Texas Progressives look for a few good members

The Texas Progressives Alliance, as far as regular contributors, has fallen down to me and Kuff. Stace is semi-regular, and John Covarrubias is occasional.

Some fell away from blogging. That was for a variety of reasons, I'm sure. Others, not actual members, I lost track of when Brains got butt-hurt, and also started limiting his blogging to collections of Tweets plus his Sunday funnies roundups, and thus had less to contribute to himself.

 

That said, blogging isn't easy, even if one is a natural, or experience-honed, writer. Kuff often violates the spirit of fair use with the amount of text he copies from commercial news sites, though not engaging in Brains' regular extended Twitter posts. Speaking of such, I've done that on occasion in the past, and the occasions may be increasing, though still rare. I don't do as much deep dive political blogging as in the past, in part because I feel that it's all been said about the duopoly, and my predictions of Green party irrelevance plus implosion (which increases its irrelevance) are coming more and more to pass. I'm as likely to go longform on my philosophy blog as here, even though, throwing out roundup posts and taking COVID posts at 50 percent value, I still blog only about one-third as much there as here.

 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch ...

I can critique a person's actions, but not hate them. I can certainly critique their political stances, but not hate them. So, no, I don't hate everybody.

That said, per Brains, I do distrust people who threaten me with emotional blackmail. (And, I still have receipts.) Plus, the comments Brains made to me were the same he made about other TPA members or associates in the past, like Trey. Or Ted the socialist ex-hippie from the Panhandle who's also a Hillbot. Or Noah Horowitz. Or Coby. Or Kuff.

I don't even hate Brains. Beyond distrust, I feel sad for him, as much as anything. I think his increasing hearing problems, plus I believe worsening Meniere's disease, were isolating him more and more pre-COVID. And, now that hits.

But, enough about him.

I would like to do more of what he did, and that's to have Texas bloggers who truly are "progressive" as part of these roundups. But, I have to know who you are. To be "progressive," you don't have to be a Green. I no longer consider myself one, and I was more of one than Brains. You do have to be someone who's NOT a Blue Anon Dem. Beyond that, you do have to be someone who doesn't think the Movement for a People's Party is the greatest thing since sliced bread.

As for Brains and myself? Long before our falling out became real, I think it started when I called him out for election conspiracy theories, which his blogging buddy Brad Blog also believes. Specifically, I said nothing was hacked in Ohio 2004. We also disagreed over third-party candidates needing to invest their money, if they have enough money to have serious investment income, into "ethical" mutual funds. It's why I didn't vote for Nader in 2000, and wouldn't have voted for Stein 2016 had I known earlier she had the same issues.

Ike Dike hopes revived? I hope not

The Trib hopes that Biden's infrastructure bill funds an "Ike Dike." I hope they're most certainly wrong. 

Knowing that an Ike Dike is actually the most oversold bit of grift in Tex-ass this side of the Texas Central Railroad bullet train, and really wouldn't help that much, I hope it doesn't fund it. (Oh, Brains, I don't "hate everybody," but you're as wrong on the Ike Dike as on Texas Central.)

The Ike Dike has several problems.

One, per the "grift" angle is that it's almost certainly being underpriced, as is about any project involving the Army Corps of Engineers.

Second is that it's going to have environmental problems, as is about any project involving the Army Corps of Engineers. As the numbers of migratory birds continue to plummet, for example, we can't afford more environmental problems on the Texas Gulf Coast, in the Central Flyway.

Third is that it's not going to solve all of Houston's hurricane-related flooding problems and won't solve, or even address, ANY of its inland storm related flooding problems. 

On that point, the Chronic admitted two months ago in a house editorial that an Ike Dike won't even solve all hurricane-related storm surges. So, for water already inside Galveston Bay, it says the next time the Houston Ship Channel is dredged, that the soil from that should be used to create artificial islands in the channel. This, of course (it SHOULD be an "of course," but the Chronic ignores that) is only a temporary solution, as "regular" storms would erode those islands just as they'll erode the beach "thickening" on the island and Bolivar Peninsula that's been touted as part of the Ike Dike project beyond the dike itself, and that erosion has been noted, so the Chronic has no excuse for ignoring it.

Coronavirs week 94B: Odds and ends

The Dallas Observer points out that medical labs are also facing staff shortages.

Your Local Epidemiologist explains what antigen tests are all about.

Biden's OSHA officially withdrew its nationwide vax-or-test mandate after the recent Supreme Court ruling, but may try something less expansive, yet above and beyond the health care workers mandate.

Lots of people like free test kits and free N95s. Shows you how big of a flub it was late last year to not go through with these things then, instead of viewing a vax mandate as a hammer for everything being a nail. The story notes that the unvaccinated are the least likely to use them even if they're the ones that most need them. Disagree on "most need them." We're in Darwin Awards territory.

Type 2 diabetes is one of four risk factors for long COVID. That said, it's not the most significant; something called autoantibodies is.

Antivaxxer groups were talking blather about COVID vaccines even before the first was created, or even before we had an idea we could create one.

Coronavirus week 94: About that Nuremberg Code

First, antivaxxers, given that last week today was the 80th anniversary of the Wannsee Conference, where the Final Solution was formalized, it's offensive as hell, odious and disgusting to be comparing immunologists, virologists and vaccine administering doctors and nurses to Josef Mengele, which is essentially what you're doing.

Second, it's a lie, twice over.

First of all, none of the above modern health care professionals is deliberately harming anybody.

Secondly, as the US, and I believe all other major countries backing the Nuremberg Code, had some sort of vaccine (and quarantine) mandates in their laws, the Nuremberg Code obviously doesn't include that. Burden of proof is on you to show me wrong, per what I just stated above.

In fact, it's probably mis-cited in general. And, with that, I'll tackle all 10 points.

• First, it applies to research. Administration of a vaccine is NOT research. That said? The vaccine trials? All subjects were willing and informed. 
• Second, hells yes it yielded fruitful research. COVID is real, and the vaccines are helpful. (No, not perfect, but I'm not going to argue with antivaxxers who claim Pfizer said its was, who strawman #COVIDZero, etc. GFY.)
• Third, the vax development and trials were based on just such knowledge.
• Vax trials avoided unnecessary suffering.
• There was no a priori reason to believe the vaccines would cause death or disablement. When the Johnson and Johnson vax showed an increased risk of some blood clots, in fact it was put on hold for further study.
• Sixth, the degree of risk was not out of proportion to the obvious humanitarian impulse.
• Seventh, vax trials were conducted in ways such that medical intervention was ready if needed.
• Yes, the development, and the trials, were conducted by scientifically qualified people, as compared to most the antivaxxers being unqualified.
• Yes, test subjects had the right to leave a vax trial, as they do on research trials in general.
• Tenth, scientists were indeed ready to terminate the trials if necessary.

Oh, by the way, it's codified into Health and Human Services regulations.

Beyond THAT? Vaccine administration is NOT research. And, there was no mandate on any vaccine until after the Pfizer vax moved past EUA to full authorization.

Related to that, whether you're a MAGAt, a Greenwald-type libertarian, or a horseshoe theory Green? Bodily autonomy is NOT absolute, and it exists only in the constraints of society. That's why the old joke about how your rights end when your fist meets my nose (or in states with separate assault and battery laws, when your fist comes too close to my nose) is not just an old joke, it's the truth.

Per this Atlantic story, your right to smoke in a public place ended decades ago, for example. Related? Politico notes that low levels of conscientiousness, especially among people who tilt conservative politically (and I'm lumping L/libertarians there) is a leading marker of spreading fake news, including but not limited to COVID vaccines, of course.

Oh, also? Antisemitism still exists, just as it does in antivaxxers wearing Stars of David and trivializing the Holocaust. A person assuming I am a Jew engaged in it when I raised the Wannsee issue a week ago. And, it was a horseshoer.

Meanwhile, RFK Jr., although not mentioning the Nuremberg Code, did do the more general Nazis = vaccination claim at his DC rally over the weekend, and tried to piggyback on Anne Frank. AND? Maybe he didn't mention it, but signs at the rally DID say "Nuremberg Code."

And horseshoe theorizers among Greens (more and more, I realize that the Venn diagram overlap between "Green" and "lefist" is not huge, and is fuzzy, but Noah Berlatsky is still wrong on denying horseshoe theory exists) are more odious than wingnuts on this issue.

Besides, none of this is based on science. Antivaxxer groups were talking blather about COVID vaccines even before the first was created, or even before we had an idea we could create one.

Ted Williams and Yaz are Red Sox nonpersons

Who would say such an Orwellian thing?

Well, the president and CEO of the Boston Red Sox, Sam Kennedy, that's who:

"David Ortiz is the most important player to ever wear a Red Sox uniform."

There you go.

First, as I blogged late last year, when the BBWAA ballots officially came out, David Ortiz is NOT a Hall of Famer. Certainly not a first-ballot one. And, it goes beyond whether the roided or not. Park-inflated stats at Fenway is why we have things like OPS+ and WAR. His 141 career OPS+ is good but not great for a 1B/DH type. (Albert Pujols is still at 144 after a much longer career and decline and Miguel Cabrera is at 145.)

But, let's go to the "nonpersons" and that statement.

Note who's missing? Well, obviously, Teddy Ballgame, Ted Williams, the Kid, the Splinter. Two-time Triple Crown winner. Arguably the best batter who ever played the game of baseball.

Boston legend in so many ways.

Best player to ever wear that uniform. And, yes, that at least arguably includes two very prominent other players, one entirely from the deadball era and the other with baseball's best career WAR. Certainly the best with the Sox alone.

And Carl Yastrzemski, last guy to post a 12-WAR season. (Ortiz never had a single 7-WAR season, another reason I don't consider him a Hall of Famer.)

Who else is being forgotten?

Well, it's not the uni he's most famous for, but?

Babe Ruth.

Others who didn't play only with Boston, but neither did Ortiz?

Pedro Martinez.

Roger Clemens.

Wade Boggs.

Those, at a minimum, rank higher.

Cy Young.

Tris Speaker.

All of them, in my book, are both better and more important. Well, the importance factor is arguable with Boggs and Speaker, but otherwise? Babe? Important to the history of baseball, the history of the Sawks, and focus of "the curse of the Bambino." Pedro injected new fuel into the Sox-Yankees rivalry. Clemens? Important for injecting other things. Cy Young? Just has an award named after him. 

Could probably even slip the likes of a Dwight Evans in there on the better side, whether or not more important. Maybe even Fred Lynn? That's a maybe because he's behind Papi on WAR, but on importance? He was Rookie of the Year and MVP the same season, and that was WS year 1975.

The noxious Curt Schilling, bloody sock and all. Surely more important. And better.

Cooperstown: Once more unto the Big Hall breach and related

I hadn't planned for half this blog to become sports-related postings, but, between racism about NFL quarterbacks, COVID stupidity and interesting legitimate NBA news, and nuttery by baseball fans AND WRITERS, it has.

And, with that, unto that breach.

The "trigger" for baseball fans and writers who want their Granny, Uncle Leroy and three next door neighbors all voted into their "Big Hall" version of the MLB Hall of Fame in Cooperstown is people like me who call them out on sabermetrics. My post about a bloated new class of veterans inductees, none of whom cleared 55 percent or so with writers, and most of whom who had also failed at least one, if not more than one, previous Veterans Committee election.

And, it's not just Big Hall fans in general. As I blogged a couple of weeks ago, the claim that Adam Wainwright would be a HOFer if not for injury is laughable. It's easy to troll fellow Cardinals fans who like to talk about "Best Fans in Baseball" with nuttery like that. And, when they bring it up? I point out that I'm such a Cards fan from way back that I was at the game where Glenn Brummer stole home. (And, if that doesn't ring a bell, you're not much of a Cards fan.)

To go on a tangent, it's like calling Bernie Miklasz out for puffing a non-existent "Cardinal Way."

At the same time, as a Cards fan, I nave noted my non-homerism in the past by saying that Mark McGwire is NOT A Hall of Famer. Because he's not; de-roided, I said, he's another Dave Kingman.

On recent triggers? I probably further cheesed-off the Uncle Leroy crowd by taking a deeper dive into Tony Oliva's case, or lack thereof.  And I deeper dived on Gil Hodges, too.

That said, it's not just the Hall of Fame. I've written a whole series of posts calling out writers first, fans second, who have bloviated over Shohei Ohtani. Yes, he had a very good season. No, it wasn't THAT good, and that's by 21st-century standards alone.

Frankly, per a meme that Craig Calcaterra used to post regularly, and still does while now working for NBC's Green Satan (I think he still does), I wonder if a lot of both fans and writers really do believe that "Baseball is Dying."

It probably is, and another lockout won't help. Adding the DH to the National League will only further drive away fans like me, not just as traditionalists, but as people who don't want NL games to get as long as AL ones. 

Commissioner Corleone was supposed to do something about that. In part being blocked by the players union, in part just not making it a bigger, more consistent priority, he's let the game drag on.

But, it's the fans as well. Many want the year-round DH, even with four-hour games. And they want Uncle Leroy in the Hall of Fame.

If baseball is dying, you're part of the cause. YOU killed Cock Robin.

Writers? Those of you who were in denial about roids at the time killed it too.

Back to fans, on this issue. If you claim a majority of players roided 20 years ago and so, Uncle Lenny the Roider should "go in," rather than us tossing out three managers? You killed Cock Robin, too.

Actually, capitalism is killing baseball. Capitalism is why, though not on its official job description, the Veterans Committee is unofficially encouraged by the HOF to vote in more players. Cooperstown, New York, as I noted on my original trigger piece, is a lot smaller than Springfield, Massachusetts or Canton, Ohio. Basically, it's a Hall of Fame factory town. (I had a late friend who was born and raised there, a leftist of some sort like me, as my oral history source.) Springfield, 150K. Canton, 70K. Cooperstown, 2,000 in an upstate New York cow pasture. And, built on a legend specifically designed to draw people to this cow pasture, in population decline for a full century. (That said, Canton's had a slower decline for 50 years.) Plus, the HOF totally controls the Veterans Committees. Per that link, sadly, Mike Schmidt is totally a Big Hall guy.

This guy GETS IT:

At the end of the day, it is a plaque in the gallery…and lots of merchandise sold for MLB teams, and the Hall of Fame. It also allows the newly elected Hall of Famer to charge extra for appearances and autographs.

Nothing to add.

The Basketball HOF, per Wiki, arguably both is more exclusive and has a better process for dealing with possibly overlooked veterans. Per Springfield staff, it's more exclusive when you realize it includes WNBA, or will, men's and women's college players coaches, and international ones.

Canton is similarly better in some ways. The Pro Football Hall of Fame, like Naismith, specify more how veterans should be considered and put a cap on their induction numbers.

Now, it's true that, with both these sports, the Halls of Fame control the normal player induction process in a way that Cooperstown doesn't; maybe that, in turn, leads to a sense of frustration that leads it to want various veterans committees to goose the vote.

Texas Progressives talk Paxton and Cuellar

Kenny Boy (how BOUT them "rule of law" Republicans) is refusing the Travis County DA's Public Information Act ruling that he needs to give the media his Jan. 6, 2021 text messages. The real issue is that it's not for a public official under the PIA to make the determination as to whether the material requested is "inconsequential." It's the reading public to do that. And, of course Kenny Boy's office said "fake controversy."

Sidebar: Anti-vax mandate Kenny Boy "has got it."

And, in the Kenny Boy trifecta, Chris Hooks takes a look at the AG primary, which is indeed the most Texas of races we could have. That said, CD says it's still Kenny Boy's race to lose.

==

What DOES the FBI want with Henry Cuellar? Obviously, this will impact his primary. Will it push Jessica Cisneros over the top? The first question? ABC says its related to corruption in Azerbaijan. Related to that? Why the fuck is there a Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus (other than for possible money laundering like that which may be related to the Cuellar investigation)?

Todd Smith, a consultant to Jeebus Shot Ag Commish Sid Miller, has been indicted for allegedly soliciting bribes for hemp licenses, eight months after being arrested. 

Meet Joy Diaz, who according to polling, is R.F. O'Rourke's top Dem challenger in the gov primary.

Off the Kuff is not impressed by the Secretary of State's claim that supply chain issues are the reason they can't provide enough voter registration forms right now.

SocraticGadfly looked at the on-the-ground activities of the even bigger nutters challenging Strangeabbott along with related items. 

Stace gives us another Week in COVID News.

Russell Gold goes less conservative on energy reporting than his Wall Street Journal and book past would indicate, to say that the grid's failure after Winter Storm Uri was just a warmup. The PUC/ERCOT semi-fake semi-winterization was only one half of what they say they'll require; this spring, for electric generators, they're also supposed to address "summerization." Remember, all those Californians moving here? Most of them did NOT live in desert heat portions of California and none of them lived in East/Central Texas summer humidity levels. They'll be cranking the AC in a severe summer.

Could Dan Crenshaw be primaried out of office? Interesting. If you're getting called out by a 10-year-old junior tea partier, you ain't in the best of shape.

The Kinder Institute finds the new center of Houston's population.

Jason Stanford tells about the reasons behind the current labor issues.

John Coby highlights the rich businessmen who are financing Eva Guzman's campaign for Attorney General

Dear elected county officials: Be careful about putting up campaign signs

Specifically, be careful about WHEN you put them up, as in 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, unless on or around lunchtime.

If not? The burden of proof would be on complainants, but the Texas Ethics Commission has a word for you. Per the burden of proof, you might claim you're taking an early lunch, or on comp time or whatever, but it's probably still not good optics for you yourself to be helping to erect re-election signs, or election to a new office signs, during normal work hours.

Let's just say that it's bad optics. And, if a friendly local newspaper editor sees it, especially in a smaller, very "red" county, someone else surely saw it too and may be wondering the same thing.