The Hatch Act had a really chilling influence on my job hunt right after
I graduated from college. At the time I was heavily involved in politics
and then I realized something that I had not thought much about until
that time. The large majority of jobs available to a new holder of a
bachelor's degree in biology was in state government.
___
George H. Smith “It is my firm conviction that man has nothing to gain,
emotionally or otherwise, by adhering to a falsehood, regardless of how
comfortable or sacred that falsehood may appear. Anyone who claims, on
the one hand, that he is concerned with human welfare, and who demands,
on the other hand, that man must suspend or renounce the use of his
reason, is contradicting himself. There can be no knowledge of what is
good for man apart from knowledge of reality and human nature, and there
is no manner in which this knowledge can be acquired except through
reason. To advocate irrationality is to advocate that which is
destructive to human life.” ― George H. Smith, Atheism: The Case Against God
On 1/26/2021 1:56 PM, Carl Jarvis wrote:
It's hot air such as this that keeps me from listening to the long
winded speeches about how wonderful we are, and how much better we're
going to make the world.
In my years at the department of services for the blind, the Hatch Act
laid out the penalties for openly supporting candidates. I could not
openly support anyone running for office, even if they were unopposed.
The husband of a staff person was running for state legislature. She
put a sign on her office door. She came close to losing her job,
which would have been sad, because no one who knew the creep would
vote for him, no matter how much we liked our co-worker.
I never bothered to look up the regulation because it didn't matter to
me. Putting up signs or button holing co-workers always seemed to be
a waste of effort.
Carl Jarvis
On 1/26/21, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
7. Qualified and knowledgeable nominees have been selected for senior spots
?
10. We are now tough on Russian human rights abuses And this is good? Who
the hell are we to be tough on another country's human rights abuses?
11. We get normal readouts of sane conversations between the president and
foreign leaders - Like our government has always been, and will now again be
honest about what goes on between our leaders and those of other countries
13. Manners are in, bullying is out, at least on the surface
14. You feel calmer after hearing the presiden. Not really
18. The president is able to articulate policy details, coherently even .
Well, it depends on whether or not he's had a good day and aken his meds
28. It is the Republicans not the Democrats who are in disarray . Not
exactly. There's this cowed left wing of the Democratic party plus a bunch
of people who will probably ditch it.
30. No Soviet-style fawning over the president by his subordinates Perhaps
not. But there's a whole lot of denial about how the unpopular nominee ended
up as the candidate and about his record in politics and his mental
capacities.
34. Real cable news outlets get high ratings, others not so much What the
hell does that mean? The "real cable news networks" are propaganda outlets
for the Democratic establishment.
36. Voice of America is back in the hands of actual journalists True, but
it's still a propaganda outlet of the US. It was never an objective news
source.
39. Instead of running it like a business, the new administration will try
running government competently Which means that it will be run for the
benefit of corporations
45. We have a churchgoing president “who has spent a lifetime steeped in
Christian rituals and practices. ” This is suppossed to be a good thing? I'm
supposed to be comforted by the fact that this country requires that its
President be a practicing Christian?
48. The White House takes the Hatch Act seriously I can't remember exactly
what that is, but I have a strong feeling that it isn't a good thing.
t
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Tuesday, January 26, 2021 10:54 AM
To: blind-democracy <blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [blind-democracy] 50 things that are better already
Whether we all agree on the following list, one thing is for certain.
There is a sense of direction coming down from the top. Our job now is to
put in the effort to direct the new energy in the directions that will do
the Working Class, and the nation, the most good.
Carl Jarvis
Opinion by
Jennifer Rubin
Columnist
Jan. 25, 2021 at 4:45 a.m. PST
President Biden has not completed his first week in office, but already
there is much to celebrate. Let’s count the ways:
1. You can ignore Twitter
2. The White House briefing room is not an Orwellian nightmare of lies
3. We are now confronting white domestic terrorism
4. We are not paying for golf trips
5. There are no presidential relatives in government
6. The tenor of hearings is sober and serious
7. Qualified and knowledgeable nominees have been selected for senior spots
8. We have a first lady who engages with the public
9. We have not heard a word from presidential children
10. We are now tough on Russian human rights abuses
11. We get normal readouts of sane conversations between the president and
foreign leaders
12. The White House philosophy is to underpromise and overdeliver, not the
other way around
13. Manners are in, bullying is out
14. You feel calmer after hearing the president
15. Fact-checkers are not overworked
16. Quality entertainers want to perform for the White House
17. We have seen the president’s tax records
18. The president is able to articulate policy details, coherently even
19. The worst the press can come up with is the president’s watch
20. We have a White House staff that looks like America
21. We have a national covid-19 plan
22. Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Anthony S. Fauci is liberated, sounds happy and even looks younger
23. Fauci, not the president, briefs on the science of covid-19 and efficacy
of vaccines
24. Masks and social distancing in the White House
25. The White House has policy initiatives and proposals, not merely leaving
it all to Congress
26. The administration is committed to releasing information, not covering
it up, on the slaughter of journalist Jamal Khashoggi
27. The Muslim ban is gone
28. It is the Republicans not the Democrats who are in disarray
29. The national security adviser has not been fired for lying to the FBI
30. No Soviet-style fawning over the president by his subordinates
31. The president takes daily, in-person intelligence briefings
32. The president does not care about Air Force One colors
33. We have a president familiar with the Constitution
34. Real cable news outlets get high ratings, others not so much
35. President Andrew Jackson is out of the Oval Office, Benjamin Franklin is
in
36. Voice of America is back in the hands of actual journalists
37. We get memes about Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), not crowd size
38. We are back in the Paris climate accord and the World Health
Organization
39. Instead of running it like a business, the new administration will try
running government competently
40. We have a president who doesn’t think military service is for “suckers”
and who doesn’t send his “love” to people assaulting law enforcement
41. The secretary of treasury nominee has her own Hamilton lyrics
42. Amanda Gorman is a household name
43. More than two-thirds of Americans approve of the White House
covid-19 approach.
44. No more work-free “executive time” in the presidential living quarters
45. We have a churchgoing president “who has spent a lifetime steeped in
Christian rituals and practices.”
46. We have first dogs
47. The vice president’s spouse does not teach at a school that bars LGBTQ
students
48. The White House takes the Hatch Act seriously
49. The administration wants...
*Oops! Sorry to have cut off the last two.
