As with many places, we have a love/hate relationship in the Berkshires with the second home owners and tourists. The difference between here and, say, Lake Geneva and Chicago, is that so many of our invaders are what I call New York assholes. I know it may be worse in the Hamptons, but it can get pretty bad here as well.
I went to the little country store here in Egremont yesterday to pick up my mail. A man entered the post office area while I was doing so and said "did you forget your mask?" I replied "actually, yes, I did forget." He bellowed "you're a prick!" My responses to him were not cordial. I came very close to decking him.
He was driving a BMW with NY plates. Enough said.
Sunday, May 24, 2020
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
National Whiny Radio
Like the NY Times, NPR can't seem to report anything without being negative about it. (At least if the report is about the right or republicans).
This morning an NPR "reporter" named Hannah Allam did an interview about Moderna announcing its progress in creating a coronavirus vaccine. Ms. Allam could have found countless credentialed experts to interview about this, but - perhaps because those experts would have been too positive - she found an obscure academic at the University of Vermont who could be bearish about it. His name was Timothy Leahy or something like that. I didn't catch all of his announced CV, but he apparently is a professor of some sort of ethics. Not impressive.
The professor bemoaned the lack of detail in the Moderna announcement. He then launched into the prospect of Moderna making money from this development. She encouraged him.
Apparently, neither Ms. Allam nor Mr. Leahy is aware of securities laws. Moderna was obligated to make its announcement, and probably announced whatever details existed, sketchy or not. By admonishing Moderna about its announcement as being too early, they were actually suggesting that Moderna should break the law.
NPR has long moved leftward in all its programming. But one would hope that at a minimum it would get at least some of the facts right. And recognize that there is much out there in the world that is outside its narrow focus.
This morning an NPR "reporter" named Hannah Allam did an interview about Moderna announcing its progress in creating a coronavirus vaccine. Ms. Allam could have found countless credentialed experts to interview about this, but - perhaps because those experts would have been too positive - she found an obscure academic at the University of Vermont who could be bearish about it. His name was Timothy Leahy or something like that. I didn't catch all of his announced CV, but he apparently is a professor of some sort of ethics. Not impressive.
The professor bemoaned the lack of detail in the Moderna announcement. He then launched into the prospect of Moderna making money from this development. She encouraged him.
Apparently, neither Ms. Allam nor Mr. Leahy is aware of securities laws. Moderna was obligated to make its announcement, and probably announced whatever details existed, sketchy or not. By admonishing Moderna about its announcement as being too early, they were actually suggesting that Moderna should break the law.
NPR has long moved leftward in all its programming. But one would hope that at a minimum it would get at least some of the facts right. And recognize that there is much out there in the world that is outside its narrow focus.
Monday, May 18, 2020
Wisdom From Long Ago
From a 1972 book by C.S. Lewis:
"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.
It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies.
The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated;
but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with
the approval of their own conscience."
"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.
It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies.
The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated;
but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with
the approval of their own conscience."
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Why Are Many Have-Nots Acting Irrationally
Polling on the coronavirus shows a clear divide between the "haves," defined for this purpose as the ones who can work from home and/or are still making money, and the "have-nots," who are suffering, often severely. Yet a significant portion of the have-nots say the economy shouldn't be opened up until it's "safe" to do so. How can this contradiction be explained?
The answer is fear. The media and politicians have convinced people that death from the "scourge" is always lurking around the corner. The data and statistics clearly show that most people have nothing to fear, but people are always inclined to believe the worst.
If politicians wanted to be honest and informative, they'd be calmly explaining the realities, but most of them are totally invested in defending their actions (and never admitting mistakes) so they continue to mislead.
A friend who is a retired clinical psychologist tells me he and others in his profession are very concerned about the deleterious impact that fear of this "plague" is having on people. It's very unhealthy.
The media should be ashamed. They focus on every outlier death of people under 50, no matter that they're comparatively rare. The NYT seems unable to stop itself from casting a negative tone on every development. This morning, for example, the front page has a story entitled "New Cases in U.S. Slow." Good news, right? No, the Times feels compelled to add to that headline "Posing Risk of Complacency." They're really beyond redemption.
The answer is fear. The media and politicians have convinced people that death from the "scourge" is always lurking around the corner. The data and statistics clearly show that most people have nothing to fear, but people are always inclined to believe the worst.
If politicians wanted to be honest and informative, they'd be calmly explaining the realities, but most of them are totally invested in defending their actions (and never admitting mistakes) so they continue to mislead.
A friend who is a retired clinical psychologist tells me he and others in his profession are very concerned about the deleterious impact that fear of this "plague" is having on people. It's very unhealthy.
The media should be ashamed. They focus on every outlier death of people under 50, no matter that they're comparatively rare. The NYT seems unable to stop itself from casting a negative tone on every development. This morning, for example, the front page has a story entitled "New Cases in U.S. Slow." Good news, right? No, the Times feels compelled to add to that headline "Posing Risk of Complacency." They're really beyond redemption.
Friday, May 15, 2020
Tyranny
Holman Jenkins wrote a thoughtful piece in the WSJ this week. Here's how it ends:
"For some families, sheltering in place now appears to have increased their risk rather than reduced it. For most individuals, the danger was flu-like, which never before led to them being stripped of basic rights. Banning outdoor activities appears to have been absurd overkill. The notion that a vast testing and contact-tracing scheme is plausible and could halt the epidemic, much less is a requisite condition to resume most of our economic freedoms, would likely fall to sixth-grade math. Start with the challenge of identifying millions of asymptomatic carriers among millions of others whose symptoms are due to the common cold or flu.
"That politicians took steps out of panic is understandable. That these steps were unjustified by the science that existed then much less now doesn’t mean their motives were bad. We can accept, especially in a panic, that the media will eschew complexity in favor of a story of an enemy who must be vanquished.
"Our country and our Constitution are finished, however, if the most sweeping, authoritarian and undemocratic restrictions on individual liberty ever contemplated are not subjected to legal challenge and accountability."
Monday, May 11, 2020
Mind Control
We have a Google group named "Egremont Neighbors" where people can post things like "can you recommend a plumber" or "the garden club will meet next Tuesday" or "is anyone going to Boston that could give me a ride." It's very useful and can promote neighborliness.
Today someone posted a tsk-tsk that she was walking somewhere, and saw people not wearing masks, and how can we enforce mask wearing?
I could go on and on about why in the world people are sheepishly and unquestioningly doing what the governor and our town officials tell them to do. If they said "jump up and down and chant the Lord's prayer," I suspect most of my fellow Egremonters would comply. That subject deserves serious and extensive analysis and commentary.
But for now I want to raise a corollary issue: The trend toward shaming and reporting neighbors. There are many historical examples of how dangerous that is. Almost every tyrannical regime engages in the practice of encoraging the reporting of violations by others. Reporting crimes like murder or burglary is beneficial in a society. Reporting crimes against the state in the nature of disagreeing with the authorities is not. Cambodia under the khmer rouge and Germany under the nazis are two examples. There are many others.
Restrictions on the populace, even where they are resisted by a minority, are always justified as being in the best interest of everyone and the nation. That is the stated justification for the current mandatory shutdowns, social distancing and stay at home orders. But it is all too easy to slide from that into restrictions on particular categories of the citizenry. If the "data" show that slavs spread the virus more than others, why not restrictions applicable just to slavs? You get the idea.
RESIST!
Today someone posted a tsk-tsk that she was walking somewhere, and saw people not wearing masks, and how can we enforce mask wearing?
I could go on and on about why in the world people are sheepishly and unquestioningly doing what the governor and our town officials tell them to do. If they said "jump up and down and chant the Lord's prayer," I suspect most of my fellow Egremonters would comply. That subject deserves serious and extensive analysis and commentary.
But for now I want to raise a corollary issue: The trend toward shaming and reporting neighbors. There are many historical examples of how dangerous that is. Almost every tyrannical regime engages in the practice of encoraging the reporting of violations by others. Reporting crimes like murder or burglary is beneficial in a society. Reporting crimes against the state in the nature of disagreeing with the authorities is not. Cambodia under the khmer rouge and Germany under the nazis are two examples. There are many others.
Restrictions on the populace, even where they are resisted by a minority, are always justified as being in the best interest of everyone and the nation. That is the stated justification for the current mandatory shutdowns, social distancing and stay at home orders. But it is all too easy to slide from that into restrictions on particular categories of the citizenry. If the "data" show that slavs spread the virus more than others, why not restrictions applicable just to slavs? You get the idea.
RESIST!
Saturday, May 9, 2020
Unemployment
Wow!
I'm tired of the media saying the unemployment numbers were causred by coronavirus. A virus can't cause unemployment. Stupid politicians can - and have chosen to do so, not by accident but by design. That includes republicans and democrats, starting with Trump. I'm sure he's now kicking himself for slavishly following the advice of some scientists while not considering the contraty advice of others. Medicine is not the only science.
Oh, sorry, Trump never kicks himself. Among all the politicians, he is THE master at blaming others and taking no responsibilty.
It's interesting watching both the left-leaning and right-leaning media avoid criticism of the shutdowns themselves. Right-leaning media can't bear to say Trump made a mistake. Same thing for left-leaning media regarding the governors.
I'm tired of the media saying the unemployment numbers were causred by coronavirus. A virus can't cause unemployment. Stupid politicians can - and have chosen to do so, not by accident but by design. That includes republicans and democrats, starting with Trump. I'm sure he's now kicking himself for slavishly following the advice of some scientists while not considering the contraty advice of others. Medicine is not the only science.
Oh, sorry, Trump never kicks himself. Among all the politicians, he is THE master at blaming others and taking no responsibilty.
It's interesting watching both the left-leaning and right-leaning media avoid criticism of the shutdowns themselves. Right-leaning media can't bear to say Trump made a mistake. Same thing for left-leaning media regarding the governors.
New York Times
A great newspaper no more. I buy it on Saturdays and weekends, primarily for the puzzles, but also to get my blood pressure up. There are rarely articles any more that just report the news. Most articles are opinion pieces thinly disguised as reporting. And even in an otherwise plain vanilla piece, the Times reporters (who are overwhemingly young) often can't resist throwing in some tangential commentary on Trump or victimhood, or both.
Two examples from today:
In the middle of an article about apparent anomalies in the distribution of remdesivir, the reporter notes that a hospital in Massachusetts serving a primary black population isn't getting any. Trump is a racist. So are most republicans.
Two long articles about the dropping of the Michael Flynn case barely contain the reporters' outrage, implying the action was part of a conspiracy or worse. The articles contain virtually no mention of any facts about the case itself. In the Times' world, prosecutions against republicans are always justified but those against democrats are always political vendettas.
Two examples from today:
In the middle of an article about apparent anomalies in the distribution of remdesivir, the reporter notes that a hospital in Massachusetts serving a primary black population isn't getting any. Trump is a racist. So are most republicans.
Two long articles about the dropping of the Michael Flynn case barely contain the reporters' outrage, implying the action was part of a conspiracy or worse. The articles contain virtually no mention of any facts about the case itself. In the Times' world, prosecutions against republicans are always justified but those against democrats are always political vendettas.
Friday, May 8, 2020
More Coronavirus Updates
Three interesting developments:
Without any recognition of irony, NPR reported this morning that many nurses are having their hours cut or are being laid off, as the need for virus care declines. That's a predictable result of ramping up too much by politicians overly influenced by the Katrina effect. The very same NPR report noted that the nurses have fewer places to turn for employment because of the shutdowns. NPR is unable to see any link between these things because it views everything that happens in the world through the lens of victimhood. I'm starting to call it National Whining Radio.
The CDC collects data and reports the results of what they call "excess deaths," the number of reported deaths from all causes that exceeds historical expectations.* So far the incomplete data show significant recent excess deaths, only part of which are identified as resulting from the virus. I couldn't find a breakdown of the causes of those other deaths; perhaps I couldn't navigate the website adequately. It will be interesting to see the eventual breakdown of excess deaths and compare their causes.
Cuomo has no apologies for having pleaded for health care workers from outside New York to come to the state to help out and then taxing them on the resulting compensation they received.
*The website carefully notes the many limitations affecting the accuracy of the data.
Without any recognition of irony, NPR reported this morning that many nurses are having their hours cut or are being laid off, as the need for virus care declines. That's a predictable result of ramping up too much by politicians overly influenced by the Katrina effect. The very same NPR report noted that the nurses have fewer places to turn for employment because of the shutdowns. NPR is unable to see any link between these things because it views everything that happens in the world through the lens of victimhood. I'm starting to call it National Whining Radio.
The CDC collects data and reports the results of what they call "excess deaths," the number of reported deaths from all causes that exceeds historical expectations.* So far the incomplete data show significant recent excess deaths, only part of which are identified as resulting from the virus. I couldn't find a breakdown of the causes of those other deaths; perhaps I couldn't navigate the website adequately. It will be interesting to see the eventual breakdown of excess deaths and compare their causes.
Cuomo has no apologies for having pleaded for health care workers from outside New York to come to the state to help out and then taxing them on the resulting compensation they received.
*The website carefully notes the many limitations affecting the accuracy of the data.
Thursday, May 7, 2020
More Coronavirus Updates
Andrew Cuomo is either dense or a charlatan. I'm guessing a bit of both.
At his "briefing" today, he expresses surprise that the rate of infection of hospital workers is low. He credits his arranging for PPE for that. He either doesn't realize or ignores that hospital workers are always exposed to germs and viruses and are experienced in protecting themselves. The only difference about the Wuhan virus is that's it's more contagious, not more deadly.
Certainly we should be grateful to hospital workers. But the media, spurred by the politicians, are going overboard on this, likely from a sense of guilt. Hospital workers are just doing their job, like most of the rest of us try to do. The media treat this as if the workers going to work are like the charge of the light brigade, risking almost certain death. But the data are beginning to show that it's pretty much life as usual for them. If they've been underappreciated in the past by the elite, it's great that the elitists may henceforth be a bit more humble.
And health workers aren't stupid. They're already beginning to make noise about higher pay. Cuomo and his ilk have labeled them "heroes" and you know what comes next.
At his "briefing" today, he expresses surprise that the rate of infection of hospital workers is low. He credits his arranging for PPE for that. He either doesn't realize or ignores that hospital workers are always exposed to germs and viruses and are experienced in protecting themselves. The only difference about the Wuhan virus is that's it's more contagious, not more deadly.
Certainly we should be grateful to hospital workers. But the media, spurred by the politicians, are going overboard on this, likely from a sense of guilt. Hospital workers are just doing their job, like most of the rest of us try to do. The media treat this as if the workers going to work are like the charge of the light brigade, risking almost certain death. But the data are beginning to show that it's pretty much life as usual for them. If they've been underappreciated in the past by the elite, it's great that the elitists may henceforth be a bit more humble.
And health workers aren't stupid. They're already beginning to make noise about higher pay. Cuomo and his ilk have labeled them "heroes" and you know what comes next.
Coronavirus Updates
Governor Cuomo claimed he was surprised to discover that hospitalizations in NY were concentrated in the elderly and stay-at-homers, not workers. I'm guessing he wasn't surprised at all.
This virus has little serious impact on the young and healthy. Your chances of being hospitalized, let alone dying, are minuscule unless you are old and have a fairly serious underlying respiratory condition. Disregard the outliers that the doomsday media loves to ferret out.
There never was any reason to lock down everyone. The evidence is slowly emerging showing that.
But politicians are blinded by the Katrina effect: No politician is going to be caught underestimating the severity of a calamity. And now the politicians will spin the data and narrative to justify what they did. Very few will admit error.
This virus has little serious impact on the young and healthy. Your chances of being hospitalized, let alone dying, are minuscule unless you are old and have a fairly serious underlying respiratory condition. Disregard the outliers that the doomsday media loves to ferret out.
There never was any reason to lock down everyone. The evidence is slowly emerging showing that.
But politicians are blinded by the Katrina effect: No politician is going to be caught underestimating the severity of a calamity. And now the politicians will spin the data and narrative to justify what they did. Very few will admit error.
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