Terrific Tuesday: Election Day 2020

 

It is go time America!

Take a deep breath--it is going be a long night, possibly a long week. Maybe we will know who will be standing on the Dias on January 20, 2021 by early morning tomorrow. Possibly not. 

I want to write about the American electorate. 

I believe in America and the electorate and the voters. I believe that people want truth, science, and peace. People know right from wrong. People who want to live in peace and trust their elected leaders.

Today the true colors of the candidates will be shown and while we continue to display our country as red or blue states, the next president will have the job of gluing the country back into the red, white, and blue.

I have been involved in many discussions this election season about America and the direction that I believe we need to take this country. I have been vociferous in my defense of my beliefs and I know that in more than one case, I pushed the conversation a bit too far. Yes, it is an emotional issue with me. I love this country. I have worked my entire adult life for this country and for the Constitution. 

I spent a lot of time developing a prediction both for the Electoral College and the popular vote percentages for the two candidates. But, I am not comfortable sharing my predictions in the broken, dysfunctional, emotionally charged environment that has become these United States. I have a map and have looked at the polls--many polls, for almost every state. I will be tracking my prediction through the night to see how well, based upon the information available to me, that I did.

But predictions are just that--the game still needs to be played. And so, today, America, we stand on the field of the future. I cannot remember an election since the mid-60's where so much is at stake and the choices are so different. 

One Facebook correspondent, a former neighbor and a friend, admonished me that I will be surprised tonight that I am in a minority. I wanted to quote him directly, but apparently his comments were removed from the Facebook thread we were discussing. 

I hope that I am surprised tonight! In a good way. I am weary of the pessimism that has gripped our country because our leaders--in the Executive Branch and The Congress have abrogated their responsibilities. 

And I reiterated one more time: VOTE! It is the only way that we can make our collective voices heard.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - November 2, 2020

 

1. Today is the first Monday in November. There are just over 8 weeks remaining in the turbulent, pandemic filled 2020.

2. Tomorrow is, finally, Election Day and we will discover whether the healing of this country will begin with the election of the 46th President of these United States or whether we will have continued moral bankruptcy, divisiveness, lies, and dysfunction fostered by the 45th President for four more years.

Squirrel on the Screen
Elkridge, MD
October 28, 2020

3. Squirrels decided to play on our screens the other afternoon. It made them appear suspended in air. 

4. Family NFL results:   

    Steelers (7-0) escape Ravens (5-2) 28-24
    Football Team was on a BYE
    Cowboys (2-6) lose to Eagles (3-4-1) 9-23

5. Our pets did not do well on the change from DST to Standard Time. It took us a while yesterday afternoon to understand why they wanted dinner an hour early. 

6. A man came into a forest and asked the Trees to provide him a handle for his axe. The Trees consented to his request and gave him a young ash-tree. No sooner had the man fitted a new handle to his axe from it, than he began to use it and quickly felled with his strokes the noblest giants of the forest. An old oak, lamenting when too late the destruction of his companions, said to a neighboring cedar, “The first step has lost us all. If we had not given up the rights of the ash, we might yet have retained our own privileges and have stood for ages.” (The Trees and the Axe)

7. The true measure of a man is what he has done, not what he says he has done.

8. November and Standard Time dawned yesterday with cold rain.

9. Chris and I made a visit to the Columbia Mall on Saturday. It was our first visit to a mall in many months. Our take away--the economic crisis is real. We were shocked by the number of small businesses which have closed their doors. Perhaps up to one-third of the stores were closed.

10. Today in History. November 2, 1947, the Hughes Flying Boat—at one time the largest aircraft ever built—is piloted by designer Howard Hughes on its first and only flight. Built with laminated birch and spruce (hence the nickname the Spruce Goose) the massive wooden aircraft had a wingspan longer than a football field and was designed to carry more than 700 men to battle.

Howard Hughes was a successful Hollywood movie producer when he founded the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932. He personally tested cutting-edge aircraft of his own design and in 1937 broke the transcontinental flight-time record. In 1938, he flew around the world in a record three days, 19 hours, and 14 minutes.

England Set for Limited Lockdown to Slow Coronavirus - The Wall Street Journal

French Police Probe Personal Dispute in Lyon Priest Shooting - The Wall Street Journal

Analysis: Dishonesty Has Defined Trump’s Presidency. The Consequences Could Be Lasting. - The New York Times

Dramatic Rescues After Major Earthquake Kills at Least 39 in Turkey - The New York Times

Brazilians protest mandatory COVID-19 immunization, Chinese vaccine - Reuters

Ten dead, three missing as 2020's strongest typhoon slams Philippines - Reuters

How Americans surmounted a pandemic and dizzying rule changes so their voices would be heard - The Washington Post

The real results of Trump’s trade tariffs - The Washington Post

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

You know, Abe Lincoln, the day after his election to the presidency, gathered in his office the newsmen who had been covering his campaign. And he said to them, "Well boys, you're troubles are over now; mine have just begun." I think he -- I know what he meant. Lincoln may have been concerned in the troubled times in which he became president but I don't think he was afraid. He was ready to confront the problems and the troubles of a still youthful country, determined to seize the historic opportunity to change things.

And I am not frightened by what lies ahead and I don't believe the American people are frightened by what lies ahead. Together -- Together we're going to do what has to be done. We're going to put America back to work again. You know, there -- I aim to try and tap that great American spirit that opened up this completely undeveloped continent from coast to coast and made it a great nation, survived several wars, survived a Great Depression, and we'll survive the problems that we face right now.

President-Elect Victory Speech, delivered 4 November 1980, Century Plaza Hotel, Los Angeles

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Super Sunday - Halloween is Behind Us

 

Chris and Talan
Elkridge, MD
October 31, 2020

We celebrated Halloween last evening, despite coronavirus and the cold. We practiced physical distancing by placing the candy on a table and having the visiting creatures touch only the ones they were taking.

Finnegan with the
Headless Horseman
Elkridge, MD
October 31, 2020

 

It was necessary to try to continue Halloween and work within the COVID best practices. 

The numbers of children were greatly down from last year. We had only 31 visitors. I know this because we made 30 bags of candy in advance and wound up one short. The Trick or Treating began about 5:30 PM and was concluded by about 7:45 PM. Chris and I sat with neighbors at the beginning of drive at the street giving the visitors a 2 for 1 special. It also saves the children having to walk down the drive to our house in the dark. 

The preparations and the execution of the evening's festivities were a welcome break from the depressing and confusing news of the day. 

And now it is November! Election Day is ahead followed in fairly rapid succession by Veterans Day and Thanksgiving. 

Enjoy the day.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Suddenly Saturday - What's the Plan?

 

The weekend arrived last evening on a Zoom call with friends rather than in person due to the coronavirus uptick. The lack of a plan and the ongoing denials of reality by the president continue to affect the very fabric of our lives--and yet few are calling him on it.

I guess it is OK to surrender to the virus. 

I prefer Patton's approach:

“A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week.”

Problem is, not only is there not a perfect plan next week, the administration has washed their hands of even trying to get a plan together and is telling us to learn to live with it.

Instead of denying the veracity and spread of COVID-19, we need to face it.

Covid-19 Is Worse in the Dakotas Than It Was in the Spring’s Hot Spots - The Wall Street Journal

General George S. Patton
Then a Lt General

To continue with my Patton thoughts as they might apply to the pandemic, I was reminded of this phrase from his memorable series of speeches to the 3rd Army, as recorded on Wikipedia. Here is what he said about the overwhelming odds faced by his troops during World War 2, and with very little reediting they could be applied to the United States today:

Men, all this stuff you hear about America not wanting to fight, wanting to stay out of the war, is a lot of horse dung. Americans love to fight. All real Americans love the sting and clash of battle. When you were kids, you all admired the champion marble shooter, the fastest runner, the big-league ball players and the toughest boxers. Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser. Americans play to win all the time. That's why Americans have never lost and will never lose a war. The very thought of losing is hateful to Americans. Battle is the most significant competition in which a man can indulge. It brings out all that is best and it removes all that is base. 

  Wikipedia

Please note that in the historical context of when this statement was made, it was a wartime and the fighting troops of the time were men only. 

What is the plan?

Well, first we need a plan and then we need the intestinal fortitude to implement it. Finally, we need to realize that everything is interconnected: fighting the virus is tied to the economy and our standing in the world; but most importantly it is about people and saving lives.

I remember standing in lines for the Swine Flu vaccine! That was the pan back then, but we were in front of the virus.

So what is the plan? 

Defeat the virus to save lives and don't wait for the promise of a vaccine which will take months to distribute. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Finally Friday

 

It has finally arrived: the final Friday of October. The end of the week and the end of the month is upon us. Tomorrow is Halloween and it will definitely be a different and likely more subdued celebration this year. We are expecting a significantly reduced number of Trick or Treaters due to COVID-19.

As the week ends, Chris and I are finally out of close contact COVID-19 quarantine, but with the explosion of cases across the country many people are again hunkering down. Our Friday Happy Hour group will be conducting its weekly business meeting via Zoom tonight rather than in person. I've been quarantined for two weeks and really wanted to get out and share some adult beverages with friends, but, alas, it is not to be. 

With soon to be 10 months of 2020 in the rear view mirror, I think most of us will be happy to see the year become a bad memory. It has been a unique and disturbing year with the double whammy of COVID-19 and the economic disaster, and that doesn't even consider the record number of hurricanes that have battered the Gulf Coast or the out-of-control wildfires sweeping through California and Colorado. Not a good year to live in a state whose name begins with "C".

Of course the week ahead will be interesting as well. We will learn if we have elected the 46th President of these United States or whether the 45th President has been deemed worthy of an additional term. Tuesday should be a tumultuous day and it might not be until Wednesday or later in the week that we learn the outcome of the election. I am encouraged that almost 80 million Americans have already voted!

If you haven't yet, VOTE! What on earth are you waiting for? The apocalypse? 

For what it is worth--HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

It is All Connected

 

The Wall Street Journal 5 Day Graph
October 29, 2020

I recall that the president was extolling the strength of the economy based upon the rise in the stock market during the last debate. It seems that the silver lining is tarnishing a bit this week as the reality of the renewed coronavirus runs into Wall Street. The Dow was down over 900 points yesterday and it is being blamed on the coronavirus response--or lack of response.

Here is a headline from this morning's The Wall Street Journal:

Stocks End Sharply Lower on Coronavirus Concerns

We must stop looking at trends and situations in isolation and consider the total impact upon everything. As long as the coronavirus response continues to be inept and inconsistent, the economy cannot recover. Despite what we are being told, a solid, cogent coronavirus plan will turn the economy around--ignoring the virus and insisting that it is going away is a recipe for disaster--economically, medically, socially. 

The administration needs to accept the science and forge a plan that will work against the virus and for the economy. We could become a world leader rather than a laughingstock.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Wind, Rain, and Hurricane

 

Hurricane Zeta Rain Prediction
October 28-30, 2020

I think writing about the weather is better today than writing about the election. I guess my fervor is decreased since I have voted. But, I still want everyone to get out there and vote. The expansion of early voting is a good thing because it takes the weather out of the election equation. Getting slammed with rotten weather on Election Day could, in years past, affect the vote, but this year with early voting the electorate can vote around the weather.

Some pundits are suggesting that this year's voter turn out may be one of the highest ever. The highest being the election of 1876 where almost 82 percent of voters cast ballots. It also had the closest Electoral College vote at 185-184. Now that is close. Is 2020 destined to be a repeat? We should know in about a week.

Before Election Day, however, the wind, rain, and a hurricane will be racing from the Gulf Coast through the East Coast making travel and life difficult. Voters can get out early, or wait until it passes to cast their ballots.

While the effect of the weather on the election can be mitigated, the effect of COVID-19 cannot. The increase in infections and hospitalizations is a fact and I am always amazed at how some try to rationalize the numbers away trying to indicate that they aren't as severe as they appear. I'm pretty sure I know how those who have contracted the disease view those explanations.

Vote! Find a way around the wind, rain, and hurricane to cast your vote.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Voting 2020

 

I voted yesterday.

Yay. I have done my duty and registered my vote in the election for the candidates and issues I support, or not.

It was the first day of early in person voting in Maryland and Chris and I decided to wait until midday as the lines were reported to be long as the polls opened at 0700. 

It was exciting to go to the polls and see the long line when we arrived about 1100. We were masked the entire time we were at the poll form leaving our car until returning to the car and we practiced good social distancing in the line, which was about 25 minutes long. Everyone was in good spirits, excited actually, to be voting in this election and making our collective voices heard. 

The polling site was well equipped and had plenty of workers. The processing and voting was done efficiently. All-in-all it was a good experience and I do not have to fret anymore about when, how, and where I am going to register my vote. 

I will tell you, unlike the Governor of Maryland, I did not vote for Ronald Reagan. 

Please vote--it matters. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - October 26, 2020

 

1. It is the last Monday of October. Next Monday we will be  off Daylight Saving Time and the day before Election Day. 

Sitting around the Fire Pit
Elkridge, MD
October 21, 2020

2. The weather turned very cold, it went from high 70's to 40's overnight. Yesterday was a rainy, cold, and raw day. I'm glad there was at least football to watch on TV.

3. Family Weekend NFL Report

  - Ravens had a Bye
  - Steelers (6-0) defeat Titans (5-1), 27-24
  - Football Team (2-5) destroys Cowboys (2-5), 25-3

4. It is not until you have a close-up experience with coronavirus and COVID-19 that you begin to understand the difficulties and complexities of tracking, treating, and staying uninfected by the virus.

5. Quiche is more than just an egg. 

6. Early in person voting begins today in Maryland. The lines are already reported to be very long--and the polls aren't open yet. Perhaps that is why the lines are so long.

7. LATEST FALSE FACT-CHECKS ON DONALD TRUMP

 Speaking of the federal debt before the coronavirus pandemic, “we were starting to get that number down.”

 “The World Health Organization just admitted that I was right. Lockdowns are killing countries all over the world. The cure cannot be worse than the problem itself.” 

 Says Joe Biden is a socialist.

 "We are rounding the turn (on coronavirus). We are rounding the corner." 

 

8. Today in History. On October 26, 1881, the Earp brothers face off against the Clanton-McLaury gang in a legendary shootout at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona.

After silver was discovered nearby in 1877, Tombstone quickly grew into one of the richest mining towns in the Southwest. Wyatt Earp, a former Kansas police officer working as a bank security guard, and his brothers, Morgan and Virgil, the town marshal, represented “law and order” in Tombstone, though they also had reputations as being power-hungry and ruthless. The Clantons and McLaurys were cowboys who lived on a ranch outside of town and sidelined as cattle rustlers, thieves and murderers. In October 1881, the struggle between these two groups for control of Tombstone and Cochise County ended in a blaze of gunfire at the OK Corral.

 

Pandemic Fatigue Is Real—And It’s Spreading - The Wall Street Journal

Why Protesters in Belarus Continue to Take to the Streets - The Wall Street Journal

Barrett Set to Be Confirmed to the Supreme Court - The New York Times

Infection of Pence Aides Raises New Questions About Virus Response - The New York Times

White House signals defeat in pandemic as outbreak roils Pence’s office - The Washington Post

Tumult at home, ailing alliances abroad: Why Trump’s America has been a ‘gift’ to Putin - The Washington Post

As holidays near, the coronavirus is spreading rapidly, putting families in a quandary about celebrations and travel - The Washington Post

Meet the 'QAnon' caucus: Conspiracy buffs on path to U.S. Congress - Reuters

Renewed fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh threatens U.S.-backed truce - Reuters

Kurdish officials say they foiled attack on diplomats in northern Iraq - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

Let's ensure that the Federal Government never again legislates against the family and the home. Last September I signed an Executive order on the family requiring that every department and agency review its activities in light of seven standards designed to promote and not harm the family. But let us make certain that the family is always at the center of the public policy process not just in this administration but in all future administrations. It's time for Congress to consider, at the beginning, a statement of the impact that legislation will have on the basic unit of American society, the family.

Address Before a Joint Session of Congress on the State of the Union - 1988, January 25, 1988

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Undecided?

 

Are there undecided voters in America?

I do not understand how there could be any undecided voters in America given the mutually exclusive opposites that the two candidates represent. Perhaps, this year is the most polarizing ever in the history of the United States.

I know the decisions are not binary, but I believe that the two main candidates represent the far right and the moderate to centrist left. 

I suppose that the undecided voters are looking for the perfect candidate or possibly they have two issues that they vote for or against and neither candidate fully meets their desires--but I believe we need to look at the bigger picture of the candidates and what they bring to the presidency. The world is not a one or two issue place. 

The time for decision making has arrived. Check the issues and look at the larger consequences. And please, do not waste your vote by voting for animated characters or dead former presidents--that is not how decisions are made. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD