U.S. now adding COVID-19 to MS-13 gang members as its principle “export” to Central America

Don Winslow of the Daily Beast reminded us that the MS-13 gang was “Born in the USA”—or more specifically in American prisons as a protection racket against neo-Nazi white supremacist and black prison gangs. Once released into the public, members continued to act like any other American homegrown gang; it is remarkable how such violent street gangs seem to be a part of Anglo-Saxon societies. These gangs did not exist in Central America until the U.S. started “exporting” its own problem there. Central America did have “revolutionary” and anti-government insurgent groups that bankrolled their activities by criminal endeavors, but “street gangs” that preyed on the general population were virtually unknown until the U.S. started deporting deportable gang members to those countries, who of course continued to practice the “trade” they had learned from their white and black American predecessors. 

And now the Trump administration is exporting a new disease to Central American countries—the COVID-19. Countries like Guatemala had few cases of the virus until ICE deportees started arriving on deportation flights. Guatemala’s president and health minister publicly denounced the practice, claiming that at least half of new arrivals were testing positive for the virus. The Boston Globe is now editorializing about the “recklessness” of the Trump administration “exporting” the virus—again sending an American problem to Central America, and again claiming no responsibility for the results. 

Where are these deportees with the COVID-19 coming from? Mainly from among the 32,000 detainees held in ICE prisons, which according to the Miami Herald only 2.2 percent have been tested, despite the fact that at the particularly notorious detention facility in Krome, Florida one Dade County fire/rescue department official admitted anonymously that the virus situation has “been a mess.” Scenes of detainees taken out on stretchers with medical emergencies and even the dying have become more common in the past month, he said. ICE facilities like Krome provide no masks and insufficient hand sanitizers for protection, and are packed far beyond their capacity with a growing number of non-criminal detainees being held on civil immigration violations, and have kept detainees in unsanitary and unsafe close-contact conditions. Of the few detainees that have been tested, two-thirds have tested positive for the virus.

One of those non-criminal detainees was Nelson Valera, who was a former health and safety engineer for General Electric in Venezuela, not some “rapist” or “violent criminal.” He was stuck in a quarantined “pod” after one of the men he was detained with tested positive, but no one was told who that person was to stay away from. He was like many others who could not know if they were infected because they were not tested. But now “I know I have the virus because I got out and got tested, but them? Everyone is sick in there and yet they’ll never know because they don’t have tests.” If the ICE can’t deport them all right away, perhaps there is another way to bring down the undocumented immigrant population? If you listen to people like the thuggish former ICE director Tom Homan, who has written a book defending himself based on far-right anti-immigrant propaganda and deliberately manipulated numbers, they all deserve to “die” anyways. 

Valera noted that more detainees were loaded into quarantined cells after others left to board planes to Guatemala, but they all were forced to return because Guatemala is now refusing to take any more deportees unless they test negative for the virus. The fact is that the ICE has been so lax in attempting to control the spread of the virus that virtually the only people who have been tested in detention are those who show severe enough symptoms to be hospitalized, or those would-be deportees that Guatemala has refused to accept unless the ICE tested them. 

That thug organization, ICE, naturally insists it is “business as usual” for them, and will deport anyone they want, whenever they want. But apparently the Guatemalan government has been insistent that it will not allow aircraft with deportees to land at its airports unless all  the deportees tested negative for the virus. According to the Herald, “as many as 50 Guatemalan detainees have been transferred from Miami International Airport and two Florida detention centers 13 times in the last nine days after their flight kept getting canceled.” This of course is not to say what the ICE has been doing with non-Guatemalan deportees, but as the Globe is pointing out, that the U.S. is deporting anyone who has tested positive because of the breeding-ground conditions of ICE detention centers is beyond unconscionable. 

Meanwhile, the Herald reported that that many non-criminal detainees who the ICE was forced to release by court order have not only tested positive, but have infected their family members.

What is it that Biden’s accuser wants?

I am not afraid to wade into the shark-infested waters of gender politics, so here I go once more. We all remember that while Sen. Al Franken “voluntarily” resigned because of allegations of high school prank-type behavior, Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed for the U.S. Supreme Court despite allegations of sexual misconduct as a college student many years ago, and with the help of all six female Republican senators. Lisa Murkowski voted “present” after having first indicated that she would vote against confirming Kavanaugh, and Susan Collins voted to confirm, claiming that "I do not believe that these charges can fairly prevent Judge Kavanaugh from serving on the court." With allegations of misconduct by Joe Biden by a former staffer named Tara Reade, people would think that Donald Trump and his various right-wing familiars would be in a feeding frenzy over that, but one suspects that Trump “sympathizes” with Biden about that (they are all “liars”) and his fellow Republicans do not want to “remind” people of what Trump is alleged to have gotten away with, and with whose “help.” 

Reade was one of a number of women who stepped forward to claim that Biden had touched them in an overly “friendly” manner which they felt was “inappropriate.”  After it appeared that Biden would become the Democratic nominee, Reade “upgraded” her accusation to unwanted groping of a sexual nature in an incident back in 1993, including “fingering” her in her private area. There are now one or two people coming forward who suddenly remember that Reade mentioned this encounter, as a way of “confirming” that it actually happened. It is interesting to note that as in the cases of Clarence Thomas and Kavanaugh, such accusations arise at curious times, such as when initial attacks (involving, say, abortion) fail to gain traction, the old standby attack of sexual misconduct is brought up to use as a battering ram to knock the walls over. It is also interesting to note that these days such attacks do not seem to carry as much weight as accusations of domestic violence against figures in public office, yet the opposite is true among non-political “celebrities,” like Bill Cosby and the late Jeffrey Epstein. 

Reade and her supporters have expressed their disgust over the mainstream media’s “failure” to broach the subject during interviews with Biden. It is clear why this is so: Reade’s accusations “out of the blue” might seem intended to derail Biden’s nomination, perhaps nursing a long-held grudge and now deciding this was the “right” time to make public her accusation. The “right” time, of course, was when this incident actually occurred, not 27 years later. If it had been made public then, it might (or might not) have affected Biden’s stature among voters, much like Ted Kennedy’s presidential ambitions were never really able to shake the Chappaquiddick incident. But bringing this up now opens Reade’s motives to question. Reade is “outraged” that the media that most wants to see Trump defeated and sees Biden as the best that Democrats have to do that job obviously want nothing to do with her accusations. With Hillary Clinton endorsing Biden, it is even more “imperative” that this whole thing “go away.”

But the question is “What does Reade want?” Does she want Biden to “admit” to what he allegedly did to her, and publicly “apologize”? Does she just want to “shame” him? Does she want him prosecuted? Does she want to destroy his presidential ambitions? Or is she just infected with the “MeToo” bug? Observing Biden's memory lapses, he probably completely forgot about the alleged encounter. It isn’t all that clear why she has brought this all up now—unless, of course, she has an ulterior personal motive. If Biden is forced out as nominee, who would Reade want to see replace him? Bernie Sanders is next in line, but I doubt Reade approves of him because of what he “did” to Hillary.

Let’s step back a moment and consider who it was that made gender “victimization” a major issue during this primary season. Yes, that’s right, the woman who the media genuflects before her every word as if she is God Almighty—Elizabeth Warren. Yes, this fake “progressive” who is more “against” things than “for” things. How do we know she is a fake progressive? Warren not only never criticized Amy “I will not support a progressive nominee” Klobuchar’s positions during the debates and repeatedly ignored their allegedly “wide” ideological differences, but preferred to point out their shared “experience” as (privileged white) women—although Klobuchar herself refrained from using “gendered” language or accusations during her campaign. The media has made much of Warren’s alleged “suitability” as a potential vice president, ignoring the very substantial character and truthfulness debits she would bring to the ticket that could and would be used against her.

I don’t know if Reade thinks that her accusations against Biden might “elevate” a fake gender victim like Warren (you know, the person who got jobs as a “minority hire”) to the top of the ticket. Or maybe she just likes how it “feels” to be a “little person” destroying someone who could be president, and perhaps even warranting a footnote in the history books rather than merely in social media posts. Obviously such accusations did not stop Bill Clinton or Donald Trump from being elected president. Myself, I have made it clear that I think Sanders is best suited to beat Trump, not Biden (or Warren), but the Democratic powers-that-be wanted Biden, and they are going to have to live with that choice.

The Packers drafted WHO in the first round???

It looks like there is something for a diehard Packer fan to talk about at this time after all. Last season, the Packers missed a chance to advance to the Super Bowl because they couldn’t stop the run and Aaron Rodgers didn’t have enough legitimate weapons to throw to. Did they address those problems in this year’s draft? Umm…not according to CBS Sports’ analysis of their draft picks. Let’s see, edge rusher Jonathan Garvin out of Miami rated a “B.” OL Jon Runyan Jr. out of Michigan rated a “B-“ as did safety Vernon Scott out of TCU. Those were the draft picks who were the “projects,” right? Ha, ha, the Packer front office and presumably coach Matt LaFleur got you fooled, don’t they? They were the highest rated players in this class.

The rest of draft saw three players graded “C+,” one a “C-“ and another a “D+” and not a single WR among them. Oh, and there was one more player, in fact the Packers very own number one pick which they traded their first and fourth round pick to move up for—Utah State quarterback Jordan “Who?” Love. His grade? “D,” the lowest graded player for the Packers. Why did they actually trade a middle pick for this guy? What was that you said? He was the “best player” left on the Packers’ wish list? The people over at ESPN are speculating that LaFleur deliberately ignored Rodgers wants and needs (perhaps taking a cue from the way the Patriots cut ties with Tom Brady), and wants this to be his team, not Rodgers’. It is also speculated that after the blowout loss to the 49ers in the NFC championship game in which Jimmy Garoppolo threw only eight passes, it confirmed his belief in the genius of his “system.”    

The problem is that we don’t really know if LaFleur’s “system” will work even if he is allowed to run things in his own fashion. His “mentor,” Rams head coach Sean McVay, seems to have little faith in the ground game; last season, McVay’s offense passed the ball 632 times and ran only 401 times, and finished near the bottom in the NFL in rushing yards.  In 2018, when the Rams went to the Super Bowl, they did a bit better running the ball, but still passed the ball 109 more times than they ran with it. LaFleur’s lone season as an offensive coordinator who actually called plays, with the Titans, was, if anything, proof that you still need a competent quarterback who can make all the throws and not make bonehead decisions.

So, how about this Jordan Love out of Utah State who CBS Sports analysts rated just above an “F”? The Packers draft brain trust can’t be that daft, can it? It appears that Love is “big” and has a “big” arm and who can make “all the throws,” and stands “tall” in the pocket and can elude the rush; so much for his “upside.” On the downside, as one analyst mused, it is simple: Love has the “tools” but not the “tool box.” One can that possibly mean? That his “tools” are all scrambled about where he can’t find them, or when he does it is too late to use them? Jeremy Meek at Fanside says this about Love: "The tape shows some cracks in Love’s game where reading defenses is concerned. In particular, he tends to read which receiver he wants to throw to, and then targets that player no matter what happens post-snap. That has resulted in incompletions and interceptions more often than anyone would like in 2019." Perhaps the Packer front office thinks someone can “mold” him into the next Brett Hundley and DeShone Kizer? 

Good Lord. They can’t be thinking that Love is the next Patrick Mahomes, because a Mahomes-type doesn’t “fit” in LaFleur’s run-first “system.” But wait, the optimist will say; Mahomes was not highly rated in the draft either; in fact Mel Kiper Jr. graded him barely above Love, a “C-.” Most draft experts regarded Mahomes as a “project” and a “reach” at best. Mahomes played in the pass-happy Big-12, and while Texas Tech was at times an offensive juggernaut with Mahomes, thanks to an awful defense the team was hardly a conference power; in fact during the 2015 and 2016 season in which he threw for almost 10,000 yards and 77 touchdowns, Mahomes was 0-8 against ranked opponents, and failed to reach a bowl game despite what was still a statistically spectacular 2016 campaign, in which despite his reputation as a Brett Favre-like “gunslinger,” he could still put the ball where he wanted it to go, with a 4 to 1 touchdown-to-interception ratio. 

On the other hand, during his peak years in 2018 and 2019, Love was 0-4 against ranked teams, including both times against Mountain West rival Boise State. Love apparently gained some notoriety during the 2018 season when Utah State was ranked as high as 14^th in the AP poll, with only a close loss to Michigan State before losing to Boise State. Utah State then won the New Mexico Bowl over North Texas to finish in the top-25. But unlike Mahomes, whose final season was his best statistically, Love finished his college career on a decidedly muddled note, throwing almost as many interceptions as he did touchdowns, and didn’t have a particularly great pass completion percentage. He could still make eye-popping plays because of his arm strength, but also equally jaw-dropping mistakes. 

Many predicted that when Mahomes faced NFL defenses, his “gunslinger” mentality would lead to more mistakes, but that did not happen; he has played as well if not better than he did in college. In just his second season as a starter, the Chiefs are Super Bowl champions. On the other hand, Love made frequent bonehead plays in his final college season despite playing against non-power conference competition. It is thus a highly questionable call for the Packers to pick such a quarterback in the first round unless they “really” thought he was the “quarterback of the future.” Let’s be honest, I don’t think anyone thought that Brett Hundley or DeShone Kizer were going to be anything but back-ups in Green Bay, but this is something different. Rodgers isn’t getting any younger, but let’s take a look back—the reason why a lot of Packer fans were miffed at Rodgers replacing a legend like Brett Favre when the latter came out of “retirement” was because they knew that Rodgers had the “right stuff” to unseat their hero. I know, because I was one of those fans.

I also know something else: Rodgers had reason to be disappointed by his drop in the 2005 draft, because to be frank he was obviously the best quarterback in that draft, and he was certainly better than Love as a college quarterback. But not by a significant margin was Rodgers better than Mahomes was in college, if at all. That is the problem with the "logic" of this draft move.

Please someone save us from Trump before he kills us all

In her op-ed the other day, the Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin asks the question everyone with something between their ears wants to know: Is Donald Trump a “stable genius” as he claims, or is he in reality the “dangerous ignoramus” other people suggest? It is clear that since Trump prefers the advice of such widely respected medical experts as Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham, he feels it is needless for him to be unduly burdened by fake medical experts who make the COVID-19 situation sound worse than it actually is. The New York Times  thus reports that ”Mr. Trump rarely attends the task force meetings that precede (his) briefings, and he typically does not prepare before he steps in front of the cameras. He is often seeing the final version of the day’s main talking points that aides have prepared for him for the first time although aides said he makes tweaks with a Sharpie just before he reads them live.”

Trump has been spending the past few weeks touting his stable genius in managing to keep the number of people infected from the COVID-19 from going from 60,000 on March 25, to only just under one million as of April 25; the number of dead has gone up only 54,000 in a month. Miracle cures touted by Trump have had a remarkable effect on the way people view the breadth of his stable genius, kind of like promoting radium water as an elixir for every variety of malady; according to the Associated Press: “A malaria drug widely touted by President Donald Trump for treating the new coronavirus showed no benefit in a large analysis of its use in U.S. veterans hospitals. There were more deaths among those given hydroxychloroquine versus standard care, researchers reported.” The dead in those Trump-inspired experiments were “GREAT” American patriots giving their lives for the United States of Trump, although to be frank Trump didn’t honor them in that way; in fact he didn’t honor them at all—they were probably just old folks like Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has yet to volunteer to die as he told us he would.  

A truly stable genius like Trump has no need to read, study or even correctly enunciate multi-syllable words or even know their meaning. After hearing that common household chemicals like bleach and rubbing alcohol can be used to kill the virus when applied to surfaces, Trump hit upon the novel idea that such chemicals can also kill the virus inside people’s bodies as well. Who would have thunk it save a “stable genius”? According to Vanity Fair: “Lysol Manufacturer Warns Trump Is a Dangerous Moron,” and "'Under No Circumstance’ Should Disinfectant Be Injected in Body.” But then again perhaps Trump has already tried it (stable genius he is), since some parts of his anatomy (like his brain and heart) seem to have been effected by some form of internal failure for quite a long time. 

So far, 26,000,000 workers are newly unemployed, but not to worry; Trump still has a job, and so does Mike Pence and those chips off the old blockhead, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, so we know that everything is under control.  Meanwhile I admit that this lockdown business might be viewed as an unexpected vacation in the short term, but now things are starting to get pretty dull and boring (what “sunlight” in Washington?). More to the point, this isn’t living, it’s like slow death. But then again, Trump has been slowly killing this country internally and externally since the day he took office. And while foreign capitals may be laughing at the village idiot in the White House in private, somehow the “jokes” Trump has been pulling on this country haven’t been all that funny for some time now for the people who actually have to live here--especially when some of them die because of it.