The morning news smacked me in the face with the “highly unusual agreement” of between Donald Trump, an aggrieved person, against the IRS, now in Trump’s “unitary executive” control. I was speechless.

Thank goodness there are cartoons.

What if the Furies came for America? What does the karma of an entire nation look like in anthropomorphic form?

If Trump is ushering us toward some sort of critical defining moment, perhaps even an apocalypse as so many seem to believe, it’s worth remembering that the definition of an apocalypse is a revealing of previously hidden truths. If we look at President Trump through a symbolic lens, what previously hidden truths are being revealed about America? What does his particular character tell us about our collective character?

Trump, in his crude way, is forcing us to confront the false stories we have told ourselves about who we are.

W. Aaron Vandiver, Trump and the Furies of Empire (Front Porch Republic)

This hit me harder, again and again, than anything I’ve read in a long while on the political state of the world. It’s chock-full of quotable stuff, but the quote above could be an epigraph.

I began saying almost a decade ago that “Trump v. Clinton has God’s judgment written all over it.” I wasn’t wrong, but if you prefer “furies” or “Karma incarnate,” well you do you. If you think these days are our nadir, remember that Trump is more the eventuality than the cause of our flaws.

Stumbled Upon this sly dig from almost ten years ago

About some things, I have no FOMO: “Rededicate 250” Held on National Mall Yesterday.

In The Hollywood Reporter, Daniel Fienberg surveyed television shows inspired by a classic William Golding novel: “It’s easy to recognize that ‘The White Lotus’ has always been ‘Lord of the Flies,’ with turndown service.” (Via Frank Bruni)

Never watched it, but that sounds spot-on from the reviews.

I kept hearing that Joan Didion was a great writer, so I read The Year of Magical Thinking. I enjoyed it and found myself putting on the shoes of one deprived suddenly of a lifemate.

Now I am given to understand that it is one of her worst things. Any opinions on her “best”?

I did not recall that (the late) Claudine Longet shot her boyfriend. I remember her as the ne plus ultra of breathy-sexy crooning.

Frederica Matthewes-Green has a few things to say about contemporary narratives casting shade on Orthodoxy. I agree with her completely, but I’m perversely gratified that we’re no longer ignored by lazy religion critics.

Forget about the other six, says Pride.
They’re only using you.
Admittedly, Lust is a looker,
but you can do better.

And why do they keep bringing us to this cheesy dive?
The food’s so bad that even Gluttony
can’t finish his meal.

Notice how Avarice
keeps refilling his glass
whenever he thinks we’re not looking,
while Envy eyes your plate.

Hell, we’re not even done, and Anger
is already arguing about the bill.
I’m the only one who
ever leaves a decent tip.

Let them all go, the losers!
It’s a relief to see Sloth’s
fat ass go out the door.
But stick around. I have a story

that not everyone appreciates—
about the special satisfaction
of staying on board as the last
grubby lifeboat pushes away.

(Dana Gioia)

NPR’s All Things Considered suggested that what used to be known as American liberal democracy is now American competitive authoritarianism. It seems to fit.

I’m filled with dread that it takes two or more to compete, so we may not get back to liberal democracy any time soon.

I never thought I’d use Claude Code, but I decided to spiffy up my microblog style with what youse guyz call a CSS. And (duh!) that means that Claude coded with my guidance. I’ll go back for tweaks soon.

TIL the term dummymander. I also learned that, by analysts' consensus, the Republicans probably have not gerrymandered themselves into a dummymander: such low-margin congressional districts that they’ll actually lose more seats as a result of gerrymandering in a wave election this Fall.

Don Lemon is teasing a 2028 presidential run, betting that Americans, having elected one TV host, simply aren’t done.

The Morning Dispatch

We. Are. Doomed.

Interesting story. Indiana doesn’t register voters by party. It seems lots of Ds crossed over to R ballots to vote for an incumbent R who MAGA was trying to punish for helping block the mid-decade gerrymander. Now MAGA is demanding registration by party. If they pass it, I may be disenfranchised.

Please let me have
a 10-room house adjacent to campus;
6 bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths, formal
dining room, frplace, family room,
screened porch, 2-car garage.
Well maintained.
And let it pass
through the eye of a needle.

(Marilyn Nelson, in Christian Poetry in America Since 1940: An Anthology)

Playing Idagio’s Ravel at 150 playlist, 59 tracks, 5+ hours. Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2, Lever du jour made me think they’d slipped in Debussy, La Mer.

Karl Rove, in the Wall Street Journal, accurately captures what life has been like in those Hoosier media markets where Trump targeted State Senators who voted for Hoosiers, for “Indiana First”, over “America First” obsequiousness to Trump’s demand for a mid-decade gerrymander.

Note to self: You don’t have to have an opinion on everything, let alone a strong opinion.

(Prompted by the impending canonization of Seraphim Rose by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.)

Sadly, Team MAGA did too well in defeating Hoosier GOP Senators who opposed the mid-decade gerrymander. But the signature race, in the State Senate race in a district to my immediate west, stands at Incumbent +3 votes, with both sides declaring victory and some provisional ballots up in the air.

Suspended reading War and Peace at about ~21% simply because my enjoyment was disproportionately low compared to the time commitment. 📚 I think I’ll stop inflicting classics on myself just because they’re classics. I am, quite literally, too old for that.

I’ve been retired long enough that I can’t keep up with the accumulated enshitification of Microsoft Word. I just made Pages my default app for .doc

Ohio and Indiana have primary elections today. Driving to the polling place, I saw my guy’s sign in one of the contested elections:

[CANDIDATE NAME]
America First

In this State Senator race, “Indiana First” would have worked for me, but not dubious dog whistles.

I switched my intended vote.

After reading his posting today, I think it’s time to endorse Damon Linker’s Notes from the Middleground Substack.

He’s totally negative about Trump, short-term bullish on Democrats, but long-term bearish on Democrats because they’re invincibly ignorant about some of the things they need to change.

We need stories – sometimes subtle, gentle things – that restore in us a sense of goodness. Not just jagged bitterness frothing at the mouth or bonkers political hijacking of deep religious themes. (Marin Shaw)

If you are unfamiliar with the terrific Mars Hill Audio Journal, here’s a link to many free samples, including (on page 2) @ayjay on Original Sin.

I’ve subscribed since frightfully close to the beginning of it. Unlike First Things under R.R. Reno, it hasn’t gone stale or MAGA.