Pittsburgh

Last weekend Karen and I visited Pittsburgh to see my beloved Cubs tangle with the Pirates.  I was curious to learn about Pittsburgh and see the city, but my real motivation was to see PNC Park, a stadium I'd seen countless times on television.  The ballpark didn't disappoint at all; it was everything I thought it would be, and more.  But Pittsburgh itself was a revelation.  It was such a pleasant surprise that Karen and I are making plans to visit again next year in the fall.

First, getting into Pittsburgh is a bit of a task.  Had Theseus been sent into Pittsburgh to slay the Minotaur, Ariadne wouldn't have had enough thread to help him navigate the labyrinth.  Pittsburgh, to twist Churchill's phrase, is a puzzle inside a maze inside that labyrinth.  Part of this determination comes from the fact that Pittsburgh has over 470 bridges -- not including foot bridges and railway bridges, as we were told on our boat tour.  It's little wonder that the some national or international bridge association has its yearly meeting in this city year after year.

That slight annoyance aside -- and it must be slight only for visitors, because the denizens seem to be able to navigate well and safely enough -- Pittsburgh is truly an enjoyable city.  Nestled at the confluence of the Monongahela, Allegheny and Ohio Rivers, Pittsburgh actually has three layers, as it were.  The middle layer is what Karen and I referred to as Downtown, with the northern and southern layers are more residential in nature.

The architecture in the downtown area is, in a word, exquisite.  I'd forgotten that Pittsburgh was once the epicenter of the steel and glass industry.  The Andrews, Andrew Carnegie and Andrew Mellon, and others made piles of money out the piles of coal and iron ore in them thar hills.  Driving through various neighborhoods -- aimlessly it would seem, as we knew not where we were going, only where we wanted to go -- we came upon magnificent houses that showed the wealth of a by-gone era.  Sadly, there were dilapidated houses in other parts of the city as well.  But Pittsburgh, at one time, knew wealth.

The downtown architecture was a blend of the old and the new, tastefully.  Its narrow streets reminded me of New York City and Karen of Boston, so it had an almost neighborly feel to it, unlike the broad avenues of Chicago or perhaps Los Angeles.  Pittsburgh, thankfully, lacked the noise of either of those metropolises and the neverending scaffolding of New York City.  It has a small town charm in a big-ish city, something that the larger urban areas fail miserably when they attempt to do it.

The separation of the city into three distinct strata makes for some confusion for visitors, with north shore being one of them simply because, depending on how one views the city, there are at least four different interpretations.  Getting lost in a tunnel is frustrating, simply because the tunnel leads one to another section of town that isn't visible from one side of it, therefore making a return trip more questionable.

The sights!  O' the sights!.  Seeing Pittsburgh from atop Mt. Washington, or from the Gateway Cruise ship, is something to behold.  The city has a charm and a character that is unique unto itself.  Some cities, such as Los Angeles, are boring to look at.  Others, like New York City, are perhaps interesting.  Perhaps out of parochial pride, others, like Chicago, are beautiful beyond compare.  Pittsburgh is closer to the last category, what with its unique topography and its skyline.

There are things in Pittsburgh that matter more to the locals than appealed to us.  We were told that Prantl's Bakery was great.  It's a bakery.  Getting to it was more trouble than it was worth.  The boat tour of the three rivers wasn't nearly as good as it could be, although it was a nice cruise.  Still, these are trifling complaints. 

I wonder what Pittsburgh is like in the winter, what with the steep climbs up and the sheer drops down the hillsides on the rivers.  It's probably quite the jewel in the middle of winter. 

Karen and I plan to go back next year during the fall to see the colors.  We usually go up north every year, but next year we'd like to spend more time in southwestern Pennsylvania and do a little exploring.  Pittsburgh will be our hub.  It turned out that Pittsburgh was a pleasant surprise. 

It would have been nice if the Cubs had won the game.  But even that couldn't detract from our visit.  The fireworks display after the game was the best that Karen and I had ever seen.  It was a fitting end to a wonderful trip.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles

The Politicization of Funerals

With the recent deaths of Aretha Franklin and John McCain, there were two funerals last week.  There should have only been one, given that Ms. Franklin died on August 16 and wasn't buried until August 31.  At least they buried McCain within a week of his death; the people in charge of Ms. Franklin's funeral decided she needed a victory lap that culminated in a six or seven hour funeral with three wardrobe changes and two casket changes. 

Yet, there was one sinful similarity between the two funerals:  The use of the occasion to vilify the President of the United States. 

McCain and the President had their differences.  I'm unaware of any between Ms. Franklin and President Trump.  That there were bitter feelings between the two politicians is understandable, even if they were from the same party.  McCain did little to support his president and tried to detract from his administration every chance he could.  Ms. Franklin, although she sang at President Obama's inauguration, wasn't particularly vocal or involved in opposing the President.  She may well have disagreed with him, but she wasn't an activist in the mold of Michael Moore or Ashley Judd.

Still, both funerals were used by the decedents' followers to attack the President and his policies.  The most vocal of McCain's supporters was his daughter Meghan, who is known for her appearance on the liberal chatfest The View.  Ms. McCain is known for her brash and confrontational style on the show, often clashing with Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar.  At her father's funeral, she chastised the President in thinly veiled criticism, claiming that in her father's world, America was always great.  Nevermind that President Trump's slogan was directed at the devestations brought about by President Obama's policies, Ms. McCain saw fit to take a swipe at the President during what was a very painful time for her and her family.  President Trump had nothing whatsoever to do with her father's death; he wasn't a member of his family, nor did he have any involvement with her mother.  Still, Ms. McCain sought to politicize the eulogy of her father for no apparent reason other than spite.  Of the two funerals, this was the more surprising, given the source.

At Ms. Franklin's funeral, on the other hand, the politicization was readily apparent, with the Four Horsemen of the Political Apocalypse -- Louis Farrakhan, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and Bill Clinton -- were on the dais ready to deliver what were to be eulogies.  I didn't watch this funeral -- I don't even spend half that much time on sporting events these days, much less funerals -- so I don't know what any of them said, only that Reverend Al  reached out to punch President Trump in the nose. 

Is a funeral an appropriate place to engage in politics? As an Irishman, I am well aware that at the funerals of murdered Republicans, the IRA would rail about the invaders, but these situations don't involve foreign invaders murdering innocent civilians.  It's partisan politics at its most raw.  People on the Left are upset because their doyenne didn't cut it and they dislike the policies of the man who beat her.  I understand it, even if I don't agree with it.  But to subordinate the memory of a civilian beneath partisan politics with no war going on -- no matter what the putative Resistance claims -- is disrespectful, untoward and simply wrong.  Perhaps McCain is grinning about it, but I wonder if Ms. Franklin enjoys being used as a political pawn.

The more the Left engages in stunts like this, the more it alienates the populace.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles

Cultural Rambings Redux, II

Here are some more things I neglected to include in Cultural Ramblings Redux:

--  While driving to work the other day I heard a British voice pitching a new and improved toothbrush.  At first, I thought it was another of the annoyingly frequent Brit pitchmen hawking products in America.  But as I listened I realized that this person was claiming to be the inventor of the Quip toothbrush, which he touted as being better than what was already on the market.  Then it hit me:  What parallel universe caused a Brit to invent a toothbrush?

--  We see all the signs about looking out for motorcycles.  Frankly, I worry about motorcyclists when I'm driving, fearful not that I'll hit them so much as I won't see them or they'll fall in front of me and I'll run them over.  Lately, I've been on our interstates where the speed limit is 70 mph and I'm doing about 80 mph -- don't judge me -- and a motorcycle, usually a crotch-rocket, will zoom past me as if I'm standing still and be a quarter mile ahead of me within twenty seconds.  I've also had motorcycles weave in and out of lanes from behind me without little warning.  I'm very concerned about the safety of all motorists, and not just motorcyclists.

--  Can't wait for the new television season to begin.  I mean, there are about four or five shows that I anxiously await, but they're just old favorites.  I haven't seen any promos for new shows and doubt I'd be enticed anyway.

--  Why doesn't the News change its generic name to the Opinion?

--  I'm so tired of pick-up trucks.  I'm sure they have a purpose, but on the expressways they're dangerous nine times out of ten. 

--  I miss dirty rice.  Long story.

-- I don't understand women news anchors.  They want to be taken seriously as journalists, yet more and more their pasts pop up showing that they posed scantily clad for this magazine spread or that.  It's not as if being attractive physically and intelligent are mutually exclusive, but if the goal all along was to be on the news, why degrade oneself by posing for men's magazines where the last thing on anyone's mind is the news?

--  I still don't understand why, if the United States is comprised of fifty states, when a fast food joint like Wendy's has a promotion, the promotion is not good in Alaska or Hawaii.  When those two states joined the Union, was there something special in their admission that forbade promotions from being extended beyond the Lower Forty-Eight to those new states?

--  The mid-term elections are this year.  O' goody, more political ads.

--  Custer and Mosby had an epic fight the other night.  Custer is getting old, quickly, and Mosby is feeling his oats.  Breaking up a bulldog fight is no picnic.  Having to break up two fights is unpleasant.

--  I can't wait for fall.  Summer hasn't been too horrible this year, but I just like fall over summer.  From what I'm reading, though, winter could be brutal.

--  I can't recall when it took as long to bury someone as it's taking to bury Aretha Franklin. 

--  Karen watches Wicked Tuna.  I used to pay more attention.  What got to me was how these supposedly impromptu interviews with the captains and crew were so obviously scripted. 

--  Mountain Men, on the other hand.  Where was this show when I was young enough to have done something like this?

-- I enjoy writing with fountain pens, but I have to learn how to do so more cleanly.

--  We eat at both Moe's and Qdoba.  I like chips and queso.  I prefer Moe's chips and Qdoba's queso.  Figures.

--  No matter how hip it may be, I cannot and will not read books on Kindle or any other electronic device.  That's not snobbishness on my part; I have trouble reading anything beyond an email online.  I much prefer hardbound books over paperbacks.  That's snobbishness.

--   Attorney advertising leaves me cold.  It's the nature of the beast, but professionally, I despise it. Personally, some of the ads are hilarious.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles

Hyperbole Leftist Style

Since President Trump's election, the Left has been in a tizzy.  Everything he says or does is wrong, somehow, no matter how good it is for the country.  Certainly, there is room for honest disagreement, but the Left thinks that everything the POTUS does is wrong, hence their disagreements are borne in honesty.  Accordingly, because they claim the moral imperative, and because they're the only people, in their minds, who not only bear the responsibility but also the burden of defending the honor, integrity and existence of the country, whatever means necessary to oppose the President and his policies is fair, whether it be violence, distraction, delay...or rhetoric.

A couple of weeks ago, President Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court.  This would be the second Justice to be replaced by the President.  In the run-up to the 2016 election, the SCOTUS was one of a number of hot-button issues, what with the ages of the present Justices well-known.  Karen was excited more than anything at the prospect that Donald Trump would be choosing future SCOTUS justices.  She had good reason to be excited.

Neil Gorsuch is a judge of exceptional ability.  He's not partisan by any means.  He's low-keyed and well educated.  His nomination should not have been the fight that it was.  Still, the Democrats mounted such a delaying action that Republicsns chose the nuclear option and changed the rules requiring a two-thirds majority, or sixty votes, to a simple majority, or fifty-one votes, to approve a nominee.  Justice Gorsuch was approved via this method.

Now nominee Brett Kavanaugh is making his rounds in Congress, meeting the senators and submitting his materials for their review.  It's an arduous process; why anyone would want to go through this is beyond me.  To have that level of public scrutiny over all aspects of my professional and personal life just isn't worth it to me.  Yet Judge Kavanaugh as agreed to be the nominee, and now he's paying the price.

Last week Senator Corey Booker said this about Judge Kavanaugh:

There is so much at stake here; this has nothing to do with politics. This is to do about who we are as moral beings. And so I wanna call on everybody. I’m not here to tell folk just what they should know, I’m here to call on folk to understand that in a moral moment, there is no neutral. In a moral moment, there is no bystanders. You are either complicit in evil, you are either contributing to wrong, or you are fighting against it.

There’s a saying from Abraham, the face in one of the Psalms, “yay though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death…” We are walking through the valley of the shadow of death. But that doesn’t say, though I sit in the valley of the shadow of death. It doesn’t say that I’m watching on the sidelines of the valley of the shadow of death. I’m walking through the valley of the shadow of death, I’m taking agency. I’m going to make it through this crisis.

And so I’m calling on everyone right now who understands what’s at stake, who understands who Kavanaugh is, Maya Angelou says it, when someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.

He has shown us who he is when he rules on a woman’s right to control her own body. He has shown us who he is in his perceptions that corporations are more powerful and more important than people. He has shown us who he is on the abilty for workers to organize. He has shown us who he is on civil rights and voting rights. So the question isn’t who he is, the question is who we are. In a moral moment, will we do nothing?

To put it mildly, this is crazy.

In the first place, when he's confirmed as a Justice, Judge Kavanaugh will be one of nine votes.  He will be the most junior Justice on the Court.  He may have a vote, but the way the Court works means that he will vote first every time a vote is taken, until another Justice is appointed.  So he's not even a swing vote; he starts the voting.

Second, his record belies everything Booker alleged.  If the senator had taken the time to read through the 900,000 pages of materials that had been submitted -- which he obviously didn't, even if he's related to Evelyn Wood -- he'd see that the judge is nowhere near the evil being Booker alleges.

But that would detract from the message:  Conservatives evil, liberals good.  To use phrases such as complicit in evil ranks right up there with Michael Moore's likening of Trump supporters as enablers of rape.  It's highly irresponsible and dangerous.

The Leftists are beating a drum about Roe v. Wade being overturned, even though there is no case on the docket for the next term involving abortion.  They seem to be confusing the legislative with the judicial branches which is understandable given the fact the Left favors activist judges who interpret the Constitution to fit their whims.

But it's the rhetoric at issue here.  Complicit with evil?  Seriously?  That's tantamount to likening the man to Hitler, and nothing in his record suggests such behavior.

This rhetoric, when combined with the violence of the antifa that the leading Leftist politicians refuse to condemn publicly, will lose the election for them.  It's absurd, it's wrong and people with functioning grey matter will turn away the longer these statements are made.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles

Cultural Ramblings Redux

I've been mulling over some of the less important features of life recently, and since I don't have the time to launch into the tirade I'd planned, here goes:

--  I'm not a huge Nickelback fan by any means -- I can't even spell it right half the time -- but what's behind this inside joke everyone seems to throw around bashing the group?  Did they do something heinous about which I'm unaware?  Is there music routinely panned?

-- The retirement of Flo from the Progessive ads is long overdue.  Other companies have ridden the horses they put before the public for long periods of time, and others -- hello, Snapple -- have retired their spokespeople way too early.  Flo was cute at first but she's turned into someone who is the only person who finds herself funny.  The bits she does to pitch the insurance programs seem more like platforms to pitch Flo, with Progressive there only incidentally.  If she's trying to showcase her talents for a greater gig, it ain't working.

--  Is SNL relevant any more?

--  Growing up, The Gong Show was hilarious to our teenaged minds.  Chuck Barris portrayed the somewhat aloof emcee, and the Unknown Comic even made it to our honors Spanish class one day, bringing out teacher to tears when she walked into the room to find a class full of students wearing paper bags over their heads.  The reincaration with Mike Myers is a lame effort that exists simply to give Mr. Myers an excuse to effect a British accent and act goofy, since the Austin Powers franchise seems to be kaput, and to allow three erstwhile celebrities the chance to prove how hip and urbane they are as judges.

--  A sign that the apocalypse may be upon us:  Dr. Pimple Popper.  I bet her med school classmates are so envious of her now...

--  Autumn is fast approaching and so is the new TV season.  God help us.

--  Karen told me about an offer from our cable provider to get HBO and Cinemax for $15 per month for a year.  Years ago I might have jumped at it.  Now, I'm ambivalent about it at best.

--  If one is a male celebrity these days, isn't he frantically running through his memory bank to see whom he may have sexually assaulted or even acted rudely to in a suggestive manner?  It seems that not a week goes by without yet another charge of unacceptable behavior surfaces.

-- Speaking of watching one's back, what in the world would possess a guy to date Taylor Swift?  Wasn't Alanis Morrissette enough of a warning?  Taylor Swift has made a cottage industry out of revenge songs against exes.

--  And speaking of Taylor Swift, I'm glad to read that she and former bestie Katy Perry have patched up their differences.  That I even know this is attributable to the gossip magazines Karen keeps in the bathroom, which can be considered a link to the importance of that story.

--  I detest the term bestie.

--  Although it's sports related, this is humorous in a cultural aspect:  So I decided to see my Cubs when they're in town and chose not to attend the game that was a Harley-Davidson night because I don't like dodging cycles as they weave in and out of traffic, typically from behind me in my blind spot.  So I chose the next night and bought my tickets.  The hometown team just announced a couple of weeks ago that the game for which I bought tickets was now going to be Gay Pride Night.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles

Whining Democrat Style

In the law there's an adage about argument. When one has the law on her side, she is to argue the laws.  When she has the facts on her side, she is to argue the facts.  When she has neither the law nor the facts on her side, she is to yell louder than her opponent.

That is what the Left is doing these days.

Surprised by the stunningly bad campaign run by the doyenne of the Democratic party and the unexpected win by Donald Trump in the 2016 elections and unable to admit that it was as much their fault for losing as it was President Trump's tactics that brought him to win, the Left has engaged, since the election, in a strategy that is devoid of substance but chock-full of distraction and empty rhetoric.

According to the Left, the POTUS and his followers are nothing but sexist, racist homophobes bent on keeping poor people in chains.  Did they learn nothing from the backlash that was had when Cankles referred to us as Deplorables?  While this language may stir their base, the Left is hardly convincing many independents to go over to their side.

Riots, violence and protests involving very graphic and vulgar rhetoric are staples of their campaign.  Lately, however, they've turned to public shaming of Trump administration employees, claiming that they are complicit with the policies with which they disagree.  From not allowing them to eat at public restaurants in peace to asking them to leave said restaurants to throwing eggs at Trump supporters -- and worse -- these actions evoke pre-war Nazi Germany which, ironically, is how they themselves are describing the Trump administration and his supporters.

Talk about projection.

Even congressmen are getting in the act.  Maxine Waters, stooping to new lows even for elected officials, is calling on people to harass Trump administration in public.  This amounts to a call for mob action, since these employees are entitled to private lives even when they're out in public.  Legally, should anything happen to these peoples, the statements Ms. Waters is making may be actionable.  The trouble with that is twofold:  Litigation would give these cretins a platform and may also expose the plaintiffs to judges appointed by Clinton and Obama; all bets are off if that happens.

Since his election, there have been calls by the famous and the not-so-famous to assassinate President Trump.  Kathy Griffin infamously sacrificed her career to pander to her audience by standing with a mock-up of the President's severed head.  Peter Fonda just took it on the chin publicly when, in support of the removal of detention centers and the end of family separation, he called for Barron Trump to spend a night in a detention center away from his parents but with pedophiles and other criminals.  Thinking himself immune to criticism and safe from reprisal, he learned the hard way that conservatives are fed up:  His personal information was quickly spread over the internet, with every address, every phone number, every piece of contact information made public.  He also undercut the very argument in favor of open borders -- that the people streaming over our borders are just innocent refugees looking for a better life -- by implying that there are pedophiles and criminals in the detention centers. 

Actions have consequences.  Conservatives have had this preached to them for nearly a year and a half now.  Much like a tracer bullet, which shows not only where the shot is going but whence it came, their actions, no matter how well-intentioned they believe them to be, are bringing them unwanted consequences.  Their tactics are eerily reminiscent of the Brownshirts of pre-war Germany.  Roughing up opponents, heckling speakers, preventing opponents' rallies -- these things were done by the Nazis.  There has even been at least one attempted murder by a deranged liberal. 

During the Obama era, when plenty of things were suspected to have been done wrong, the conservatives kvetched but largely kept the protests civil.  Not so the liberals.  Overreacting as only liberals can, egged on by the coastal elites that are comprised of many in the entertainment industry with platforms far more substantial than the average citizen, these people act as if they're repelling barbarians and ousting them from the castle walls.  Civil discourse does not involve such conduct as the liberals engage in.  Their whining has become not only annoying, but dangerous.

I hope and pray that when the liberals resume power in however many years that may be, the country rights the ship and returns to the era when only the words were rough.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles

Year of the SCOTUS

All right, vacation's over.  In truth, it wasn't a vacation but a combination of being overly busy at work, out of town on the weekends and without a computer for the last so many months.  But I have a couple of days whereby I can write, and so I will.

In the last couple of the days, the Supreme Court of the United States -- otherwise known as the SCOTUS -- has delivered opinions in 5-4 decisions upholding the travel ban put in place by President Trump, striking a decision that required a Christian family planning center to inform clients about abortion as an option and striking down the requirement that state employees must pay certain union dues even if they don't belong to the union.  In each case, the conservative position was upheld by the Court.  Personally and professionally, I saw each outcome before it happened, meaning that I thought that would be the proper result.  That each outcome was what it was is both shocking and refreshing.

Many on the Left are complaining that the SCOTUS is bought and paid for by conservatives.  Oddly, when decisions went their way during the Obama Administration, there was no equivalent gnashing of teeth and rending of garments.  Chris Matthews, whose career is best defined as political gadfly, was apoplectic at the first two results.  Here's hoping the Janus decision on union dues pushed him over the edge.

What's as surprising as well as troubling is the dissent in the travel ban case reads as if it's out of the Left's playbook.  Invoking Korematsu, the execrable 1940's decision allowing the internment of Japanese-Americans on the basis of national security, Justice Sotomayor railed at the anti-Muslim bias of the travel ban, invoking then-candidate Trump's comments about Islamic terrorism.  Nevermind that the ban, on its face, was neutral in that regard and, as any lawyer would point out, the first level of inquiry of any statute is the plain-language of the statute. 

The hysteria on the Left is entertaining, because it's equivalent to a child whining when it doesn't get its way.  To be sure, disappointment and sadness are to be expected, but the Left's rhetoric -- which in recent days has reached historic lows, a topic for another upcoming post -- smacks of hysteria.

That hysteria is about to go into overdrive.  Today, on the heels of the trio of SCOTUS decisions, Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement.  Assuming the POTUS's nominee is approved by the Senate, which necessarily will happen because the Democrats misplayed the Gorsuch nomination forcing the Republicans to invoke the nuclear option, conservatives will have a 6 to 3 majority in the SCOTUS.  That majority will increase sometime in the next two years, in all likelihood, because Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg is older than Justice Kennedy and has been rumored to be in ill health.

Of course, nothing is written in stone.  Anyone with any sense of history about the SCOTUS will recall Dwight Eisenhower's ill-fated appointment of Earl Warren as Chief Justice in 1953.  Justice Warren led what many believe was one of the most liberal and activist Courts in its history.  Many conservatives have complained that Chief Justice Roberts suffers from the same malady, not being nearly as conservative as they expected him to be when he was appointed.  Ideally, this means that the nominee is independent in thought and action and not doing the President's bidding.  Time will only tell, but for now it doesn't look good for the Left.

I think the SCOTUS reached the right decisions on these three cases.  I don't have a vested interest in any of the outcomes beyond that of any American citizen.  As an attorney I think the right result obtained.

It will be interesting to see how the rest of the Year of the SCOTUS plays out.

(c) 2018 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles