Excitement

 Should be in bed -- didn't sleep well last night, early rise today -- but I am not, not surprisingly.  Mass was amusing; I was in the sacristy to see who was the priest, and it was our Polish one... he said that I could whatever I wanted with the ciborium and the hosts, he was just visiting.  I told him that I wasn't sure that was the case, to be laughter of the servers and everyone else.  Then the first reading was about Moses and the Amaleks...the text said that Joshua and his people "mowed them down," which seemed to me a modern -- yet not untrue in the ancient days -- usage of the term.  I took the Precious Blood at Communion, as Fr. A is very traditional.  Then, a couple of people noticed that I left the outer door of the tabernacle open just a bit.  I pointed out that ever since the key broke (in the lock), it is a bit tricky to open.  With the inner door closed I think we are ok; now, at least, someone could get a finger in there...though everyone else will probably close it.

I finally finished Cultural Amnesia today -- 34 for the year -- and while I enjoyed it, it was a bit long, and the essays tended to wander from the source, so...I will not be sad to return it to the library.  The next few are a bit shorter, and maybe I can spend some more time reading them, too...

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/hunter-biden-laptop-investigation.html

Honestly, I don't know what to think.  Ok, I think he is a slimeball and guilty as sin, but... you can easily make the case that the given the chain of evidence and all the people who have seen and handled this thing, something may be off.  It does not absolve the MSM of ignoring the story, but there is enough there to cast doubt (not particularly serious doubt, though) on the whole thing.  Just saying.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/there-s-only-one-group-to-blame-for-how-republicans-flocked-to-trump/ar-AA12Xmhy?cvid=6d733efd77d3413db034b7bc4d63cf88

Interesting, and I think both points are correct.  One, GOPers saw how the press treated them, and acted accordingly.  Now, I suspect Trump acted this was since Day One (except when they fawned over him as a businessman and tabloid fodder), so this was not a leap for him.  But for the GOP electorate -- which has longed for politicians who would fight back for years -- this was a revelation, and they reacted accordingly.  I am not sure it is radicalization but -- as I like to say --  a reaction to something different than the usual Thurston Howell type we trot out every four years.