This is Probably a Must-Read

An interesting article on the future of LGBT rights -- and perhaps civil rights in general -- under the Trump Court;

There’s no denying it: efforts to protect LGBT+ persons through the federal courts suffered a substantial—perhaps devastating—setback when Justice Anthony M. Kennedy retired on June 27, 2018. The author of Romer v. Evans (1996), Lawrence v. Texas (2003), United States v. Windsor (2013), and Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), Kennedy had long played a key role in the U.S. Supreme Court’s invalidation of laws that discriminate against gay men and lesbians. His most recent decisions in that vein (Windsor and Obergefell) were written for a five-justice majority, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito in dissent. Kennedy’s retirement augured the emergence of a solid conservative majority, now including Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, whose members are very likely opposed to meaningful constitutional protection for LGBT+ persons as a class. As we assess the implications of that development, here are some key questions to consider.

It's a little dense, but worth reading. Especially striking was this section:

Will the Court Undermine Antidiscrimination Laws in the Name of the First Amendment?

A holding that Title VII prohibits discrimination against LGBT people would mean a lot less if the Court subsequently held that the First Amendment immunizes anybody who describes acts of discrimination as expression or religious practice. However, in recent years, the right-leaning justices have taken worrisome steps toward imposing novel constitutional limits on antidiscrimination law.

I can't help but wonder, though, whether the Court giving carte blanche to religiously inspired bigots might also be held as establishment of religion.

We'll see how it all turns out. I'm not optimistic, unless the House grows a spine and starts impeachment proceedings against, say, "I like beer" Kavanaugh, who probably lied during his confirmation hearings.

Culture Break: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Symphony No. 40

I've been listening to a lot of Mozart lately. I have no idea why -- maybe I just needed a break from my normal trad/folk/rock lineup. At any rate, this is a good one:

I meant to do this yesterday, but got distracted.

Today in Disgusting People (Updated)

That would be anyone associated with the Trump regime.

First, another attack on migrants:

It’s a puzzle of public health that we don’t take flu seriously. Every year, only about half of American adults get the vaccine that prevents it. And yet, every year, at least 37 million Americans catch the flu, more than 500,000 become sick enough to be hospitalized, and somewhere between 36,000 and 61,000 die. Let’s pause for a second: That’s tens of thousands of deaths, many of which could have been prevented with a simple shot. Meanwhile, international health planners tensely monitor the unpredictable evolution of the flu virus, watching for the emergence of a pandemic strain that could kill many millions.

Yet perhaps because only a small percentage of cases ends catastrophically—or conversely, because many of us have experienced recovering from flu—we chronically underestimate the toll taken by the virus. Which might be the kindest explanation for the decision by US Customs and Border Protection, uncovered last week by CNBC, not to give the flu shot to any of the adults or children the agency is holding in crammed border camps.

We've already come to understand that this regime, and the would-be dictator that heads it, are inhumane. But there's probably also another purpose here -- aside from killing more children. Just think of the propaganda value:

The saddest part of the danger being created by this policy is that, accidentally or cynically, it revives a trope that a globalized world ought to have discarded: that immigrants are dirty and dangerous and inherently embody risk. As Alan Kraut of American University has written, that charge has been leveled at new arrivals throughout US history, against the Irish (cholera), Jews (tuberculosis), Italians (polio), and Chinese workers (plague). In almost every case, the diseases were an accident not of migration, but of close urban living—but, prefiguring the current situation, the immigrants had been forced into legal or actual ghettos that facilitated the spread of illness.

And once diseases took hold in an immigrant group, that could be used against them, as is happening again now. “It’s a crude political ploy,” says T. Katherine Hirschfeld, a University of Oklahoma anthropologist who studies health conditions after political collapse. “Denying people bathing and encouraging the spread of disease increases their dehumanization. It is part of a propaganda campaign.”

This one is worth reading. Hat tip to commenter Lazycrocket at Joe.My.God.

And then, there's the troops. Support our military, indeed:

Some children born to U.S. service members and government employees overseas will no longer be automatically considered citizens of the United States, according to policy alert issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on Wednesday.

Previously, all children born to U.S. citizen parents were considered to be "residing in the United States," and therefore would be automatically granted citizenship under Immigration and Nationality Act 320. Now, children born to U.S. service members and government employees who are not yet themselves U.S. citizens, while abroad, will not be considered as residing in the U.S., changing the way that they potentially receive citizenship. Children who are not U.S. citizens and are adopted by U.S. service members while living abroad will also no longer receive automatic citizenship by living with the U.S. citizen adopted parents.

This one's on really shaky legal ground. Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment reads:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Traditionally, children have automatically been considered citizens if at least one parent was a citizen. Now, if your parents are overseas when you are born, you have to apply for citizenship.

Previously, all children born to U.S. citizen parents were considered to be "residing in the United States," and therefore would be automatically granted citizenship under Immigration and Nationality Act 320. Now, children born to U.S. service members and government employees who are not yet themselves U.S. citizens, while abroad, will not be considered as residing in the U.S., changing the way that they potentially receive citizenship. Children who are not U.S. citizens and are adopted by U.S. service members while living abroad will also no longer receive automatic citizenship by living with the U.S. citizen adopted parents.

A nice thank-you for those serving their country abroad.

There's been a lot of speculation that this is another attack on birthright citizenship, which is part of the Fourteenth Amendment -- gotta stop those "anchor babies", after all -- something that gives Ken Cuccinelli a woody -- not to mention the rest of the GOP. (Cuccinelli, you will remember, aside from being an openly racist politician in Virginia, is now the "acting" director of Citizenship and Immigration Services.) And that's probably true. But one other thing occurred to me: a significant proportion of U.S. service members belong to racial or ethnic minorities and/or are women.

Two birds with one stone, so to speak.

This one's via Joe.My.God.

Update: The Hill has published an article that clarifies the new policy:

USCIS issued a clarification to the rule later Wednesday, explaining that the new rule would only affect three categories of people: Children of non-U.S. citizens adopted by U.S. citizen government employees or service members; children of non-U.S. citizen government employees or service members who were naturalized after the child's birth; and children of U.S. citizens who do not meet residency requirements.

From the statements by representatives of USCIS and the Pentagon, this is just a matter of bringing the current policy in line with the Immigration and Naturalization Act and existing State Department guidance.

And if I trusted anyone in this regime, that might be enough.

Update: And the war on the environment continues:

The Trump administration is set to announce on Thursday that it intends to sharply curtail the regulation of methane emissions, a major contributor to climate change, according to an industry official with knowledge of the plan.

The Environmental Protection Agency, in a proposed rule, will aim to eliminate federal government requirements that the oil and gas industry put in place technology to inspect for and repair methane leaks from wells, pipelines and storage facilities.

The proposed rollback is particularly notable because major oil and gas companies have, in fact, opposed it, just as some other industries have opposed the Trump administration’s other major moves to dismantle climate change and other environmental rules put in place by President Barack Obama.

Some of the world’s largest auto companies have opposed Mr. Trump’s plans to let vehicles pollute more, while some electric utilities have opposed the relaxation of restrictions on toxic mercury pollution from coal-fired power plants.

Via Joe.My.God.

Trump's attitude toward our air and water reminds me of a Tom Lehrer song:

Back to the Fifties!

Today's Must Read: About That Second Term

It starts to look a lot less hypothetical:

Federal Election Commission Vice Chairman Matthew Petersen announced his resignation today.

This means the agency that enforces and regulates the nation’s campaign finance laws will effectively shut down — something that hasn’t happened since 2008 — because it won’t have the legal minimum of four commissioners to make high-level decisions.

Petersen’s resignation, first reported by the Washington Examiner, will throw the FEC into turmoil for weeks — and perhaps months — as the nation enters the teeth of 2020 presidential and congressional elections.

For now, the FEC can’t conduct meetings.

It can’t slap political scofflaws with fines.

It can’t make rules.

It can’t conduct audits and approve them.

It can’t vote on the outcome of investigations.

And while staff will continue to post campaign finance reports and attend to day-to-day functions, the commission itself can’t offer official advice to politicians and political committees who seek it.

Petersen gave no reason for his resignation in his letter, which is here:



And of course, the way this regime operates, one has to wonder who applied what kind of pressure on Petersen. The timing is somewhat more than suspicious.

Given past history, I doubt that vacancy will be filled. After all, who needs honest elections?

Read the whole thing.

Via Joe.My.God.

Some Things Never Change

The Republicans are licking their chops over the prospect of gutting Social Security and Medicare, now that they've created a massive deficit by giving our money to the ultra-rich:

It's hard to imagine at this point that the GOP would try to cut social security and Medicare at this point. They would be attacking their own voters. But with deficits exploding under Trump it's not hard to see the hardcore wingnuts believing that their time has come to get rid of those pesky "entitlements" once and for all. And despite his promises, if Trump wins re-election he won't have to run again. So, who knows how he will see his own self-interest in a second term? (And we know it's all about his self-interest.)

It's an interesting analysis, but, like all the other discussions I've seen on this, it misses one key point: Social Security is not part of the general fund, and Medicare is only part of it for administrative costs (some of them, at least). Which means that neither has any effect on the deficit. (Except that the last time I looked, Social Security was the government's biggest creditor -- most of SS funds are in Treasury bonds.)

Of course, this fact will have no effect on the Republicans' narrative. And the GOP base will believe every lie they come up with and screw themselves because they're "patriotic Americans".

As for the headline -- "Will they hurt their own voters?" -- yes, of course they will. They're already doing it -- American farmers are hurting from Trump's tariffs -- and their voters will remain faithful to the cult the GOP has become.

And do note that this is planned for Trump's hypothetical second term, because to start on it now would guarantee a Blue Tsunami in 2020.

Brazil, Take Note

Costa Rica is doing it right:

This is how Costa Rica 🇨🇷 doubled the size of its rainforest in a generation. Bravo Costa Rica! You inspire then World

pic.twitter.com/6SQLMkhLjk

— Erik Solheim (@ErikSolheim) August 25, 2019

I'm sure you get the reference to Brazil, but in case you haven't been paying attention (like most of the American media), there's this:

And from NYT:

The destruction of the Amazon rain forest in Brazil has increased rapidly since the nation’s new far-right president took over and his government scaled back efforts to fight illegal logging, ranching and mining.

While campaigning for president last year, Mr. Bolsonaro declared that Brazil’s vast protected lands were an obstacle to economic growth and promised to open them up to commercial exploitation.

Less than a year into his term, that is already happening.

Bolsonaro has rapidly gained a reputation as the Trump of the South, but more extreme. A lot of the international outrage stems from the supposition, not entirely unfounded, that the Brazilian government is encouraging the burn-off.

The Times does point out that most of the fires are on land that has previously been cleared. The problem there is that the rain forest hasn't had a chance to recover -- which it will do, given time. I've also seen speculation that Bolsonaro wants to capture the Chinese market for soybeans, etc. The problem is that the soil in a rain forest is thin, without much in the way of nutrients. A healthy rain forest has a lot of fungi among the tree roots, which serves to recycle nutrients quickly -- otherwise, the rain would just leach them out. So, clearing a section of rain forest for farming is a short-term endeavor -- the soil will give out in two or three years.

And to give you an idea of the scale of of this year's burn:

Sidebar: The Field Museum has an exhibition devoted to conservation, including a lengthy video on their efforts in the Amazon rain forest. The Field's researchers have focused mainly on the Andes-Amazon region in Peru, where they have had notable success in getting large sections officially protected. Somehow, I doubt they would receive a similar welcome in Brazil at this point.

Review: Steven Brust: Brokedown Palace

Another Epinions orphan; I also reviewed this one at Green Man Review.

Brokedown Palace is another one of Steven Brust’s romps – I have to admit, the man astonishes me: from the highly individual noir detective cast of the Vlad Taltos novels to the delightful and affectionate take-off on Dumas in The Phoenix Guard and Five Hundred Years After, he has an amazing range and an astonishing amount of creativity. In this one, he’s done it with the traditional folk tale – not that this story owes much to any particular tale, but Brust has taken the idea of folklore and the means and methods of folklore to make an engaging and fabulous – in the strict sense – novel

The universe is the same as that of the Vlad Taltos novels, in a different time and with a very different tone. Structurally, the story follows a more-or-less traditional narrative form, broken by interludes that may describe events that are important but of which the characters are unaware, or may simply be folktales (of the “tall tales” variety) within the larger folktale. The story is quite simple: it is the story of László, King of Fenario, who is not particularly sane, and his brothers, Andor, who is shallow and perhaps overly religious – at least sometimes; Vilmos, who is the archetypal giant, large, strong, gentle, and perhaps with a little more on the ball than others realize; and Miklós, the youngest, who is a little – well, more than a little stubborn, and more than a little outspoken. It is tempting to say that the Palace is another major character, but it’s not; it is, however a potent symbol that Brust uses to great effect. László has a tendency to try to beat Miklós to death, or nearly so, and is extremely sensitive about the condition of the Palace, which is tottering on its foundations – in this case, it’s called denial. After one nearly-fatal beating, Miklós exiles himself to the land of Faerie – in the Taltos cycle, Dragaera – where he learns Dragaeran sorcery (pre-Empire, needless to say) before his return to Fenario. We meet the táltos horse Bölk, a magical steed who is much more than he seems and always answers questions with more questions; the Countess Mariska, destined to wed László – or perhaps one should say resigned to the fact – and Brigitta, László’s mistress. There is a hidden villain, and a magical tree, and the Demon Goddess Varra, who has her own agenda.

And the whole thing is permeated by magic – not only the fantasy-world magic of spells and incantations, but the fairy-tale magic that says the unbelievable is real and is walking right next to you. In this novel, Brust displays a remarkable gift in combining irony, wit, and the innocence of childhood, in which the Palace, the River, a horse, a tree, all have their own purposes and their own ways of effecting their goals. As in folklore, the characters are broadly drawn, but this is a novel, and they accumulate the telling details that belong to real people as the story progresses – they are well-developed, but always hover in the realm of the archetype.

A word about the narrator, who encapsulates Brust’s various gifts in a highly entertaining way. The narrator is indeed a storyteller, who digresses (another of Brust’s many talents) to fill in the story, bring us details about the history of Fenario, the people and the land, and who provides a commentary that is sometime wry, sometimes matter-of-fact, but always lively and good-humored. But make no mistake – there are dark and terrible events in this story, as is necessarily the case if we are to be engaged at all, and as is very much the basis of folklore as it is of literature. Whether Brust’s stance makes them more terrible or more distanced is something that each reader, I think, will have to decide.

A final note: those who are more familiar with Eastern European folklore than I may derive an additional layer of enjoyment from this book. The vocabulary and I suspect the general tenor of the narrative seem solidly based in Hungarian language and Hungarian traditions (alright, Fenarian is Hungarian, or damned close), which brings an element of the exotic to the tale that just adds to the fun.

Recommended? Absolutely.

(Ace Books, 1986)

This Week at Green Man Review

Even with the chaos emanating from D.C., at least you know some things are reliable:

Yolen on Writing, Beatles in Portland, Costume Design on Doctor Who, Music from Kathryn Tickell and Other Late Summer Matters

There's more -- there's always more. So hop on over and enjoy.

Personal Ad du Jour

It's funny, but it's also a sad commentary on men.

With thanks to commenter Steven B. at Joe.My.God.

Giggle du jour

With thanks to commenter Bulldog Cajun at Joe.My.God.

This Week at Green Man Review

Our usual mix of the odd, unusual, and very, very interesting:

An Alternate Cairo, Craft Cider, Angela Carter’s Writings, Live Breton Music and Other Autumn Is Coming Matters

Well, Autumn is still a bit away, but there's lots of interesting stuff anyway. Check it out.

It Can Be Done

But not by this administration. The contrast between Australia and the US is even more stark than you might imagine:

 CreditAsanka Brendon Ratnayake for The New York Times

It’s a magical sight: Just as the light begins to vanish, thousands of tiny penguins waddle out of the surf on an island in southeastern Australia, then head up the beach and along well-worn paths toward their burrows.

The “penguin parade” has been a major attraction since the 1920s, when tourists were led by torchlight to view the nightly arrival of the birds — the world’s smallest penguin breed, with adults averaging 13 inches tall — from a day of fishing and swimming.

For much of that time, the penguins lived among the residents of a housing development, mostly modest vacation homes, in tight proximity to cars and pets, as well as ravenous foxes. The penguins’ numbers fell precipitously. But in 1985, the state government took an extraordinary step: It decided to buy every piece of property on the Summerland Peninsula and return the land to the penguins. The process was completed in 2010.

The Trump regime, of course, goes the opposite route, setting the stage for wiping out our remaining wildlife.

They're Getting Really Brazen

If all else fails, lie about it; better yet, blame it on the opposition:

House Republican leadership has sent a memo to GOP members of Congress directing them to lie about right wing white supremacist gun massacres, and to call it “violence from the left.”

The memo, which The Tampa Bay Times acquired, includes talking points for congressional Republicans to parrot when speaking with reporters or constituents. It instructs them on how to address questions about gun violence, including the domestic terrorism recently perpetrated in El Paso, Texas.

And Fox News will start parroting it in 3 . . . 2 . . .

This is what the Republican party has become. That's why we can't have nice things.

Giggle du Jour

Just because:



With thanks to commenter Doug105 at Joe.My.God.

We Don't Need No Stinkin' Animals

And the Trump regime's war on the environment continues:

The Trump administration moved on Monday to weaken how it applies the 45-year-old Endangered Species Act, ordering changes that critics said will speed the loss of animals and plants at a time of record global extinctions .

The action, which expands the administration’s rewrite of U.S. environmental laws, is the latest that targets protections, including for water, air and public lands. Two states — California and Massachusetts, frequent foes of President Donald Trump’s environmental rollbacks — promised lawsuits to try to block the changes in the law. So did some conservation groups.

Given that Trump's administration is filled with two-faced liars, I'm calling bullshit on this:

Pushing back against the criticism, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt and other administration officials contend the changes improve efficiency of oversight while continuing to protect rare species.

“The best way to uphold the Endangered Species Act is to do everything we can to ensure it remains effective in achieving its ultimate goal — recovery of our rarest species,” he said in a statement. “An effectively administered Act ensures more resources can go where they will do the most good: on-the-ground conservation.”

Bernhardt is a former oil industry lobbyist.

This just makes me sick at my stomach. Yes, I'm a nature freak, bolstered by the understanding that it's all one system -- it's all interrelated, and if you screw up one part, you damage the whole thing. And this is the only planet we have.

I wonder when the Trump boys are going to go on their first wolf hunt.

Read the whole article -- it's pretty awful.

Via Joe.My.God.

A Good Question

Do I really need to add anything?

With thanks to commenter RomanHans at Joe.My.God.

What's New at Green Man Review

Yeah, I know, a day late -- suddenly yesterday morning my computer went wonky, including wiping my music from Windows Media Player. (Fortunately, the files weren't deleted as well, and it seems to be reconstituting itself. Let's hear it for Windows updates!)

Nevertheless, Green Man Review published as usual:

Scottish Sort of Trad Music, A Fiendish Bean Dip, Africa, The Muppets and other Summer Things

So head on over, if you haven't already, and enjoy.

Oops!

This one's gone viral, but I have to post it here.

A crowd at Modesto’s City Council erupted into laughter when Don Grundmann, the co-organizer of a Straight Pride event planned for that California city in late August, slipped while arguing to the assembled chamber and councilmen.

“We’re a totally peaceful racist group,” proclaimed Grundmann, defending his cause and inspiring a facepalm from one councilwoman and gales of laughter and cheers from the crowd.

And the crowd went wild.

Mayor Pete

Strangely enough, this is the first time I've seen Pete Buttigieg in action -- chalk it up to my habit of skipping over videos that people post in comment threads. However, this one I did watch, and I think it's worth sharing:

He's not at all what I expected. I mean, I knew he was intelligent, thoughtful, and (usually) right on the mark. I didn't expect him to be so forceful -- and he's not pulling any punches.

I especially like the way he's taking back "values" from the fascists -- oops, I meant the Republican/evangelical con men.

With thanks to commenter Lazycrocket at Joe.My.God.

Today in Disgusting People

Everyone involved in this:

Following a massive undocumented immigration enforcement operation that resulted in more than 650 arrests, many children of those taken into custody are now left homeless with nowhere to go.

Community leaders in Forest, Mississippi came together Wednesday night to put them up in a community gym. 12 News reporter Alex Love was granted permission to talk to community leaders and the children.

These children — some as young as toddlers — were relying on neighbors and even strangers to pick them up outside their homes after school and drive them to a community center where people tried to keep them calm. But many kids could not stop crying for mom and dad.

Good for the community. And please, can we hear from some "Christians" about their "family values"?

This via Towleroad.

And please note this, from commenter greenmanTN at Joe.My.God.:

Humanity

This speaks for itself:

An emotional moment: Beto O’Rourke meets Sean Nixon, 20, a Walmart employee who was there at the time of the shooting and helped a child.

O’Rourke asked if he was getting counseling, offered his personal cell number and said to call if he needs help. pic.twitter.com/GryDGQJWeD

— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) August 7, 2019

Can you think of a Republican who would do this? I can't.

Thanks to commenter Dazzer at Joe.My.God.

Today's Must-Read(s)

Hullabaloo is the place to be this morning -- there's a whole series of posts that demand attention. Start with this one by Tom Sullivan on our history of racism, which Trump has made allowable:

Donald Trump did not say he personally condemned those sentiments and racist ideology, only that "the nation" should. He blamed the Internet and video games for the body count rather than the racism, bigotry, and white supremacy he cited moments earlier (and that the alleged El Paso shooter cited for his actions). Trump blamed mental illness for the slaughter and would not address the ready availability of weapons in the U.S. and its gun culture. As if to punctuate his own disconnect from victims, Trump managed in the end to misidentify the affected Ohio city as Toledo.

Then scroll down to this one by Digby; the bulk of it is a column by Ben Shapiro from 2010; the title should give you a hint of the thrust: "Obama's Race War":

That's just an excuse. The Obama administration is racist. They are using that racism to let black criminals off the hook, justify illegal immigration, hamstring law enforcement across the country, and push redistribution as a solution to supposed continuing discrimination against "people of color." The predictable result of this policy will resemble the results of the 1876 election: federal abdication on racial violence, state abdication on racial violence and local abdication on racial violence. The next race war will come not from racist whites, but from racist blacks and Hispanics who feel empowered to act on their racism by an administration that excuses all minority misbehavior.

Shapiro isn't much for predicting the future.

And, something positive -- Digby's post on Beto O'Rourke's comments on Trump's racism, and Trump's racism itself. Here's a sample:

"The only modern western democracy that I can think of that said anything close to this is the Third Reich, Nazi Germany. Talking about human beings as though they‘re animals, making them sub-human to make it ok to put their kids in cages.” — @BetoORourke pic.twitter.com/UzdZEEeAn2

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 5, 2019

And yes, this has everything to do with the rash of mass shootings this week. (One of this first things I saw this morning was that there was another one last night. Four dead, I believe.)

This Week at Green Man Review

Yep, it's Sunday again, and that means:

Alternative Egypts, American Indian Literature, The Final BronyCon, Irish trad music, Alan Moore’s Mind, Hunter’s smoky egg dip and Other Matters

Don't forget the other matters -- some juicy stuff included in that. So click on over and enjoy.

(Oh, by the way -- that's a different Hunter.)

Image du Jour

All you need to know about Mitch McConnell:

With thanks to commenter StevenJ at Joe.My.God.

Coneflowers

I remember reading not all that long ago that purple coneflowers were an endangered species. Now, they've become a common garden plant, at least in Chicago.

I have to confess that I always wondered why they were called "coneflowers". I guess I must have been observing them too early in the blooming cycle, when the central portion -- the part that has the actual flowers -- was flat. I've been noticing lately that as the season progresses, that center does become more and more cone-shaped.

And it happens that the scientific name is Echinacea purpurea. For those with any acquaintance at all with herbal medicine, you know that Echinacea is recommended as an aid to the immune system. The American Indians used it for all sorts of ailments, including wounds, burns, snake bites, throat infections, what have you.

And best of all, the flowers are really attractive.