Links

PZ Myers fell on the ice and concussed himself. I worry more about falling these days, though so far I feel pretty stable. During the snow, I stepped in a hole and hurt my Achilles' tendon, which I do not recommend. It is very slow to heel. (Pun not intended, but it's hilarious, so I'm leaving it.)

Fraser Sherman blogs about the situation in MN. Like Fraser, I have been given hope by the people of Minneapolis especially. From the post:

Adam Serwer: “Vice President Vance has said that “it is totally reasonable and acceptable for American citizens to look at their next-door neighbors and say, ‘I want to live next to people who I have something in common with. I don’t want to live next to four families of strangers.’” Minnesotans are insisting that their neighbors are their neighbors whether they were born in Minneapolis or Mogadishu. That is, arguably, a deeply Christian philosophy, one apparently loathed by some of the most powerful Christians in America.

I too have notice how unChristian many American Christians are. If this were 2026 years ago, they would be standing with the Romans, celebrating the Crucifixion of that trouble-making Jew.

This was bizarre: the FAA closed the airspace around El Paso for ten days and then a few hours later reversed the decision. No one seems to really know what happened, though I have seen claims that a "party balloon" alarmed someone. Also claims that DoD and Hegesth are having a spat. Who knows, with this regime.

Same, Charles. Same.

Palate cleanser: N&M talk cats. My little cat seems to be doing better, which is good news.

Donate to MN. They run a daily Go-Fund-Me for people in the city, plus links to food banks and immigrant aid. 

The science of the protests:

UPDATE: Looks like the protests worked. We should all take note. This is how we win.

We Need Unity

I still remember the student who told me she was voting for Trump because the country was too divided, and we needed to "heal" those divisions.

At the time, I was knocked speechless. Why would she think Trump, of all people --

But clearly I just wasn't understanding what she meant. Trump wasn't Obama, that's what she meant. What she meant was, we need to return to a time when white nationalism was the norm, and we could murder any brown person who stepped out of line.

Terrible Dreams

I had an awful dream last night where we were moving again. I was packing, or trying to pack, except the moving boxes kept falling apart. Also, it was our house in Idaho. Also, every time I thought I'd gotten all the books off the shelves, more books would show up.

If we believe Freud that in dreams the house is the body, then this dreams means....

Honestly, no idea.

My Poor Little Cat

My little cat (her fighting weight is five pounds) had been losing weight. I took her to the vet, to find she weighed just a few ounces over four pounds, and that she has kidney disease.

They kept her for three days, giving her IV fluids and appetite stimulating meds, and she's home now. She's eating, but she's still awfully skinny. I have to continue the appetite stimulation meds and also give her subcutaneous fluids. The vet says she could live another year or another month, it's hard to say at this point.

Junti, the Tiniest Cat

What I'm Listening To Now

I listen to audio books when I'm doing kitchen work or laundry, and when I'm trying to fall asleep (my insomnia is really bad at the moment). These are the ones I've been listening to lately.

Angela Thirkell, High Rising

Read by Jilly Bond. Written in 1933, this is what my kid calls a "family book," by which they mean books about families doing nothing much except having tea, raising kids, and falling in love. This is Thirkell's first book that focuses on Tony Moreland, I think, and his mother; but George Knox and Lord Stokes and others show up as well. There are some anti-Semitic moments and casual classism, as is usual with Thirkell's early books. Since nothing much happens, this was a good book to listen to when I was trying to fall asleep.

Josephine Tey, Miss Pym Disposes

Karen Cass reads it. One of my favorite books, which I have read so often I know it almost by heart. This is also a good category of book to listen to while I'm trying to sleep. Miss Pym gives a lecture at a physical training college and then stays on for a few weeks, dealing with a murder toward the end and middle of the book. The mystery isn't the point, though it features heavily in the plot. Rather, this is a study of the students and faculty at the college, and of a particular kind of English life. Published in 1946, there is some classism and eugenics commentary, but this is nevertheless a charming novel.

Richard Russo, Nobody's Fool

Read by Ron McLarty. I have listened to this one before, but it's such a good book, and McLarty does an excellent job reading it. It's really long, over 24 hours to listen to, but well worth it. If you haven't read Russo yet, this is his best book. We follow working class Donald Sullivan -- Sully -- and the other inhabitants of the dying town of Bath, NY, through a few months in the winter of 1983 or so. Just a great book.

This Isn't at All Alarming

From Paul Krugman's column, which I encourage everyone to read all of:

Trump is now calling for “nationalizing” the midterms, meaning to put voting and the counting of votes under his administration’s control. He can’t do that, but his demand is a clear sign that he will not accept the public’ s verdict in November.

So it’s just being realistic to say that MAGA will try, somehow, to prevent voters from having their say. Will ICE try to prevent blue districts from voting? If that fails, will they reject the results, in a midterm version of Jan. 6? Call me alarmist, but remember: The alarmists have been right, and the people telling us to calm down have been wrong, every step of the way.

Still Cold, MN Still Occupied

It was 16 degrees when I took the dog to the dog park this morning -- the first time we've gone in a week, due to all the snow and ice. It was still snowy there plus lots of ice. The pond and stream were frozen over. The dog still had a good time, though. He loves to run.

I'm limping a bit because I slipped on the ice a few days ago and bruised my Achilles tendon. It's not serious, just annoying.

Minnesota is still occupied. Donate if you can: https://www.standwithminnesota.com/

AI Being Very Helpful

So on my Gmail account, which I use to communicate to editors I write book reviews for, AI has started helpfully attaching summaries to the threads, explaining what the emails have covered.

For all kinds of reasons I do not like this.

Still Snowy, MN Still Occupied

No sign of snow melt yet. About seven or eight inches on the ground, I think. The high today is supposed to reach 33, but not for long enough to melt much. Tomorrow we're reaching the 40s, but for today at least we are still snowed in.

I take the dog out for his walk twice a day (in multiple sweaters, a ushanka, wool gloves and snow boots) so I'm doing okay, but Dr Skull is getting stir-crazy.

I've made donation to food pantries in Minneapolis and to the ALCU of Minnesota, and I encourage you to do likewise if you can. One of my students lives there now, as do many of my favorite SF writers. Naomi Kritzer has a page about how to help.

Kritzer also includes links to local news services, if you want to read about what's happening but don't want to be fed MAGA propaganda.

I've seen lots of MAGAts on FB and elsewhere saying Pretti shouldn't have been armed -- these are the same people that love to preach about the 2nd Amendment, so I don't know how to square that circle -- and others saying that he should have "informed" the agents that he was armed. You know, like Philando Castile did.

Most of the other boot-licking MAGAts are saying he should have just stayed home. Because that's the way to deal with injustice and tyranny and people murdering your neighbors -- stay home and watch TV.

These people sicken me.

Another Murder by ICE

Yet another US citizen has been murdered by ICE. This one was shot in the back by an agent -- it's all on tape. At least ten shots were fired, some while the man, Alex, was already unconscious and on the ground.

The Trump regime is saying it was justified because the man had a gun. (He also had a valid permit to carry the gun, and never drew his weapon. In fact, another ICE agent took the gun and backed away well before the murderer shot the man.) That it was justified because the man was a "terrorist" who "attacked" ICE agents. (None of that is true.) That he went to the protest planning to kill ICE agents. 

On FB, MAGAts are saying he deserved to die because he was blocking traffic (He was not) or interfering with ICE agents (he was filming ICE and he tried to help a woman they pepper-sprayed and knocked to the ground).

Or he deserved to die because he was at the protest. 

Or he deserved to die because he had a gun.

Second Amendment? What's that?

Never mind the First Amendment.

If you ever thought MAGA had any principles or honor or human decency, they stand revealed now.

Another Shorter Video

Snow Dog

 Shamus loves the snow:

Ooof

It's cold here. 

Really, only 27 degrees, but with the wind and 40% humidity it feels so much colder.

How cold is it? It's so cold I'm not taking the dog for his evening walk. This means he will be restless and annoying, but it is just too cold.

Snow is predicted to start at 10:00 p.m.

Winter Emergency

The weather guys are saying we're getting from eight to eighteen inches of snow this weekend, starting Friday night. Also "brutally cold" temperatures.

Arkansas is dutifully panicking -- the kid and I got groceries yesterday (including milk, but not bread, because we bake our own bread) and the store was filled with frenzied shoppers. The hummus we like was sold out, as was the cream.

Home Health (Dr Skull's home nurses) called to make sure Dr Skull had enough food, medicine, and water, also a plan for where we will go if we have to evacuate. (We have no plan for what to do if we have to evacuate.) It's interesting to have access to functional health care. You just have to wait until you're 65 and then pay $650 a month in premiums. 

Send Help to MN

Naomi Kritzer (one of my favorite SF writers) has written a post about ways to help if you live outside of Minnesota. Go here!

She also gives information on how to prepare for ICE coming to your town. ICE is already in Arkansas, attacking brown people only two towns up the highway from me. If you think they're not coming to your town, you're probably MAGA and lying.

Nicole and Maggie have links.

If you're in a Red State, as I am, and your reps are celebrating this despicable behavior, as mine are, call them anyway. Explain why the Gestapo is not good for America. They probably won't listen. Do it anyway.

Snow?

We might get snow this weekend -- one site says 14 inches, but most are saying 3-5 inches. You can imagine my excitement.

Plus! This will be Shamus's first snow!