President Biden is first today, for naming Putin's plans and strategies and telling the truth about what's going on with Russian set to invade Ukraine, and for being willing to court diplomacy up to the last second.
Biden says he learned from 2014 when he and Obama kept quiet about the invasion of Crimea. Secrecy is the key to power and Obama was keen to exploit it. He also embargoed the pictorial evidence of U.S. troops torturing civilians. That spent uranium in armored vehicles was responsible for so many military deaths was also largely covered up, with the connivance of the Associated Press. In exchange for getting "scoops" they publish information once and then disappear it with copyright restrictions and changing the titles of reports. If reporters get too nosey, they get reassigned to less "sensitive" areas. What did the AP get for these accommodations? A sense of self-importance and the right to "call" elections. 2000 and 2004 were both sketchy. Kerry declined to wait until the mess on Ohio was straightened out. And he did not even have the excuse of an empty position, if the controversy dragged on. The culprit it 2004 was a proprietary operating system sold to the Secretary of State of Ohio by Franke E Gannon, the organizer of the Swiftboat Veterans. Gannon International is now defunct. For a while selling new computer operating systems to federal agencies was a thing. The DoD was persuaded to reprogram its archives, I think it was three times. The last scammer actually went to prison in connection with a different deal with that California Congressman. Duncan? Republicans have long looked to the federal Treasury for benefits. They used to call it "pork."
Starting to watch Guernsey + potato peel pie for the 34th time. Most watched movie of my life. Even has its own DVD player, dedicated to Region 2. Profound thanks to listener for the rec.
Happy you like it so well! It's an incredible script, and gorgeously acted. And to think, it's based on reality. It's truly relevant today...makes me wonder what the folks in Ukraine are facing.
When I rolled out of bed this morning I was struck by a severe attack of vertigo--I can't recall the like. It continued; way worse than the low blood pressure one gets from standing up quickly. I thought I was going to vomit, and had my sweetie bring my cane so I could walk safely. My blood pressure was also notably higher than usual. Things hadn't improved in an hour and a half, so I decided to go to the ER. We are old enough to know some people who have had strokes, and although I didn't think that was the problem, neither did some of them. The ER doc figured out that the vertigo was caused by "sand" sloshing around in my right inner ear, and figured the blood pressure was just from excitement, which proved to be the case. He gave me some vertigo medicine and exercises to relocate the crud in my inner ear. Very nice young man. Someone went out to the waiting room shortly after I was taken in and told my family it wasn't a stroke, which I greatly appreciate. Feeling considerably better now, but will take the rest of the day off. I feel a trifle sheepish, but that's WAY BETTER than showing up at the ER when it's too late for the clotbusting medicine to do any good.
Glad it was only benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (an on-line friends just mentioned that). A few years ago I had a vertigo attack _when I lay down_. Bed felt like it was tilting 45 degrees. But it passed in a relatively few minutes and hasn't happened since. No big deal.
My youngest has positional hypotension. Which manifested most dangerously when he swam across the pool and then got vertical to get out. He'd faint. When he was playing with his girlfriend, and swam under water, and the sat on the bottom of the pool to wait for her to swim over him so he could grab her legs, he ended up in ICU at the university hospital.
"Sand" isn't the right term. Here is the description: Inner ear crystals, technically known as otoconia, are tiny calcium carbonate crystals located within the otolith organs of the ear. The inner ear crystals and otolith organs help sense movement and gravity relative to the position of your head.
I gather that it's possible for the otoliths to come loose and move to the wrong place.
President Biden is first today, for naming Putin's plans and strategies and telling the truth about what's going on with Russian set to invade Ukraine, and for being willing to court diplomacy up to the last second.
ReplyDeleteBiden says he learned from 2014 when he and Obama kept quiet about the invasion of Crimea. Secrecy is the key to power and Obama was keen to exploit it. He also embargoed the pictorial evidence of U.S. troops torturing civilians. That spent uranium in armored vehicles was responsible for so many military deaths was also largely covered up, with the connivance of the Associated Press. In exchange for getting "scoops" they publish information once and then disappear it with copyright restrictions and changing the titles of reports. If reporters get too nosey, they get reassigned to less "sensitive" areas.
ReplyDeleteWhat did the AP get for these accommodations? A sense of self-importance and the right to "call" elections. 2000 and 2004 were both sketchy. Kerry declined to wait until the mess on Ohio was straightened out. And he did not even have the excuse of an empty position, if the controversy dragged on. The culprit it 2004 was a proprietary operating system sold to the Secretary of State of Ohio by Franke E Gannon, the organizer of the Swiftboat Veterans. Gannon International is now defunct. For a while selling new computer operating systems to federal agencies was a thing. The DoD was persuaded to reprogram its archives, I think it was three times. The last scammer actually went to prison in connection with a different deal with that California Congressman. Duncan?
Republicans have long looked to the federal Treasury for benefits. They used to call it "pork."
Well, this was nice to wake up to!
ReplyDelete“Your new Maverick XLT hybrid has shipped!”
(Apparently Ford found a chip somewhere for our pickup truck!)
It is now due to arrive late March.
Just in time for Wil to retire!
Huzzah!!
DeleteFingers crossed!
DeleteStarting to watch Guernsey + potato peel pie for the 34th time. Most watched movie of my life. Even has its own DVD player, dedicated to Region 2. Profound thanks to listener for the rec.
ReplyDeleteHappy you like it so well! It's an incredible script, and gorgeously acted. And to think, it's based on reality. It's truly relevant today...makes me wonder what the folks in Ukraine are facing.
Delete
ReplyDeleteThe Ukraine Mess Redux
Published by digby on February 19, 2022
https://digbysblog.net/2022/02/19/the-ukraine-mess-redux/
https://digbysblog.net/2022/02/19/the-ukraine-mess-redux/
DeleteWhen I rolled out of bed this morning I was struck by a severe attack of vertigo--I can't recall the like. It continued; way worse than the low blood pressure one gets from standing up quickly. I thought I was going to vomit, and had my sweetie bring my cane so I could walk safely. My blood pressure was also notably higher than usual. Things hadn't improved in an hour and a half, so I decided to go to the ER. We are old enough to know some people who have had strokes, and although I didn't think that was the problem, neither did some of them. The ER doc figured out that the vertigo was caused by "sand" sloshing around in my right inner ear, and figured the blood pressure was just from excitement, which proved to be the case. He gave me some vertigo medicine and exercises to relocate the crud in my inner ear. Very nice young man. Someone went out to the waiting room shortly after I was taken in and told my family it wasn't a stroke, which I greatly appreciate. Feeling considerably better now, but will take the rest of the day off. I feel a trifle sheepish, but that's WAY BETTER than showing up at the ER when it's too late for the clotbusting medicine to do any good.
ReplyDeleteGlad it was only benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (an on-line friends just mentioned that). A few years ago I had a vertigo attack _when I lay down_. Bed felt like it was tilting 45 degrees. But it passed in a relatively few minutes and hasn't happened since. No big deal.
DeleteMy youngest has positional hypotension. Which manifested most dangerously when he swam across the pool and then got vertical to get out. He'd faint. When he was playing with his girlfriend, and swam under water, and the sat on the bottom of the pool to wait for her to swim over him so he could grab her legs, he ended up in ICU at the university hospital.
DeleteGeez--I hope that cured him of swimming, puddle.
DeleteWow, Alan. So glad you're okay. Any idea how sand got into your ear? Did it hurt at all?
DeleteHere's to fixable problems!
"Sand" isn't the right term. Here is the description: Inner ear crystals, technically known as otoconia, are tiny calcium carbonate crystals located within the otolith organs of the ear. The inner ear crystals and otolith organs help sense movement and gravity relative to the position of your head.
DeleteI gather that it's possible for the otoliths to come loose and move to the wrong place.
Pretty much did, Alan. Indeed.
Delete