Vol. 16, No. 26 – Sept 20 – Oct 3, 2023 – As I See It

Unfortunately, River Haven is closing down. This was the perfect solution to help with our city’s homeless problems. Hopefully, other living arrangements can be found for those living there so they will not become Ventura homeless (see article in this issue).

The earth has sweltered through its hottest Northern Hemisphere summer ever, with a record warm August capping a season of brutal and deadly temperatures, according to the World Meteorological Organization. Last month was not only the hottest August scientists ever recorded with modern equipment by far, it was also the second hottest month measured, behind only July 2023.

August was about 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than pre-industrial averages. That is the threshold that the world is trying not to pass, though scientists are more concerned about rises in temperatures over decades, not merely a blip over a month’s time.

The world’s oceans were the hottest ever recorded, 69.8 degrees, and have set high temperature marks for three consecutive months. Call it what you wish (and blame whomever you wish), but how can it be denied that the earth is going though severe climate change.

Former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio was sentenced to 22 years in prison for orchestrating his far-right extremist group’s attack on the U.S. Capitol in a failed bid to stop the transfer of presidential power after Donald Trump lost the 2020 election.

Tarrio’s sentence is the longest so far among more than 1,100 Capitol riot cases, topping the 18-year sentences that Oath Keeper’s founder Stewart Rhodes and one-time Proud Boy’s leader Ethan Nordean received after juries convicted them of seditious conspiracy and other charges.

“We need to make sure the consequences are abundantly clear to anyone who might be unhappy with the results of 2024, 2028, 2032 or any future election for as long as this case is remembered,” prosecutor Conor Mulroe said. “This was a calculated act of terrorism.”

Interesting was the fact that Tarrio wasn’t in Washington, D.C, when Proud Boys members joined thousands of Trump supporters, who smashed windows, beat police officers and poured into the House and Senate chambers. But prosecutors say the 39-year-old Miami resident organized and led the Proud Boys’ assault from afar.

Gets me thinking – who else wasn’t there that was a major contributor to this insurrection?

President Joe Biden is “old” and “confused,” and former President Donald Trump is “corrupt” and “dishonest.” Those are among the top terms Americans use when they’re asked to describe them. Unflattering portraits of Biden and Trump emerge in a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, which asked an open-ended question about what comes to mind when people think of them.

According to the indictment filed in federal court in Delaware by a special counsel overseeing the Hunter Biden case, Biden is accused of lying about his drug use when he bought a firearm in October 2018, a period when he has acknowledged he was struggling with addiction to crack cocaine.

Of course, this law is necessary but not the “federal case” Republicans are making out of it. If we put everyone in prison who lied when purchasing a gun we would need a lot more prisons. And perhaps other Biden transgressions far exceed this particular item.

I think appropriate punishment would be a hefty fine and community service. He could mow the lawn at the White House and dad could bring him lemonade when it gets hot.

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