all been memorable in so many ways. Remember the disruptions to the US Postal Service? One might say despite numerous obstacles, and a global pandemic, democracy rose to meet the moments (and there were many of them).

After the inauguration, rather than expensive balls,  we had a press conference, fronted by Jen Psaki. What a change! We weren’t lied to! She was gracious. All the Democrats speak well. I’m sure there are some bad eggs. But just at present, they all speak well and sound eloquent and gracious. The way they speak is a huge contrast to republican politicians, for whom everything seems political. This press conference reminds me of some in New Zealand, where some members of the press asked really silly questions. Jan Psaki remained unfazed.

Biden’s team is filled with wonderful, capable people, who are both thoughtful and intelligent. None of them overshadows Biden, but he lets them get on with their work. And what a joy it is to see Dr Fauci unleashed, even having a chuckle!  I was very moved by his recent interview on Rachel Maddow’s show. So, the Democrats are wonderful. They are trustworthy. They are gracious.

In contrast, the republicans are all over the place.  McConnell has trashed Trump, publicly, twice, but he’s being difficult about governing, after being in control of the Senate for so long. How loyal are the other senators to him? Lisa Murkowski is evidently thinking of voting with the Dems; a motion to censure Cruz and Hawley has been put forward. I have heard pundits argue whether their despicable actions are good politics for them.  They seem treasonous to others.  Everything is political.  Some (e.g. Kevin McCarthy) are punished for not being “Trumpy” enough;  Linsey Graham, who is mates again with Trump, after denouncing him on January 6^th, was jeered at an airport recently.  They can’t get it right now. I think Mitt Romney’s message to tell one’s constituents the truth is not amazing, just sensible.  The death threats must have been scary, but some folk stood up to Trump, e.g. Raffensperger, Gabriel Sterling, Rosen, and Liz Cheney (who denounced Trump strongly) has been called on to resign.  The Republican Party, as at their awful Convention at the White House, still has no platform. What exactly does it stand for?

What a joy it is not to hear Trump on twitter. That is a huge move, and has proved to be hugely disempowering. I am sure there are folk who would be happy to relay his message, but he hasn’t been prepared to learn to use another social media platform. After all, he’s 74 years old – probably not that adaptable.  I listened to part of his farewell speech – it started out being quite gracious, but as time went on I just couldn’t stand the lies. I did notice the omission of Kimberley Guilfoyle from his speech. All his other children, and their spouses, were mentioned by name.

The stories just keep coming of his ghastliness. The string of last-minute pardons (of some people who pled guilty to committing really bad crimes) include one to Steve Bannon, who fleeced Trump’s supporters sending money to build the southern border wall!  Trump’s own supporters have not only bought into many of the lies, but they contributed to a fund which was used to pay Steve Bannon! Their contributions didn’t go towards building the Wall. Meanwhile, his supporters breached the Capitol! They weren’t kept out by police, barriers, or respect for democratic institutions – government by elected representatives, be they gun-toting, Q-Anon conspirators, or people who had no intention of respecting the Oath to the Constitution they had taken.  Now the Proud Boys are feeing abandoned by Trump – they were just doing as he asked!

All this talk about free speech seems silly to me. Surely one should aim not to hurt anyone by what one says: own your own opinions, but be careful how you state them! And remember, while you’re entitled to your own opinions, you aren’t entitled to your own facts. Sometimes the truth takes a while to emerge, but you can always say “At the moment it seems to me…”. Surely one should always try not to be hurtful. You’re allowed to admit to having been wrong, or having changed your views!

Here in New Zealand, the government has tightened border restrictions – you now have to have a negative Covid 19 test before getting on a plane to come here.  I just hope the vaccines arrive before we have another community outbreak. There have been no major incidents at MIQ facilities recently, but we all depend on these good folk, who of course have their own families and networks. There is an alarming number of new cases diagnosed each day, including the more infectious new variant(s). These are now recognised as being more deadly too. Hospitals in the US and the UK are in a bad way, that’s if you can get to a hospital.  In the US Biden and Harris held a memorial service for those who died in this pandemic – now officially 414,000. Still, there is hope for the future – vaccines, and a new US President and administration.

Ngā mihi.

Today is Tuesday January 19. Kia ora.

“The dog has turned back to his own vomit; and the washed sow to her rolling in mud”, 2 Peter 2:22.

I can’t help thinking of this text as we learn more and more about the sad events of January 6, and Trump’s role in them, and of a few republicans who were initially shocked, and have now gone back to supporting him (Linsey Graham, for example).  There is lot of the republican talk of how unfair it is to impeach him, with only days left in office. All this while there is enormous fear around the inauguration, due January 20.

There are many armed troops and policemen in Washington, and they themselves are being vetted to weed out any traitors within their ranks.  Fourteen, I think, were weeded out.

We have been here before. Trump does something terrible, worse than he’s done before, and his crowds, and many republicans, denounce him, and then revert to still adore him. Some wit quipped that if he ran down Pennsylvania Avenue naked, people would admire his new clothes. And yet, the Pentagon said No to him – No to his demand for a 21 gun salute and a military parade when he leaves the White House. The headline reads: “Pentagon smacks down Trump’s request for large-scale, red-carpet, military-style sendoff”.  Well, that wasn’t so hard, was it?  So that’s a relief.

The stories just keep coming: of corporate funding supporting groups that supported the mobsters; of military-style formations of some mobsters ; of Ted Cruz’s despicable sucking-up to Trump, although he insulted his wife and his father; of rioters who claim to be doing as their president requested, and now wanting pardons; of frightened journalists, who now realise the fear Black people experience for themselves and their children all the time; of the violence and cruelty of the mob, who were quite prepared to kill Nancy Pelosi and hang Mike Pence. So far, I have not heard anyone speaking up for Pence except journalists; while many of us despise his unwavering support for Trump, and his failure to deal effectively with the HIV-Aids epidemic in Indiana when he was governor, nobody agrees that he should be put to death.

The mobsters include veterans, a former Olympic medalist, and many people who Should Have Known Better.  Some of them are shocked and surprised to be arrested, although they were violent, and attacking police, in many instances. It also seems that terrifying as this insurrection was, for several hours, help was held up in terms of reinforcements. Many people, politicians and their families and journalists, had to hide in terror for their lives, for hours, in some cases, having “escaped” from the debating chamber with only seconds to spare. These mobsters were not students or young people who could claim to have under-developed brains. They were grown-ups.

In contrast with the many Black Lives Matter protests, where to be sure there was some burning and looting, the marches were largely peaceful, and no one was killed at their hands. Yet although these protests were extensive, justice for black and coloured people remains elusive.

The fear and terror caused by these events, and the trauma experienced by the many people who nursed a loved one with Covid 19, and the health workers involved, must surely leave a huge burden of shock and grief on those who remain. It’s not just older people who have died – many younger people have lost their lives, and children have lost their parents, in addition to losing a year’s schoolwork and normal socialisation. “It didn’t have to be this way”.

It is now Wednesday January 20 here. I trust that when I wake up tomorrow morning, Biden will have been safely inaugurated as President.

Last night was weird. I woke with a sense of dread at 3:25 am, then went back to sleep, some time later. I got up early intending to go to summer Tai Chi  (outdoors and free, weather permitting), and then decided, when I went out to get the newspaper, it was too windy, and I would not go.

Today there are more interesting news stories. It seems Mitch McConnell has condemned Trump even more soundly, saying that “the mob who invaded the building were fed lies and provoked by the President.”

There is much apprehension. Washington DC is like a war-zone. While Trump has not started a war yet, there are great fears that he will. The mob (of mobs) includes conspiracy theorists (Q-Anon supporters), the Proud Boys, armed self-styled militias, and many others, who claim to be acting as their president told them to; that their violence is warranted; that they are standing up for their constitution and democracy (as opposed to the socialism or even wore, communism espoused by Democrats)…so many lies. The biggest lie, fomented for many months before November’s election, is that the election was rigged, and the presidency was stolen from Trump; hence Biden’s decisive win was somehow fraudulent and stolen.

There is a lot of talk about the vehemence, violence and innate beliefs of the mobsters, and a lot of fear: what will they do next? Will Biden’s inauguration be interrupted in some way we don’t yet know? Fear of the unknown is huge.

Not long to go now.  Another day, another hurdle. For some reason, I am absorbed by all this. Ngā mihi.

Actually it is now Sunday  January 17^th. Kia ora! Kia kaha!

I have been meaning to write again for some time.

We are inching towards Joe Biden’s inauguration as President of the US, and learning more and more about the events on Wednesday January 6^th, when the US Capitol was invaded by an angry mob.

But first, I have finished reading Olive, Again, by Elizabeth Strout.  How I enjoyed this novel. Spoiler alert – I will say what happens. Olive marries and loses a second husband; she has a heart attack, and a fall, and she moves into a nursing home.  Her environment shrinks, although her mind does not. People speak over her, as if she weren’t there, but she finds this strangely freeing. She gets tired; she has a fall and can’t get up. The indignities of age creep up on her, yet her mind, her wit, her essence remain, in spite of the fact that she views some past events differently, for example, her first husband.

Yesterday we went to see Wonder Woman 84 (mainly to placate my husband). I booked seats at Pauatahanui; last time we went the session was fully booked. This time I need not have bothered: there were only 5 other people there! My bad, Americas Cup Yacht Racing was live on free-to-air television (actually pre-racing, it goes on for months).

There were several things about this movie that bothered me. I know it’s fantasy, that Gail Gadot can’t really fly, but the American attitude to violence really disturbs me. America remains a violent country, one where violence seems to be condoned to some extent. What about martial arts? I practise Tai Chi, which, while great for breathing, balance, and relaxation, is fundamentally a martial art. I should like to think that I could use it in self-defence, should I need to.  The idea that you can have everything you want, also disturbs me. I didn’t think Gail Gadot’s love interest was nearly as good-looking as her! I realise it’s fantasy, but surely you can’t commandeer a private jet and fly to Egypt without a flight plan, checking the fuel gauge, some cooperation from flight control???  The attitude to smashing things up at the White House also disturbed me. I know this is all fake, but surely one should be careful about damaging precious things? 

I was reminded of the desecration in the US Capitol, and the lack of respect shown there. I’ve also seen scenes of the Trumps taking stuff out of The actual White House, which, I suppose, it to be expected.  The fake reality host reminded me of Trump; I suspect a lot of Americans have seen this movie. Over  the Christmas period there was a rerun of the movie Home Alone. The hurt and violence portrayed in this movie really upset me, and all the messages it sends. How can a family leave a child behind? I know I couldn’t. Why were they living in such a luxurious house (when so many don’t)?  There’s no justification for stealing, but things, rather than people, can always be replaced.

When we were last in the US in November 2017, corporal punishment had been re-introduced in a Charter School, in Georgia.  We went on a school trip with our granddaughter to a farm, quite some way away. They still have the iconic really old yellow buses that you see in movies. There are no seat belts.  There were real wasps, descending on the picnic lunches, and real smelly animals, but afterwards the children were taken on the back of a cart to see an array of their Disney heroes and heroines. This seemed to ne to be a total blurring of fact and fiction. It also explains a lot.

When we arrived in Houston, they had just had Hurricane Harvey, although we saw no sign of flooding. The night before we arrived, they had shootings in Las Vegas. 60 people were killed and 411 injured.  The shooter was an older white man, taking aim at people, who had gathered for a music festival, from his hotel bedroom.  There were major fires in California. And Jeffrey Weinstein had just been arrested, for multiple sexual assaults and raping of women.

We spent time in Houston, Texas, Atlanta, Georgia, and Boston, Massachussetts. We could have been in three separate countries!

Some crazy stuff happens here too. Billy Te Kahika (of the Advance New Zealand Party, which garnered 60,000 votes in the recent General Election), led a protest in Auckland against lockdowns. But we don’t have a lockdown here! The police here are not routinely armed, but they have been armed in Christchurch here recently. Some dude took an axe to the Beehive recently – he was arrested by police.

Talking of odd things, we’ve received no mail the last few Saturdays. I had got used to receiving The Listener on Saturdays, and sometimes a copy  of the LRB. So I will go back to buying a copy of The Listener on Mondays, as I used to. There’s not much point in getting stuff delivered if it only turns up occasionally.

Coming back to the invasion of the US Capitol on January 6^th. There are even more disturbing features emerging about this caper.

• Mobsters, intending to kill Mike Pence, were only seconds away from him and his family; they also intended to kill Nancy Pelosi;
• Some Republican politicians seem to have invited guests and shown them around, although there were no formal tours because of Covid 19;
• In addition to Trump, Giuliani and Don Jr addressing the ”rally”, before the invasion, it seems that Mike Flynn, Roger Stone and Steve Bannon did their bit to stir up Trump supporters;
• “Possible role of Flynn, Stone, Bannon, Rudy & Don Jr in the Jan 6 Incident at US Capitol”, reads one Youtube heading (ABC news reporting).
• Panic buttons were unaccountably removed for some politicians;
• Some Republican politicians and Capitol police seem to have been involved on the side of the mob;
• Politicians and journalists were genuinely afraid for their lives, and didn’t know who to trust;
• One policeman was going to be shot with his own gun, by mobsters;
• Elizabeth Neuman has testified to the disturbing decision to not go after local white terrorism in the US.
• The FBI had warning about the January 6 rally, but failed to act on it appropriately, it seems;
• The lie that the Presidential Election last November was “rigged” persists, despite evidence to the contrary.

And so on and so on.

Security has been beefed up for the inauguration, but that still leaves the issue of who you can trust, given that there may well be traitors in the guards.  Parts of Washington are very difficult to access, and the Mall has been closed. You can’t get to the Lincoln Memorial. Other parts of the country are also heavily secured. Americans want some security, but surely not this heavy a presence. We went to an outdoor concert, and two markets in Cleveland in 2012, and we and others would have been sitting ducks had someone decided to “have a go” with an assault weapon.

Meanwhile there have been almost 400,000 deaths from Covid 19 in the US. Trump wants some kind of fanfare when he leaves the White House on the morning of January 20. Ah well, at least he’s leaving. Will there be a crowd to see him go, I wonder?

In New Zealand, there are alarming numbers of new Covid 19 infections in MIQ, with no community transmission detected at this stage. The yacht races are having all kinds of problems with weather, and boats struggling to rise on their foils, and some overturning – quite a sight. The winds are weird – either very light, or very strong. Climate change, anyone? 

Ngā mihi

It is now Thursday January 14^th. Kia ora katoa.

Still shocking. We are still shocked.  I am anxious, although trying not to be. I am reading a good novel at present: “Olive, Again”, by Elizabeth Strout. I read an earlier book, Olive Kitteridge. Olive is quite quirky. I enjoy her.

In recent days there has been a lot more information about the violent attack on the Capitol on January 6th.  Jake Tapper talked about stochastic terrorism, and John Dickerson spoke about this violence being the physical manifestation of Trump’s remarks. The Democratically controlled House plans to impeach the President, again, quickly (done!).   Mitch McConnell says he cannot recall the Senate to hold a trial before Biden’s inauguration, but Neal Katyal pointed out that were a member of the Supreme Court to die, he’d have no trouble assembling them super quick. Republican representative Liz Cheney has said she will vote to impeach Trump (actually ten House Republicans voted to impeach him). He’s been impeached, a second time, “on incitement of insurrection”.

Mitch McConnell has indicated that impeachment would help “purge” the Republican Party of Donald Trump.  That is a very strong word to use.  Evidently he’s not taking Trump’s phone calls, and is furious that Trump has been a factor in his loss of his Senate majority, to say nothing of losing the presidency and a majority in Congress.

Republicans, it should be acknowledged, are divided on this, with some saying they would vote for impeachment; others seeing it as a divisive move, when Joe Biden is supposed to unite the country. The hypocrisy of this is simply astounding. So the invasion of the Capitol by an armed and violent mob wasn’t divisive? And, by the way, Biden did win the election! It wasn’t even close. Someone remarked that if a case for Trump’s winning the election had gone to the Supreme Court, then this mob may well have forced their way into the Supreme Court. Many republicans have received death threats and are jeered at, whatever side they’re on. Many have been derided for being in support of democracy.

A number of arrests have been made (70, as at today). This is all on film, so it shouldn’t be hard to identify people. Some, of course, were “ordinary people”, caught up in the movement. A Catholic priest berated his parishioners for voting for Biden, who is a practising Catholic!

There is evidence of further demonstrations; the FBI is trying to sort out real threats as opposed to “noise”. There is a lot of discussion on social media about intended displays of violence, although some of these platforms are being disabled. Security is being beefed up, not just in Washington, but at state capitols as well. The plot to kidnap and kill Gretchen Whitmer, Governor of Michigan, is now seen as a shocking forerunner of what happened on January 6^th .

Some republicans, initially shocked by what happened, are now going back on their denunciations. Trump is blaming Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer for the violence. It’s evident that republicans don’t think much of Vice President, Mike Pence: I have not heard one of them decry the shouts of “Kill Mike Pence”, and the noose that was erected to hang him.  This shocking scene has been reported on by many journalists.

Despite widespread terror and threats of future terror, people still support Trump. Unbelievable. He’s quite unrepentant., after all, he emerged to say it was Nancy Pelosi’s and Chuck Schumer’s fault.

So far three Democratic representatives have been diagnosed with Covid 19.

Yesterday (Tuesday in the US)  there was finally a press conference. It was given by the Michael Sherwin, acting US Attorney, joined by a silent FBI officer, six days after January 6^th’s deadly riot. Well, it was nice to hear from someone, I guess.

It has become evident that there were warnings to the FBI, that something big was going to happen; that warnings were ignored; that Trump reportedly was entranced by watching the scene unfold on television, blithe to the fact that people were getting hurt, and were in danger for several hours.  Over and over again he had piously warned against violence (“I am your president of law and order”): now he had the chance to stop it, he not only did nothing, he prevented authorising security forces and National Guard troops that would have made a difference! He showed that he has no respect for human life, the US Constitution, or elected representatives, or the outcome of elections, although he swore an oath to the US Constitution, (as did all republican lawmakers). I guess, in Trump’s case, promises are made to be broken.

To the rest of us, looking on with horror, democracy and democratic principles are very important. It’s important to have politicians speak the truth. And there are many important features we expect our government to deliver: reticulated water of high quality; good air quality; safe roads, pavements and bridges; appropriate food regulations, etc. In short, most people want to be safe. You are welcome to go “off the grid” if you wish, as long as you don’t endanger me or any of my loved ones.

It transpires that there’s been a lot of “noise”, about this insurrection, and future insurrections. It’s been a great move to disable some of these online platforms; it has slowed down the mob’s movements, to some extent, and left them searching for leadership.

Trump has given many warnings that he enjoys violence; some of these came well before his 2016 ascendancy to the presidency. One that stays most in my mind is a video of him hitting a golf ball at Secretary Hillary Clinton’s head. There have been many instances of his cruelty. How was this going to end?  Well, I think the world saw on January 6^th, when a Trump-supporting mob invaded the seat of Parliament, shouting “Stop the Steal” (i.e. the election that he lost). He claimed it was rigged. Even when he won in 2016 he claimed it was rigged. Well, it probably was. Many of us believe that he had Russian help, in fact Vladimir Putin admitted as much. Mueller said it Russian interference was still going on. It would be naïve to think that this is over.

It transpires that there were some amazing acts of bravery; that some mobsters consider their move successful; that in addition to pipe bombs, a noose, broken windows, and zip ties for arrests, there were faeces and urine left behind; if it had gone further, one wonders just what may have happened.  Politicians and journalists are describing scenes of terror, that went on for hours. One policeman has died, after being hit on the head with a fire extinguisher; another committed suicide, and another is likely to lose an eye. Surely there have to be consequences for this.

Meanwhile, security is big in Washington D.C. We just hope Biden’s inauguration goes smoothly. It seems a shame for Biden not to get a “proper” inauguration, but at least it will be memorable, against the backdrop of the two biggest wars of our time – against Trump, and his supporters, and against the coronavirus.

The coronavirus continues to shatter records with the daily numbers of people infected, and deaths. Countries that had previously done quite well, such as Ireland, are now in dire straits. The death rate in the US is over 4,000 a day (4,300 on Tuesday); in the UK, deaths pass 100,00 after 1,564 reported in one day.

In New Zealand, I am concerned. We have been fortunate; I just wonder how long that will last.  The government now requires everyone coming to New Zealand to have a negative Covid 19 test before they come; that should screen out some cases. The valiant MIQ workers aren’t scheduled to receive a vaccine until the end of March.  I feel sorry for them. They are doing valiant work, and should be recognised as such.

Ngā mihi.

Today is Sunday January 10^th. Kia ora katoa. Kia kaha!

The news just keeps coming.  I just heard a recording of the phone message Giuliani left for Tommy Tuberville, newly elected Senator for Alabama, except that it went to someone else instead. – another Senator, who shared it with a newspaper. This sought to delay the hearing to certify Biden’s election win, acknowledging that McConnell wanted to “rush it through”.

The person who sat in Nancy Pelosi’s chair and put his feet up on the desk has been arrested, as have some others. But there are many angry folk who claim that storming the Capitol was a success. Although Trump’s Twitter account has now been disabled for good, there is action on other social media sites, and the “war” carries on. Is there something in the air, that makes people so susceptible to lies? There’s no question that Trump, by failing to denounce cruel and evil actions, has given tacit approval to them, and enabled his followers.

Thinking further about Trump’s big moments, who can forget the Access Hollywood tape, and the Charlottesville March?

In the past 24 hours there have been over 4,000 deaths in the US from Covid 19.

This morning we spoke to our youngest son and his wife in the UK. His wife’s brother and his girlfriend have received positive diagnoses for Covid 19. So far, he is symptom-free and she has cold symptoms.  Of course we wish them well, and a speedy return to good health, but this is the closest Covid 19 has come to us, so far. Our daughter-in-law now hopes to be vaccinated mid-February.

The UK lockdown has is more severe now, and people are not permitted to go far from home. One feels for them in their not so spacious houses and grounds; in fact many of them live in small apartments, with common areas that now they aren’t allowed to access. The schools are mostly closed. 

Coming back to the US, we have been here before. Trump does something truly awful. It’s roundly condemned, and then people make excuses for him. Enough, already! There has already been violence, not exactly commanded explicitly by him, but certainly condoned by him and not frowned upon. There are extremely disturbing videos of scenes at the Capitol, including someone being crushed by a door, in pain; rioters shouting ”Sieg Heil”, and “Stop the steal!”, many wearing Nazi insignia,, and carrying Confederate flags.  Trump explicitly encouraged his supporters before the rally, telling them to march down Pennsylvania Avenue (but not joining them, himself). He stayed well away watching their progress, not allowing National Guard troops to secure the Capitol, and complaining that these folk didn’t look great!  They, in turn, feel let down by him. Rudy Giuliani and Donald Trump junior also incited the mob advising violence – a “trial by combat”, said Giuliani.

Even after all the violence, when the Houses reconvened, some republican politicians had the gall to challenge Biden’s win, but didn’t get the votes to delay proceedings further by holding a debate.  Special denunciation goes Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley, for their actions and support for the mobsters.

But more demonstrations are planned; some consider their actions on January 6^th a success, because they stopped the Houses working, and made elected politicians run for their safety.  This was terrifying, to us all, and must never happen again. Nevertheless, there are calls to bring arms (many did, to Washington), and to learn how to shoot. What price human life, huh? This is not over. Will it ever be?

“Our democratic institutions held firm”, crowed many; others thought they were actually pretty shaky, depending on Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “do the right thing” despite death threats. Gabriel Sterling, another Georgia election official, also Republican, spoke out strongly, but had actually voted for Trump. Then on January 6^th, the democratic institutions  didn’t hold firm. There was a noose erected to hang Mike Pence, there were cries to hang Nancy Pelosi. Did Trump denounce these threats? He did not, not even for Pence, who has been his most loyal supporter. What Trump wanted Pence to do, to overthrow the outcome of the election, was not within his power.

There have been some high-profile resignations in the wake of these actions. From the Cabinet, Elaine Chao and Betsy de Vos have resigned, as has Mick Mulvaney, one of Trump’s former Chiefs of Staff (there’ve been a few). Two republican senators, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and now Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania have called on Trump to resign. There have been calls for Cruz and Hawley to resign.  A number of Police have resigned, including the Head of Capitol Police in Washington, DC. Nancy Pelosi has called for impeachment, failing invocation of the 25^th Amendment, which apparently Pence is not minded to do; it would have to be a swift impeachment…perhaps it will happen, and Trump will be removed from office and won’t be legally able to run again. And where is Stephen Miller, by the way?

I have called it “Storming the Capitol”, but a Yale professor argues that use of the term “storming” gives the invasion a certain glamour, like “Storming the Bastille”.  I have called Trump’s supporters mobsters; their action: rebellion, insurrection, a riot?  It was certainly violent, and terrifying. Riot doesn’t seem strong enough., nor does demonstration. Some of the mobsters called it a revolution; that seems a bit glamorous, too: it suggests rebelling against oppression. While most revolutions have sad outcomes, and certainly not the reforms so desperately sought, I don’t want to call this a revolution.  Insurrection is probably the best term. It was hardly a coup, or invocation of martial law, since troops were not involved; indeed their absence (at the hands of Trump), caused huge problems, and for the insurrection to carry on for several terrifying hours. This is not over, not by any means. Removing Trump from office would allow for suitable security at Biden’s inauguration, and may prevent further deaths, from violence, and from Covid 19.

More and more information keeps coming out. Immediately people asked Where was security? While Trump watched the illegal events on television, safe in the White House, withholding National Guard Troops to take control and restore order, it seems some of the few police on duty colluded with the mob.  Apparently of 1,200 police who are supposed to guard the Capitol, there were only 500 there, and none on horseback to prevent entry. Reporters say it is normally hard to get into the Capitol.  But mobsters broke down a reinforced glass door, and some carried restraints.  There was a great deal of violence and desecration, and several people were hurt; 5 died.

I remember that Elizabeth Neumann left her position at the Department of Homeland Security, as DHS Assistant Secretary for Threat Prevention and Security Policy, concerned that domestic terrorism was receiving a blind eye from the White House administration. In that capacity, she was officially in charge of emerging threats — and had identified violence perpetrated by right-wing extremists as a major one. Surely this was an act of domestic terrorism, which should never have been allowed to happen. CBS’s Face the Nation programme discussed this, while not quite making this link.

This has been a bit muddly. I am still horrified by this incident. I despair at people who are, again, giving Trump a free pass; saying it would be improper to invoke the 25^th Amendment, because he’s not really “ill”?   Doo-lally?  That’s not unusual.  He’s a danger, even if he ceases to be president in a few days’ time. Look how much damage he has caused in the first 6 days of the New Year!  People are still saying “Happy New Year”, and yet this happens, and thousands continue to become infected, and die, from Covid 19 and its dangerous variants.  The Trans-Tasman travel bubble is again on the back-burner. The virus is having a good New Year; I doubt that anyone else is.

Ngā mihi nui.

Today is Saturday January 9^th 2021. Kia ora katoa.

After the horror of January 6, of the invasion of the US Capitol in Washington D.C. by a mob of Trump supporters, more and more facts are emerging about this shocking event, as the country’s journalists figure out what happened, and what may happen next.

It would be fair to say that people knew something was coming: Trump returned from Mara a Lago to address his crowd of supporters, who had long since arranged to hold a rally in Washington on this day.  What was surprising, was that Trump didn’t call martial law, something some of his advisers told him to do, and something many were afraid of; rather, there was little in the way of law enforcement, or police able to secure and take back control of the Capitol. Instead, the mob ran riot, causing a great deal of damage, much of it captured on film. It now seems clear that Trump arranged this, firstly by inciting the mob with lies, and then by not allowing release of federal National Guard troops until the disaster had been running for several hours.  Washington is not a state, and cannot call troops on its own say-so. Nevertheless, the lack of security around the Capitol was alarming. There have been suggestions that some police helped the mob, telling them where to go to locate certain offices.

I guess many of us thought Trump really is finished now: some Republicans came out against him; Barr accused him of “orchestrating” this infamous event; Biden was confirmed as President-elect, and there was talk of the 25^th Amendment to the Constitution being invoked to depose him, or impeachment; the Rupert Murdoch-owned Wall St Journal (and others) called on him to resign.

But how many times have we thought Trump is surely finished, now, only to have him, Phoenix-like, re-emerge with Republican support?  I remember the Jim Comey firing; the meeting with Sergei Kislyak and Lavrov in the Oval Office,  that we found out about because Russian media reported it; the Mueller Report; the press conference in Helsinki with Vladimir Putin; the many times Trump has been a bumbling, inconsiderate oaf, called members of the armed services “suckers and losers”, I could go on and on. There are many instances. Finally, his four years are up, and the country elected Joe Biden to be their next president, despite the fact that he’s now 78 years old.  And now the clear result of that election is being contested by the president, and his supporteers egged on to commit violence. Oh, and did I mention the “shake down” phone call to the Georgia Secretary of State?

I have listened to many podcasts over the last two days, and learnt different details about what happened in Washington, from reporters who were there, to analysts discussing it. Although different details are supplied, a consistent message is relayed of shock, horror, disrespect by the mob, and fear of what may happen next. While many have laughed at Trump’s seeming chaotic incompetence, he has a certain reptilian cunning, a conman’s survival strategy, where he cares for no one but himself. He has always got away with things in the past.

Some of the points that emerged (in no particular order) are as follows:

• The invasion lasted several hours, and was terrifying.
• There were sounds of gunfire.
• Windows were broken, and other violence used to gain access through closed doors.
• Vice President Pence and Speaker Nancy Pelosi were spirited away, but there was no mention of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
• There was anger at Mike Pence, no doubt inspired by Trump, who hoped (out loud) that Pence would “come through” for him, whereas Pence’s role was ceremonial.
• There were cries of “F*** Mike Pence”, “Stop the steal”, and a noose was erected for him.
• Despite this, Senator Ted Cruz said he’d do it all again.
• Senator Josh Hawley gave a thumbs up, and a fist-pump.  Simon and Schuster have stated they won’t publish his book.
• There have been suggestions that Antifa infiltrated the protesters, but none of them looked like Antifa, or like Black Lives Matter protesters.
• When law enforcement did arrive in strength, there was some tear gas and rubber bullets, but not nearly the level of aggression demonstrated to BLM protesters after George Floyd’s death.
• The storming of the Capitol and hiding away of politicians, many of whom (Republicans) refused to wear masks although these were given to them, may well have created a super-spreader event for Covid 19.
• Everyone is shocked that Nancy Pelosi’s office was desecrated.
• Many of the mob evidently knew their way around.
• Many photographs were taken. Some were wearing T-shirts saying “Camp Auschwitz”; others wore anti-Semitic shirts saying 6MWE (6 million wasn’t enough)
• Trump is now on his best behaviour, after seeing the shocked reaction to what happened. I do hope people aren’t taken in by this.
• Now that Trump has condemned the violence, many of his supporters feel let down, and that he has “thrown them under the bus”.
• As at today, 5 people died in the violence, including a police officer, who was hit on the head with a fire extinguisher. He later died from his injuries.
• At least 2 IED’s were found in the Capitol building. The level of mess and destruction is unbelievable.
• Kelly Loefler was going to object to the Georgia presidential election results, but thought better of it. Just as well, too, seeing she lost her run-off election.

Anyway, that’s just a handful of details. Consequences are still being determined. Apparently some arrests have been made: this shouldn’t be hard, given that the thugs weren’t trying to be anonymous. Some of them wore truly weird costumes. Americans just love to dress up. The Congress is taking steps to impeach Trump, again, while excuses are being made not to invoke the 25^th Amendment. There are now less than two weeks to go until Biden’s inauguration on January 20^th, but what damage can Trump do in that time? Twitter enabled his account after 12 hours, but has now disabled it, permanently, thank goodness.  Although he’s been called upon to resign, I can’t see that happening.

Evidently Trump has said he won’t attend Biden’s inauguration. Biden says that’s the first time he’s agreed with Trump!  I do hope they have great security for Biden’s inauguration. Trump’s supporters (Trump’s mob) are planning events for January 17 and January 20. They already had other events on January 6^th. That’s really scary. Hope and pray.

The coronavirus marches on, particularly devastating the US and the UK.

Bye for now. There’s bound to be more about these events. Ngā mihi.

Today is Friday January 8^th. Kia ora katoa! Kia kaha!

Here are some nice quotations from Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. I managed to find a second hand copy, in good condition.

America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.

On my arrival in the United States I was surprised to find so much distinguished talent amongst the subjects, and so little among the heads of the government.

I do not know if the people of the United States would vote for superior men if they ran for office, but there can be no doubt that such men do not run.

Nothing is more wonderful than the art of being free, but nothing is harder to learn how to use than freedom.

Well, what an eventful few days it has been! The infamous “shake down” phone call by Trump to Brad Raffensperger, Secretary of State of Georgia; the Georgia run-off election, where two Republican senators were up against two Democratic candidates: a black man, Raphael Warnock, and a Jewish man, Jon Ossoff, and both democratic candidates won; and then the alarming storming of the Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters; meanwhile, in spite of all the drama, Biden was decreed to be President-elect and Kamala Harris Vice President-elect.

This has all been shocking and ironic.  Everyone, i.e. most if not all commentators and comedians, were deeply shocked by Trump’s phone call to Raffensperger, which went on for almost an hour. Evidently Trump had tried to call him 18 times. All he wanted, really, was 11,000 Republican votes.  He just needed Raffensperger to “find” them for him. Shocking and alarming as this was, it served as a prelude of what was to come.

On January 5^th there were the Georgia run-off elections, for two senators.  This was predicted to be a knife-edge election, with most expecting that the Republican candidates, Kelly Loefler (“I’m further to the right than Attila the Hun”) and David Purdue, would win. However Republican infighting, including some very mixed messaging about voting being a waste of time, meant we were in for a pleasant surprise. Watching the results come in on the evening here of January 6^th, the republicans had an early lead, but before the evening was over Warnock was declared winner over Loefler, with the race between Ossoff and Purdue too close to call. The next day, Ossoff was declared the winner of his race, thus ensuring that Trump and the Republican Party had lost the presidency, and the Congress and the Senate, albeit by very close margins. Still, they’ll be able to do a great deal more than if they had been hampered by McConnell remaining leader of the Senate.  The result was an upset in many ways, McConnell’s loss of his role as Senate Majority leader being an important one. Linsey Graham loses his role as Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, also very significant.

The next day, January 6^th (Thursday January 7^th our time) “will go down in infamy” as the day Trump’s mob stormed the Capitol.

But before we get on to that, Biden has named Merrick Garland as his nominee for Attorney General, and Gina Raimondo, Governor of Rhode Island, for Secretary of Commerce. One of the hacks will be pleased, Mike Murphy advocated her for Vice President!

I also listened to Chuck Rosenberg of “the Oath” speaking to Mike Bush, former Police Commissioner of New Zealand, saying very nice things about New Zealand, and noting with some surprise that the police here are not routinely armed.  Mike Bush stressed that the police are here to serve the people. What a radical notion! I also saw a video of Jacinda Ardern answering questions at a forum at Harvard university. We are so proud of her, with good reason. Here, we trust the government to select an appropriate vaccine for the coronavirus, and to run a suitable program for delivering it. I’m sure I will get a text message, letting me know when I can book a time to receive it.

One podcast I listened to had a guest heading off to reread about the events surrounding the Reichstag fire. This was prescient, as it turned out, presaging the Next Big Thing: that on January 6^th (Thursday here) the US Congress and Senate, in sessions chaired by Mike Pence, were to certify Joe Biden’s win. Meanwhile Trump, refusing to accept that he had lost the election, was encouraging his supporters who had arranged a demonstration in Washington. He had returned from Mar a Lago for this. He also asked Mike Pence not to let him down, to come through for him.

I had to go out on Thursday. I heard during the morning that a mob had stormed and taken control of the Capitol building, causing an uproar. There was great confusion. I listened to speeches by McConnell and Pence, which were all right, I suppose; then I heard they had been taken to safety; then I heard that both chambers, and journalists, were in lockdown; one video said there had been confusion, but everything was fine now; another said all was panic and confusion.  World leaders (not Russia) condemned this action, including the Foreign Minister of Turkey, hardly a bastion of democracy. It seemed that there was minimal security in the capitol, for this “invasion” to have taken place; much of it was captured on film, of course.

Initial reactions showed police being far gentler on the mob than they were on Black Lives Matter protesters. Biden eventually spoke, very well, I thought. Finally Trump sent a message recorded on video, saying the violence should stop, but failing to condemn the protesters: we love you, he said, and repeated the lie that he had won the election. It’s interesting that Trump has no empathy whatsoever for those who have suffered loss and made sacrifices: he’s shown that time after time. Instead, he empathises with people like his violent supporters. A curfew was called in Washington.

In the midst of all this excitement (many Republican congressmen and senators led by Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley were planning to object to Biden’s certification, an exercise which was doomed to fail, we were told), we had to  go out.

We had lunch at the Royal Wellington Golf Club, at Heretaunga. Lunch was fairly basic: you could select from a small range of sandwiches and cakes, or have something cooked, like fish and chips or toasted sandwiches. They did have a coffee machine. The dining room is as I remembered it; what a lovely setting it is; what a nice, peaceful venue.

Then we drove to Te Marua, where I went to a birthday party and played two games of Scrabble.  We discussed Trump, US politics, and vaccines; someone there said that the 25^th amendment was being considered for Trump.

When I got home, I tried to catch up with the news. As I learnt more, I became more alarmed, and more devastated. Jacinda Ardern was shocked, as were we all.

Ultimately the violence was self-defeating: Biden’s election was confirmed, although there was some resistance to that.

There are huge consequences, as we learn more and more about these events, how they came about, some of what happened, and some surprising outcomes. One of the best is that Twitter has banned Donald Trump’s twitter handle; and Facebook has banned him permanently. More about the fallout next time.

The coronavirus marches on, despite these distractions, killing hundreds of people (365,000 in the US). Ngā mihi.

Today is Tuesday January 5^th. Kia ora katoa.

What an interesting two days it has been. For me, the most interesting aspect was the phone call by Trump to the Georgia Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, asking him to “find” 11,000 odd Republican votes. More about this later. I  then listened to Jake Tapper’s speech on CNN, in which he spoke very strongly, about growing Republican support for Ted Cruz’s efforts to subvert Biden’s win. He noted that no elected Republican states people are contesting their own recent success.

Monday was very interesting too. One of the first things I saw was the Washington Post’s article about Trump’s hour-long phone call. Very frightening. I watched the Rev Al Sharpton’s programme. Tim Miller, from the Bulwark, was a spokesperson. I had listened to Jake Tapper’s statement – this was before the now infamous phone call. I listened to Chuck Todd talking to Anthony Fauci, who said emphatically that the death toll from Covid 19 was not exaggerated (in contrast to Trump’s claim). How nice it is to see Dr Fauci unleashed and able to speak his mind. I also listened to Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest, speaking in the UK. What a beautiful voice he has! My friend in Auckland who passed away in August also listened to him. His basic message was one of love, divine and human, and that the secret to happiness lies within oneself.

Meanwhile, now that there  are approved vaccines, a most welcome Christmas present, there is all kinds of confusion about administering them. How frustrating is this! Generally two doses are required. In the US, distribution is chaotic. There seems to have been no plan. There is a significant anti-vaccine movement. In Florida, elderly folk have been queuing up for vaccines, and facing huge challenges in making appointments – where is the care for the elderly now? In Wisconsin, a health worker deliberately allowed 6,000 doses to be destroyed, by not keeping them refrigerated. How crazy is that? In the UK, people are being vague about the need for second injections, saying it’s better to get a vaccine into people anyway. Dr Fauci does not agree with this approach.  So we have been hanging out for an approved vaccine, and now that we have Pfizer and Moderna and perhaps more, but their distribution and input has not been thought through properly.  This is just crazy! 

In New Zealand, my husband and I both had flu vaccines. The Johnsonville Community Centre had been set aside for vaccines; I came at the appointed time, and waited in the car for 30 minutes afterwards. The only other human beings I saw were a receptionist and the nurse who administered the jab, both masked. JD had his flu vaccine at the chemist, which was similarly careful about distancing, and safety precautions. The Medical Centre was kept free of vaccines and Covid 19 testing, something I greatly admired.

New Zealand has responded to the variant Covid 19 by requiring travellers in MIQ to be free of Covid symptoms for three days before they leave a managed isolation facility in New Zealand. There are no plans to co-opt new MIQ facilities. There is now a waiting period of at least 2 months for a place in an MIQ facility; travellers must have a voucher for MIQ before they book flights to New Zealand.

In the UK, Boris Johnson has called for a third lockdown. While this is hugely frustrating, his mixed messages are equally annoying. Will schools close? Who knows. Will there be confusion? Almost guaranteed. Bojo reminds me of the old adage used when punishing someone: ” This hurts me (the punisher) more than it hurts you (the punished)”. This was always a ridiculous claim. For Bojo to worry more about his personal reaction than that of millions of Britons is just stupid. A New Zealander writes in the Guardian bemoaning the UK’s response to the pandemic compared with New Zealand’s. I saw Jacinda Ardern on Youtube this morning talking about the fear she saw, when walking from the Prime Minister’s official residence in Tinakori Road to the Beehive. That was a very scary time back in March. Fast action was required, to keep people safe, and it was delivered.

Returning to Trump’s infamous phone call to Brad Raffensperger: it would be fair to say this has sparked a huge reaction.  The Bulwark published an article by Bill Kristol within an hour of the recording being released (by Raffensperger’s office), entitled “It’s Time to Speak for America”. (Apparently the recording was released after Trump tweeted false claims about it). Others have seen this as another, pathetic, desperate attempt to overthrow the election results, again. Most commentators are terrified. They wonder how many similar calls have been made.

Several former defence secretaries (including Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld) have spoken strongly against this, as have several republican politicians. We are now at last seeing growing opposition to Trump from some republicans.  Did the president knowingly break the law? Really, who would ask that question? I listened to the recording, and he claimed that he didn’t have to follow the law, while threatening and bullying Raffensperger, who stood his ground, and pointed out that the President’s facts were wrong. I listened to The Bulwark podcast this morning, and they played the theme from The Godfather movies in the background to Trump’s phone call. Many said it reminded them of the phone Trump made to the President Zelensky of Ukraine.

As a result, there is infighting amongst Republicans!  They are divided over tomorrow’s run-off election in Georgia, with voices variously claiming that a republican vote is a vote wasted; Kelly Loefler has joined the “Dirty Dozen” (now 13) planning to challenge Joe Biden’s win at the session on January 6^th.

I listened to an MSNBC programme anchored by Kasie Hunt. This featured Senator Tim Kaine quoting W B Yeats from memory! What a nice person he seemed to be – well-read, charming, and intelligent. Why were we so quick to write him off in 2016?  He’s really too nice for the cut and thrust of politics.

The next few days promise to be eventful. There’s the Georgia election, and then the Senate/ Congress review to certify election results, combined with a right-wing protest in Washington DC. One resident commented how Washington has been taken over by  Trump, and the residents feel a tad displaced. Residents have been asked by the mayor (who’s both a democrat and a woman) to stay in their homes. I guess most people hope there won’t be violence, and no cause for Trump to claim some kind of emergency and call out troops. There have now officially been 354,000 deaths from coronavirus. Although he minimises the death rate, he appears to do nothing to assist with fighting the virus. In fact, he’s increased work rates for meat and chicken processing plants, a change that will be difficult for Biden to undo. Indeed, it’s been commented, and I have remarked, that it would be remarkable if he put his efforts in overturning the election result into fighting the coronavirus.

I am very happy to have my new phone operational now. It has a few things new to me, but we’re getting to know each other. It has masses of storage space and lasts longer when charged, so I can listen to my favourite podcasts again. Stitcher (the new version) works fine again. One forgets how nice it is to have a working phone.

Nga mihi.

Today is Saturday January 2^nd. Kia ora katoa.

What an odd time of year this is. In Aotearoa New Zealand, where we can mingle and celebrate without fear, festivities have been slightly muted. I guess the overwhelming emotions are gratitude and relief, that, for now, we are spared the worst of the coronavirus, and of UK and US politics. There’s a great deal to be thankful for! But while celebrating Christmas and New year’s Eve are usually such a big deal overseas, Kiwis are like “Yeah…Nah”. Whatever. Here in New Zealand the road toll for the holiday season is alarming, but this summer we cannot blame weary tourists for driving on the wrong side of the road.

Overseas, the variant strain of Covid has now been detected in 33 countries, and in three US states: Colorado California, and now Florida. In many places, hospital staff are just desperate. I have to say that the situation reminds me of a novel by Emile Zola, Germinal, which made a profound impression on me. The miners’ lives are truly bleak, and they lack enough food, but eventually they stay out on strike, and, one wonders, what do they eat then? I think of American people, millions of whom lived in poverty before the pandemic, many of whom were struggling, some homeless, and just how do they survive in this environment of the pandemic?  Zola’s novel is of course about leadership and the strategy of rebellion, and a very fine novel it is, too.

This morning I listened to a right-wing (anti Trump) podcast – I know, sometimes these folk are just too frustrating to listen to, but one of them bemoaned the lack of consequences of the Black Lives Matter protests sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of police, and the death of Breonna Taylor. These protests were huge, sparking protests in many other countries, and a deal of police brutality in the US. I know many conservatives were truly alarmed and amazed to learn how dreadful and different things are for black people, even politicians and well-educated folk, at first hand. The Pulitzer-prize winning journalist, usually so mild-mannered, Eugene Robinson even let down his guard. The Rev Al Sharpton’s sermon at one of Floyd’s funeral services was deeply moving, about how George’s death had sparked almost world-wide awakenings and mostly peaceful protests; and how the Minneapolis police had no right to kneel on his neck, which God had made.  Apparently Linsey Graham was amazed when Will Hurd spoke of being stopped by police when driving in his own neighbourhood.  Even these worldwide protests, which went on for days, did not have an awakening effect on Trump, who saw fit to meet any kind of protest with tear gas and brutality. He didn’t actually order troops to fire on anybody, although Kyle Rittenhouse, who took the law into his 17 year old hands and shot three people in Kenosha, Wisconsin, killing two of them, will not be charged. Did I mention he had an illegally obtained AR15?

Meanwhile, in the US, Senator Josh Hawley (a very entitled young man, by all accounts), has indicated that he will challenge Biden’s status as president elect, thus forcing Congress to count formally the Electoral College votes. Pence, who is to chair this January 6^th session, has asked for a lawsuit against him to be dismissed. “Pence seeks rejection of lawsuit that aimed to expand his power to overturn the election”, says The Washington Post.  (Breaking news: a judge has dismissed this case). And the senate has voted to override Trump’s veto on the Defence Bill.  But the UK Guardian reports Iran’s Foreign Minister as saying they fear an American attack.

Then there are the Georgia run-off elections on January 5^th, which will determine control of the Senate: if Democrats win both seats, they will narrowly have control. The stakes are enormously high. Trump and the Republicans are sending very mixed messages. It’s almost as if Trump doesn’t want Republicans to win, thus hurting Mitch McConnell and any other Republican who has openly spoken against him, saying he lost the presidential election. What can his aim be? Who knows? One thing’s for sure, it will probably be a tight race. But remember, this is the state that elected Congressman John Lewis. It’s Martin Luther King’s state. And then there’s Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Q-Anon affiliate, and congresswoman elect. There are a lot of black people in Georgia. Trump is ridiculing its republican governor, Brian Kemp, who has been one of his most loyal foot-soldiers. He’s even tweeted that Kemp should resign!  It should be an interesting election to watch, if one can bear to.  The amount of money going into these elections is staggering, especially given the real hardships people are experiencing, exacerbated by delays in financial relief.

Then there’s the right-wing protest set down for January 6^th in Washington, where you aren’t allowed to carry arms, concealed or otherwise. The Proud Boys are allegedly “standing by”, as requested by Trump, as I’m sure are many others. One fears that things will get out of control, and Trump will declare emergency powers. Then what?  He seems desperate to hold onto a job that he has no interest in doing. Discussions abound regarding the state lawsuits awaiting him, when he stops being president, and to what extent he should bear consequences for his cruel actions. This probably steels his resolve to remain in power, somehow, anyhow.  Some say the challenges have no chance of working; that may be so, but many of us would certainly like to see Biden safely inaugurated as President, and see him move into the White House. Then, perhaps, we can breathe a sigh of relief, and start worrying about all the other pressing problems, such as the challenges posed by climate change, aggression by the police, aggression by Russia, China, and North Korea, income discrepancy, trade arrangements, and so on.

Everyone is saying 2020 has been such an “horrendous” year; but what awaits us now? Time will tell, I guess.

It is now Sunday, January 3^rd. I have just heard that not only will Ted Cruz add his name to the list of republican senators contesting Biden’s win of the presidential election on January 6^th, but a large number of republican congressmen will join them (140 House Republicans, 11 Senators as of now), although some senators, Lisa Murkowski, for example, have gone public to counsel against this.  Trump has insulted Ted Cruz very badly – his wife, his father; what hold does Trump have over him? Sensible people (George Conway, Glenn Kirschner) say this “challenge” has no chance of succeeding.  Why won’t republicans defend the democratic process? Even the much-vaunted Constitution (government of the people, by the people, for the people). But we are still nervous.

In other news, the Russian penetration of US government computer networks is reported as being more extensive than earlier thought (it was already scary!), and the official death toll from Covid 19 stands at almost 350,000.

The new variant off Covid 19 has arrived in New Zealand. Since New Year, there have been 19 cases diagnosed of Covid 19, all in managed isolation. Of these, 6 are the UK variant of Covid 19. The government has instituted pre-departure tests for Covid 19 for travellers from the UK and the US from January 15^th, but it’s here already. An ICU doctor from London is reported as saying “I’m watching whole families getting wiped out here, and it’s got to stop.”  This is the variant that was reported as being more infectious, but not so deadly. 

Happy New Year, everyone! 2021 doesn’t look great from here…but there are things to look forward to. Here we give thanks, adapt, and get on with our lives. Ngā mihi.

Today is Wednesday December 30^th. Kia ora katoa.

What a strange world we live in. Just when we thought there were two safe coronavirus vaccines, (a most welcome Christmas present), just as we thought Joe Biden had been won the US Presidential election, just as we thought we could say goodbye to 2020 and look forward to 2021, we are still in a state of uncertainty.  There are definitely approved vaccines – huge advance has been made on that  score; Joe Biden definitely won the US Presidential election, and won in the Electoral College (and won the popular vote, needless to say), but Trump remains in office until Biden’s inauguration on January 20^th, and he’s doing all he can to throw sand in the gears, by delaying the transition, creating doubt in the legitimacy of the vote, attacking Republicans who dare to not support his fraudulent efforts, and delaying signing the relief act. Part of the frustration comes from not knowing how Trump will react at any time. He probably doesn’t know how he will act.  Will he call martial law, as advised by now pardoned Michael Flynn? How will the troops/National Guard react? Will they be loyal to their Commander-in Chief, or to their constitution, to which they’ve taken an oath of loyalty?

Then there are the Georgia runoff elections on January 5^th – where does all this money come from? There is another official ceremony on January 6^th  where the US Congress counts the votes, at  session to be chaired by Vice President Mike Pence. What will happen then? We simply don’t know.  We all hope that Biden will be inaugurated on January 20^th…after that, there’s a lot of putting right to be done, and no doubt there will be huge challenges, but we have much more confidence in the new democratic administration that will take charge.

But overshadowing all this is the fact that a coronavirus variant has arisen in the UK that is much more infectious than previous variants, and while not only wreaking havoc in the UK, it has now been diagnosed in several other countries, including the US (a man in Colorado). So much for the vaccines, then!  The race to vaccinate is up against the steady progress of coronavirus – wave four? It inexorably devastates already devastated communities, desperate to get some normalcy in their lives again.  So while we rejoiced that our loved ones had survived without becoming ill, we are thrown back into confusion again, as another tidal wave threatens to engulf us all. 

Meanwhile, there are things to be thankful for. Two of our grandchildren came around yesterday. We had dinner with some friends last night. It was great to catch up with them, after a dinner-date had been put off twice.  It was a beautiful fine day today – not too hot, just nicely warm.

Today I finished A Gentleman in Moscow. What a pleasure it has been to read it. There are many allusions, to Dostoevsky and Chekhov; to Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, to Socrates, to other philosophers, to pianist Vladimir Horowitz (I especially like a recording of him playing the Second Movement of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No.23, music which was used in the film The Death of Stalin). And Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America is also mentioned. This has interested me so much that I listened again to a podcast about it on BBC4, and, failing to obtain a used copy, I have reserved it at the library. There is also much talk of the movie Casablanca.  This has been one of the best books I have read in some time. It delighted me from start to finish.

Today we have been invited to Taupo for a birthday party with an aunt who turns 80. Overseas guests will most likely be unable to come, so a local family party will be held. It is very special to be able to come together like this.

It is a funny old time, at present. Many podcasts that I would normally listen to are taking a break, and who can blame them?  I will have to listen to BBC4 podcasts again, and learn more history. I do look forward to having a new phone, which will connect to the internet wherever we are.

Many are reviewing 2020, and saying what a bad year it has been. There was a very good summary in this morning’s paper, acknowledging that unemployment has not been as bad here as predicted. I should think not! Where would you rather be right now? I accept it’s been a terrible few months for some, but for me personally, not so bad. What will 2021 bring?  After the surprises of 2020, what lies ahead?  Ngā mihi.