Florida Gets Slammed

Also there is a hurricane.

Ian makes land on Florida’s Gulf coast on the way North. September 28, 2022.

Just a dis to DeSantis. But well deserved as his behavior is pretty arrogant these days. Sending people on a one way vay-cay to Martha’s Vineyard is a rotten prank and we will find out just how many laws were broken by him, and buddy Abbott of Texas. Criminal, poor judgment, a bad sense of humor are all on a sliding scale on the same line that’s awful behavior for anyone but done in the name of the government tarnishes all United States government.

Handling a hurricane of this magnitude will be a real test of the Governor doing his job as well as the current President. Biden has already given the ok for funding the emergency at the federal level and FEMA has begun the process of being present. Ian, is currently a category 4 storm and bearing down on Fort Meyers. Winds are 155 with high storm surge. The storm is expected to traverse the peninsula as it travels north and then along the Atlantic coast to Georgia. Lots and lots of rain is expected as we expect bigger storms generally with more damage as a result of climate change.

So far so good in a bad situation. Now, what if the GOP had their way, things might go differently. Let’s say the Democratic Party loses the house and the senate in 22 or add on losing the presidency in 2024. Par-tay of MAGA would like to see the responsibility for each state to return to the states, a weakened Fed is the plan. A pac of governors so to speak. I would bet FEMA would be suffering losses of their ability to help. All that federal oversight because of cut federal funds. Pfffft. All that money that is put into the feds by places like, oh, New York and California, all those sanctuary cities all put money in a big fund by paying taxes and then are distributed to places who, I dunno, have a disaster like a hurricane.

Will DeSantis disregard the federal help or refuse it? Nah. Continue to bite the hands that feed Florida when the storm surge recedes? Watch for it. Set your watch by it.

Mostly, what is really difficult to understand about the republican mindset is that climate change denial along with attempted murder of democracy make no sense. It’s a mix that is bad for all.

January 6th Hearings have been postponed because of the storm. A move that is exactly right in placing human life over political strife in moment that is both true and metaphor. What if we become so overwhelmed with climate events that there is little more to do than save lives and clean up? We will need strong help from neighboring states. We need a strong plan to live with the changes and perhaps a plan to slowing them down. New ideas, new tech will be there with education of our future scientists. Men and women both. One more immediate problem to weigh as we move closer to Tuesday, November 8, 2022, election day in just under six weeks.

All our domestic worries would be better if MAGA were gone. You and I both know it. Internationally, it may even be more critical. The MAGA movement and all its folk who stoke the fires and rattle the crazies are funded mostly by foreign “dark money”. It’s not France. It’s not Mexico. It’s Russia and it’s China. The push towards authoritarian control is often through churches who, oddly don’t pay taxes.

As we open our eyes and push the managed news cycles aside, push away Fox, (funded by Murdoch, not American!) and CNN becoming a “both sides” station, ask yourself if going along with the authoritarian rule is right for us or not. Should we join in the worlds realignment of power? That’s the deal. Look around. The infighting is to make you passionate about gay rights or something else like Sponge Bob, while putting Medicare and Social Security on a vote every five years to see if it will continue. It’s not the individual programs or people that need protecting it is democracy itself.

Don’t be fooled that MAGA will do anything but limit rights, withhold money from your state, shut down or severely cripple the services we have come to rely on. Remember the gutting of the US Post Office when 45 installed DeJoy who trashed equipment in an effort to subvert enough mail in ballots as to affect the 2020 election. That’s how it’s done. Install a stooge and destroy. Slowly or quickly, it won’t matter when voting is irrelevant. Don’t forget any of it.

Through the Jan6 Committee we are learning so much about the coup and how it was engineered and by whom. It’s not the end but the first hurdle to maintaining the democracy and the integrity of our system. Getting rid of Donny, long overdue but he’s not the root of what we are facing. Keep looking, keep tuned in and vote on November 8. It’s a Tuesday.