The arsenal of plutocracy
It is hardly surprising that some people see a global pandemic largely as a chance to make money. For but one example, a hardware store in Philadelphia was found to be selling a two-dollar face mask for $14. At a time when hospital workers are making masks out of office supplies and volunteers all over the world are invited to do the same, it seems really selfish and grabby, doesn't it? Maybe even grounds for prosecution.
What, then, should we do about Richard Burr, not a small business owner looking at a bleak future but a powerful senator with an eye for profit? Yesterday NPR revealed that he shared his inside information as chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee with a group of wealthy donors; today we learn that he also dumped a load of stock around the same time, including some in the staggering hotel industry. Nor was he alone -- James Inhofe (R-OK), who voted against the Families First Coronavirus Response Act; Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), whose husband is chair of the New York Stock Exchange; and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) got the urge to purge their portfolios, too. Shame on Senator Feinstein. I'm not surprised by the rest. Loeffler has been an unelected senator for about a month, and she's already as corrupt as they come. Even Tucker Carlson thinks Burr should resign. Why not all of them?
Unfortunately, ventilators and respirators are not devices we can build at home, even with the latest laser printer and the right materials. Guns, sure, but not these. At his morning press conference, Governor Cuomo again requested that Trump invoke the Defense Production Act, allowing the federal government to take over private industries (like the now-shuttered auto plants) and convert them to emergency production. It isn't clear why President Virus War hasn't done this yet. Perhaps he's just sleepy. New York, where 1,250 people are now hospitalized, is shut down, as California and Illinois soon will be. Apparently not a "worst case scenario." Governors should try getting their own supplies because "You know, we're not a shipping clerk." He seems to think it's funny that suppliers are selling to the highest bidder, i.e., the federal government. Will all this stuff be available to red states only? After the Ukraine shake-down, we have every right to wonder.
At least he waits for Cuomo to finish before convening the daily diarrhea. Let's see if Dana Bash still considers him "presidential" after this exchange with Peter Alexander of NBC News:
ALEXANDER; Is it possible that your impulse to put a positive spin on things might be giving Americans a false sense of hope?
TRUMP; No, I don't think so...such a lovely question...I feel good about it. Just a feeling. I'm a smart guy.
ALEXANDER; What do you say to Americans watching right now who are scared?
TRUMP: I say that you are a terrible reporter. That is what I say. I think you had a nasty question.
And so forth. He's been concerned that the reporters are still sitting too close together (they aren't), so Alexander may find his credentials have been revoked on Monday. For his own good. Still, it's rare to hear the word "nasty" applied to a white male reporter, so maybe we are at war.
Say, wait a minute...wasn't it Alexander who asked why asymptomatic athletes are being tested ahead of everyone else? And got the zen-like reply, "Perhaps that's been the story of life"? Nasty.
So while Cuomo and the other governors do real work, Trump promotes the miraculous properties of chloroquine, which is a real drug and not the slop Jim Bakker and Alex Jones are hustling but, according to Dr. Fauci, has yet to be proven effective against COVID-19. He continues to call it "Chinese virus," which he believes is no more racist than "Chinese food" (calling on a right-wing shill to set up the question). He tells the states they "must do more," without testing capacity. That's what John Ioannidis of Stanford means when he says the data we have is "utterly unreliable." All our advances over 1918 in diagnosis, pharmaceuticals, medical care and equipment, won't mean anything unless somebody gets a grip on this thing, soon.
Retired doctors and nurses are being asked to return to work. Can't we have our retired president Obama do the same?
What, then, should we do about Richard Burr, not a small business owner looking at a bleak future but a powerful senator with an eye for profit? Yesterday NPR revealed that he shared his inside information as chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee with a group of wealthy donors; today we learn that he also dumped a load of stock around the same time, including some in the staggering hotel industry. Nor was he alone -- James Inhofe (R-OK), who voted against the Families First Coronavirus Response Act; Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), whose husband is chair of the New York Stock Exchange; and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) got the urge to purge their portfolios, too. Shame on Senator Feinstein. I'm not surprised by the rest. Loeffler has been an unelected senator for about a month, and she's already as corrupt as they come. Even Tucker Carlson thinks Burr should resign. Why not all of them?
Unfortunately, ventilators and respirators are not devices we can build at home, even with the latest laser printer and the right materials. Guns, sure, but not these. At his morning press conference, Governor Cuomo again requested that Trump invoke the Defense Production Act, allowing the federal government to take over private industries (like the now-shuttered auto plants) and convert them to emergency production. It isn't clear why President Virus War hasn't done this yet. Perhaps he's just sleepy. New York, where 1,250 people are now hospitalized, is shut down, as California and Illinois soon will be. Apparently not a "worst case scenario." Governors should try getting their own supplies because "You know, we're not a shipping clerk." He seems to think it's funny that suppliers are selling to the highest bidder, i.e., the federal government. Will all this stuff be available to red states only? After the Ukraine shake-down, we have every right to wonder.
At least he waits for Cuomo to finish before convening the daily diarrhea. Let's see if Dana Bash still considers him "presidential" after this exchange with Peter Alexander of NBC News:
ALEXANDER; Is it possible that your impulse to put a positive spin on things might be giving Americans a false sense of hope?
TRUMP; No, I don't think so...such a lovely question...I feel good about it. Just a feeling. I'm a smart guy.
ALEXANDER; What do you say to Americans watching right now who are scared?
TRUMP: I say that you are a terrible reporter. That is what I say. I think you had a nasty question.
And so forth. He's been concerned that the reporters are still sitting too close together (they aren't), so Alexander may find his credentials have been revoked on Monday. For his own good. Still, it's rare to hear the word "nasty" applied to a white male reporter, so maybe we are at war.
Say, wait a minute...wasn't it Alexander who asked why asymptomatic athletes are being tested ahead of everyone else? And got the zen-like reply, "Perhaps that's been the story of life"? Nasty.
So while Cuomo and the other governors do real work, Trump promotes the miraculous properties of chloroquine, which is a real drug and not the slop Jim Bakker and Alex Jones are hustling but, according to Dr. Fauci, has yet to be proven effective against COVID-19. He continues to call it "Chinese virus," which he believes is no more racist than "Chinese food" (calling on a right-wing shill to set up the question). He tells the states they "must do more," without testing capacity. That's what John Ioannidis of Stanford means when he says the data we have is "utterly unreliable." All our advances over 1918 in diagnosis, pharmaceuticals, medical care and equipment, won't mean anything unless somebody gets a grip on this thing, soon.
Retired doctors and nurses are being asked to return to work. Can't we have our retired president Obama do the same?
posted by Buttermilk Sky at 2:24 PM
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