What is Intelligence, Anyway?

 

 

Tulsi Gabbard was confirmed for Director of National Intelligence and sworn in and we're just going to see about that, aren't we? 

Does it sound like I have issues with this? Well, yeah. I was a little surprised that Sen. McConnell was the only Republican who voted against her, but it seems that the Senate GOP have decided that they aren't picking these fights with Trump and are just going to let him have what he wants. I do not think they are being honest with themselves about what he wants or what the results will be of giving it to him. 

The position of DNI was created in response to intelligence failures leading up to 9/11. The point of the office was to coordinate our various intelligence agencies and correlate the information into more cohesive overviews. But intelligence is only as useful as the people looking at the products. 

And I simply don't have faith in Tulsi Gabbard's judgment. 

Another One Bites the Dust?

 

Some people might think there's a real problem with Pete Hegseth's SecDef nomination once the whistleblower stories about getting kicked out of vet organizations for being a rape-y, drunken peculator start flying and the word starts trickling that he's always drunk at Fox News and the thing where he's an open Islamophobe and Christian Nationalist and you know, how his own mom deplored his serial adultery and abuse of women. 

I think it's really bad when the Trump transition starts floating "Tater Tot Ron" DeSantis as a possible replacement. 

But you never know. After all, if you want to get out there and show you aren't a problem person, just a hard-drinkin' man's man and a hard-lovin' ladies' man and also, you ARE SO completely competent to do a big boy job, you can always go on the propaganda network you work for and have your mom explain it. 

(Don't laugh. Elon Musk's mom tell folks they are just jealous of her smart boy all the time, and no one picks on him anymore. ) 

Except When It Isn't a Joke

 

Sec. of State Pompeo outright denies the election results: ‘There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration’ pic.twitter.com/ZWlBTxWjkh

— NowThis (@nowthisnews) November 10, 2020

The thing of it is, the joke isn't that he said there would be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration as a joke. The thing is--the joke is on people who want to take it as a joke. Because all the shuffling around at the Pentagon, the planning for next year's budget, the lawsuits and denial coming from the Trump campaign/White House team (apparently, Kayleigh McEnany has been pulled from White House spox to campaign spox the way a hockey team pulls its goalie in the clutch?) continue in defiance of reality could certainly have one fooled.

If the US is supposed to be the champion of democracy, then our free and fair elections are not ever a punch line. While Sec. Pompeo may be unable to see the hypocrisy of lecturing to other nations regarding their process, while deriding our own (which was judged to be perfectly fine by international observers), he is sending a terrible message. When our leadership implies that they will do whatever they like and simply call it "democracy", they give a defense to the enemies of democracy around the world and give the finger to those who see the US as a positive example to follow. 

Had Pompeo simply made a joke at the expense of Trump's continued defiance in the face of his loss, the sarcasm would not be lost on me. But those surrounding Trump have fallen into such a fell lockstep that people need a clear message that this is certainly not normal, not American. We don't need funny people, we need brave ones who tell the damn truth.

But like I have said before--these are evil clowns. Their pranks are meant to hurt.

Climate Tuesday--Fire and Water

Wildfires are raging in the west, with one in Alaska currently about the size of the entire city of Chicago. That isn't necessarily out of line for a wildfire in that area, but it is coming early, as conditions make it dry and warm enough to spark a conflagration sooner--and if that dry and warm pattern endures for a little longer it will make future wildfires for the season likely.   What we know is that wildfires are liable to increase under climate change, as some areas become drier and more drought-prone, but the sad kicker to that is that wildfires themselves contribute to the conditions that spur climate change. Some areas are going to be drier because they will lack the snow pack that once lent much needed-moisture to the otherwise combustible terrain. In any event, we've a situation where fires will happen--and forest management in terms of controlled burns comes with risks.