Coronavirus Diary

Today is Sunday, April 2, 2023, Palm Sunday. This observance marks, of course, Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem and it falls on the Sunday before Easter. The commemoration is often celebrated with processions and distribution of blessed palm leaves. So before I get serious here, let me wish those who observe, Happy Palm Sunday or have a blessed Palm Sunday. For those who don’t, today was just a very nice spring day in which Elliot and I had brunch with our adopted “niece” “Elizabeth” in Astoria at Sanfords. On Wednesday, those of the Jewish faith will celebrate the first day of Passover with an initial Seder meal.

As we all gird ourselves for the potential arraigning of a former president in Manhattan this coming Tuesday, an online article for Radar might just augur that the situation on Tuesday might not actually bring “potential death and destruction,” as the Orange Moron (as I’ll now refer to him from now on) solemnly predicted when he was actually indicted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg last Thursday. The article is called “Lackluster Turnout For Donald Trump At Mar-a-Lago Protest Over Ex-Prez’s Indictment,” and it is by Joshua Wilburn. So what we can say about what might happen on Tuesday is that there will be even more of a lackluster turnout of Dumpf supporters at the courthouse when the ex-president makes his appearance to be charged of okaying hush money payments in 2016 to keep Stormy Daniels quiet about an affair between her and the at-the-time presidential nominee. Remember, if this scandal had come out before the election, we would most probably have had Hillary Clinton as the 45th president instead of this destructive and divisive man.

Thus only a small number of protesters – 30 in all – gathered near Dumpf’s current residence and private club in Palm Beach, Florida. “Throughout the day, some would come and go in small groups waving American flags with Trump’s face plastered on them.” And others reportedly drove by – probably they were speeding, as most Floridians do in the state – and honked in support, but far fewer than Dumpf’s earlier claims indicated.

When Dumpf appears at the courthouse in two days, it’s unlikely that he will be kept behind bars, but is currently set to have his picture and fingerprints taken. However, he’s currently fighting against having his mugshot taken (maybe he might have to remove his bouffant hair for one) as he believes it will be used against him politically for the upcoming presidential primary. Hell, yes, it should definitely be used this way by any rational Democrat. Why wouldn’t it be used? To prevent him from holding any higher office ever again, the kid gloves are definitely off in this case, especially since he’s now being indicted – and with possibly more indictments to come.

In the meantime, the Orange Moron is running very scared, as he posted a ridiculously overly capitalized statement on his ironically named “Truth” Social page, first claiming that the DA has “nothing” on him.

In a similar vein, an interview by respected 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl of the kookiest House representative very recently deservedly drew outrage on social media with some journalists and liberal celebrities questioning the program’s decision to host the egregiously controversial Congress member, who continues to promote numerous baseless conspiracy theories – including her inane belief that school shootings were faked – in recent years. I would wholeheartedly agree with critics of the program for “normalizing” Greene’s rhetoric on a mainstream news program. Instead, she should be featured more rightly on the Twilight Zone rather than on CBS News. Shame on you, CBS! Are you so concerned about ratings that you had to feature this lug nut on your show? It besmirched Sunday evening viewing for everyone who had to be forced to watch the cringeworthy interview.

Thus an online article for Forbes by Ty Roush appeared today on my smartphone entitled “Marjorie Taylor Greene’s ’60 Minutes’ Interview Sparks Social Media Outrage.”

One of those critics of the interview is former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger who said it was “insane” that Greene would be featured. One of the journalists who criticized the interview as well is New York Times reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones who called the sit-down with one of the craziest people on the planet “the type of normalizing that mainstream media did of segregationists” and referred to an article condemning Greene and Sen. Tommy Tuberville (what a fucking funny name!) for using racist rhetoric during campaign events. An even more frank criticism of the interview is provided by political commentator and former ESPN journalist Jamele Hill who said the program’s framing was “shit” and said the show is “platforming stupid.” NBC reporter Ben Collins tweeted, “Oh my god, what are we doing here.”

One bold critic who went further with his lambasting of the interview is former West Wing actor Bradley Whitford who compared Greene to Adolf Hitler, “who wasn’t afraid to share his opinions,” adding it was “too bad” Stahl was unable to interview Hitler to ask questions “about his vegetarianism and his love of dogs.” Whoa, is that strong, isn’t it?

One other person to air his grievances over the inappropriate interview is political commentator Elie Mystal who criticized 60 Minutes for referring to Greene by her nickname “MTG,” suggesting it was a “cute moniker” for someone so inflammatory and stupid that “just shows you’re here to launder her rep and complicit.”

What is so risible in all of this is that the idiot Greene failed to do her homework when she tweeted her response to the shameful interview and misspelled Lesley Stahl’s name, calling her “Leslie.”

The chief critic of the program was David Hogg, a gun control activist who survived the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, who said he was looking forward to Stahl’s questions “about why she thinks school shootings are fake and why she’s supported QAnon.” Greene, as you might recall, famously confronted the teen activist outside of Congress in 2019, before she was a member, inexplicably calling him a “coward.”

Her most recent outrage was making a federal case, as they say, over the supposedly trans identity of the Nashville shooter, focusing on gender reassignment as the real cause of the mass murders, not the easy access of guns. And this piece of garbage is leading the protesters outside the federal courthouse on Tuesday; I already said that someone should throw a cream pie in her face – if they only could – to show New Yorkers’ contempt for her!

According to the article, one bit of looniness I didn’t know about this poster child for Republican depravity is that she falsely claimed that John F. Kennedy, Jr. was killed by Hillary Clinton. Now, is that a howler or isn’t it? As you recall, Kennedy died in a 1999 plane crash. Greene is also the one who talked about Jewish space lasers sometime ago.

Most outlets on my phone blasted the news show for prostituting itself for interviewing the blonde bimbo in the House without using better discretion. This has to be a low point for the long-lived Sunday news program. Whoever decided to go with the interview should have his or her head examined, as the expression goes.

So for those who read my blog on Friday, I said I wouldn’t be able to write one on Saturday since I was going to Madison Square Garden to see “The Boss” in concert. Though I thoroughly enjoyed the show, I felt my little seat up in Section 420 was tight and uncomfortable. I was sitting three rows in front of the last row in the house. Thank God, I brought my high-powered binoculars. They really helped; of course, there were television monitors everywhere. The arena was packed. Springsteen performed wonderfully; he displayed remarkable stamina for someone in his early 70s. (He’s 73 years young.) His show was exactly three hours long, with most attendees standing at their seats and swaying and gesticulating to the music. I’m very thrilled that I now have been able to see one of the great rock legends in concert. I’ve missed out with seeing former legendary performers like Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, the Beatles (Paul McCartney still performs) and a slew of others because I was either too young at the time or just couldn’t buy tickets.

I will post some pics of Springsteen after the blog for your viewing pleasure.

Have a great week.

Stay safe and be well.