I read Robert Hubbell. Out of so much that is staggering I choose one thing on which to focus.
Trump is acting like a raving madman. He continues to lobby for the hostile takeover of Canada, and the media pretends it does not hear an idea so lunatic that any other president uttering the idea would be removed from office under the 25th Amendment within hours.
As I struggle to understand how we’re allowing a used-car salesman to promote a car on the White House lawn, I read this:
Naomi Shihab Nye:
“Poetry calls us to pause. There is so much we overlook, while the abundance around us continues to shimmer, on its own.”
I breathe fully there.
Part of Golden Gate Bridge seen from Sutro BathsEmbraceShapes
Elon Musk: The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy.
Hannah Arendt: The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture about to fall into barbarism.
In order to understand, Arendt wrote The Banality of Evil, about what led to the holocaust. She learned that when one looks at numbers rather than consequences in the way that Eichmann did when he was proud to view how many people could be murdered in a day, we see the consequences.
Eichmann’s behavior is like that of Musk who is looking at numbers, and is not concerned with consequences.
The Dalai Lama: Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.
There’s been a great deal of talk lately about excrement. Today, I learned that wombats poop in squares. To learn more about this fascinating fact, watch this:
Thich Nhat Hanh in his book At Home in the World. The chapter is called Lotus Tea.
“Years ago in Vietnam, people used to go out onto a lotus pond with a small boat to put some tea leaves into an open lotus flower. The flower would close in the evening and perfume the tea during the night. Then, in the peace of early morning, when the dew was still glistening on the large lotus leaves, they would return in the boat with their friends to collect the tea. On the boat, they would take everything they needed to make delicious, fragrant tea: fresh water, a stove to heat it, teacups, and a teapot. Then in the beautiful early light of dawn, they would prepare the tea right there, enjoying the morning and drinking tea in the lotus pond. Nowadays we may have a lotus pond, but we do not seem to have time to stop and look at it, let alone to enjoy it by making tea and drinking it in that way.”
We may not have a boat, lotus flower, or pond but we can make and drink tea in a beautifully serene and conscious way.
I bought a cookie at a bakery recently and paid an extra 50 cents because of the price of eggs. That made sense because of what bird flu is doing to the industry.
But now I read this on SF Gate:
A Mexican restaurant owner in the city – “I’ve had it with this f—king guy,” Hargrave told his employees via text. “… Piece of s—t has the entire world on tilt. It’s like a game.”
When Trump finally enacted the 25% tariffs on Tuesday, Hargrave sprung into action, posting a long letter to his customers declaring immediate changes to his menu, including the addition of a lower-cost guacamole made with garbanzo beans and avocado, as well as a $3 increase on the price of traditional guacamole. Accompanying lime wedges, which customers often discard with their taco plates, would be available by request only.
The menus — printed on high-quality paper that costs $1,000 per run — were minutes from being printed on Thursday when Hargrave texted his team after seeing a CNBC article that the president had changed his mind. The tariffs are now paused for one month in compliance with the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The article goes as to how Trump’s whims affect farmers and consumers.
He fires NOAA workers who monitor climate change and warn of upcoming weather disasters. His method of firing makes the Up in the Air movie look kind. Where do we put it all? He ignores the courts. I read that democracy in this country is already gone. Tragic. And we must hope the country comes together to stop him, quickly, now, and I know people are working on this, and we must stay strong, soft power, strong.
When does cruelty become outright murder? Did those who voted for Trump know or realize that he was going to destroy Ukraine and give it to Russia? I believe many thought they were voting for an improvement in the economy which isn’t happening.
From The Guardian today:
Russia has carried out massive strikes across Ukraine, using drones and ballistic missiles, a day after the US stopped sharing intelligence with Kyiv that had previously given advance warnings of attacks.
The strikes came early on Friday as a Ukrainian delegation prepared to meet with US counterparts in Saudi Arabia for talks about a possible end to the war.
The Kremlin sought to destroy Ukraine’s energy and gas infrastructure, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. It targeted facilities in several regions, including Odesa and Poltava, using nearly 70 cruise and ballistic missiles and almost 200 attack drones, the Ukrainian president said.
“All of this was directed against infrastructure that ensures normal life,” he wrote on social media. “Currently, repair and restoration work is ongoing.” He said several people were injured when a missile hit a private building in Kharkiv.
In addition, this comes from Heather Cox Richardson today:
This morning, Ted Hesson and Kristina Cooke of Reuters reported that the Trump administration is preparing to deport the 240,000 Ukrainians who fled Russia’s attacks on Ukraine and have temporary legal status in the United States. Foreign affairs journalist Olga Nesterova reminded Americans that “these people had to be completely financially independent, pay tax, pay all fees (around $2K) and have an affidavit from an American person to even come here.”
“This has nothing to do with strategic necessity or geopolitics,” Russia specialist Tom Nichols posted. “This is just cruelty to show [Russian president Vladimir] Putin he has a new American ally.”
Why would we ally with Putin? What is to be gained except keeping Trump out of the jail cell he should be in? I wish I understood. I was on a call where we were asked to send postcards to the White House on March 15, and send letters to Zelensky apologizing but it’s too late. Trump has made himself king, a very evil king.
I’m working to keep this blog positive for myself and you. I know we’re all aware of the coup, and the lies in the speech last night but today when I read that the Trump administration imposed a $1.00 credit limit on park employees, I felt my blood pressure rise.
Yesterday I was at the Muir Beach overlook. I used the bathroom. I used toilet paper. How are the employees supposed to buy toilet paper and resupply the bathrooms with no money? How are they supposed to turn on the lights in the offices where they work? How do they buy gas for the vehicles they drive to move from place to place?
What is the purpose? It’s cruel.
I think of the Elizabeth Barrett Browning poem, How Do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
For this administration their rule is: How do I hate and destroy this country? Let me count the ways.
Looking north from the Muir Beach overlook yesterdayLooking SouthA defense outlook used during World War IIWhen there was danger from without, not within. A rock that looks like a submarine to me Dripping down to the seaLooking out across the PacificAt the entry to my friend’s house! – honor the rippling sounds of the bell.
The world seems turned upside down with the Trump/Musk/Putin trio, now acting as one. I read The Cult of Trump, and saw how Trump was raised without love to hate and dominate, and yet, destroying the world seems a bit harsh in response.
I know he hates CA but threatening our water supply, again I ask, why?
With that, I was at the marsh yesterday and I offer photos of harmony and connection.
View of Mt. Tam reflecting GraceTouchAvocet exploring low tideGolden Slippers Egret discovering nooksThe tide returns
For nothing is fixed, forever, forever, forever, it is not fixed; the earth is always shifting, the light is always changing, the sea does not cease to grind down rock. Generations do not cease to be born, and we are responsible to them because we are the only witnesses they have. The sea rises, the light fails, lovers cling to each other, and children cling to us. The moment we cease to hold each other, the moment we break faith with one another, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.
Cathy's Blog! 