Are you scared yet?
Tonight I am.
I've been very diligent. I haven't seen a person face to face since I went to the drugstore on Monday the 16th. You see I don't want to get it, and I'm fearful if I do I'm not gonna make it through.
Did you see that video from Spain? Of the guy sitting at a desk crying because they're just leaving everybody over 65 to die? I'm over 65. And I have an underlying condition. It has to do with my immune system. No one really knows what is going on, it's what caused my pemphigus. But both my doctors, my internist and my hematologist, are worried about it.
I'm not the kind to worry about health. Unless I freak out about it.
It was illegal to be sick when I was growing up. My older sister posits it was because my mother's mother was a hypochondriac. If you were sick, unless you were literally dying, puking, writhing on the floor, you had to go to school. We also never ever got breakfast. My mother slept in. I didn't think much of it, but then they said breakfast was the most important meal of the day. And now they're saying it's not, to fast as long as you can before you eat. Illustrating that science is a fluid subject, whereas Covid-19 is not. Sure, the doctors have some tools in their arsenal, but there is no silver bullet and the world doesn't need any one of us, it can go on just fine without us.
My father died at 70, of cancer. He was shocked that he made it to that age, because his dad didn't. As I've approached that marker...nobody lives forever, even Sumner Redstone has gone into hiding, and he was sure his regimen would keep him sentient and alive forever. But it didn't. He's compromised. Kind of like my mother, the dementia is creeping in, it was only a week ago that she could even wrap her head around the virus, and she told me this afternoon she was planning to go out to dinner. But didn't the governor of Connecticut shut all the restaurants down?
Did you see that article in the "New York Times"?
Probably not. Everybody's reading their own stuff, watching their own shows, it's a full time job keeping up, but I'm doing it, I'm interested and I think I'm protecting myself with knowledge. Most people don't know much. They're just confident that they won't get it and if they do they'll pull through. WRONG!
Getting back to Connecticut... I grew up in Fairfield, on one side of the town was downtrodden Bridgeport, on the other upscale Westport, where Paul Newman and Bette Davis lived. So there's this article in the "Times"...
"Party Zero: How a Soiree in Connecticut Became a 'Super Spreader' - About 50 people gathered this month in the upscale suburb of Westport, then scattered across the region and the world, taking the coronavirus with them.": https://nyti.ms/39vr8yQ
I've been thinking about this, now is the time you want to stay away from upscale people. Everybody's social climbing, especially in Los Angeles, but it's the upper class that does the most traveling, that intersects with the most people, that are carriers, that will infect you, better to live in a house with poor people, or lower middle class people, I don't think there are any real middle class people left.
And sure, Tom and Rita came back to the U.S., they're doing well. But did you ever wonder how they got back here? I assume they flew private, I could be wrong, but I know they want to avoid the risk, once bitten, twice shy. You can't afford to fly private, you can't even be seen in the emergency room, never mind get good treatment. There's an ICU and a ventilator for Tom and Rita. You? Good luck.
And then there's that article I just read in the "New York Times" app:
"As a generally healthy 45-year-old, I didn't seem like a probable Covid-19 candidate.": https://nyti.ms/2JhUKFb
That's another thing you find out, how painful the experience of being infected is. You're uber-tired, and you're struggling to breathe. Sounds horrible, and it is. But like every other illness, you have sympathy for the patient but then you move on, saying to yourself "I'm just glad it isn't me." But this time, there's a good chance it will be. No matter how much money you have, whether you take supplements, whether you're in good health today, Covid-19 doesn't care.
And at this point in time, if it's in the "New York Times," a great portion of America ignores it, it just can't be true, the paper is biased, with an agenda, it's FAKE NEWS! No, it's the most real news you can get. But this is where we are, the President has made it so there are no authoritative voices but his, and if you trust his...there's a good chance you're going to get infected.
But right now I'm not worried about politics, I'm not even worried about the insane states still in business with no self-quarantining of the population, no tonight I'm worried about human nature.
It's kind of like sex without protection, you get caught up in the moment and the regrets come after that. Does a baby result? A good percentage of the time no, but I know someone who got a girl pregnant when he lost his virginity...it screwed his mind up so much he could barely function, and he got mononucleosis in the process, whether it was related, who knows.
And speaking of mononucleosis, I had the world's worst case, at an age when most people don't get it, 21, verging on 22.
Let's see, it was 1976. And I was at this freestyle skiing competition at Keystone, in Colorado. And my friend injured himself severely trying to do a double flip but somehow he made his way back to Aspen. I went to visit him thereafter, he and two other guys lived in the basement of a house on Cemetery Lane. They had a party, everybody was in their early twenties, we shared a joint, even though I told myself I was never gonna smoke dope again...that's where I got the mononucleosis, I tested at the limit for nine months, I kid you not. Was I thinking about this when I took a hit, of course not, have I thought about it since...of course!
I was in a down mood, it was a party, why not.
This is coming down to character, and I know you don't want to hear that. Yes, the nerds did inherit the earth. Why? Because while you were out partying, losing your virginity, they were studying hard, so they could get into a good college and advance their lives. Of course you can become rich and famous without going to college at all, but that's not my point. My point is these people applied themselves, and never went off course, they knew one bad grade could be the difference between getting into an Ivy or not.
Do you have the strength to stay on the course? Can you say no to the enticements? Can you do everything in your power not to be face to face with another human being until the end of May?
That's what Bill Gates said it would take. It's already been two weeks, you can make it. But if we don't do this, Covid-19 will hang around until the end of the year. You either do it right now, or you pay the price.
I don't want to pay the price.
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Saturday 28 March 2020
Friday 27 March 2020
News Update-Day 16
Fear is setting in.
The big story today, of course, is the old/new 17 minute Dylan track, "Murder Most Foul." This is a masterstroke, whether the timing of the release was conscious or not. In an era where everybody is doing one thing, the person doing the opposite is king. Everybody is postponing their album release date as they live stream from their home, Dylan didn't live stream and put out new music. Furthermore, it's the opposite of today's music, it is not disposable. Today's music is all about refining the track until it fits through the little commercial hole. Have you listened to the new Weeknd album? I tried. His vocals are great, and then you hear the TR-808 and you wince. Yup, I'm talking about those synthesized handclaps/drums. Why does every track have to have this? Used to be sounds were fads. And, the first time around, after people were infatuated with drum machines in the eighties, the big thing was to go back to real drums. All this to say that I spent a long time bouncing from playlist to playlist the other night and was dissatisfied. On Apple, the acoustic singer-songwriter playlist was filled with B-level talent at best. After hearing Tom Odell, who is neither Elton nor Dylan but is above the line, this dreck was laughable. Let's go even further! Most of these people should not be playing music for a living and their music should not be on streaming services, they're just cluttering the lane so we can no longer find the good stuff. And no one is interested in curating the truly good stuff, no one is taking responsibility. Used to be we had multiple layers of curation. First, who got signed by the label, second, who got played on the radio, third, who got ink. Very few acts ran that gauntlet. Today, there's a thin layer of "popular" music and no one cares about the rest. The streaming services promote what the majors want them to, even if it's not pay for play, because the majors are continuing to release product that the streaming services need, and the hill being too hard to climb, the labels only work what is easy, and then we've got a ton of people who shouldn't be in the business bitching that they can't get paid at the bottom. And you wonder why everybody talks about Netflix instead of music. No one in music is taking any responsibility, at least no one with power or a vision.
I could go on about this forever, but we live in a world where no negativity is allowed. We've got to be upbeat, we've got to say our affirmations, polish our personalities until...
We all fall off a cliff.
That's what's happening now, reality is sinking in. You're gonna be in your house for a long time.
And you might just get the coronavirus.
And you, or people who are dear to you, might just die.
The best information about the coronavirus came from Bill Gates last night on CNN:
https://cnn.it/2JiQUvn
Wait a while for the video to load, and even though Bill is not on screen right away, hang in there, he will be.
This is the opposite of the bloviating from D.C. Here we have an intelligent person familiar with science who has studied the problem and is telling the truth as opposed to what people want to hear. That's the problem with politics, it's worse than show business, these people are so afraid of blowback even though we all know the truth.
Speaking of truth, the definitive song on this is Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows." And at this point, everybody seems to know that, but they do not know the definitive version, which is by Don Henley:
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/39hBKkE
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKm4LtnWYlc
"Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died"
First it took a while to adjust to the new normal, staying home, figuring out what you were going to do for supplies.
Second, you had to figure out how to do your work remotely.
Third, everybody was connecting, it felt good to actually talk on the phone.
Fourth, there was this incredible focus on the news.
Fifth, your work started to slow down.
Sixth, there was not really dramatic news every day.
And now, and now, you're freaked out. Are you gonna get it? Is someone close to you gonna die? You can't wrap your head around what is going on. Everybody is really staying home and business is shut down?
Then there are the deniers, like the Governor of Mississippi, insisting life will go on, goddamit, and if people get sick and die, well, not that many people will die. Death is not something you get over, whether you are the deceased or you are left behind. If you're dead, you're done. If you're still around, you can't get the deceased out of you brain, you think about them for the rest of your life, and if their ending was tragic, it makes it that much worse.
So now, we think D.C. has lost control. And we don't understand how the right resisted a big stimulus in 2008 but is cool with one now. Proving that everything is up for grabs. In other words, the only person you can rely on is yourself, and that's scary.
And systems are breaking down. My doctor told me his patient called an ambulance and the EMTs wouldn't take him to the hospital, the emergency room was just too crowded. Really, this happened.
And every day someone famous gets infected. Today, it was Boris Johnson. Yesterday, it was Prince Charles. As for the President and Congress...they're not social distancing, are they immune? NO! One of them is gonna get sick and kick too.
And then there's that pastor who said it was all a plot against Trump and then died himself:
"Pastor who claimed Covid-19 'Hysteria' Was Plot Against Trump Dies": https://bit.ly/2UHhofh
It's sunny in Southern California, but it's not sunny in our brains.
But if you want to get through it, I recommend this video:
""Nathan Sharansky on Fighting the Coronavirus": https://bit.ly/2Jo4jCc
Meanwhile, back to Henley. Am I the only person who has had "The End Of The Innocence" playing through their head?
"Remember when the days were long
And rolled beneath a deep blue sky
Didn't have a care in the world
With mommy and daddy standing by"
It seems so long ago, but it was only a couple of weeks ago.
We are in this together. Protect yourself and your loved ones, this will eventually end, and you want to be here.
The big story today, of course, is the old/new 17 minute Dylan track, "Murder Most Foul." This is a masterstroke, whether the timing of the release was conscious or not. In an era where everybody is doing one thing, the person doing the opposite is king. Everybody is postponing their album release date as they live stream from their home, Dylan didn't live stream and put out new music. Furthermore, it's the opposite of today's music, it is not disposable. Today's music is all about refining the track until it fits through the little commercial hole. Have you listened to the new Weeknd album? I tried. His vocals are great, and then you hear the TR-808 and you wince. Yup, I'm talking about those synthesized handclaps/drums. Why does every track have to have this? Used to be sounds were fads. And, the first time around, after people were infatuated with drum machines in the eighties, the big thing was to go back to real drums. All this to say that I spent a long time bouncing from playlist to playlist the other night and was dissatisfied. On Apple, the acoustic singer-songwriter playlist was filled with B-level talent at best. After hearing Tom Odell, who is neither Elton nor Dylan but is above the line, this dreck was laughable. Let's go even further! Most of these people should not be playing music for a living and their music should not be on streaming services, they're just cluttering the lane so we can no longer find the good stuff. And no one is interested in curating the truly good stuff, no one is taking responsibility. Used to be we had multiple layers of curation. First, who got signed by the label, second, who got played on the radio, third, who got ink. Very few acts ran that gauntlet. Today, there's a thin layer of "popular" music and no one cares about the rest. The streaming services promote what the majors want them to, even if it's not pay for play, because the majors are continuing to release product that the streaming services need, and the hill being too hard to climb, the labels only work what is easy, and then we've got a ton of people who shouldn't be in the business bitching that they can't get paid at the bottom. And you wonder why everybody talks about Netflix instead of music. No one in music is taking any responsibility, at least no one with power or a vision.
I could go on about this forever, but we live in a world where no negativity is allowed. We've got to be upbeat, we've got to say our affirmations, polish our personalities until...
We all fall off a cliff.
That's what's happening now, reality is sinking in. You're gonna be in your house for a long time.
And you might just get the coronavirus.
And you, or people who are dear to you, might just die.
The best information about the coronavirus came from Bill Gates last night on CNN:
https://cnn.it/2JiQUvn
Wait a while for the video to load, and even though Bill is not on screen right away, hang in there, he will be.
This is the opposite of the bloviating from D.C. Here we have an intelligent person familiar with science who has studied the problem and is telling the truth as opposed to what people want to hear. That's the problem with politics, it's worse than show business, these people are so afraid of blowback even though we all know the truth.
Speaking of truth, the definitive song on this is Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows." And at this point, everybody seems to know that, but they do not know the definitive version, which is by Don Henley:
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/39hBKkE
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKm4LtnWYlc
"Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died"
First it took a while to adjust to the new normal, staying home, figuring out what you were going to do for supplies.
Second, you had to figure out how to do your work remotely.
Third, everybody was connecting, it felt good to actually talk on the phone.
Fourth, there was this incredible focus on the news.
Fifth, your work started to slow down.
Sixth, there was not really dramatic news every day.
And now, and now, you're freaked out. Are you gonna get it? Is someone close to you gonna die? You can't wrap your head around what is going on. Everybody is really staying home and business is shut down?
Then there are the deniers, like the Governor of Mississippi, insisting life will go on, goddamit, and if people get sick and die, well, not that many people will die. Death is not something you get over, whether you are the deceased or you are left behind. If you're dead, you're done. If you're still around, you can't get the deceased out of you brain, you think about them for the rest of your life, and if their ending was tragic, it makes it that much worse.
So now, we think D.C. has lost control. And we don't understand how the right resisted a big stimulus in 2008 but is cool with one now. Proving that everything is up for grabs. In other words, the only person you can rely on is yourself, and that's scary.
And systems are breaking down. My doctor told me his patient called an ambulance and the EMTs wouldn't take him to the hospital, the emergency room was just too crowded. Really, this happened.
And every day someone famous gets infected. Today, it was Boris Johnson. Yesterday, it was Prince Charles. As for the President and Congress...they're not social distancing, are they immune? NO! One of them is gonna get sick and kick too.
And then there's that pastor who said it was all a plot against Trump and then died himself:
"Pastor who claimed Covid-19 'Hysteria' Was Plot Against Trump Dies": https://bit.ly/2UHhofh
It's sunny in Southern California, but it's not sunny in our brains.
But if you want to get through it, I recommend this video:
""Nathan Sharansky on Fighting the Coronavirus": https://bit.ly/2Jo4jCc
Meanwhile, back to Henley. Am I the only person who has had "The End Of The Innocence" playing through their head?
"Remember when the days were long
And rolled beneath a deep blue sky
Didn't have a care in the world
With mommy and daddy standing by"
It seems so long ago, but it was only a couple of weeks ago.
We are in this together. Protect yourself and your loved ones, this will eventually end, and you want to be here.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
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--
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Thursday 26 March 2020
Today's Coronavirus Mailbag
"Donald Trump vs. God on Easter PPV": https://bit.ly/39gZSDW
________________________________
Freedom of speech is granted by the American people themselves and it means listening to someone you utterly disagree with. A dialogue of some political sort.
So, though I find you are usually wrong with stereotypical avatars about conservatives, it does seem that you're starting to learn and I'm hoping you can help close the divide. I hated Trump in the primaries but in the general election I saw my choices as the Devil or the Anti-Christ, who only lasts 7 years. I seriously hate ALL politicians, but some lies are more dangerous than others. My choices are the ones who lie the least, or whose lies are less dangerous than the lies of their opponent.
Most conservatives didn't love Trump until we saw how much politicians and media on the Left hate him. We have so enjoyed watching him tweak the Establishment both Left and Right. When we hear lefties hating on him incessantly, we think "job well done, let those haters boil in their hatred". We voted against not only the DNC & GOP establishment (traitors of the people) but also against the radicals (traitors to freedom) who want to lump us into racial divides.
I've tried to communicate this to my friends on the Left, but they prefer identity politics to reality….they would rather hate on me because it's easier and I'm close. The Left repeatedly posits that anyone who has a policy disagreement MUST be a racist or some other bullshit moniker to avoid the reality of their really bad ideas and candidates.
But I believe freedom of speech is how we will finally overcome. I welcome your opinions daily, if only to understand the perspective of why my lefty friends still don't get it. Please tell them to just keep burning in anger against their preferred straw man. It's funny.
I would never unsubscribe from watching that. Thank you for such quality entertainment.
Ted Pearce
________________________________
Love your life views on music industry but enough on the Trump hating. Haven't you figured out it is the Uniparty and not Trump who got us here? Tired of Governors and lifelong politicians and Congress blaming Orange Man Bad for things that got baked in before he took office. Damn straight I voted for him. Went to his first big rally in Phoenix so I could see the crowd and hear the man unfiltered by the news outlets. Stood in line behind a younger couple with grade school kid, Jewish in 100 F heat as we snaked around a city block to get inside. The crowds have never been accurately portrayed by the press.
Many of your readers would love to know when we should start reading you again. Count me in this camp.
Kathleen Wasecha Clifford
________________________________
Hi Bob!
I write this from my home in Atlanta where I'm self-quarantined since Friday. On Saturday, I came down with what feels like a bad chest cold but I know it's Covid-19. I'm lucky as hell. I didn't take this zombie apocalypse seriously until Obama tweeted the graphic illustrating why we should all stay home, and while I had already reduced my meetings and used Zoom and Meet as much as I could, for a week I still did stuff in person keeping my distance from others, washing my hands, and using Purell instead of staying in the house like everyone else. Well, it wasn't enough. I still got sick. I now realize that it wasn't about keeping myself from getting ill, I should have been protecting others. Fortunately, no one else I was around has gotten sick. Yet!! If they do, I will have to deal with the fact that I caused their illness. I regret that. Would I have taken it more seriously if the government did? Of course. But I know the man is an ass hat, so shame on me for expecting a presidential reaction from a clown.
Wendy Day
Rap Coalition
________________________________
My little town of Maplewood NJ had a 75 percent increase today, from 12 to 20 positive tests, ranging in age from 4(!) to 75, I believe. And testing is still sparse enough that most people have to be pretty ill to be sick. NYC and environs are being slammed hard. People elsewhere just don't understand. A total national shutdown for 3 weeks would probably help a lot. Instead this has become a partisan divide and it's going to linger and keep spreading.
Thanks.
Alan Pail
________________________________
Hi Bob, it's getting even more real here in Park City, UT. As of today it has been announced that we are going into a Shelter in Place order to last until May 1. Why? Because Summit County is 5th in the nation for cases per capita. Scary prospect. I keep watching the mortality rate of this virus climb every day. A week and a half ago it was 2.9% today it hit 4.5%. That means its getting worse, not better.
I personally know two people that have tested positive for it. This evening I got a text from another friend who saw that Park City was getting the Shelter in Place order and contacted me to ask if I was okay. They then proceeded to tell me they are waiting on an Oximiter and are having difficulty breathing. They plan on getting a COVID-19 test asap, if they can. After the messages about all that they tell me: It's been nice knowing you.
THAT'S FUCKED UP.
As a musician who does a lot of recording, I'm generally ok with staying home working. A local venue was doing solo live streaming events to give local musicians something to do - with no audience and no staff, just the artist and a sound person (keeping their distance). With the order coming down, that's not going to continue. As it shouldn't.
Being that I live right next to the ski run in Old Town of Park City, I have been seeing multiple people walking up the mountain and ignoring the suggested stay home shit. Now that it's a misdemeanor, I wonder how many will continue to try and hike/ski now. It baffles my mind how selfish people get - mind you, I've never been thru something like this before. I guess my survival instinct outweighs my Covidiot desires.
The county where Telluride is located, San Miguel County, in Colorado is doing an amazing thing. They're giving free blood tests for every resident to check people for a certain antibody to see who does and does not have the virus. I'm hoping that Summit County will follow suit.
Why is it so fuckin hard for people to understand it takes a little physical distance to get over this faster?
Jody Whitesides
________________________________
Please forgive me my English.
I am Slovene living in France and working for an international organization. I am not a 'famous' person, but I still wanted to write regarding the 'corona mailbox' you send on a daily basis: a contribution from a common citizen. Let me add that I have been on medication for OCD since 2011 (remember Jack Nicholson in 'As good as it geets' - it was me before). For people like me suffering from this kind of disorders this outbreak is just ....Unlivable.
I do not think we should overpolitizise this virus issue : close to every leader in the world right now has it wrong, we could say.
Look at the president Macron, organizing the election, going to the theatre with his wife whilst in Italy the crisis was already unmanageable...
In my home country which is, unfortunately, also known in the States 'thanks' to Melania Trump, a right wing military freak leads the country. But, the virus is somehow managed. Why is that ?
Maybe I am being naive, but my guess is, it has to do with hygiene standards. The basics. Lots of people in my home country 'overreacted' if we can call it like that, and have been staying at home for three weeks now, in self-isolation although nobody told them to do so.
Now, they have to stay home but can still go for a walk if they respect social distancing. And know what? An extremely low number of infractions has been registered. This means no matter who holds the rains, the spread of the virus depends largely on the behavior patterns. Collective behavior patterns.
My colleagues were making jokes of me three weeks ago because I wouldn't kiss friends to greet them and when I started the self-isolation 15 days ago I was treated by my closest friends as 'an OCD person who has always exaggerated'. The French started to care only when their President said ' we are in war'. How sick and sad is that ? We saw what was happening in Italy, how is it possible that people (majority) didn't care before the President took the decision to care. Can we maybe think by ourselves ? Apparently not that much....
I said behavior patterns. Yes. In my home country you never wear shoes at home. In France, always.
In Slovenia, you always wash fruit even if it comes from a farmer's market. In France, rarely.
In Slovenia, you will have to close your bakery if you touch bread and money : one person serves the bread, one deals with the cashing. In France, the same person gives you the bread and takes the money from you (without gloves). It has been changing, slightly, but come on, these are basics!!
Not to mention the 'french croissants' in the bars : the lye for hours on the counter in a bread basket - unprotected. If you order one, they will serve you from that same basket. Not possible in Slovenia, you have to shut down your business if you do this. Besides, you will not have any clients because people will think it's dirty.
In my home country, the life certainly has changed after the outbreak of the virus, but the habits didn't need to adjust that much. The bar was set high from the start.
My conclusion is that a lot depends on the bar. From where do we come, what the level of the basic hygiene was, individually and collectively.
I hope I was not too long...
Please never give up your podcasts they are essential to many of us!
Best,
Mojca Bozic
Paris
________________________________
I am on my 20th day of self Isolation in Knivsta Sweden a small city 45 min North of Stockholm. My normal workplace and I am fortunate that the "Show must go on" in my area of entertainment music publishing.
This is in fact a great admin and music listening period as you can focus much greater. As a close to 60 years old and asthmatic I am in the risk zone so I am careful.
It is rare I get political but concerning American politics I have given up on it. But reading some of these peoples answers in your mailbag saying I deleting their subscription, it just makes me laugh and shake my head in astonishment. Freedom of speech I guess is ok as long as you say what people want to hear...
I have dual citizenship Swedish and US and for my duty for America - Bernie will be my only choice come ballot day. He will get my vote as I can not vote for the lesser of two evils.
I must vote for the right person and despite the bullying he received (funny how we teach our kids not to be involved with bullying and our politicians do so and often get away with it under the title of being "Tough leader"). The democrats throw the SOCIALISM word out there and the propaganda of old days came right back...
Do you know how many times when I am telling American friends go WOW when they understand about what I get for my tax money her in Social Democratic Sweden? I don't pay extra funds for Children care, study supplements including university, health care and I am asthmatic and pay only a fraction of what you pay for medicine in America, also women giving birth to kids cost only admin fee and few extras and there is much more I even got to sleep over in a bed when I had one of my kids and it cost me 20 USD with food included. The insurance system actually works here and one time my computer got stolen the insurance company minus the deductible of 1000 SEK appox 80 USD and I had the new computer bought and sorted within a week. Public transport despite the fact it is not like it use to be still works and is pretty inexpensive considering other countries...I go in for a check up and asthma treatment or to have a baby the same fee of 30 to 50 USD I could go on an on and on. Granted it is not perfect but the closest I have experienced and I have traveled previously and lived in many parts of the world. So socialistic democratic system works.
So here you have Bernie, truly trying to make the USA change and both parties bully him and start a propaganda Campaign throwing in the word Socialism which most don't even know what it means. So the best man will be push away but he will get my vote. Joe is the lesser of two evils and I don't want evil anymore… I want change an only Bernie can push it through. I hope that all Bernie Supporters do the same - would that not be a huge kick in the ass to Dems and Reps to have him win anyway because the people showed they want real change and not the lesser of two evils.
So Bob, please continue writing exactly what you think when you want. I will always respect it.
John Jackson Cloud
________________________________
"Bob, the truly amazing thing to me is how the response to covid-19 is not only split into partisan levels but at the generational level as well. I am sure by now, everyone has seen the meme "as a millennial, I find myself yelling at my parents about going out." I look at the social media of my generation, and I see a message of unity, one of social distancing and self-isolation, so that we can flatten the curve. At the same time, I am watching as President Trump tweets that the "cure cannot be worse than the illness" and that we need to start the country back up again. I am genuinely astonished that we are looking at this entire episode like a math equation as if we can start the country back up again and deal with the fallout, which by the way, is death. That death is not so isolated either, this disease is impacting a far wider audience than initially anticipated, and we lack the data to suggest specific demographics are in the clear.
Everyone loves to hate on millenials, including millenials, at least we inherited a great sense of self-deprecation! Our response as a generation to covid-19 I think is informed by a good amount of my generation already being fucked; while some older folks are watching as their 401k and portfolios suffer, my friends are still saddled with student loan debt, have barely any savings, and are being laid off or furloughed by the thousands; our response cannot be greedy because the good majority of my generation is not in a position to respond that way. People wonder why progressive ideas are popular with younger folks and populist ideas with the disenfranchised? The divided response and priorities placed accurately portray a picture of people trapped in their information silos. There is a significant lack of empathy from certain places when understanding and relating to each other is going to keep people going.
I don't want the economy to fail; I completely understand why there is a fevered response to save it, but we need to realize that there is a price. You know how certain politicians are anti-LGBT, and then a family member comes out, and they change their tune? Who needs to die before the calls to re-start the economy subside? This issue should be more significant than money, politics, and generational divides. This outbreak ought to bring us together, to understand that we are all the same and that regardless of our circumstance, we could perish if infected.
Enough of the doom and gloom, though, I have seen so many wonderful, uplifting stories each day (look on instagram and twitter) of people helping each other out and making the best of a bad situation. I also believe that people are acting in good faith with good intentions; people are allowed to operate in self-preservation. Right now is about protecting our communities, about fighting and unseen enemy and being resilient. Red-blooded American's love being resilient and fighting enemies, so readjust your focus people! We will make it through this and ideally come out more durable and more united (wishful thinking I know!) as a result. Stay safe, healthy, and sane!"
Thank you,
Justin Altman
________________________________
Freedom of speech is granted by the American people themselves and it means listening to someone you utterly disagree with. A dialogue of some political sort.
So, though I find you are usually wrong with stereotypical avatars about conservatives, it does seem that you're starting to learn and I'm hoping you can help close the divide. I hated Trump in the primaries but in the general election I saw my choices as the Devil or the Anti-Christ, who only lasts 7 years. I seriously hate ALL politicians, but some lies are more dangerous than others. My choices are the ones who lie the least, or whose lies are less dangerous than the lies of their opponent.
Most conservatives didn't love Trump until we saw how much politicians and media on the Left hate him. We have so enjoyed watching him tweak the Establishment both Left and Right. When we hear lefties hating on him incessantly, we think "job well done, let those haters boil in their hatred". We voted against not only the DNC & GOP establishment (traitors of the people) but also against the radicals (traitors to freedom) who want to lump us into racial divides.
I've tried to communicate this to my friends on the Left, but they prefer identity politics to reality….they would rather hate on me because it's easier and I'm close. The Left repeatedly posits that anyone who has a policy disagreement MUST be a racist or some other bullshit moniker to avoid the reality of their really bad ideas and candidates.
But I believe freedom of speech is how we will finally overcome. I welcome your opinions daily, if only to understand the perspective of why my lefty friends still don't get it. Please tell them to just keep burning in anger against their preferred straw man. It's funny.
I would never unsubscribe from watching that. Thank you for such quality entertainment.
Ted Pearce
________________________________
Love your life views on music industry but enough on the Trump hating. Haven't you figured out it is the Uniparty and not Trump who got us here? Tired of Governors and lifelong politicians and Congress blaming Orange Man Bad for things that got baked in before he took office. Damn straight I voted for him. Went to his first big rally in Phoenix so I could see the crowd and hear the man unfiltered by the news outlets. Stood in line behind a younger couple with grade school kid, Jewish in 100 F heat as we snaked around a city block to get inside. The crowds have never been accurately portrayed by the press.
Many of your readers would love to know when we should start reading you again. Count me in this camp.
Kathleen Wasecha Clifford
________________________________
Hi Bob!
I write this from my home in Atlanta where I'm self-quarantined since Friday. On Saturday, I came down with what feels like a bad chest cold but I know it's Covid-19. I'm lucky as hell. I didn't take this zombie apocalypse seriously until Obama tweeted the graphic illustrating why we should all stay home, and while I had already reduced my meetings and used Zoom and Meet as much as I could, for a week I still did stuff in person keeping my distance from others, washing my hands, and using Purell instead of staying in the house like everyone else. Well, it wasn't enough. I still got sick. I now realize that it wasn't about keeping myself from getting ill, I should have been protecting others. Fortunately, no one else I was around has gotten sick. Yet!! If they do, I will have to deal with the fact that I caused their illness. I regret that. Would I have taken it more seriously if the government did? Of course. But I know the man is an ass hat, so shame on me for expecting a presidential reaction from a clown.
Wendy Day
Rap Coalition
________________________________
My little town of Maplewood NJ had a 75 percent increase today, from 12 to 20 positive tests, ranging in age from 4(!) to 75, I believe. And testing is still sparse enough that most people have to be pretty ill to be sick. NYC and environs are being slammed hard. People elsewhere just don't understand. A total national shutdown for 3 weeks would probably help a lot. Instead this has become a partisan divide and it's going to linger and keep spreading.
Thanks.
Alan Pail
________________________________
Hi Bob, it's getting even more real here in Park City, UT. As of today it has been announced that we are going into a Shelter in Place order to last until May 1. Why? Because Summit County is 5th in the nation for cases per capita. Scary prospect. I keep watching the mortality rate of this virus climb every day. A week and a half ago it was 2.9% today it hit 4.5%. That means its getting worse, not better.
I personally know two people that have tested positive for it. This evening I got a text from another friend who saw that Park City was getting the Shelter in Place order and contacted me to ask if I was okay. They then proceeded to tell me they are waiting on an Oximiter and are having difficulty breathing. They plan on getting a COVID-19 test asap, if they can. After the messages about all that they tell me: It's been nice knowing you.
THAT'S FUCKED UP.
As a musician who does a lot of recording, I'm generally ok with staying home working. A local venue was doing solo live streaming events to give local musicians something to do - with no audience and no staff, just the artist and a sound person (keeping their distance). With the order coming down, that's not going to continue. As it shouldn't.
Being that I live right next to the ski run in Old Town of Park City, I have been seeing multiple people walking up the mountain and ignoring the suggested stay home shit. Now that it's a misdemeanor, I wonder how many will continue to try and hike/ski now. It baffles my mind how selfish people get - mind you, I've never been thru something like this before. I guess my survival instinct outweighs my Covidiot desires.
The county where Telluride is located, San Miguel County, in Colorado is doing an amazing thing. They're giving free blood tests for every resident to check people for a certain antibody to see who does and does not have the virus. I'm hoping that Summit County will follow suit.
Why is it so fuckin hard for people to understand it takes a little physical distance to get over this faster?
Jody Whitesides
________________________________
Please forgive me my English.
I am Slovene living in France and working for an international organization. I am not a 'famous' person, but I still wanted to write regarding the 'corona mailbox' you send on a daily basis: a contribution from a common citizen. Let me add that I have been on medication for OCD since 2011 (remember Jack Nicholson in 'As good as it geets' - it was me before). For people like me suffering from this kind of disorders this outbreak is just ....Unlivable.
I do not think we should overpolitizise this virus issue : close to every leader in the world right now has it wrong, we could say.
Look at the president Macron, organizing the election, going to the theatre with his wife whilst in Italy the crisis was already unmanageable...
In my home country which is, unfortunately, also known in the States 'thanks' to Melania Trump, a right wing military freak leads the country. But, the virus is somehow managed. Why is that ?
Maybe I am being naive, but my guess is, it has to do with hygiene standards. The basics. Lots of people in my home country 'overreacted' if we can call it like that, and have been staying at home for three weeks now, in self-isolation although nobody told them to do so.
Now, they have to stay home but can still go for a walk if they respect social distancing. And know what? An extremely low number of infractions has been registered. This means no matter who holds the rains, the spread of the virus depends largely on the behavior patterns. Collective behavior patterns.
My colleagues were making jokes of me three weeks ago because I wouldn't kiss friends to greet them and when I started the self-isolation 15 days ago I was treated by my closest friends as 'an OCD person who has always exaggerated'. The French started to care only when their President said ' we are in war'. How sick and sad is that ? We saw what was happening in Italy, how is it possible that people (majority) didn't care before the President took the decision to care. Can we maybe think by ourselves ? Apparently not that much....
I said behavior patterns. Yes. In my home country you never wear shoes at home. In France, always.
In Slovenia, you always wash fruit even if it comes from a farmer's market. In France, rarely.
In Slovenia, you will have to close your bakery if you touch bread and money : one person serves the bread, one deals with the cashing. In France, the same person gives you the bread and takes the money from you (without gloves). It has been changing, slightly, but come on, these are basics!!
Not to mention the 'french croissants' in the bars : the lye for hours on the counter in a bread basket - unprotected. If you order one, they will serve you from that same basket. Not possible in Slovenia, you have to shut down your business if you do this. Besides, you will not have any clients because people will think it's dirty.
In my home country, the life certainly has changed after the outbreak of the virus, but the habits didn't need to adjust that much. The bar was set high from the start.
My conclusion is that a lot depends on the bar. From where do we come, what the level of the basic hygiene was, individually and collectively.
I hope I was not too long...
Please never give up your podcasts they are essential to many of us!
Best,
Mojca Bozic
Paris
________________________________
I am on my 20th day of self Isolation in Knivsta Sweden a small city 45 min North of Stockholm. My normal workplace and I am fortunate that the "Show must go on" in my area of entertainment music publishing.
This is in fact a great admin and music listening period as you can focus much greater. As a close to 60 years old and asthmatic I am in the risk zone so I am careful.
It is rare I get political but concerning American politics I have given up on it. But reading some of these peoples answers in your mailbag saying I deleting their subscription, it just makes me laugh and shake my head in astonishment. Freedom of speech I guess is ok as long as you say what people want to hear...
I have dual citizenship Swedish and US and for my duty for America - Bernie will be my only choice come ballot day. He will get my vote as I can not vote for the lesser of two evils.
I must vote for the right person and despite the bullying he received (funny how we teach our kids not to be involved with bullying and our politicians do so and often get away with it under the title of being "Tough leader"). The democrats throw the SOCIALISM word out there and the propaganda of old days came right back...
Do you know how many times when I am telling American friends go WOW when they understand about what I get for my tax money her in Social Democratic Sweden? I don't pay extra funds for Children care, study supplements including university, health care and I am asthmatic and pay only a fraction of what you pay for medicine in America, also women giving birth to kids cost only admin fee and few extras and there is much more I even got to sleep over in a bed when I had one of my kids and it cost me 20 USD with food included. The insurance system actually works here and one time my computer got stolen the insurance company minus the deductible of 1000 SEK appox 80 USD and I had the new computer bought and sorted within a week. Public transport despite the fact it is not like it use to be still works and is pretty inexpensive considering other countries...I go in for a check up and asthma treatment or to have a baby the same fee of 30 to 50 USD I could go on an on and on. Granted it is not perfect but the closest I have experienced and I have traveled previously and lived in many parts of the world. So socialistic democratic system works.
So here you have Bernie, truly trying to make the USA change and both parties bully him and start a propaganda Campaign throwing in the word Socialism which most don't even know what it means. So the best man will be push away but he will get my vote. Joe is the lesser of two evils and I don't want evil anymore… I want change an only Bernie can push it through. I hope that all Bernie Supporters do the same - would that not be a huge kick in the ass to Dems and Reps to have him win anyway because the people showed they want real change and not the lesser of two evils.
So Bob, please continue writing exactly what you think when you want. I will always respect it.
John Jackson Cloud
________________________________
"Bob, the truly amazing thing to me is how the response to covid-19 is not only split into partisan levels but at the generational level as well. I am sure by now, everyone has seen the meme "as a millennial, I find myself yelling at my parents about going out." I look at the social media of my generation, and I see a message of unity, one of social distancing and self-isolation, so that we can flatten the curve. At the same time, I am watching as President Trump tweets that the "cure cannot be worse than the illness" and that we need to start the country back up again. I am genuinely astonished that we are looking at this entire episode like a math equation as if we can start the country back up again and deal with the fallout, which by the way, is death. That death is not so isolated either, this disease is impacting a far wider audience than initially anticipated, and we lack the data to suggest specific demographics are in the clear.
Everyone loves to hate on millenials, including millenials, at least we inherited a great sense of self-deprecation! Our response as a generation to covid-19 I think is informed by a good amount of my generation already being fucked; while some older folks are watching as their 401k and portfolios suffer, my friends are still saddled with student loan debt, have barely any savings, and are being laid off or furloughed by the thousands; our response cannot be greedy because the good majority of my generation is not in a position to respond that way. People wonder why progressive ideas are popular with younger folks and populist ideas with the disenfranchised? The divided response and priorities placed accurately portray a picture of people trapped in their information silos. There is a significant lack of empathy from certain places when understanding and relating to each other is going to keep people going.
I don't want the economy to fail; I completely understand why there is a fevered response to save it, but we need to realize that there is a price. You know how certain politicians are anti-LGBT, and then a family member comes out, and they change their tune? Who needs to die before the calls to re-start the economy subside? This issue should be more significant than money, politics, and generational divides. This outbreak ought to bring us together, to understand that we are all the same and that regardless of our circumstance, we could perish if infected.
Enough of the doom and gloom, though, I have seen so many wonderful, uplifting stories each day (look on instagram and twitter) of people helping each other out and making the best of a bad situation. I also believe that people are acting in good faith with good intentions; people are allowed to operate in self-preservation. Right now is about protecting our communities, about fighting and unseen enemy and being resilient. Red-blooded American's love being resilient and fighting enemies, so readjust your focus people! We will make it through this and ideally come out more durable and more united (wishful thinking I know!) as a result. Stay safe, healthy, and sane!"
Thank you,
Justin Altman
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Michael McCarty-This Week's Podcast
Chief Membership & Business Development Officer of SOCAN, Michael McCarty is a member of the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame. McCarty started off as a recording engineer at Jack Richardson's Nimbus 9 and had a long tenure running EMI Music Publishing Canada. Listen to Michael talk about the mission of SOCAN and changes in the music business. You don't have to be Canadian to get this, it's a worldwide business and Toronto is an epicenter of musical development.
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/michael-mccarty/id1316200737?i=1000469575409
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3uYfXl2vbqbBq16JeMNnC0
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=68326104
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https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/michael-mccarty/id1316200737?i=1000469575409
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3uYfXl2vbqbBq16JeMNnC0
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=68326104
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Wednesday 25 March 2020
Today's Coronavirus Mailbag
I am deleting my subscription. The Trump bashing and blaming is ridiculous. Nobody takes responsibility for anything anymore. Republicans bland Democrats and Democrats blame republicans. I am so tired of it and you perpetuate it.
Jim Krause
_____________________________________
Not unlike the Progressive movement's dependency on attaching victimhood to as many citizens as possible to survive instead of inspiring them you've become a victim as well.
Its startling to witness such a uniquely enthralling and knowledgeable music industry mind be pulled away from their gift to pursue political hackdom.
I've really enjoyed so much in your letters and doubt I'll find what I enjoyed about them anywhere else but it's time to unsubscribe. I wish you well.
Steve Harry
_____________________________________
I think it's time to unsubscribe from you. You have become to politicized and I do not enjoy reading your bullshit any more.
Take care and I hope you get back to what you are good at - talking music without constantly injecting your opinions.
Brian
_____________________________________
Jesus Bob
Can we all stop making this about Trump for just a minute.
Yes, he bloviates and I'm not a fan either but the virus is real.
Every day more people complain about the president and do nothing about getting well.
Trump is a moron but they let their kids go to spring break.
How about we focus from a while and get through this together.
Nick Masters
_____________________________________
When Fox, Trump, Rush Limbaugh and the Republicans said that the virus was a liberal hoax there was no turning back. He doomed the country. I have friends and relatives in the Trump country and at this very moment they still think it's a hoax and will never, ever concede that they were lied to. Never. To admit that would be having to admit that they were lied to about pretty much everything else. That's not going to happen.
Michael Kurtz
_____________________________________
"Dan Patrick wants oldsters to die, Cuomo wants them to live."
Bob, you're gonna lose me and, I assume, others as readers when you write stuff like this.
Charlie Gaylord
_____________________________________
"My inbox is filled with Trumpers angry I'm beating up on their guy."
This is truly beyond my comprehension.
Tom Werman
_____________________________________
Ha close for 3-4 Months the economy. No offense this guy is a f'ing crack. You'd have 75 million people unemployed! Would be a god damn revolution in this country. No thanks.
Mitchell H. Green
Lead Edge Capital
P.S. I will personally go out of my way to make sure The NY Times doesn't success. Those dumb fucks will ruin the country
_____________________________________
Not too many missives. I like reading them while I'm homebound anyway. I enjoy your them.
While I don't always agree with you, I love your search for the truth. This missive referencing the WSJ article is spot on. It certainly describes me.
I'm no Trumper and we mostly agree on his character / personality. I have voted for both D's and R's as a registered independent.
I do plan to vote to re-elect Trump because I love, love, love how he is kicking the establishment. The elites in government and the so-called media. I love that he kicks CNN and Fox both. I love that he kicks Pelosi and Romney. He's the leader we need right now.
Sure, I'll want a statesman again someday. I loved Obama's style. But for now, we need a fighter and Trump is it.
I hope you and yours remain safe and healthy during this unprecedented time.
Steve Marshall
Las Vegas, NV
_____________________________________
Hello from Westchester, a COVID-19 epicenter. Some good numbers reported today by Cuomo. The rate of infection here seems to be slowing. Why - we were "locked down" early on - schools closed, non-essential workers told to stay home, etc. It works. It's pretty basic math and science. I have two friends with the virus. Both in their 30s. One shows barely any symptoms, the other went through what he describes as a bad cold. Both are through it now. Both were exposed as teachers in hot spots early on. It's likely that many, many people in our country will get this (or had it and resolved without even knowing). The key is slowing the pace so hospitals aren't overrun for the folks who will need those facilities. Most people will resolve on their own, but some won't and they will need these facilities or they will die. Not sure what more motivation there needs to be to stay put. It's a pretty small ask to abide by quarantine guidelines, all things considered.
Cuomo has done a very good job leading. His tone and style convey leadership. He doesn't sugarcoat or panic - he tells it like it is the way a stern, but caring uncle would. NYS is going to go through the worst of this before most if not all other states do. I'm glad he's at the wheel and I hope other states can learn from what we do right and also the mistakes we make.
Stay safe. I'm lucky in that our publishing business is able to operate with all staff remote and at home around the nation. Interesting to see how creative artists can be in working and recording remotely.
Rich Stumpf
_____________________________________
This links to an excellent piece by the BBC, and a profound skewer of Trump. It reads like a speech with no filler. I recommend.
It also contains these two nuggets:
"The failure to carry out adequate testing, the key to containing outbreaks early on, is linked to a funding shortfall at the Department of Health and Human Services."
"Consequently, America's claim to global pre-eminence looks less convincing by the day. While in previous crises, the world's most powerful superpower might have mobilised a global response, nobody expects that of the United States anymore. The neo-isolationism of three years of America Firstism has created a geopolitical form of social distancing, and this crisis has reminded us of the oceanic divide that has opened up even with Washington's closest allies."
Robert Bond
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-52012049
_____________________________________
I live just north of Seattle and am a proud 35 year veteran of the music industry. As you already know, we are in lock down. I've been laid off due to COVID-19 and have been rationing my supplies. Unfortunately, I am alone here and it is beyond difficult. I am on day #13 of self isolation. I had to restock today, so had to travel to the store. It is INSANE here, people are panicking and hoarding bathroom tissue, face tissue and if you can find anti-bacterial wipes, you may as well have won the lottery (this has been going on for weeks, as you have reported in your area, not surprising this is a nation wide issue). Non-perishable items on store shelves are empty. However, the most shocking thing that I see is that NO ONE and I mean NO ONE is practicing social distancing where I live. I had to visit two stores to purchase the items I needed and at both locations, people were mingling inches from each other. Even on the streets via my drive to the stores, I saw groups of teenagers and adults who were all walking on sidewalks in close proximity to one another (the weather has been nice here the past few days). This virus does not discriminate by age. I'm seriously concerned that folks here aren't being responsible. Parents need to step up and remind their children (of course, not to scare them) but remind them to be vigilant and use common sense during this time.
I appreciate your work; hope you and Felicia stay well.
Traci Stetzer
_____________________________________
2.8 million people die in the US every year. A lot of those people would have lived longer if they weren't able to drive, smoke, drink alcohol, eat fatty food, have guns or take risk. So government is making choices all the time when it balances the moral imperative to preserve life against the realities of human nature and the choices involved when people work, play and live their lives. I think there is a valid debate to be had about what kind of increase in that 2.8 million number is so unacceptable that American life needs to stop to prevent it. Bear in mind that stopping the economy costs lives too. Perhaps more than the lives that are saved. Suicide rates will increase because of the despair over lost savings for and the lost life choices for the generation about to enter the work place and there will be much less money for healthcare and for the social services necessary to protect lives. And the US response to this pandemic sets a template for the response to future pandemics which will inevitably come. Here in the UK I've had to close the doors to my 90 year old car business which employs 60 people and provides for their families. I'm going to get some government help to cover the wages of the employees I've sent home but I'm burning through cash in the business and the doors may never reopen which forever damages the lives of 60 families. So, I don't think Trump is wrong to raise the question of the proportionality of the US response to this latest virus. It's great you can work from home and advocate measures to slow the spread but be aware too how much immediate and lasting harm is being caused by the imperative to protect life. It's a very difficult moral problem that needs intelligent debate. Sadly, Trump is such a polarising figure that that debate can't properly be had.
Andrew Harting
_____________________________________
I just read on Twitter (@sandiroberts82) that mass testing starts in Oklahoma today. "It's going to be bad! We have low numbers because of no tests."
I fear the red states will soon know what Washington state and New York state know.
James Starace
_____________________________________
If Trump would tell everyone to stay home for 2-3 weeks and wash their hands, most of this problem would go away and the economy would rebound.
The alternative is that people are going to continue to get sick and we're going to be dealing with this for months, if not longer.
Jason Bernstein
_____________________________________
My wife graduated from nursing school in 1974. After obtaining her license, she had a 45 year career as a Registered Nurse. And now she's been retired for the past 7 months.
She becomes emotional when she see stories of medical professionals (nurses, Doctors, EMTs) who don't have enough new personal protective equipment (PPE) and have to re-use the masks and gloves they wore when they went in to see the last patient. In nursing school the students all had to learn how to treat patients in isolation. The students were taught to use the PPE, and then, the MOST important part, as they were leaving the room they removed their PPE and threw it into a receptacle. Because the whole purpose of isolating a patient is to prevent the spread of the disease to the patient in the next room. Hearing stories about not only the reuse of PPE for a single day, but also having to hear about reuse for a whole week, is just terrible.
Say a prayer, or have a kind thought for those who can't get the PPE they need.
Ken Coffey
Waukesha, WI
v
Larry Campbell also played at Love Rocks with no audience. His wife just posted a video that he is very ill in upstate New York. He's a great guy and of course from Dylan and Levon's bands. It's coming home with Terrence McNally dying today. Trump is guilty of negligent homicide just by his messaging this week. And even more so by his dithering for months. I'm very worried. Two daughters in Brooklyn.
Larry played two shows in our venue. Holding you in the light Larry!
Ron Ozer
Arden Concert Gild
Arden, Delaware.
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Not Jackson. That's fucked up.
John Hook
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"Well just wait until people you know start dying."
My brother and I just had that morbid conversation over dinner tonight. Guessing which vulnerable friend or family member it might be. Maybe him, maybe me.
Randi Swindel
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The talking points are in
Open Up for Business
From Trump to Falwell Jr to Maricopa County ( AZ pop 4.3m) disease control division medical director- who questions school and restaurant closures
The fix is in, AZ's Gov Doug Ducey issued exec order yesterday which states his authority over the Municipalities This order was a cut and paste of similar orders in Indiana, Wisconsin and West Virginia
Most AZ cities of size have closed restaurants, bars, gyms etc
Ducey wants them open- also classed as "essential" are golf courses and pawn shops ( go get more guns)
Part of this is to make keep employees ineligible for Unemployment Insurance- if ordered in and you don;t show--- that's a quit
AZ is at #47 in the country for tests per 100,000 population ( about same rating for education and teacher salaries)
How to stay safe:
The Trumpers are all going to infect
Put a sign for a Dem candidate in the yard to keep them away, keep doing what we are doing
& don't take medical advice from the President
Cheers, TS
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You're on the right side of history. Thanks for giving us all a community to be part of. I had an actor friend tell me while he was really depressed, Howard Stern gave him relief because he felt he had a place to hang out listening to the Stern show. You provide the same.
Much appreciation,
Patrick Flanagan
Santa Monica
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Morning Bob,
Love from the UK during these challenging days. Adore your country, but often, not your government - without question Trump, who, irrespective of nationality (or skin colour: orange) represents a nadir in basic human decency. One we follow at our peril.
Don't know if you follow the UK's Guardian newspaper, but thought you might be interested in this article from today's paper. Rather than some smirk in the face of an arrogant man, this is simply proof that we are all on this planet together. We can shout and ball all we like about borders and creed, but, as it would seem, your Number One still needs others' help in troubled times. Let's hope he learns something - otherwise all this pain was foe nothing.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/25/trump-privately-appeals-to-asia-and-europe-for-medical-help-to-fight-coronavirus
Another writer on the paper has also put into words what has become all to obvious of late - that we have to respect the planet, and we are not above consequences.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/25/coronavirus-nature-is-sending-us-a-message-says-un-environment-chief
God bless you and yours.
Steve Day
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What's going to happen if the majority of the deaths are those same Fox News viewers?
Hal Kempson
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To add to my chirp of a few days ago re the coronavirus in South Africa – I would like to emphasise how wonderfully our new president Cyril Ramaphosa is handling things re our lockdown - which starts tmrw.
Clear, concise, accurate – and calm communication – and it appears South Africa is responding accordingly.
Most importantly – although we are in a recession – he emphasised that the health of the nation – and its citizens – comes first.
Kind Regards,
Patric van Blerk
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Subject: Coronavirus didn't come from a lab in China (not sure if you saw this)
Press article: https://www.scripps.edu/news-and-events/press-room/2020/20200317-andersen-covid-19-coronavirus.html
Nature Medicine journal article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0820-9
Not that it won't stop President Shift-and-Blame from stopping his rhetoric...
Travis Wilson
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Subject: Trump's cabinet Bible Study on Wednesday mornings
"Trump cabinet Bible Teacher Blames Coronavirus Pandemic On God's Wrath - Somehow It Involves China, Gay People, And Environmentalists: https://bit.ly/2UkNluM
Max Holm
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I keep getting emails from friends in the US who are concerned about me being in Spain, asking me to come back to the US. They're crazy.
Spain is experiencing an approach to the peak of the virus here, which will happen everywhere.
Let me tell you what it's really like here for the majority of people.
We feel that the government prioritizes our welfare. Taxes are deferred for small businesses, self-employed. People, both wage-earners and self-employed, can collect unemployment benefits. In Valencia, where I live, the elderly who live alone are provided with free grocery delivery PLUS a daily free lunch delivery consisting of a beverage, 2 main dishes and a dessert. The streets are disinfected on a daily basis. My building's common areas are disinfected on a daily basis. Younger people volunteer to go shopping for elderly people in their buildings. My mom, who is in a high-risk category, called to get a letter from her doctor for tax-deferral, and he was more concerned with her symptoms, than with the paperwork, which of course he gave her instantly. Banks have been told not to collect mortgage payments. Public housing inhabitants don't have to pay rent. Private landlords are telling tenants that if they have financial problems, they don't need to pay the rent. People work together. There's a sense of community. We're okay to sacrifice our freedom for the common good. You've probably seen videos of people on balconies applauding the healthcare and emergency workers - we do that every evening at 8 PM. Is it hard? Is it scary? Yes, but less so here, than I felt when I was in Boston 2 weeks ago. Here, we have strong leadership, and a focus on the individuals first. The rest will be taken care of in time. I didn't feel safe in the US. So glad to be in Spain.
Best regards,
Max Holm
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What part of this are people missing?…
Trump - the "businessman" - bankrupted FOUR times. Destroyed lives. Walked away with no consequences.
That was OK with his base. They thought that was a qualification for the Presidency.
Now, he's trying to bankrupt America. Seems that's OK with his base - again.
Sometimes I want to scream.
John Parikhal
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(Republican) Vermont Governor shut EVERYONE down yesterday afternoon ????Phil Scott is an open critic of TRUMPSTER
Heiner Leber
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Then I get this headline from the Tennessean, the only Nashville newspaper, this morning. I don't subscribe. :
Daily Briefing: Sanitizer, toilet paper and AR-15s: Tennesseans snap up guns and ammo during coronavirus outbreak
Peace
Chuck Thatcher
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Pass the word. The severity of this plague is squarely on Trump, his administration and his moronic followers.
bentoncole
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Trump plans to advertise Easter.Brunch at his dining locations at "The Last Supper."
Tom Rooney
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My question of the day is...Where does this 60% approval rating of how Trump is handling this national crisis come from. Because if you're from New York you ain't getting no 60%. Maybe it's coming from all the red states in the middle where the Outbreak It's not as severe as other places. It makes me think that if the Republicans didn't think there was still something there they wouldn't all be telling people not to go back to work and Trump Messing with the heads of the public..Because he's so desperate to hold onto Power. This whole thing is an abomination of the highest orders
Jason Miles
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Nashville just had to formally close playgrounds and dogparks because people here are too stupid to stay six feet apart at them. I was in Walgreens to pick up a Rx the other day and they have blue tape lines on the floor in front of the register to keep people apart and the next woman in line walks right up behind me like it's a normal day. smh.
Ben Stauffer
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failed a million times over. But Trump's government is a case study in mismanagement. He gutted our "deep state" experts, and turned the government into his own personal fiefdom, enriching himself and his cronies at the expense of the very people he claims to be fighting for. He promised better, cheaper, and more available health care. Every week for three years has been "infrastructure week." HIs tax cuts went to corporations who didn't invest in their workers - they just bought their own stock to raise their share value. He shows no empathy during hurricanes. He doesn't care about the environment. His tariffs only hurt American companies and farmers, and his pivot to socialism (paying off farmers) was the height of hypocrisy. He made no progress with Iran and N. Korea — in fact, he exacerbated things. He's don't nothing but foment more anger in the middle east. The opioid crisis which has ravaged many of the states that supported him has gone barely noticed by him. Etc etc etc.
So it's great that people want disrupters, but why are they so accepting of incompetence? Is that what "forgiving the failures of others and having their own overlooked in return…" leads to?
- Steven Kane
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So 60% huh? Did you see his interview yesterday? Or read the fact that Darwin Award Winners DIED trying his " Remedy?" This buffoon wants us back to work in TWO WEEKS? Yesterday I found out 4 people on my work campus have it, and now I'm sick and scared. Washington State went on lock down, last night. Kiss Grandma goodbye. In two weeks we will look like Italy. Show me the poll then.
David Cameron
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Thank you for sharing your voice and your continual insights and "inspiration."
The desire for disruption that you describe is completely understandable. The establishment *has* largely let-down the vast majority of the country. What is incomprehensible is that so many people vest their alienation from the establishment and their hopes for disruption on Trump, a carnival mirror metastasization of everything bad about the establishment.
You hated the self-serving corruption of the establishment? Well, let's turn that up to 11.
You hated the lack of responsibility or accountability by the establishment? Let's turn that up to 11.
You hated the dishonesty and mendacity of the establishment? Let's turn that up to 11, too.
In this light, Trump is less the disruption of the vices of the establishment than the steroidal apotheosis of them.
And, yet, he is cult-worshipped by a considerable mass of this ostensibly alienated country.
How does that work outside some combination of festering, toxic hatred and/or stupidity?
Sincerely,
Ari Abramowitz
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I'm guessing that "coronavirus may make Trump stronger" does not take account of what the American people will think when (OK, hopefully if) people are dying in hospital corridors
It's similar in the UK - right now there's a lot of support for the government because the awful, reckless reality of what they've done hasn't kicked in yet
Yours,
Joe Taylor
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Just a thought about this polling and the supposed Trump bump…
Their sample is people with home phones that are answering them.
That leaves out almost everyone I know…
John Porter
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Everyone thought the captain of the Titanic was doing a great job, too, until they hit the iceberg.
Fools among think, "We've been hearing for WEEKS about this COVID thing - but no one in MY neighborhood has died yet!"
When Trump supporters' moms and dads and kids die in hospital hallways for lack of a respirator, they won't think so kindly of Dear Leader.
Jed Becker
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Thanks for all this. It's 100% spot on. As people on the left, we should be very worried about a Biden run in November.
Eric Howarth
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when the billionaires and executives who never had a clue,
don't have servants milling around them, because the country
has disintegrated, the money won't have any value….
nor will their lives…
the educated class that has created this problem, the elites,
are dead men and women walking, believing the governor
will commute their sentence.
governor joe biden who, sadly, has no clue.
the entire media establishment who has feed us a non stop
menu of death and destruction, finally has succeeded in bringing
their insanity beyond the screens, to real life.
Marc Brickman
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Most folks who follow Bernie don't know he's doing town halls on Facebook. I'm still standing with him. It's disgusting to see Joe try to get it up to communicate. He's a doddering old man, zero testosterone, a no show who thinks he's showing up.
I'm afraid that in the current situation with the DNC firmly behind Joe, Trump will get te-elected. You're right, liberals have no idea of where the folks who follow Trump are coming from.
Most have never spent time in the Deep South nor the mid west and had actual conversations where they listened and heard where they're coming from. The knee jerk dismissal reaction trumps connecting to their mind set and emotional tone.
Melissa Ward
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Those on the left need to burn the DNC, like Trump is on the right, and build a party for the people, like Trump is doing.
You were half right with Sanders but you didn't get Trump or better yet, you didn't get the people on the right. I'm not all the evil things lefties call me, but I do want to blow up government bureaucracy, 'by the people, for the people' are powerful words.
Daron Kruse
Omaha
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Jessica's story struck a major chord. We live in Brooklyn.
What happens if I get a bad case? What happens if my husband gets it? But worse, what if we both get it and can't tend to our 9 year old son? Surely, we can't send him to grandma's a few blocks away... who cares for him? My anxiety is high worrying about all of this. I'm not religious, but I hope that God would give us mercy and allow one of us to be well enough to take care of the other 2.
For now...we remain at home mostly, except for long walks and a few trips per week to the grocery store with gloves and masks.
Stay safe and thanks for your writing,
Christine Bradshaw
Ex-Sony Music
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Interesting Wall Street Journal piece. I can't see Biden
facing down Trump in a debate. But Andrew Cuomo vs
Trump would at least make great television.
Eddie Havoc
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OMG. I told you this in 2016 during the primaries.
We voted for Trump because he's not a politician. We didn't want Jeb, Rubio, Cruz, bla bla bla.
Trump circa 2016 was a fresh, anti-establishment, bull in a China shop (pun intended ??) candidate. Can u say Bernie Sanders? Hello?
Hillary was the epitome of the establishment elite class. Wealthy, escaping prosecution like Houdini, looking down her nose at everyone else even her own base honestly.
Now u think Biden is the answer. GOOD LUCK WITH THAT!
Please Democrat party. After November and Trump wins. Please...Let it Go!
In 2024, Get a fresh face. A centrist. Someone we don't know about yet that can unite us. That won't talk about how nasty trump is but will lead us into the future with confidence. Maybe a businessman or woman who can point to an awesome thing they have created, built and run.
Thanks Bob for all u do.
Jack Lynady
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Orange Face's Easter Date.
Trump is acting like a grade school kid who wants to go outside and play basketball, but the P.E. teacher keeps telling him that it rained the night before and the court is too slippery.
He has a vision for us to be back up and running by Easter. BOLD. I get he's annoyed that everything is shut down and the economy isn't moving. WE ALL ARE.
Yet, if he really wants that. A nationwide shutdown is your only option.
But even when things are allowed to resume, it will take weeks for all us to get up to full speed.
There will be fears of going to certain large places and the genuine feeling that your health isn't at risk.
TV shows/movies will have to work out scheduling to get everyone back. Tours will have to begin the rerouting.
And let's be real, it will take a minute before New York City is back to it's normal self.
I don't think Don The Con understands all the variables.
If tourists can't land at LAX easily, safely, and quickly, they aren't hanging out on Hollywood and Highland.
Folks won't run to NYC until they know Broadway is back, museums are open, and they can take the subway.
Sure, his fans in Pensacola are probably golfing and hanging outside and hopefully they are aware of what's happening in NOLA.
We'll get through this, but science and competence is crucial.
-Dan Rosenberg in BH
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Simple question: If Biden is so out of touch and the country wants a revolution, why did Biden wipe the floor with Sanders? Why is he beating Trump in nearly every national poll fielded over the last year?
Maybe, just maybe, it's not about what the anxious Very Online set wants...?
Biden's going to beat Trump like a drum in November. Everything else you hear is just noise to entertain the political junkies.
Ryan McConnell
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Re: "know thine enemy", I suggest that all your readers look at the comments to almost any Breitbart article for a few days at least. Been doing it the last year.
Amazing how much you learn about hatred of the Democrats. Diversity, the excuse culture, modern education, AOC, globalism, etc., etc.
When you read these comments, it's important to remember that all these commenters vote. The Democrats (my party forever) didn't learn one thing from Trump's win, doubled down, went much more left, and are despised my more people than anyone can imagine.
Keep up the good fight,
Lance Grode
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I'm still dreaming of a Liz/Bernie ticket in any capacity. Given that Biden reappeared like a zombie out of the crypt, I haven't given up hope on a Bernie resurrection. Or maybe this optimism keeps me passing the open windows because I have no faith in Joe "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" Biden.
Socialized medicine works. I have only had positive experiences in France with their healthcare system. We need to stop having this knee-jerk reaction to the idea of socialism that is a side effect of the anti-communist propaganda our parents were fed during the Cold War. Most of us in the U.S. have attended public school and depended on the local police and fire departments at some point in our lives, all of which is socialism.
It's disheartening when people stop thinking for themselves and makes us no different than any other country that is force fed from the propaganda machine.
Jennifer O'Sullivan
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About five months ago, newspaper columnist Heather Malick summed up 21st-century populism here in Canada this way:
"Albertans voted Conservative because they wish the world to be the way it used to be. That world is a memory. It does not exist."
I believe that conclusion may also apply to the latest presidential election in the United States. All you have to do is substitute "Albertans" with "Americans" and "Trump" for "Conservative." However, that would only explain how Trump got elected in the first place. So why does his populist base of support continue to cling to him, even though he has failed to deliver on most of his major pre-election promises? That's what I would really like to know.
Stay healthy!
C. Felber
Sudbury, ON
Canada
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Your country is fucked.
You know whose fault it is...but you can't do anything about it until November. And there are still enough deluded fools who believe he is the answer, not the problem.
How many of their loved ones are going to have to die from Covid 19 before they finally understand what a catastrophe he has been for your once great (before Jan 2017) country?
So sad to watch this train wreck happening in (not so) slow motion...
Eric Gall
Toronto
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you hit the nail on the head.
People won't vote for Biden, because they're fed up with the establishment blackmailing them to vote for the lesser of 2 evils
just to avoid the bigger one. They're friggin fed up having to play that game. So they simply won't vote at all.
Bernie Sanders going independent would be the only possible solution, and he'd probably win in a landslide.
Best,
Frank Baach
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Bob, I know I'm preaching to the choir here but you'd think how Trump has handled the coronavirus debacle thus far would be enough to give his supporters pause. But they believe everything that's coming out of his mouth.
Based on the info at https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries, the US has quickly ascended to the No. 3 spot in terms of coronavirus infections of all countries in the world. Even if you multiply Canada's results (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/canada/) by 10 to account for the population difference between our countries, our infection rate is slightly more than half of the US. It's sadly ironic that the countries that didn't initially take coronavirus seriously are among the top 3 infected countries in the world.
Things are tight here in Canada. Most people I know are taking the isolation matter quite seriously. My kids are bored stiff, wanna hang out with their friends and we aren't letting them do it. My father was just released from hospital from a double whammy of influenza A and pneumonia. Coronavirus would be his end and I'm not taking that chance. And I know a lot of folks taking the same measures. It's just not worth it.
Here in my home province of New Brunswick, a state of emergency is in place until May 31. More than two full months. And no one is arguing. The consensus is that we'd rather over-react and over-plan for the worst case scenario than be too casual about it. Because if you under plan and things go awry, it's already too late. Some might believe it's already too late with all the safety measures both our provincial and federal governments have done. But in the bigger picture, we're doing well in the bigger scheme of things.
If Trump gets his way and the US re-opens by Easter weekend, I fully expect to see the US infection and fatality rate skyrocket. The very notion that your president feels the economy is more important than the safety and well-being of his citizens is blashphemous. Unreal.
Ken Kelley
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Please don't stop cheering about Bernie... I love him. He is the Real Deal, it's just sad many others don't see that. One of my friends said "almost everyone who works with him says he's difficult" and I replied "maybe that's because he has true conviction, and won't compromise on his beliefs, especially with matters of monumental consequences .... like not entering into a war with Iraq, or voting against NAFTA because he had the foresight to see how much it would hurt our country". Of course people are going to characterize someone as "difficult" when they are mad that he doesn't go along with the herd, even if they're running of a cliff.
Scott
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It's quite weird being in isolation for me up here in Oregon. My wife is a nurse and it sure seems inevitable that both she and I will get infected sooner or later due to her job (she is working, a lot) and the insane, crazy lack of protective equipment at the hospital. She works in home health, they are treating covid patients who have been sent home from hospital. The home health nurses are the lowest of the low in this hospital system, and they do not get as much personal protection equipment as the hospital staff do which isn't enough for them either. What a shit show. Top executives get millions...but nothing left over to protect staff and patients properly. America. Sigh. One day at a time. Hang in there! And thanks for your letters mate.
Owen Dearig
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I'm 64, with an 18 year old son. He seems to get it. In fact here in Maryland, so far most everyone seems to get it. We're lucky to have a savvy forward looking (republican!) governor.What you are writing, people need to hear. If they don't wish to hear it, they can delete and move on. You're good at this, Bob. If it's in you then KEEP WRITING.
Right now you're like the songwriters of the sixties, saying things that need to be said.
WRITE!
Stay well,
J Maher
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I got a lot out of your email blast this morning.
I am absolutely not a Trump fan, but as you say – and have said a number of times – he is out on his own when it comes to understanding what the average American wants, and his establishment rivals continue turning up to a metaphorical gunfight with knives.
I'll also say this about Trump. You know where he stands. Here in Australia, our Prime Minister left an entire nation scratching its head with his most recent Coronavirus update:
No more kids birthday parties - but schools are to stay open.
No mass gatherings - but shopping malls remain open.
Don't go to work if you don't have to (work remotely) only essential services should report for duty, but he considers "every Australian with a job an essential service."
I hope that we haven't become so tribal that how we respond to something like Covid-19 is determined by our political leanings (because, yeah, I'd be guilty of it) but would some actual leadership at this time be too much to ask? Sometimes down here in Australia, I feel like that scene in The Godfather where Sonny screams at Tom Hagan: "Goddamit, I wouldn't be in this mess if I had a Sicilian as a wartime consigliere."
Trump, Johnson and Ardern in NZ: they're wartime consiglieres. In Australia, we got Enzo the fucking Baker.
Keep the screeds coming whenever the need arises Bob. Do whatever you need to to get yourself through this.
Steve Baker
Melbourne
Australia
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I hope you and Felice are Ok man. I have been on total lockdown. Have not left my house since BEFORE all this started.
I have a record I want to finish and ...... I wait.
Like we ALL wait, baffled by the stupidity we all see with people NOT taking this seriously.
I had to get pissed at my 12 year old daughter who said ' Its no big deal Dad' I said ' YES IT IS! ' and discussions occurred.
The hard part is what we tell our young kids.
My 2 older ones are in their 30's and know what's up but my 9 year old boy is autistic and he won't tell you when he is sick or hurt.. he tuffs it out. Its much harder to communicate so between Me... disposable piece of shit over 60 guy .. and my autistic boy who cant articulate well if HE gets it, well we all die according to that useless sperm receptacle senator in Texas!
Does he not realize all us old fuckers pay the most taxes? After last year I dont need a colonoscopy!
The question is what's next?
How long does it take for the people infected to GET it - Get OVER it and have NO more new cases? Let's hope long its gonna take and 330 MILLION people gotta go thru this ??
Not Easter !!!!!!
You are right to be pissed people are not taking this seriously. But Some of us are !
Luke
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Please share with your readers. You know how valuable our healthcare workers are and you've seen the shoes they wear when their saving lives. They're usually Crocs. So we're giving back.
Please let you readers know so they can tell their brothers and sisters on the front lines of fighting COVID-19 that we've got their back...and feet.
Crocs is SHARING A FREE PAIR FOR HEALTHCARE.
We started this today and gave away 10,000 pairs. We'll release another 10,000 tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. ET and so on and so on...
We're still working out some of the Day 1 kinks as the demand has obviously been incredible.
Here's some more details. Stay safe and healthy.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/crocs-announces-free-pair-healthcare-164000577.html
Please re-share. https://lnkd.in/e3A_rTE
Terence
Terence Reilly
Chief Marketing Officer
Crocs
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There are certainly too many missives Bob
Thomas Burger
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Bravo, Sir! I'm reading everything online all day here is self-isolation land. As a Bernie supporter, I don't understand the pushback and vitriol I get from my supposedly anti-Trump left leaning "friends" on social media, but the WSJ article you've quoted and comments explain it.
Keep up writing when the inspiration strikes. I've subscribed to your newsletter for probably 10 years and no amount of posting is too much. Keep up the great work, and stay healthy!
Best regards,
Jack R. Lebowitz
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Thank you Bob. I'm not unsubscribing!
Karen Sundell
Jim Krause
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Not unlike the Progressive movement's dependency on attaching victimhood to as many citizens as possible to survive instead of inspiring them you've become a victim as well.
Its startling to witness such a uniquely enthralling and knowledgeable music industry mind be pulled away from their gift to pursue political hackdom.
I've really enjoyed so much in your letters and doubt I'll find what I enjoyed about them anywhere else but it's time to unsubscribe. I wish you well.
Steve Harry
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I think it's time to unsubscribe from you. You have become to politicized and I do not enjoy reading your bullshit any more.
Take care and I hope you get back to what you are good at - talking music without constantly injecting your opinions.
Brian
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Jesus Bob
Can we all stop making this about Trump for just a minute.
Yes, he bloviates and I'm not a fan either but the virus is real.
Every day more people complain about the president and do nothing about getting well.
Trump is a moron but they let their kids go to spring break.
How about we focus from a while and get through this together.
Nick Masters
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When Fox, Trump, Rush Limbaugh and the Republicans said that the virus was a liberal hoax there was no turning back. He doomed the country. I have friends and relatives in the Trump country and at this very moment they still think it's a hoax and will never, ever concede that they were lied to. Never. To admit that would be having to admit that they were lied to about pretty much everything else. That's not going to happen.
Michael Kurtz
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"Dan Patrick wants oldsters to die, Cuomo wants them to live."
Bob, you're gonna lose me and, I assume, others as readers when you write stuff like this.
Charlie Gaylord
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"My inbox is filled with Trumpers angry I'm beating up on their guy."
This is truly beyond my comprehension.
Tom Werman
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Ha close for 3-4 Months the economy. No offense this guy is a f'ing crack. You'd have 75 million people unemployed! Would be a god damn revolution in this country. No thanks.
Mitchell H. Green
Lead Edge Capital
P.S. I will personally go out of my way to make sure The NY Times doesn't success. Those dumb fucks will ruin the country
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Not too many missives. I like reading them while I'm homebound anyway. I enjoy your them.
While I don't always agree with you, I love your search for the truth. This missive referencing the WSJ article is spot on. It certainly describes me.
I'm no Trumper and we mostly agree on his character / personality. I have voted for both D's and R's as a registered independent.
I do plan to vote to re-elect Trump because I love, love, love how he is kicking the establishment. The elites in government and the so-called media. I love that he kicks CNN and Fox both. I love that he kicks Pelosi and Romney. He's the leader we need right now.
Sure, I'll want a statesman again someday. I loved Obama's style. But for now, we need a fighter and Trump is it.
I hope you and yours remain safe and healthy during this unprecedented time.
Steve Marshall
Las Vegas, NV
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Hello from Westchester, a COVID-19 epicenter. Some good numbers reported today by Cuomo. The rate of infection here seems to be slowing. Why - we were "locked down" early on - schools closed, non-essential workers told to stay home, etc. It works. It's pretty basic math and science. I have two friends with the virus. Both in their 30s. One shows barely any symptoms, the other went through what he describes as a bad cold. Both are through it now. Both were exposed as teachers in hot spots early on. It's likely that many, many people in our country will get this (or had it and resolved without even knowing). The key is slowing the pace so hospitals aren't overrun for the folks who will need those facilities. Most people will resolve on their own, but some won't and they will need these facilities or they will die. Not sure what more motivation there needs to be to stay put. It's a pretty small ask to abide by quarantine guidelines, all things considered.
Cuomo has done a very good job leading. His tone and style convey leadership. He doesn't sugarcoat or panic - he tells it like it is the way a stern, but caring uncle would. NYS is going to go through the worst of this before most if not all other states do. I'm glad he's at the wheel and I hope other states can learn from what we do right and also the mistakes we make.
Stay safe. I'm lucky in that our publishing business is able to operate with all staff remote and at home around the nation. Interesting to see how creative artists can be in working and recording remotely.
Rich Stumpf
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This links to an excellent piece by the BBC, and a profound skewer of Trump. It reads like a speech with no filler. I recommend.
It also contains these two nuggets:
"The failure to carry out adequate testing, the key to containing outbreaks early on, is linked to a funding shortfall at the Department of Health and Human Services."
"Consequently, America's claim to global pre-eminence looks less convincing by the day. While in previous crises, the world's most powerful superpower might have mobilised a global response, nobody expects that of the United States anymore. The neo-isolationism of three years of America Firstism has created a geopolitical form of social distancing, and this crisis has reminded us of the oceanic divide that has opened up even with Washington's closest allies."
Robert Bond
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-52012049
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I live just north of Seattle and am a proud 35 year veteran of the music industry. As you already know, we are in lock down. I've been laid off due to COVID-19 and have been rationing my supplies. Unfortunately, I am alone here and it is beyond difficult. I am on day #13 of self isolation. I had to restock today, so had to travel to the store. It is INSANE here, people are panicking and hoarding bathroom tissue, face tissue and if you can find anti-bacterial wipes, you may as well have won the lottery (this has been going on for weeks, as you have reported in your area, not surprising this is a nation wide issue). Non-perishable items on store shelves are empty. However, the most shocking thing that I see is that NO ONE and I mean NO ONE is practicing social distancing where I live. I had to visit two stores to purchase the items I needed and at both locations, people were mingling inches from each other. Even on the streets via my drive to the stores, I saw groups of teenagers and adults who were all walking on sidewalks in close proximity to one another (the weather has been nice here the past few days). This virus does not discriminate by age. I'm seriously concerned that folks here aren't being responsible. Parents need to step up and remind their children (of course, not to scare them) but remind them to be vigilant and use common sense during this time.
I appreciate your work; hope you and Felicia stay well.
Traci Stetzer
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2.8 million people die in the US every year. A lot of those people would have lived longer if they weren't able to drive, smoke, drink alcohol, eat fatty food, have guns or take risk. So government is making choices all the time when it balances the moral imperative to preserve life against the realities of human nature and the choices involved when people work, play and live their lives. I think there is a valid debate to be had about what kind of increase in that 2.8 million number is so unacceptable that American life needs to stop to prevent it. Bear in mind that stopping the economy costs lives too. Perhaps more than the lives that are saved. Suicide rates will increase because of the despair over lost savings for and the lost life choices for the generation about to enter the work place and there will be much less money for healthcare and for the social services necessary to protect lives. And the US response to this pandemic sets a template for the response to future pandemics which will inevitably come. Here in the UK I've had to close the doors to my 90 year old car business which employs 60 people and provides for their families. I'm going to get some government help to cover the wages of the employees I've sent home but I'm burning through cash in the business and the doors may never reopen which forever damages the lives of 60 families. So, I don't think Trump is wrong to raise the question of the proportionality of the US response to this latest virus. It's great you can work from home and advocate measures to slow the spread but be aware too how much immediate and lasting harm is being caused by the imperative to protect life. It's a very difficult moral problem that needs intelligent debate. Sadly, Trump is such a polarising figure that that debate can't properly be had.
Andrew Harting
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I just read on Twitter (@sandiroberts82) that mass testing starts in Oklahoma today. "It's going to be bad! We have low numbers because of no tests."
I fear the red states will soon know what Washington state and New York state know.
James Starace
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If Trump would tell everyone to stay home for 2-3 weeks and wash their hands, most of this problem would go away and the economy would rebound.
The alternative is that people are going to continue to get sick and we're going to be dealing with this for months, if not longer.
Jason Bernstein
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My wife graduated from nursing school in 1974. After obtaining her license, she had a 45 year career as a Registered Nurse. And now she's been retired for the past 7 months.
She becomes emotional when she see stories of medical professionals (nurses, Doctors, EMTs) who don't have enough new personal protective equipment (PPE) and have to re-use the masks and gloves they wore when they went in to see the last patient. In nursing school the students all had to learn how to treat patients in isolation. The students were taught to use the PPE, and then, the MOST important part, as they were leaving the room they removed their PPE and threw it into a receptacle. Because the whole purpose of isolating a patient is to prevent the spread of the disease to the patient in the next room. Hearing stories about not only the reuse of PPE for a single day, but also having to hear about reuse for a whole week, is just terrible.
Say a prayer, or have a kind thought for those who can't get the PPE they need.
Ken Coffey
Waukesha, WI
v
Larry Campbell also played at Love Rocks with no audience. His wife just posted a video that he is very ill in upstate New York. He's a great guy and of course from Dylan and Levon's bands. It's coming home with Terrence McNally dying today. Trump is guilty of negligent homicide just by his messaging this week. And even more so by his dithering for months. I'm very worried. Two daughters in Brooklyn.
Larry played two shows in our venue. Holding you in the light Larry!
Ron Ozer
Arden Concert Gild
Arden, Delaware.
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Not Jackson. That's fucked up.
John Hook
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"Well just wait until people you know start dying."
My brother and I just had that morbid conversation over dinner tonight. Guessing which vulnerable friend or family member it might be. Maybe him, maybe me.
Randi Swindel
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The talking points are in
Open Up for Business
From Trump to Falwell Jr to Maricopa County ( AZ pop 4.3m) disease control division medical director- who questions school and restaurant closures
The fix is in, AZ's Gov Doug Ducey issued exec order yesterday which states his authority over the Municipalities This order was a cut and paste of similar orders in Indiana, Wisconsin and West Virginia
Most AZ cities of size have closed restaurants, bars, gyms etc
Ducey wants them open- also classed as "essential" are golf courses and pawn shops ( go get more guns)
Part of this is to make keep employees ineligible for Unemployment Insurance- if ordered in and you don;t show--- that's a quit
AZ is at #47 in the country for tests per 100,000 population ( about same rating for education and teacher salaries)
How to stay safe:
The Trumpers are all going to infect
Put a sign for a Dem candidate in the yard to keep them away, keep doing what we are doing
& don't take medical advice from the President
Cheers, TS
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You're on the right side of history. Thanks for giving us all a community to be part of. I had an actor friend tell me while he was really depressed, Howard Stern gave him relief because he felt he had a place to hang out listening to the Stern show. You provide the same.
Much appreciation,
Patrick Flanagan
Santa Monica
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Morning Bob,
Love from the UK during these challenging days. Adore your country, but often, not your government - without question Trump, who, irrespective of nationality (or skin colour: orange) represents a nadir in basic human decency. One we follow at our peril.
Don't know if you follow the UK's Guardian newspaper, but thought you might be interested in this article from today's paper. Rather than some smirk in the face of an arrogant man, this is simply proof that we are all on this planet together. We can shout and ball all we like about borders and creed, but, as it would seem, your Number One still needs others' help in troubled times. Let's hope he learns something - otherwise all this pain was foe nothing.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/25/trump-privately-appeals-to-asia-and-europe-for-medical-help-to-fight-coronavirus
Another writer on the paper has also put into words what has become all to obvious of late - that we have to respect the planet, and we are not above consequences.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/25/coronavirus-nature-is-sending-us-a-message-says-un-environment-chief
God bless you and yours.
Steve Day
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What's going to happen if the majority of the deaths are those same Fox News viewers?
Hal Kempson
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To add to my chirp of a few days ago re the coronavirus in South Africa – I would like to emphasise how wonderfully our new president Cyril Ramaphosa is handling things re our lockdown - which starts tmrw.
Clear, concise, accurate – and calm communication – and it appears South Africa is responding accordingly.
Most importantly – although we are in a recession – he emphasised that the health of the nation – and its citizens – comes first.
Kind Regards,
Patric van Blerk
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Subject: Coronavirus didn't come from a lab in China (not sure if you saw this)
Press article: https://www.scripps.edu/news-and-events/press-room/2020/20200317-andersen-covid-19-coronavirus.html
Nature Medicine journal article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0820-9
Not that it won't stop President Shift-and-Blame from stopping his rhetoric...
Travis Wilson
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Subject: Trump's cabinet Bible Study on Wednesday mornings
"Trump cabinet Bible Teacher Blames Coronavirus Pandemic On God's Wrath - Somehow It Involves China, Gay People, And Environmentalists: https://bit.ly/2UkNluM
Max Holm
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I keep getting emails from friends in the US who are concerned about me being in Spain, asking me to come back to the US. They're crazy.
Spain is experiencing an approach to the peak of the virus here, which will happen everywhere.
Let me tell you what it's really like here for the majority of people.
We feel that the government prioritizes our welfare. Taxes are deferred for small businesses, self-employed. People, both wage-earners and self-employed, can collect unemployment benefits. In Valencia, where I live, the elderly who live alone are provided with free grocery delivery PLUS a daily free lunch delivery consisting of a beverage, 2 main dishes and a dessert. The streets are disinfected on a daily basis. My building's common areas are disinfected on a daily basis. Younger people volunteer to go shopping for elderly people in their buildings. My mom, who is in a high-risk category, called to get a letter from her doctor for tax-deferral, and he was more concerned with her symptoms, than with the paperwork, which of course he gave her instantly. Banks have been told not to collect mortgage payments. Public housing inhabitants don't have to pay rent. Private landlords are telling tenants that if they have financial problems, they don't need to pay the rent. People work together. There's a sense of community. We're okay to sacrifice our freedom for the common good. You've probably seen videos of people on balconies applauding the healthcare and emergency workers - we do that every evening at 8 PM. Is it hard? Is it scary? Yes, but less so here, than I felt when I was in Boston 2 weeks ago. Here, we have strong leadership, and a focus on the individuals first. The rest will be taken care of in time. I didn't feel safe in the US. So glad to be in Spain.
Best regards,
Max Holm
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What part of this are people missing?…
Trump - the "businessman" - bankrupted FOUR times. Destroyed lives. Walked away with no consequences.
That was OK with his base. They thought that was a qualification for the Presidency.
Now, he's trying to bankrupt America. Seems that's OK with his base - again.
Sometimes I want to scream.
John Parikhal
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(Republican) Vermont Governor shut EVERYONE down yesterday afternoon ????Phil Scott is an open critic of TRUMPSTER
Heiner Leber
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Then I get this headline from the Tennessean, the only Nashville newspaper, this morning. I don't subscribe. :
Daily Briefing: Sanitizer, toilet paper and AR-15s: Tennesseans snap up guns and ammo during coronavirus outbreak
Peace
Chuck Thatcher
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Pass the word. The severity of this plague is squarely on Trump, his administration and his moronic followers.
bentoncole
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Trump plans to advertise Easter.Brunch at his dining locations at "The Last Supper."
Tom Rooney
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My question of the day is...Where does this 60% approval rating of how Trump is handling this national crisis come from. Because if you're from New York you ain't getting no 60%. Maybe it's coming from all the red states in the middle where the Outbreak It's not as severe as other places. It makes me think that if the Republicans didn't think there was still something there they wouldn't all be telling people not to go back to work and Trump Messing with the heads of the public..Because he's so desperate to hold onto Power. This whole thing is an abomination of the highest orders
Jason Miles
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Nashville just had to formally close playgrounds and dogparks because people here are too stupid to stay six feet apart at them. I was in Walgreens to pick up a Rx the other day and they have blue tape lines on the floor in front of the register to keep people apart and the next woman in line walks right up behind me like it's a normal day. smh.
Ben Stauffer
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failed a million times over. But Trump's government is a case study in mismanagement. He gutted our "deep state" experts, and turned the government into his own personal fiefdom, enriching himself and his cronies at the expense of the very people he claims to be fighting for. He promised better, cheaper, and more available health care. Every week for three years has been "infrastructure week." HIs tax cuts went to corporations who didn't invest in their workers - they just bought their own stock to raise their share value. He shows no empathy during hurricanes. He doesn't care about the environment. His tariffs only hurt American companies and farmers, and his pivot to socialism (paying off farmers) was the height of hypocrisy. He made no progress with Iran and N. Korea — in fact, he exacerbated things. He's don't nothing but foment more anger in the middle east. The opioid crisis which has ravaged many of the states that supported him has gone barely noticed by him. Etc etc etc.
So it's great that people want disrupters, but why are they so accepting of incompetence? Is that what "forgiving the failures of others and having their own overlooked in return…" leads to?
- Steven Kane
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So 60% huh? Did you see his interview yesterday? Or read the fact that Darwin Award Winners DIED trying his " Remedy?" This buffoon wants us back to work in TWO WEEKS? Yesterday I found out 4 people on my work campus have it, and now I'm sick and scared. Washington State went on lock down, last night. Kiss Grandma goodbye. In two weeks we will look like Italy. Show me the poll then.
David Cameron
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Thank you for sharing your voice and your continual insights and "inspiration."
The desire for disruption that you describe is completely understandable. The establishment *has* largely let-down the vast majority of the country. What is incomprehensible is that so many people vest their alienation from the establishment and their hopes for disruption on Trump, a carnival mirror metastasization of everything bad about the establishment.
You hated the self-serving corruption of the establishment? Well, let's turn that up to 11.
You hated the lack of responsibility or accountability by the establishment? Let's turn that up to 11.
You hated the dishonesty and mendacity of the establishment? Let's turn that up to 11, too.
In this light, Trump is less the disruption of the vices of the establishment than the steroidal apotheosis of them.
And, yet, he is cult-worshipped by a considerable mass of this ostensibly alienated country.
How does that work outside some combination of festering, toxic hatred and/or stupidity?
Sincerely,
Ari Abramowitz
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I'm guessing that "coronavirus may make Trump stronger" does not take account of what the American people will think when (OK, hopefully if) people are dying in hospital corridors
It's similar in the UK - right now there's a lot of support for the government because the awful, reckless reality of what they've done hasn't kicked in yet
Yours,
Joe Taylor
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Just a thought about this polling and the supposed Trump bump…
Their sample is people with home phones that are answering them.
That leaves out almost everyone I know…
John Porter
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Everyone thought the captain of the Titanic was doing a great job, too, until they hit the iceberg.
Fools among think, "We've been hearing for WEEKS about this COVID thing - but no one in MY neighborhood has died yet!"
When Trump supporters' moms and dads and kids die in hospital hallways for lack of a respirator, they won't think so kindly of Dear Leader.
Jed Becker
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Thanks for all this. It's 100% spot on. As people on the left, we should be very worried about a Biden run in November.
Eric Howarth
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when the billionaires and executives who never had a clue,
don't have servants milling around them, because the country
has disintegrated, the money won't have any value….
nor will their lives…
the educated class that has created this problem, the elites,
are dead men and women walking, believing the governor
will commute their sentence.
governor joe biden who, sadly, has no clue.
the entire media establishment who has feed us a non stop
menu of death and destruction, finally has succeeded in bringing
their insanity beyond the screens, to real life.
Marc Brickman
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Most folks who follow Bernie don't know he's doing town halls on Facebook. I'm still standing with him. It's disgusting to see Joe try to get it up to communicate. He's a doddering old man, zero testosterone, a no show who thinks he's showing up.
I'm afraid that in the current situation with the DNC firmly behind Joe, Trump will get te-elected. You're right, liberals have no idea of where the folks who follow Trump are coming from.
Most have never spent time in the Deep South nor the mid west and had actual conversations where they listened and heard where they're coming from. The knee jerk dismissal reaction trumps connecting to their mind set and emotional tone.
Melissa Ward
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Those on the left need to burn the DNC, like Trump is on the right, and build a party for the people, like Trump is doing.
You were half right with Sanders but you didn't get Trump or better yet, you didn't get the people on the right. I'm not all the evil things lefties call me, but I do want to blow up government bureaucracy, 'by the people, for the people' are powerful words.
Daron Kruse
Omaha
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Jessica's story struck a major chord. We live in Brooklyn.
What happens if I get a bad case? What happens if my husband gets it? But worse, what if we both get it and can't tend to our 9 year old son? Surely, we can't send him to grandma's a few blocks away... who cares for him? My anxiety is high worrying about all of this. I'm not religious, but I hope that God would give us mercy and allow one of us to be well enough to take care of the other 2.
For now...we remain at home mostly, except for long walks and a few trips per week to the grocery store with gloves and masks.
Stay safe and thanks for your writing,
Christine Bradshaw
Ex-Sony Music
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Interesting Wall Street Journal piece. I can't see Biden
facing down Trump in a debate. But Andrew Cuomo vs
Trump would at least make great television.
Eddie Havoc
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OMG. I told you this in 2016 during the primaries.
We voted for Trump because he's not a politician. We didn't want Jeb, Rubio, Cruz, bla bla bla.
Trump circa 2016 was a fresh, anti-establishment, bull in a China shop (pun intended ??) candidate. Can u say Bernie Sanders? Hello?
Hillary was the epitome of the establishment elite class. Wealthy, escaping prosecution like Houdini, looking down her nose at everyone else even her own base honestly.
Now u think Biden is the answer. GOOD LUCK WITH THAT!
Please Democrat party. After November and Trump wins. Please...Let it Go!
In 2024, Get a fresh face. A centrist. Someone we don't know about yet that can unite us. That won't talk about how nasty trump is but will lead us into the future with confidence. Maybe a businessman or woman who can point to an awesome thing they have created, built and run.
Thanks Bob for all u do.
Jack Lynady
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Orange Face's Easter Date.
Trump is acting like a grade school kid who wants to go outside and play basketball, but the P.E. teacher keeps telling him that it rained the night before and the court is too slippery.
He has a vision for us to be back up and running by Easter. BOLD. I get he's annoyed that everything is shut down and the economy isn't moving. WE ALL ARE.
Yet, if he really wants that. A nationwide shutdown is your only option.
But even when things are allowed to resume, it will take weeks for all us to get up to full speed.
There will be fears of going to certain large places and the genuine feeling that your health isn't at risk.
TV shows/movies will have to work out scheduling to get everyone back. Tours will have to begin the rerouting.
And let's be real, it will take a minute before New York City is back to it's normal self.
I don't think Don The Con understands all the variables.
If tourists can't land at LAX easily, safely, and quickly, they aren't hanging out on Hollywood and Highland.
Folks won't run to NYC until they know Broadway is back, museums are open, and they can take the subway.
Sure, his fans in Pensacola are probably golfing and hanging outside and hopefully they are aware of what's happening in NOLA.
We'll get through this, but science and competence is crucial.
-Dan Rosenberg in BH
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Simple question: If Biden is so out of touch and the country wants a revolution, why did Biden wipe the floor with Sanders? Why is he beating Trump in nearly every national poll fielded over the last year?
Maybe, just maybe, it's not about what the anxious Very Online set wants...?
Biden's going to beat Trump like a drum in November. Everything else you hear is just noise to entertain the political junkies.
Ryan McConnell
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Re: "know thine enemy", I suggest that all your readers look at the comments to almost any Breitbart article for a few days at least. Been doing it the last year.
Amazing how much you learn about hatred of the Democrats. Diversity, the excuse culture, modern education, AOC, globalism, etc., etc.
When you read these comments, it's important to remember that all these commenters vote. The Democrats (my party forever) didn't learn one thing from Trump's win, doubled down, went much more left, and are despised my more people than anyone can imagine.
Keep up the good fight,
Lance Grode
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I'm still dreaming of a Liz/Bernie ticket in any capacity. Given that Biden reappeared like a zombie out of the crypt, I haven't given up hope on a Bernie resurrection. Or maybe this optimism keeps me passing the open windows because I have no faith in Joe "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" Biden.
Socialized medicine works. I have only had positive experiences in France with their healthcare system. We need to stop having this knee-jerk reaction to the idea of socialism that is a side effect of the anti-communist propaganda our parents were fed during the Cold War. Most of us in the U.S. have attended public school and depended on the local police and fire departments at some point in our lives, all of which is socialism.
It's disheartening when people stop thinking for themselves and makes us no different than any other country that is force fed from the propaganda machine.
Jennifer O'Sullivan
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About five months ago, newspaper columnist Heather Malick summed up 21st-century populism here in Canada this way:
"Albertans voted Conservative because they wish the world to be the way it used to be. That world is a memory. It does not exist."
I believe that conclusion may also apply to the latest presidential election in the United States. All you have to do is substitute "Albertans" with "Americans" and "Trump" for "Conservative." However, that would only explain how Trump got elected in the first place. So why does his populist base of support continue to cling to him, even though he has failed to deliver on most of his major pre-election promises? That's what I would really like to know.
Stay healthy!
C. Felber
Sudbury, ON
Canada
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Your country is fucked.
You know whose fault it is...but you can't do anything about it until November. And there are still enough deluded fools who believe he is the answer, not the problem.
How many of their loved ones are going to have to die from Covid 19 before they finally understand what a catastrophe he has been for your once great (before Jan 2017) country?
So sad to watch this train wreck happening in (not so) slow motion...
Eric Gall
Toronto
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you hit the nail on the head.
People won't vote for Biden, because they're fed up with the establishment blackmailing them to vote for the lesser of 2 evils
just to avoid the bigger one. They're friggin fed up having to play that game. So they simply won't vote at all.
Bernie Sanders going independent would be the only possible solution, and he'd probably win in a landslide.
Best,
Frank Baach
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Bob, I know I'm preaching to the choir here but you'd think how Trump has handled the coronavirus debacle thus far would be enough to give his supporters pause. But they believe everything that's coming out of his mouth.
Based on the info at https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries, the US has quickly ascended to the No. 3 spot in terms of coronavirus infections of all countries in the world. Even if you multiply Canada's results (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/canada/) by 10 to account for the population difference between our countries, our infection rate is slightly more than half of the US. It's sadly ironic that the countries that didn't initially take coronavirus seriously are among the top 3 infected countries in the world.
Things are tight here in Canada. Most people I know are taking the isolation matter quite seriously. My kids are bored stiff, wanna hang out with their friends and we aren't letting them do it. My father was just released from hospital from a double whammy of influenza A and pneumonia. Coronavirus would be his end and I'm not taking that chance. And I know a lot of folks taking the same measures. It's just not worth it.
Here in my home province of New Brunswick, a state of emergency is in place until May 31. More than two full months. And no one is arguing. The consensus is that we'd rather over-react and over-plan for the worst case scenario than be too casual about it. Because if you under plan and things go awry, it's already too late. Some might believe it's already too late with all the safety measures both our provincial and federal governments have done. But in the bigger picture, we're doing well in the bigger scheme of things.
If Trump gets his way and the US re-opens by Easter weekend, I fully expect to see the US infection and fatality rate skyrocket. The very notion that your president feels the economy is more important than the safety and well-being of his citizens is blashphemous. Unreal.
Ken Kelley
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Please don't stop cheering about Bernie... I love him. He is the Real Deal, it's just sad many others don't see that. One of my friends said "almost everyone who works with him says he's difficult" and I replied "maybe that's because he has true conviction, and won't compromise on his beliefs, especially with matters of monumental consequences .... like not entering into a war with Iraq, or voting against NAFTA because he had the foresight to see how much it would hurt our country". Of course people are going to characterize someone as "difficult" when they are mad that he doesn't go along with the herd, even if they're running of a cliff.
Scott
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It's quite weird being in isolation for me up here in Oregon. My wife is a nurse and it sure seems inevitable that both she and I will get infected sooner or later due to her job (she is working, a lot) and the insane, crazy lack of protective equipment at the hospital. She works in home health, they are treating covid patients who have been sent home from hospital. The home health nurses are the lowest of the low in this hospital system, and they do not get as much personal protection equipment as the hospital staff do which isn't enough for them either. What a shit show. Top executives get millions...but nothing left over to protect staff and patients properly. America. Sigh. One day at a time. Hang in there! And thanks for your letters mate.
Owen Dearig
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I'm 64, with an 18 year old son. He seems to get it. In fact here in Maryland, so far most everyone seems to get it. We're lucky to have a savvy forward looking (republican!) governor.What you are writing, people need to hear. If they don't wish to hear it, they can delete and move on. You're good at this, Bob. If it's in you then KEEP WRITING.
Right now you're like the songwriters of the sixties, saying things that need to be said.
WRITE!
Stay well,
J Maher
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I got a lot out of your email blast this morning.
I am absolutely not a Trump fan, but as you say – and have said a number of times – he is out on his own when it comes to understanding what the average American wants, and his establishment rivals continue turning up to a metaphorical gunfight with knives.
I'll also say this about Trump. You know where he stands. Here in Australia, our Prime Minister left an entire nation scratching its head with his most recent Coronavirus update:
No more kids birthday parties - but schools are to stay open.
No mass gatherings - but shopping malls remain open.
Don't go to work if you don't have to (work remotely) only essential services should report for duty, but he considers "every Australian with a job an essential service."
I hope that we haven't become so tribal that how we respond to something like Covid-19 is determined by our political leanings (because, yeah, I'd be guilty of it) but would some actual leadership at this time be too much to ask? Sometimes down here in Australia, I feel like that scene in The Godfather where Sonny screams at Tom Hagan: "Goddamit, I wouldn't be in this mess if I had a Sicilian as a wartime consigliere."
Trump, Johnson and Ardern in NZ: they're wartime consiglieres. In Australia, we got Enzo the fucking Baker.
Keep the screeds coming whenever the need arises Bob. Do whatever you need to to get yourself through this.
Steve Baker
Melbourne
Australia
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I hope you and Felice are Ok man. I have been on total lockdown. Have not left my house since BEFORE all this started.
I have a record I want to finish and ...... I wait.
Like we ALL wait, baffled by the stupidity we all see with people NOT taking this seriously.
I had to get pissed at my 12 year old daughter who said ' Its no big deal Dad' I said ' YES IT IS! ' and discussions occurred.
The hard part is what we tell our young kids.
My 2 older ones are in their 30's and know what's up but my 9 year old boy is autistic and he won't tell you when he is sick or hurt.. he tuffs it out. Its much harder to communicate so between Me... disposable piece of shit over 60 guy .. and my autistic boy who cant articulate well if HE gets it, well we all die according to that useless sperm receptacle senator in Texas!
Does he not realize all us old fuckers pay the most taxes? After last year I dont need a colonoscopy!
The question is what's next?
How long does it take for the people infected to GET it - Get OVER it and have NO more new cases? Let's hope long its gonna take and 330 MILLION people gotta go thru this ??
Not Easter !!!!!!
You are right to be pissed people are not taking this seriously. But Some of us are !
Luke
_____________________________________
Please share with your readers. You know how valuable our healthcare workers are and you've seen the shoes they wear when their saving lives. They're usually Crocs. So we're giving back.
Please let you readers know so they can tell their brothers and sisters on the front lines of fighting COVID-19 that we've got their back...and feet.
Crocs is SHARING A FREE PAIR FOR HEALTHCARE.
We started this today and gave away 10,000 pairs. We'll release another 10,000 tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. ET and so on and so on...
We're still working out some of the Day 1 kinks as the demand has obviously been incredible.
Here's some more details. Stay safe and healthy.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/crocs-announces-free-pair-healthcare-164000577.html
Please re-share. https://lnkd.in/e3A_rTE
Terence
Terence Reilly
Chief Marketing Officer
Crocs
_____________________________________
There are certainly too many missives Bob
Thomas Burger
_____________________________________
Bravo, Sir! I'm reading everything online all day here is self-isolation land. As a Bernie supporter, I don't understand the pushback and vitriol I get from my supposedly anti-Trump left leaning "friends" on social media, but the WSJ article you've quoted and comments explain it.
Keep up writing when the inspiration strikes. I've subscribed to your newsletter for probably 10 years and no amount of posting is too much. Keep up the great work, and stay healthy!
Best regards,
Jack R. Lebowitz
_____________________________________
Thank you Bob. I'm not unsubscribing!
Karen Sundell
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The Valhalla Murders
The biggest story in TV this week is "The Tiger King," the four part Netflix documentary that might look unappealing if you're not a big cat aficionado, but the people are so whacked, you cannot take your eyes off it. The funniest thing is this was all happening under our noses and we were unaware of it, or at least I was, illustrating what a big country it really is and how stories fall through the cracks. We are only one episode in, but I can see why everybody is hooked, the players are neither totally good nor totally bad, and they're so passionate about big cats and you realize everyone needs something to live for, but this? My inbox has been going crazy about "The Tiger King." Somehow, big media has missed the mania, they're still reviewing films when it's about TV, especially while we're all stuck at home. Meanwhile, have you noticed how newspapers no longer have a separate sports section, both the "New York Times" and the "Los Angeles Times" are folding a couple of pages into the front section. No one is playing, there's nothing to talk about.
Before "The Tiger King," we watched "The Valhalla Murders," also on Netflix.
Now I wonder if "The Tiger King" is so big because Netflix is featuring it on its homepage. And it truly is big, it's the number one show watched on Netflix. So do price and position always triumph? Imagine what might break on the homepage of Spotify or Apple if they weren't locked up with relationships with the major labels. Then again, word of mouth would have been incredible on "The Tiger King" anyway, it's just too bizarre and funny and jaw-dropping.
Today I finished Erik Larson's "The Splendid and The Vile." I cannot recommend it. It reads like a paste-up job, a completed jigsaw puzzle of his research. I don't remember his previous books being this bad, but nothing is said unless someone said it or wrote it previously and as a result, the narrative suffers. However, I will say the book did take me away from the coronavirus, which I have to commend it for. A good book takes you to a special place, you almost feel like you're in Churchill's London, although there's got to be a better book about that era than this one.
As for "The Valhalla Murders"...
It too was on the Netflix homepage. But it wasn't on the top of my list. Because the ratings were just not high enough, and the reviews were not quite good enough. But Felice couldn't resist the landscape and I must say, that's a reason to watch this, especially as winter turns into spring. It's hard to describe Iceland. There are these giant peaks covered in snow but they're almost untouchable, almost unreal. We went at the end of 2018 for Airwaves and I'd go back in a heartbeat, one of the few places where everybody speaks English that really feels different.
So, the problem with "The Valhalla Murders" is it's too linear, too focused, it's like a much better network TV crime drama.
And then it's not.
Because the people are complicated.
The show stars Nina Dogg Filippusdottir, who you will know if you watched "Trapped," which you should, before this anyway. But Olafur Darri Olafsson, as Nina's estranged husband in "Trapped," puts that show over the line. He is a big bear of a guy, who is so understated, but you can see his mind turning. And he's also a producer and screenwriter. The smaller the country, the more opportunities you have, and the stardom is smaller, so instead of being caught up in your fame, you can focus on your work.
So, after an episode or so of "The Valhalla Murders," you realize there are concurrent stories running under the theme of the murders. Nina and her son, and her ex, and her mother. Did she work so much that she broke up her marriage? I'll let you decide.
And Bjorn Thors, who is Nina's counterpart in criminal investigation, is harboring history, which slowly evolves over the series.
And then there's that landscape. Maybe you never lived where it snowed, maybe you hate the cold, but if you ever lived in winter the landscape will resonate. The long stretches of highway with nothing on either side but snow. And there's one moment where an actor gets out of his vehicle without his coat and eventually walks into a building. That's how it is if you live where it really gets cold, you kind of adjust, you don't bundle up heavily for every sortie. Sure, you're wearing a long sleeve shirt, maybe even a sweatshirt on top of that, but the cold is invigorating, especially on a sunny day.
So, in the era of peak TV, when there's no way everybody can see everything, I would not put "The Valhalla Murders" at the top of your list. If you like police shows, "Spiral" on Amazon is far superior, they both feature subtitles, and maybe people find it easier to just watch Netflix, but I cannot stop harping on how good "Spiral" is.
Now I downloaded a sample of Emily St. John Mandel's new book "The Glass Hotel." Did you read her prior work, "Station Eleven"? In theory it's not really my kind of book, as it is set in the future. I like hard core reality, neither fantasy nor science fiction, but "Station Eleven" is one of the best books I've read in the last ten years, even though it's set in the future it seems so real, and the book is so readable.
But to tell you the truth, we'll finish "The Tiger King," but what I'm really waiting for is Friday, because...
OZARK COMES BACK!!
Before "The Tiger King," we watched "The Valhalla Murders," also on Netflix.
Now I wonder if "The Tiger King" is so big because Netflix is featuring it on its homepage. And it truly is big, it's the number one show watched on Netflix. So do price and position always triumph? Imagine what might break on the homepage of Spotify or Apple if they weren't locked up with relationships with the major labels. Then again, word of mouth would have been incredible on "The Tiger King" anyway, it's just too bizarre and funny and jaw-dropping.
Today I finished Erik Larson's "The Splendid and The Vile." I cannot recommend it. It reads like a paste-up job, a completed jigsaw puzzle of his research. I don't remember his previous books being this bad, but nothing is said unless someone said it or wrote it previously and as a result, the narrative suffers. However, I will say the book did take me away from the coronavirus, which I have to commend it for. A good book takes you to a special place, you almost feel like you're in Churchill's London, although there's got to be a better book about that era than this one.
As for "The Valhalla Murders"...
It too was on the Netflix homepage. But it wasn't on the top of my list. Because the ratings were just not high enough, and the reviews were not quite good enough. But Felice couldn't resist the landscape and I must say, that's a reason to watch this, especially as winter turns into spring. It's hard to describe Iceland. There are these giant peaks covered in snow but they're almost untouchable, almost unreal. We went at the end of 2018 for Airwaves and I'd go back in a heartbeat, one of the few places where everybody speaks English that really feels different.
So, the problem with "The Valhalla Murders" is it's too linear, too focused, it's like a much better network TV crime drama.
And then it's not.
Because the people are complicated.
The show stars Nina Dogg Filippusdottir, who you will know if you watched "Trapped," which you should, before this anyway. But Olafur Darri Olafsson, as Nina's estranged husband in "Trapped," puts that show over the line. He is a big bear of a guy, who is so understated, but you can see his mind turning. And he's also a producer and screenwriter. The smaller the country, the more opportunities you have, and the stardom is smaller, so instead of being caught up in your fame, you can focus on your work.
So, after an episode or so of "The Valhalla Murders," you realize there are concurrent stories running under the theme of the murders. Nina and her son, and her ex, and her mother. Did she work so much that she broke up her marriage? I'll let you decide.
And Bjorn Thors, who is Nina's counterpart in criminal investigation, is harboring history, which slowly evolves over the series.
And then there's that landscape. Maybe you never lived where it snowed, maybe you hate the cold, but if you ever lived in winter the landscape will resonate. The long stretches of highway with nothing on either side but snow. And there's one moment where an actor gets out of his vehicle without his coat and eventually walks into a building. That's how it is if you live where it really gets cold, you kind of adjust, you don't bundle up heavily for every sortie. Sure, you're wearing a long sleeve shirt, maybe even a sweatshirt on top of that, but the cold is invigorating, especially on a sunny day.
So, in the era of peak TV, when there's no way everybody can see everything, I would not put "The Valhalla Murders" at the top of your list. If you like police shows, "Spiral" on Amazon is far superior, they both feature subtitles, and maybe people find it easier to just watch Netflix, but I cannot stop harping on how good "Spiral" is.
Now I downloaded a sample of Emily St. John Mandel's new book "The Glass Hotel." Did you read her prior work, "Station Eleven"? In theory it's not really my kind of book, as it is set in the future. I like hard core reality, neither fantasy nor science fiction, but "Station Eleven" is one of the best books I've read in the last ten years, even though it's set in the future it seems so real, and the book is so readable.
But to tell you the truth, we'll finish "The Tiger King," but what I'm really waiting for is Friday, because...
OZARK COMES BACK!!
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News Update-Day 14
I feel like I'm in "Groundhog Day," every day is exactly the same. Which is weird. There's nothing in the schedule, I wake up, read the papers, get on the computer...
I am anxious about sending so many missives about the coronavirus. People unsubscribe when there are too many missives a day. Then again, I write on inspiration, and right now I'm inspired.
I hope you read Jessica Lustig's piece in the "New York Times":
"What I Learned When My Husband Got Sick With Coronavirus - Our world became one of isolation, round-the-clock care, panic and uncertainty - even as society carried on around us with all too few changes.": https://nyti.ms/39paYqJ
Actually, I know Jessica, but I haven't seen her in years. She worked at "Details" after the turn of the century, when I wrote a couple of articles for them. I went to New York, we went for lunch, we talked on the phone a few times and then I followed her from afar, as we all do these days, virtually stalking, staying in touch with people we know but no longer communicate with. I enjoyed her article a few years back about taking her family skiing at Mad River Glen.
This story started making the rounds yesterday, it was all over Twitter, I got a bit of e-mail about it. I clicked through on my phone and saw the illustration but not the author, and then, late in the day, I had time and the inclination to read it and noticed it was written by Jessica. Weird how we're connected to people with the coronavirus. Expect more and more of this.
But what has got me writing at this very moment, before I've eaten breakfast, just after I woke up and checked my phone, is this:
"The Coronavirus May Make Trump Stronger - Gallup finds 60% of voters approve of his handling of the crisis. As usual, the establishment is clueless.": https://on.wsj.com/3akYFg9
I now take every poll with a grain of salt, especially after Trump's 2016 election, but the percentage was so high, I decided to start reading.
Now this is in the "Wall Street Journal" behind a paywall, so many people will not be able to read it. Then again, people forget the other half of Stewart Brand's famous utterance: "Information also wants to be expensive, because it's so valuable." I pay in excess of $500 for my print and net subscription to the WSJ. Most people will not pay that, but business people will. These articles are not written for everyday people. Therefore, if you are cheap, or broke, you're left out. Welcome to the present day. Then again, is it the same as it ever was? And this information is very valuable, so I'll quote some of it here:
"One reason Mr. Trump's opponents have had such a hard time damaging his connection with voters is that they still don't understand why so many Americans want a wrecking-ball presidency. Beyond attributing Mr. Trump's support to a mix of racism, religious fundamentalism and profound ignorance, the president's establishment opponents in both parties have yet to grasp the depth and intensity of the populist energy that animates his base and the Bernie Sanders movement.
The sheer number of voters in open political rebellion against centrist politics is remarkable. Adding the Sanders base (36% of the Democratic vote in the latest Real Clear Politics poll average, or roughly 13% of the national vote considering that about 45% of voters lean Democratic) to the core Trump base of roughly 42%, and around 55% of U.S. voters now support politicians who openly despise the central assumptions of the political establishment.
That a majority of the electorate is this deeply alienated from the establishment can't be dismissed as bigotry and ignorance. There are solid and serious grounds for doubting the competence and wisdom of America's self-proclaimed expert class. What is so intelligent and enlightened, populists ask, about a foreign-policy establishment that failed to perceive that U.S. trade policies were promoting the rise of a hostile Communist superpower with the ability to disrupt supplies of essential goods in a national emergency? What competence have the military and political establishments shown in almost two decades of tactical success and strategic impotence in Afghanistan? What came of that intervention in Libya? What was the net result of all the fine talk in the Bush and Obama administrations about building democracy in the Middle East?
On domestic policy, the criticism is equally trenchant and deeply felt. Many voters believe that the U.S. establishment has produced a health-care system that is neither affordable nor universal. Higher education saddles students with increasing debt while leaving many graduates woefully unprepared for good jobs in the real world. The centrist establishment has amassed unprecedented deficits without keeping roads, bridges and pipes in good repair. It has weighed down cities and states with unmanageable levels of pension debt.
The culture of social promotion and participation trophies is not, populists feel, confined to U.S. kindergartens and elementary schools. Judging by performance, they conclude that people rise in the American establishment by relentless virtue-signaling; by going along with conventional wisdom, however foolish; and by forgiving the failures of others and having their own overlooked in return...
Attacks on the establishment aren't always rational or fair. They can be one-sided and fail to do justice to the accomplishments the U.S. has made in the recent past. Populism on both the left and the right always attracts its share of snake-oil salesmen, and America's current antiestablishment surge is no exception. But the U.S. establishment won't prosper again until it comes to grip with a central political fact: Populism rises when establishment leadership fails. If conventional U.S. political leaders had been properly doing their jobs, Donald Trump would still be hosting a television show."
I'm loath to mention Bernie Sanders's name anymore because of the intense blowback. Democrats lay a litany of events in my inbox, the failure of young people to show up, Bernie and Cuba, they've bought the assassination of him and his candidacy by the NYT, WaPo and MSNBC hook, line and sinker and have missed the major issue, which is delineated above. They're so concerned with beating Trump that they don't realize...people are pissed about government not working for them and they are the problem.
There, I said it. As you can see from this article, the majority of America wants a revolution, and that may just lead to Biden's loss in November, assuming he gets out of his bunker alive, with his brain intact. Joe's got no purchase on the public scene at this time. By waiting a week to weigh in, Biden took himself out of the narrative. Timing is everything in life. If you want an analysis of that, read Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers." A certain behavior may not work in one era, and then be mind-bogglingly successful in another. Today, you fight it out online and people forget what you did today as they follow the narrative into tomorrow. Biden's handlers do not know this because they are not internet-savvy, and I'm sick of blowhards inured to the system who think it's politics as usual. I like David Axelrod, but he is not living in this decade.
The first rule of law is know thine enemy. Trump has been President in excess of three years and the movers and shakers still have no idea why he got elected, what his base wants. And it's funny to me that I had to read a right wing newspaper to get the truth.
And the part about the trophies for losers, the "relentless virtue-signaling; by going along with conventional wisdom, however foolish; and by forgiving the failures of others and having their own overlooked in return." is so right on. It's a club, and you're not in it. But what is even more fascinating is the last three decades have told us institutions can be overturned nearly instantly by disrupters from the outside, it never comes from the inside, but the outside. And then, when it happens, the inside says "who knew"? Obviously the disrupters. What's unfathomable today is de rigueur tomorrow. Like a black President and legal marijuana.
I won't overload you at this time, there are a number of other interesting developments, but the above two pieces stand out and I need to make you aware of them.
--
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--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
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I am anxious about sending so many missives about the coronavirus. People unsubscribe when there are too many missives a day. Then again, I write on inspiration, and right now I'm inspired.
I hope you read Jessica Lustig's piece in the "New York Times":
"What I Learned When My Husband Got Sick With Coronavirus - Our world became one of isolation, round-the-clock care, panic and uncertainty - even as society carried on around us with all too few changes.": https://nyti.ms/39paYqJ
Actually, I know Jessica, but I haven't seen her in years. She worked at "Details" after the turn of the century, when I wrote a couple of articles for them. I went to New York, we went for lunch, we talked on the phone a few times and then I followed her from afar, as we all do these days, virtually stalking, staying in touch with people we know but no longer communicate with. I enjoyed her article a few years back about taking her family skiing at Mad River Glen.
This story started making the rounds yesterday, it was all over Twitter, I got a bit of e-mail about it. I clicked through on my phone and saw the illustration but not the author, and then, late in the day, I had time and the inclination to read it and noticed it was written by Jessica. Weird how we're connected to people with the coronavirus. Expect more and more of this.
But what has got me writing at this very moment, before I've eaten breakfast, just after I woke up and checked my phone, is this:
"The Coronavirus May Make Trump Stronger - Gallup finds 60% of voters approve of his handling of the crisis. As usual, the establishment is clueless.": https://on.wsj.com/3akYFg9
I now take every poll with a grain of salt, especially after Trump's 2016 election, but the percentage was so high, I decided to start reading.
Now this is in the "Wall Street Journal" behind a paywall, so many people will not be able to read it. Then again, people forget the other half of Stewart Brand's famous utterance: "Information also wants to be expensive, because it's so valuable." I pay in excess of $500 for my print and net subscription to the WSJ. Most people will not pay that, but business people will. These articles are not written for everyday people. Therefore, if you are cheap, or broke, you're left out. Welcome to the present day. Then again, is it the same as it ever was? And this information is very valuable, so I'll quote some of it here:
"One reason Mr. Trump's opponents have had such a hard time damaging his connection with voters is that they still don't understand why so many Americans want a wrecking-ball presidency. Beyond attributing Mr. Trump's support to a mix of racism, religious fundamentalism and profound ignorance, the president's establishment opponents in both parties have yet to grasp the depth and intensity of the populist energy that animates his base and the Bernie Sanders movement.
The sheer number of voters in open political rebellion against centrist politics is remarkable. Adding the Sanders base (36% of the Democratic vote in the latest Real Clear Politics poll average, or roughly 13% of the national vote considering that about 45% of voters lean Democratic) to the core Trump base of roughly 42%, and around 55% of U.S. voters now support politicians who openly despise the central assumptions of the political establishment.
That a majority of the electorate is this deeply alienated from the establishment can't be dismissed as bigotry and ignorance. There are solid and serious grounds for doubting the competence and wisdom of America's self-proclaimed expert class. What is so intelligent and enlightened, populists ask, about a foreign-policy establishment that failed to perceive that U.S. trade policies were promoting the rise of a hostile Communist superpower with the ability to disrupt supplies of essential goods in a national emergency? What competence have the military and political establishments shown in almost two decades of tactical success and strategic impotence in Afghanistan? What came of that intervention in Libya? What was the net result of all the fine talk in the Bush and Obama administrations about building democracy in the Middle East?
On domestic policy, the criticism is equally trenchant and deeply felt. Many voters believe that the U.S. establishment has produced a health-care system that is neither affordable nor universal. Higher education saddles students with increasing debt while leaving many graduates woefully unprepared for good jobs in the real world. The centrist establishment has amassed unprecedented deficits without keeping roads, bridges and pipes in good repair. It has weighed down cities and states with unmanageable levels of pension debt.
The culture of social promotion and participation trophies is not, populists feel, confined to U.S. kindergartens and elementary schools. Judging by performance, they conclude that people rise in the American establishment by relentless virtue-signaling; by going along with conventional wisdom, however foolish; and by forgiving the failures of others and having their own overlooked in return...
Attacks on the establishment aren't always rational or fair. They can be one-sided and fail to do justice to the accomplishments the U.S. has made in the recent past. Populism on both the left and the right always attracts its share of snake-oil salesmen, and America's current antiestablishment surge is no exception. But the U.S. establishment won't prosper again until it comes to grip with a central political fact: Populism rises when establishment leadership fails. If conventional U.S. political leaders had been properly doing their jobs, Donald Trump would still be hosting a television show."
I'm loath to mention Bernie Sanders's name anymore because of the intense blowback. Democrats lay a litany of events in my inbox, the failure of young people to show up, Bernie and Cuba, they've bought the assassination of him and his candidacy by the NYT, WaPo and MSNBC hook, line and sinker and have missed the major issue, which is delineated above. They're so concerned with beating Trump that they don't realize...people are pissed about government not working for them and they are the problem.
There, I said it. As you can see from this article, the majority of America wants a revolution, and that may just lead to Biden's loss in November, assuming he gets out of his bunker alive, with his brain intact. Joe's got no purchase on the public scene at this time. By waiting a week to weigh in, Biden took himself out of the narrative. Timing is everything in life. If you want an analysis of that, read Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers." A certain behavior may not work in one era, and then be mind-bogglingly successful in another. Today, you fight it out online and people forget what you did today as they follow the narrative into tomorrow. Biden's handlers do not know this because they are not internet-savvy, and I'm sick of blowhards inured to the system who think it's politics as usual. I like David Axelrod, but he is not living in this decade.
The first rule of law is know thine enemy. Trump has been President in excess of three years and the movers and shakers still have no idea why he got elected, what his base wants. And it's funny to me that I had to read a right wing newspaper to get the truth.
And the part about the trophies for losers, the "relentless virtue-signaling; by going along with conventional wisdom, however foolish; and by forgiving the failures of others and having their own overlooked in return." is so right on. It's a club, and you're not in it. But what is even more fascinating is the last three decades have told us institutions can be overturned nearly instantly by disrupters from the outside, it never comes from the inside, but the outside. And then, when it happens, the inside says "who knew"? Obviously the disrupters. What's unfathomable today is de rigueur tomorrow. Like a black President and legal marijuana.
I won't overload you at this time, there are a number of other interesting developments, but the above two pieces stand out and I need to make you aware of them.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
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If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
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