Allan G. Hunter's Blog

Saturday, February 20th

Covid deaths in the US edge towards the half million mark although infection rates are supposed to be dropping sharply. Texas is declared a disaster as the freeze has disrupted water and electricity. The explanation is that the state’s infrastructure was created at a time when the climate was thought to be stable. Ted Cruz returns from his Mexico vacation trying to look as if he didn’t just run for cover.

I choose to see this as opening up positive possibilities. The virus seems to be in retreat; people are waking up to climate change, and that means they’ll start to want something done about it. And Cruz has once again shown himself in his true colors. This has been a time of sharp and painful lessons.  Let’s make sure we learn from them.

Friday, February 19th

I’m watching with interest what’s going on with Facebook in Australia. As far as I can tell, Facebook has removed all news media using its pages. Since the term ‘news media’ is notoriously vague, it has meant that all kinds of odd pages, including those run by members of parliament, have disappeared. Predictably the pages of far-rightists and conspiracy theorists remain. 

Australia may be about to discover what life without FB might be. They may well decided they like it.  We shall see. It’s not a bad testing ground, after all. It’s a big country with a relatively small population, and plenty of space for organizations like QAnon to grow.  Oh, and a history of colonial racism, too, let’s not forget that.

Thursday, February 18th

Human beings never cease to astonish me. The mars Rover has just touched down on the red planet, and is sending back all kinds of information. On the other side of the equation winter storms have hit Texas, creating sustained power outages and cracking water pipes – leaving many communities with any drinking water. And let’s not forget Flint, Michigan.

We tend, all of us, to focus on the wrong things in a similar fashion. We worry about losing jobs in the fossil fuel industry and fail to think about climate chaos. We focus on Wall Street’s profits and fail to note the outrageous long-term cost of increasing homelessness or poor schools. We worry about what our neighbors think of us and we don’t consider what it is our souls need.

Diary 335

Wednesday, February 17th

Today was Ash Wednesday, if you celebrate such things as days of contemplation and repentance, and the world seems to have provided a few reminders. Mt Etna has erupted, spectacularly, in Italy; the former ‘president’s’ casino in Atlantic City has been demolished (blown up, actually, with jubilant on-lookers paying $10 a time to watch), and Rush Limbaugh died. Dust and ashes seem to be everywhere.

Some things are ending, preparing for new, better things to arrive. Mt Etna reminds us the destruction and renewal are constantly with us.

[pictures from The Guardian]

Tuesday, February 16th (Shrove Tuesday)

Today would usually be a time of celebrations and fun – Mardi Gras and all the associated activity of hilarity.  This year it was different for most of us, I think. The era of the Big Event is temporarily over. And perhaps that’s no bad thing.  Events were getting bigger in every way – the Super Bowl crowds, the evangelical mega-churches, you name it. It seems almost fitting that the Capitol rioters enacted a mob scene at the very time when such things were already obsolete.

Perhaps it’s time for those smaller, gentler celebrations, ones that honor the heart and not the noise.

Monday, February 15th

A gray day, another one, with dizzle and crumbling snow, and a sun that was surely up there somewhere, but was not seen. At such times it’s easy to miss the sparkling days of clear skies, blue as eternity, and sun glinting off every surface. Yet I like to think of such days as this as a reminder. Earth has many beauties, and offers them readily. One could say it provides beauty and gives it away. Our weakness is that we want to make beauty – our version of it – stay.

Sunday, February 14th

We took the first ‘day out’ that we’ve had for many weeks, and ventured as far as Lawrence, MA. Our Valentine’s destination was the Canal Street Antiques mall, billed as 40,000 feet of  varied ‘stuff’ some of which would surely appeal to even the most jaded browser.  For me the delight started as I looked at the huge former mill buildings, now converted into condos, small offices and well, antiques malls. Plaques announced dates such as 1868 to 1888, and one had to reflect that these long, large and rather fine structures were once crammed with noise, and with underpaid workers operating a variety of machines devoid of any safeguards.

Mass MOCA is, of course, a similar series of buildings now converted to a wonderful and inspiring art space. Lawrence is not quite in that category, yet. Instead the tables, chairs, sideboards, stuffed deer heads, cups and saucers in all sizes, button hooks, cameras and old vinyl LPs presented an ad hoc museum of domestic detritus from about 1950 onwards. We were fascinated.

Saturday, February 13th

The Senate decided not acquit the ‘president’. I wonder about this. Mike Pence, he who was the focus of the cry, “Hang Mike Pence” that echoed through the Capitol that fateful day, voted to acquit. Really? So it was all just a joke?

While the goings-on within the government are far from satisfactory I do see reason to hope. The nation as a whole is starting – continuing – to doubt the mechanisms that, for so many years, kept us acquiescent as minorities, women, the poor, and the environment were systematically degraded and abused. We may not like some of the ways this has played out in recent days. Yet people are questioning now in ways not seen for many years. And questioning is essential.

I have no sympathy for the Capitol rioters, who were duped by a feckless ‘president’ – but it revealed to us all just how duping can occur, and that portions of our society are clueless and lost in the face of it. It revealed it to them, too.

Friday, February 12th

I’m copying this from a friend’s page. It’s a list of some of the businesses that have gone belly up as a result of covid restrictions; shops and restaurants and bars – all are in what used to be the bustling centers of the town of Cambridge, and near Harvard. It makes for sad reading.

“That makes the Border Cafe another permanent pandemic shutdown, following confirmation Sunday that The People’s Republik bar in Mid-Cambridge had called it quits. Other such closings include Abigail’s Restaurant, Harvard Square’s Ann Taylor, The Automatic, the Kendall Square Barismo, Bergamot, Bo Concept, Brit Bakery, Bukowski Tavern, Bull McCabe’s Pub, Cafe Pamplona, The Cantab Lounge, Cuchi Cuchi, David’s Tea, Dickson Bros. True Value hardware, Emack & Bolio’s ice cream in Porter Square, The Field, Flat Top Johnny’s, The Friendly Toast, a GNC, Goorin Bros. Hat Shop, Harding House, a Harvard Square Hempest, a Hertz car rental, ImprovBoston’s theater, Inman Oasis, Joie De Vivre, the Harvard Square Legal Sea Foods, Lush, Once Somerville, Parsnip, Pavement Coffeehouse, Restaurant Dante, Snappy Ramen, Somerville Brewing, The Squeaky Beaker Cafe, Studio@550, Thunder Road, The Table at Season to Taste, the Wellbridge Athletic Club and Wit’s End.”

And I could add others.

Thursday. February 11th

The Trial of the ex-‘president’ continues, and important as it is that we as a nation can hold the chief executive office accountable, I’m thinking back to that early boast where the individual in question claimed he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and still not lose support.

Rumors of a breakaway center-right Republican party continue to circulate. It might be a good idea for those politicians who actually have morals. The Republican Party as it presently stands is tainted – nay, poisoned – forever.