Thoughts

It's supposed to be 108 deg F here in Salem, Oregon on Sunday. It would be a record for June. I don't have air conditioning -- I read somewhere today that 1/3rd of residences in Portland don't -- and so far have gotten along OK with fans, even when it's been above 90 F for a few days (though it was a bit tough in the late afternoons). But 100+ F is going to be difficult, no doubt about it. My Weatherbug app is calling for 105 F on Saturday and 107 F on Sunday.

Wow, look at this piece of pure fascism:

TALLAHASSEE — In his continued push against the “indoctrination” of students, Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday signed legislation that will require public universities and colleges to survey students, faculty and staff about their beliefs and viewpoints to support “intellectual diversity.”

The survey will discern “the extent to which competing ideas and perspectives are presented” in public universities and colleges, and seeks to find whether students, faculty and staff “feel free to express beliefs and viewpoints on campus and in the classroom,” according to the bill.

Republicans are the most dangerous group in America right now. And DeSantis is considered a leading candidate for the 2024 Republican candidate for president, even, I just read somewhere, polling above Trump.

Hockey: One thing I've noticed is that crowds at the NHL semifinal playoffs have been loudly singing the national anthem, in both the US and Canada. But especially in New York where the Islanders play. (US crowds are much larger than the Canadian crowds, due to greated pandemic restrictions still in Canada.) Somehow I think it's related to the pandemic ending.

Everyone says it, but it's true: there is nothing like playoff hockey. Every second of the game is such a battle. The puck is battled for no matter where it goes -- every movement results in a real fight for possession. I don't know of any other sport where every second of the game is such a battle between players. The intensity is an order of magnitude (in some units) above regular season play. The referees call almost no penalties, so it's often a free-for-all. All the playoff series are best of seven, so there's plenty of time for the development of team and personal animosities. Plenty of bad blood gets developed. Half the players have scraps or stitches on their face, and who knows what other injuries they're playing with. (Yet there are surprisingly few of the classic drop-the-gloves fights.) It's really something else.

After being asked about Critical Race Theory, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley delivers an answer every American should watch.pic.twitter.com/MrJl5oCvsw

— Rantt Media (@RanttMedia) June 23, 2021

I haven't confirmed this:

before you get too excited, Milley was on the calls that stonewalled the National Guard all day, at least 17 times by my count, on January 6th

— Sandi Bachom (@sandibachom) June 23, 2021