23 August—Yesterday afternoon, as I was searching for what turned out to be the lone container of half-sour pickles among the plethora of assorted dill pickles at the Torrington Aldi, a faithful reader good-naturedly (I think) took me to task for not having mentioned in the daily disquisition about Donald Trump’s harassment of John Bolton that Trump’s non-weaponized justice department had already started its vengeful harassment of California Senator Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James, neither of whom has ever had anything good to say about him. (Talk about Latinate syntax.)
Peccavi. Mea culpa. Guilty as charged. What else can I say? Unlike Donald Trump, of course, who’s never been guilty of anything but being innocent—as well as perfect. In fact, the latest tchotchke he’s using his coin-operated presidency to market is a red baseball cap embroidered with TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING. What a guy.
But WAS? That’s kind of mild and limiting given Trump’s stupendous ego. Grammatically, it’s all in the tense. So what about TRUMP HAS BEEN RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING? Or TRUMP IS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING? Or TRUMP WILL BE RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING? And don’t forget about ALWAYS to drive the point home. As if there could ever be any doubt. Move over, God.
While it’s easy (as well as psychologically gratifying and morally uplifting—if not particularly didactic, simply because it’s common knowledge) to criticize Donald Trump, he has been indisputably right about at least one important aspect of American democracy and democracy in general: He has asserted more than once, “We need free and fair elections.” Who can find fault or disagree with that? Free and fair elections are the sine qua non of the democratic process, after all. And even the world’s most heinous dictators boast of the free and fair elections that keep them in power.
The only problem with Donald Trump’s assertion, then, is that as far as he’s concerned elections can be free and fair ONLY if he, his flunkies and supporters, and/or the things he favors win. QED . . .
22 August—I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal”; that the president is not above the law; that Donald Trump and his flunkies will fade from power in 2026 and be democratically overthrown in 2028; and that America will once again be the great nation it was before Trump came to power (largely thanks to the unwitting cooperation of the Democrats).
I hope I live to see my dream fulfilled.
Meanwhile, back in reality, we’re forced to endure autocratic, corrupt, mendacious, self-dealing, unstable, vindictive Trump and his enthusiastically corrupt and mendacious self-serving flunkies. [There’s no limit to the negative adjectives that can be applied to Donald Trump and his slimy coterie.]
Just this morning, for instance, Trump’s Gestapo, euphemistically known as the FBI, raided the Bethesda, Maryland, home and Washington, D.C., office of John Bolton, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and Trump’s own national security advisor—until he saw the light and morphed into a staunch, unyielding, brilliantly vocal critic of the scumbag-in-chief.
The trumped up excuse for the unconscionable, purely spiteful raid is that it’s merely part of an ongoing “national security investigation in search of classified records,” according to a Trump lackey. Of course. Evidently a judge—as yet unidentified but predictably a Trump appointee—signed the warrant to authorize the malevolent search.
Remember Trump’s abuse of classified records?
Anyway, this morning, Trump’s scummy lackeys couldn’t wait to defend the indefensible on social media. For instance: Pam Bondi, Trump’s unqualified attorney general, tweeted, “America’s safety isn’t negotiable. Justice will be pursued. Always.”
Kash Patel, Trump’s should-be-disqualified FBI director, tweeted, “NO ONE is above the law. FBI agents on mission.”
Dan Bongino, Trump’s unqualified and should-be-disqualified deputy FBI director, tweeted, “Public corruption will not be tolerated.” Of course he left out, “except from the Lord God Trump (blessed be his name) and his administration, including but not limited to the DOJ and FBI.”
(Apropos nothing, are Trump lackeys still allowed to use Elon Musk’s X?)
And Trump himself, not on X: “I know nothing about it. I just saw it this morning. I tell Pam and I tell the group, ‘I don’t want to know, but you have to do what you have to do. I don’t want to know about it. It’s not necessary.’ I could know about it. I could be the one starting, and I’m actually the chief law enforcement officer. But I feel that it’s better this way.” Plausible ignorance from an ignoramus?
And of course Trump reminds us that John Bolton is “not a smart guy” and that he “could be a very unpatriotic guy. We’re going to find out.”
What Trump’s slimy satraps are doing to John Bolton, have done to others, and will do to any and all on the wrong side of their lord and master is harassment and intimidation pure and simple. That’s how autocrats and dictatorships work.
You wonder, though, why Trump doesn’t just disappear—i.e., murder—people he doesn’t like. If he does it himself and claims it’s in the national interest, his pals on the Supreme Court say he could get away with it . . .
21 August—On this day in 1911, Leonardo da Vinci’s oil-on-poplar portrait of Lisa del Giocondo, known at the time it was painted around 1504 as La Gioconda (a play on Lisa’s surname) and more recently as Mona Lisa (a play on Lisa’s forename) was stolen from the Louvre in Paris, where it had been on display since 1797 (except for a brief stay in Napoleon’s bedroom at the Tuileries Palace).
The thief was Vincenzo Peruggia, an Italian handyman at the Louvre who, after secreting the painting in his Paris apartment for two years, took it back to Italy, where he tried to sell it. For purely patriotic reasons, of course. Long story short, La Gioconda was hung back in the Louvre in 1914 and has remained there except during World War II, when the painting peregrinated around France to keep it out of Nazi clutches.
Not to take anything away from Master Leonardo, to be sure, but Mona Lisa is really an overhyped nothingburger. And the whole so-called fine art scene is absolutely ridiculous. Moreover, the valuation of art—and all collectibles—is positively ludicrous.
🇺🇳 🇺🇳 🇺🇳 🇺🇳 🇺🇳 🇺🇳 🇺🇳
Thirty-nine years to the day after Mona Lisa had been stolen, the monolithic United Nations Secretariat building in New York City officially opened. I was incarcerated in a summer prison camp in Wingdale, New York, at the time, so I couldn’t attend the great event. The site, part of an area on the East River known as Turtle Bay, had contained the original Eberhard Faber pencil factory, slummy apartment buildings (none owned by Fred Trump, surprisingly), gas company offices, and slaughterhouses.
At least the United Nations development got rid of the slaughterhouses.
💲💵💲💵💲💵💲
And an update on Litchfield pay. Here’s the 2025 pay up to 6 August:
| Start Date | 01/01/2025 | ||||
| End Date | 12/31/2025 | ||||
| Employment Profile – Effective Date | Effective as of 08/06/2025 | ||||
| Payroll Name | Gross Pay | B_BCBS_Ded | DB_DEFINED BEN_Ded | DNT_DENTAL_Ded | VIS_Vision Care_Ded |
| Aleksandrowicz, Matthew | $54,694.73 | $3,732.36 | $679.94 | $157.52 | $29.93 |
| Alexe, Razvan | $84,926.73 | $3,927.39 | $0.00 | $179.49 | $31.48 |
| Anderson, Ella | $981.30 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Antonucci, Betsy | $289.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Ardussi, Steve | $126.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Bachetti, Lisa A. | $24,444.05 | $1,528.81 | $244.43 | $40.77 | $7.60 |
| Barhydt, Hilary | $144.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Bayette, Carlissa A | $29,944.82 | $3,207.47 | $0.00 | $118.28 | $18.66 |
| Benedetto, James | $46,134.67 | $3,732.36 | $0.00 | $157.52 | $29.93 |
| Betar, Renee c | $289.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Bierce, Christopher | $8,903.97 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Bigelow, Jill A. | $2,868.11 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Blakely, Linda | $144.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Blasavage, April | $30,189.07 | $3,207.19 | $0.00 | $99.62 | $18.66 |
| Boccio, Naomi | $76,998.21 | $1,518.72 | $768.52 | $53.40 | $10.43 |
| Bodnar, Mitchell scott | $59,999.03 | $3,059.09 | $746.23 | $97.46 | $18.42 |
| Bongiorno, John | $2,254.17 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Brown, Paul E. | $53,409.08 | $3,059.09 | $0.00 | $97.46 | $18.42 |
| Bucklin, Margaret | $148.75 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Bunnell, Helen | $43,678.41 | $3,927.39 | $0.00 | $188.37 | $31.48 |
| Buse, Malcom | $187.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Butwill, Denise | $272.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Butwill, Scott | $560.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Cappello, Michael L | $42,215.01 | $3,218.96 | $0.00 | $102.58 | $18.42 |
| Carey, Joseph Daniel | $51,147.85 | $1,443.31 | $0.00 | $52.69 | $18.42 |
| Carr, Gayle | $126.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Chmielewski, Miroslaw A | $51,397.35 | $3,732.36 | $0.00 | $179.07 | $29.93 |
| Clark, Richard Wily | $13,316.64 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Clouther, Darlene | $276.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Clubb, Soni | $616.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Curtiss, Robert A | $58,927.57 | $3,059.09 | $732.85 | $97.46 | $0.00 |
| Daross, James T | $53,160.43 | $3,059.09 | $660.75 | $115.88 | $18.42 |
| DiLaurenzio, Eric | $43,285.89 | $1,443.31 | $0.00 | $50.79 | $0.00 |
| Dionne, Stacey | $52,342.43 | $3,914.34 | $523.40 | $182.79 | $30.53 |
| Disabella, Tammy | $33,636.10 | $3,913.92 | $0.00 | $161.00 | $30.53 |
| Dobos, Richard B | $3,225.57 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Donoghue, Terrence E | $71,776.36 | $3,218.96 | $0.00 | $102.58 | $18.42 |
| Duncan, James | $9,331.01 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Fuessenich, Cleveland | $126.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Gibb, Paul F | $8,249.57 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Golding, Jane | $3,815.93 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Greco, Rosemarie | $144.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Jewett, Elizebeth | $148.75 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Kaiser, Troy D | $98.40 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Kelsey, Christopher James | $28,000.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Kennedy, Theodore | $57,188.11 | $3,059.09 | $0.00 | $115.88 | $18.42 |
| Kovack, Lynn | $28,159.94 | $3,209.15 | $0.00 | $182.79 | $18.66 |
| Kulinksi, Diane Marie | $144.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Kyasky, Lynette L | $8,806.01 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Kyasky, Tom | $172.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Landau, Alan | $5,357.77 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Legendre Jr, Theodore | $60,312.91 | $3,059.09 | $750.17 | $115.88 | $18.42 |
| Litwin, Suzanne | $3,493.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Losee, Lisa | $45,349.59 | $3,218.96 | $453.54 | $121.93 | $19.29 |
| Martinez, Edwin | $12,163.20 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Martinez, Sandra | $11,110.80 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| McGarr, Linda | $446.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Moore, Joanne | $697.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Morin, Melana | $23,716.14 | $3,913.92 | $0.00 | $161.00 | $30.53 |
| Morosani, Daniel | $2,254.17 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Morse, Jason S | $55,313.17 | $3,590.40 | $687.67 | $165.15 | $27.65 |
| Mudgett, Penny | $5,919.23 | $104.28 | $0.00 | $6.72 | $1.23 |
| Musselman, Spencer Alan | $35,069.60 | $1,518.72 | $0.00 | $55.33 | $10.43 |
| O’Neil, Sean | $46,024.99 | $1,443.31 | $0.00 | $50.79 | $0.00 |
| Obi, Amaechi | $85,164.90 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $188.37 | $31.48 |
| Partridge, Robert W | $2,928.26 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Pratt, Jeffery | $1,139.23 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Putnam, Barbara | $38.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Raap, Denise | $56,074.87 | $3,218.96 | $0.00 | $102.58 | $19.29 |
| Read, Susan | $599.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Rein, Gregory Bradley | $49,524.75 | $3,059.10 | $0.00 | $97.46 | $18.42 |
| Rogers, David T | $48,714.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Rogers, Nancy | $148.75 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Rovezzi, Robert | $1,780.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Russ, Peter C | $26,730.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Ryle, Laura R | $32,770.89 | $3,209.57 | $0.00 | $182.79 | $30.53 |
| Sampson, Justin | $45,653.35 | $1,443.31 | $0.00 | $52.69 | $9.88 |
| Seamans, Brett | $56,514.38 | $1,518.72 | $0.00 | $52.69 | $10.43 |
| Sepples, Angelica | $17,225.59 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Sepples, Leah C | $883.44 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Shuhi, Gary T | $51,167.17 | $1,443.31 | $0.00 | $50.79 | $0.00 |
| Simmons, Erin H | $561.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Southard, Nancy W | $4,722.92 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Stratman, John | $1,170.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Sullivan, Timothy | $53,843.12 | $3,919.56 | $0.00 | $157.52 | $0.00 |
| Tamborra, Anthony V | $39,156.17 | $3,059.09 | $0.00 | $115.88 | $18.42 |
| Tenney, Jodiann | $2,254.17 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Tieman, Fredrick L | $446.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Tiul Cu, Raul | $51,010.81 | $1,443.31 | $0.00 | $52.69 | $9.88 |
| Weiser, Kathy | $374.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Wentworth, Wendy | $148.75 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Wheeler, Emma | $793.05 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Wheeler, Lauren | $30,363.83 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Whipple, Haley F | $30,005.39 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $25.53 | $2.40 |
| White, Barbara | $441.89 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Worthington, John K | $61,153.82 | $3,392.04 | $610.07 | $165.93 | $29.93 |
| Yarrish, Nicole | $44,434.88 | $3,927.39 | $0.00 | $179.07 | $31.48 |
| Zucco, Jason | $38,402.35 | $3,059.09 | $0.00 | $115.88 | $18.42 |
| Zullo, Jeffrey J. | $2,254.17 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Grand Totals | |||||
| Total | $2,287,243.74 | $113,713.58 | $6,857.57 | $4,750.07 | $754.87 |
20 August—Update on the delinquent bicycle or bike: It finally arrived on Monday, six days late and rather the worse for abuse at the hands of American Airlines and its co-conspirators. Considerable damage will result in considerable damages.
The special courier who delivered the bicycle or bike is one of the many employees of a contractor that only delivers so-called late luggage for airlines. It goes without saying—but it must be said anyway (because if it goes without saying, why say it?)—delivering late luggage is a lucrative, thriving business. And, yes, the van contained late luggage from all the airlines that serve Bradley International Airport, not just American.
💩 💩 💩 💩 💩 💩 💩
In other news, Donald Trump says he won’t send troops to Ukraine. That makes perfect sense, given that he’s sending troops to American cities as a show of force—as dictators have a habit of doing—to intimidate the masses who may have misgivings about his Supreme Court-sanctioned corrupt omnipotence and unscrupulous regime.
💲💵💲💵💲💵💲
Back home, here’s everyone on (and recently off) the Town of Litchfield payroll (but not the Region 20 payroll) last year, showing gross pay and deductions for Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurance, defined-benefit pension, dental insurance, and vision insurance:
| Start Date | 01/01/2024 | ||||||
| End Date | 12/31/2024 | ||||||
| Employment Profile – Effective Date | Effective as of 08/06/2025 | ||||||
| Payroll Name | Gross Pay | B_BCBS_Ded | DB_DEFINED BEN_Ded | DNT_DENTAL_Ded | VIS_Vision Care_Ded | ||
| Aleksandrowicz, Matthew | $81,292.55 | $5,832.21 | $1,014.30 | $288.28 | $48.10 | ||
| Alexe, Razvan | $135,684.22 | $6,184.05 | $0.00 | $292.32 | $50.96 | ||
| Anderson, Ella | $2,586.24 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Antonucci, Betsy | $597.06 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Ardussi, Steve | $294.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bachetti, Lisa A. | $57,072.14 | $2,241.71 | $570.84 | $81.26 | $15.86 | ||
| Bailey, Jane | $254.96 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Barbieri, Dana | $1,935.38 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bauer, Elisa | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bayette, Carlissa A | $28,592.52 | $3,136.03 | $0.00 | $117.31 | $19.38 | ||
| Benedetto, James | $66,813.01 | $5,969.68 | $0.00 | $300.17 | $49.34 | ||
| Betar, Renee c | $262.81 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bierce, Christopher | $17,016.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bigelow, Jill A. | $6,771.58 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Blackwell, Laurie | $266.73 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Blakely, Linda | $260.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Blasavage, April | $44,322.52 | $4,776.19 | $0.00 | $152.29 | $29.64 | ||
| Blasi, Kyana | $84.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Boccio, Naomi | $102,860.23 | $2,378.98 | $1,027.15 | $84.00 | $16.90 | ||
| Bodnar, Mitchell scott | $92,278.95 | $4,776.19 | $1,151.60 | $183.49 | $29.64 | ||
| Bongiorno, Dana | $281.37 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bongiorno, John | $3,791.76 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Brown, Paul E. | $74,857.41 | $4,776.19 | $0.00 | $183.49 | $29.64 | ||
| Bucklin, Margaret | $152.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Bunnell, Helen | $84,717.27 | $6,183.89 | $0.00 | $292.32 | $50.96 | ||
| Buse, Malcom | $312.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Butwill, Denise | $1,389.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Butwill, Scott | $1,810.81 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Callahan, Elizabeth | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Campbell, Ajani | $262.81 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Capell, Robert B | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Cappello, Michael L | $66,787.80 | $5,064.89 | $0.00 | $161.24 | $29.64 | ||
| Carey, Joseph Daniel | $75,912.29 | $2,241.71 | $0.00 | $81.26 | $29.64 | ||
| Carr, Gayle | $252.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Carroll, Roxanne | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Chmielewski, Miroslaw A | $74,338.43 | $5,832.21 | $0.00 | $276.09 | $48.10 | ||
| Clark, Richard Wily | $19,360.29 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Clarkin, Susan M | $16.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Clock, Geraldine | $160.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Clouther, Darlene | $1,276.90 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Clubb, Soni | $1,804.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Collins, Daniel | $224.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Combs, Ann D. | $52,197.21 | $2,544.12 | $507.49 | $88.53 | $14.82 | ||
| Corning, Pamela | $216.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Cox, John | $958.37 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Curtiss, Robert A | $86,944.70 | $4,776.19 | $1,084.92 | $183.49 | $0.00 | ||
| Daross, James T | $77,499.53 | $4,776.19 | $966.85 | $178.60 | $29.64 | ||
| DiLaurenzio, Eric | $65,246.95 | $2,241.71 | $0.00 | $87.72 | $0.00 | ||
| Dillon, Margaret | $109.83 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Dionne, Stacey | $76,947.10 | $5,832.21 | $747.70 | $276.09 | $48.10 | ||
| Disabella, Tammy | $48,464.00 | $5,832.21 | $0.00 | $246.13 | $48.10 | ||
| Dobos, Richard B | $6,089.23 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Donoghue, Terrence E | $118,404.82 | $3,729.27 | $0.00 | $123.28 | $22.75 | ||
| Donovan, Patricia | $463.75 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Duncan, James | $15,553.04 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Eldridge, James | $52.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Farrell, Jeanne | $15.69 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Fritch, Debra-Lynn | $133.37 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Fritch, Karl | $626.30 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Fuessenich, Cleveland | $294.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Garden, Kelly | $285.29 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Garney, Kelly | $68.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Gengenbach, Pamela A | $24,336.86 | $3,340.05 | $0.00 | $139.65 | $27.73 | ||
| Gibb, Paul F | $13,595.92 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Golding, Jane | $4,133.17 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Graziani, Beth | $176.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Grosclaude, Robert W | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Hatstat, Douglas | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Hawkins, Brent | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Healy, Stephen | $148.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Hill, James | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Hillman, Lara | $1,413.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Hladik, Marcena | $885.21 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Humphrey, George A | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Hunt, Margaret | $493.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Jespersen, Richard | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Jewett, Elizebeth | $140.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Kaiser, Troy D | $344.40 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Keller, Clare | $236.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Kelsey, Christopher James | $50,715.75 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Kennedy, Theodore | $82,609.52 | $4,776.19 | $0.00 | $178.60 | $29.64 | ||
| Kent Jr, Robert C | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Kovack, Lynn | $40,102.34 | $4,776.19 | $0.00 | $227.73 | $29.64 | ||
| Kulinksi, Diane Marie | $446.81 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Kyasky, Lynette L | $18,466.02 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Kyasky, Tom | $485.99 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Lacko, Nancy J. | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Landau, Alan | $9,012.36 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Landry, Justin | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Lasker, Lauri I | $24.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Legendre Jr, Theodore | $86,887.82 | $4,776.19 | $1,084.24 | $178.60 | $29.64 | ||
| Litwin, Ryan E | $1,230.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Litwin, Suzanne | $3,349.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Losee, Leon | $1,354.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Losee, Lisa | $72,253.48 | $5,064.71 | $722.52 | $189.11 | $31.20 | ||
| Lucas, Devin | $5,708.63 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Mangini, Donald | $76.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Martinez, Edwin | $19,556.01 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Martinez, Sandra | $1,205.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| McGarr, Linda | $535.54 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Miller-Murphy, James | $144.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Miner, Margaret | $145.13 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Monahan, Delia | $92.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Moore, Carol | $1,146.73 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Moore, Joanne | $1,106.23 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Morin, Melana | $31,123.02 | $5,832.21 | $0.00 | $246.13 | $48.12 | ||
| Morosani, Daniel | $3,791.76 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Morse, Jason S | $81,398.80 | $5,832.21 | $1,015.61 | $276.09 | $48.10 | ||
| Musselman, Spencer Alan | $56,197.53 | $2,378.86 | $0.00 | $85.94 | $16.90 | ||
| Nessler, Robert V | $247.12 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| O’Neil, Sean | $69,053.28 | $2,241.71 | $0.00 | $87.72 | $0.00 | ||
| Obi, Amaechi | $135,390.54 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $292.32 | $51.40 | ||
| Partridge, Robert W | $9,168.21 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Pearsall, Robert | $144.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Pearsall, Susan W | $265.68 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Penfield, Meredith | $276.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Piazza, Mathew | $152.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Pratt, Jeffery | $1,827.21 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Putnam, Barbara | $6,100.69 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Raap, Denise | $88,931.18 | $5,064.89 | $0.00 | $161.24 | $31.20 | ||
| Read, Susan | $557.13 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Rein, Gregory Bradley | $74,835.60 | $3,902.83 | $0.00 | $144.97 | $19.38 | ||
| Reinhardt, Thomas | $16.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Rogers, David T | $78,057.57 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Rogers, Nancy | $285.29 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Rollins, Dwight W | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Royer, Ashley | $192.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Russ, Peter C | $21,442.50 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Ryle, Edward F | $388.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Ryle, Laura R | $47,821.17 | $4,776.19 | $0.00 | $242.61 | $41.71 | ||
| Sampson, Justin | $67,808.68 | $2,241.71 | $0.00 | $81.26 | $15.86 | ||
| Sansing, Victoria L | $168.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Saunders, Thomas | $933.12 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Schaefer Ofman, Ursla | $144.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Seamans, Brett | $86,717.87 | $2,378.86 | $0.00 | $82.30 | $16.90 | ||
| Sears, Alex | $144.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Sedlak, Stephen | $4,216.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Sepples, Angelica | $27,779.48 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Sepples, Leah C | $4,212.77 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Sheldon, Richard | $686.89 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Shuhi, Gary T | $73,643.77 | $2,241.71 | $0.00 | $87.72 | $0.00 | ||
| Simmons, Erin H | $770.37 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Simmons, John Bryan | $449.06 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Simmons, Kim W | $433.29 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Simmons, Michael | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Smith, Sally | $175.38 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Southard, Nancy W | $9,270.79 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Sullivan, Timothy | $75,904.52 | $5,832.21 | $0.00 | $288.28 | $0.00 | ||
| Swope, Cynthia | $16.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Tamborra, Anthony V | $60,178.80 | $4,388.03 | $0.00 | $163.76 | $27.52 | ||
| Tenney, Jodiann | $3,791.76 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Terhaar, Karen | $152.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Terhaar, Tom | $156.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Tieman, Fredrick L | $1,333.21 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Tingley, Barbara S | $1,012.31 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Tiul Cu, Raul | $74,274.16 | $175.22 | $0.00 | $6.32 | $1.22 | ||
| Tobin, Dennis | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Tofield, Barbara | $280.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Vicenzi, Jamie | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Walker, Mike | $224.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Weiser, Kathy | $805.25 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Wentworth, Wendy | $1,048.98 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Wheeler, Lauren | $32,818.90 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Whipple, Haley F | $16,560.70 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| White, Barbara | $412.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Wilbur, Kevin J. | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Worthington, John K | $95,966.76 | $6,184.25 | $958.16 | $260.76 | $48.10 | ||
| Yarrish, Nicole | $49,830.00 | $4,061.94 | $0.00 | $178.64 | $33.32 | ||
| Zipoli, Joanne | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Zucco, Jason | $61,479.60 | $4,776.19 | $0.00 | $178.60 | $29.64 | ||
| Zullo, Jeffrey J. | $3,791.76 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | ||
| Grand Totals | |||||||
| Total | $3,505,328.35 | $174,168.18 | $10,851.38 | $7,455.71 | $1,188.43 | ||
19 August—On 2 August 1934, as we wrote earlier this month, “upon the death of German president Paul von Hindenburg at 86, chancellor Adolf Hitler took the opportunity to declare himself supreme leader—autocrat, dictator, tyrant, Führer.” Hitler didn’t waste any time, declaring himself Führer only three hours after Hindenburg had crossed the bar. He didn’t even bother to seek the approval of the Reichsgericht, the Imperial Court—the German supreme court at the time.
But to make it all kosher anyway (probably on the advice of “the best lawyers in the country,” as Donald Trump put it just yesterday—in touting his latest illegal assault on the Constitution), Hitler scheduled a referendum (as opposed to a plebiscite, as it’s sometimes been characterized) for 19 August in order to solidify his autocracy by proposing to merge the offices of president and chancellor and grant all the power to himself. Sound familiar?
This is the question, translated from German: “The office of the national president is united with that of the national chancellor. In consequence, the former powers of the national president pass to the leader and national chancellor, Adolf Hitler. He appoints his deputy. Do you, German man, and you, German woman, approve of the arrangement made in this law?”
(Imagine an American referendum that asked, “Do you, American man, and you, American woman, and you, American non-binary person, approve . . . ?)
Talk about free and fair elections. Hitler’s government employed good old-fashioned intimidation as well as good old-fashioned electoral fraud to secure an impressive 90-percent approval in the referendum. Like for instance: storm troopers and police were prominently stationed at polling places; polling booths were removed from many locations; banners reading “Only traitors enter here” (in German, of course) were hung over some entrances.
And more like for instances: secret ballots were the exception rather than the rule; many ballots were pre-marked with “yes” votes; spoiled ballots were often counted as “yes” votes; many “no” ballots were recorded as “yes.” It wasn’t unusual for some precincts to have recorded more votes cast than there were eligible voters. Sound familiar?
Apropos nothing, the Reichswehr, the German army at the time (until it became the Wehrmacht in 1935), had been required to swear a personal oath of loyalty to Hitler as of Hitler’s momentous Führer declaration on 2 August.
Something else to look forward to with Trump 47 . . .
18 August—The good news today is that my son’s missing-in-action bicycle—er, bike—finally made it to Bradley and is on its way to Litchfield by special courier (doubtless along with lots more of American Airlines “delayed” luggage). Yet American maintains it has no record of the bicycle, even though it passed through the inept airline’s hub in Charlotte, North Carolina, before being routed to Hartford—and it was an American Airlines employee who phoned my son with the good news. And it’s only last Monday that my son got home.
You wonder how American has been able to maintain its position as the world’s largest airline in terms of passengers and daily flights while boasting the lousiest track record of mishandled luggage, ignominiously followed by British Airways, a co-conspirator in the bikenapping. According to data from 2021 to 2024, American has mishandled—lost, damaged, or delayed—the most items per 1,000 checked of any airline.
Artificial intelligence or natural stupidity?
For the record, in 2024 American Airlines CEO Robert Isom’s total compensation—on a base salary of only $1.3 million—was $15,610,843, while the median compensation for employees was $81,744. But in 2023 Isom had been compensated $31,438,162, while employees’ median was only $67,788.
Suffice to say, Delta Airlines CEO and employees have been doing better than American’s in reuneration. And Delta has been doing much better in handling—rather than mishandling—luggage.
In other hot news, then, TODAY’S OBITUARIES in the Hearst Republican-American reads:
LastName, FirstName, age, of thisArea.
LastName, FirstName, age, of thisArea.
LastName, FirstName, age, of thisArea.
LastName, FirstName, age, of thisArea.
LastName, FirstName, age, of thisArea.
OBITUARIES ON PAGE A8
And TODAY’S OBITUARIES on page A8 laments, THERE ARE NO OBITUARIES IN TODAY’S REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN, and goes on to tell lucky survivors and executors how to submit obituaries and in-memoriams. For whatever reason, although the email address for submitting obituaries and in-memoriams is the same, you can submit obituaries but not in-memoriams on Saturday and Sunday but you can phone in in-memoriams during the week, but you can’t phone in obituaries ever.
Obituaries bring excellent revenue to newspapers and the Hearst sales force is doing a stellar job selling them in the Waterbury rag. Since Hearst has been running the show, obits have increased impressively in number, size, and illustration. And one recent decedent has been remembered in quarter-page illustrated notices for a full week.
Hearst’s salespeople are also selling lots of display advertising that probably very few people bother to read. That includes ads for the Readers’ Choice awards, which have been a money-maker for the Waterbury rag since I can’t remember when and should be an embarrassment to all the professionals and other businesses “across more than 80 categories” that buy eighth-page (or bigger) ads begging people to vote them best and/or favorite whatever it may be.
Is it just a bit of fun or do the businesses take it seriously? Would you retain a lawyer who solicits popularity votes from the random populace?
17 August—Last Sunday, my son competed in the London T100 Triathlon semi-suicide race in the city’s recently gentrified Docklands. He flew from Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks to London’s little City Airport on a succession of airplanes cobbled together by American Airlines. That’s because there’s no direct service from BDL (Bradley) to LCY (London City). And the biggest airplane LCY can handle is something like a Piper Twinkie.
One of the airlines cooperating with American for Paul Mordecai Jnr.’s trip was Aer Lingus, Ireland’s fairly recently privatized flag carrier. Due to the sizable hard case his bicycle—make that his bike—with hydraulic brakes and computerized shifter and digitized pedals travels in, it pays P-II to fly business class. And among the perks Aer Lingus and most airlines provide business-class passengers is free booze in minis or shooters—what Connecticut boozers call nips.
(I remember, back in the late 60s, when on at least a few flights between Heathrow and Idlewild [JFK], the stewardesses [flight attendants] on BOAC—since merged with BEA to form equally undistinguished British Airways—dispensed the booze out of fifths because there was an alleged shortage of minis.)
So my son, who like his father eschews booze, nevertheless took a couple of minis—little glass bottles rather than plastic ones American nips come in—of 92-proof Teeling Single Pot Still Whiskey for souvenirs. We’d never heard of Teeling and neither know nor care what single pot stills are.
Anyway, when P-II’s suitcase got to London City Airport a day after he did, he packed the Teeling minis and forgot about them. And last night, when P-II’s suitcase was delivered to Litchfield five days after he arrived, he kindly split the minimal contents of a Teeling mini with his father to celebrate the occasion.
Celebrate? The stuff was bloody awful. Even the less-than-an-ounce each of us experienced tasted terrible and burned our throats. Reminded me of the 80-proof Balvenie single malt whisky in a personalized bottle my first love brought over from Scotland when she and her husband visited 25 years ago. But worse. Much worse. Could it have been the single pot still?
And less than an hour after imbibing the fire water, I felt it. Less than an ounce—on an empty stomach, mind you—yet I felt faint, broke into a sweat, and had to lie down. It wasn’t a good feeling in any way. Happily, the hangover—if it was a hangover—passed in a few minutes. Why do people like that crap?
But my son’s bike is still in transit. He (thanks to his Apple Air Tags) and the airports in London, Dublin, Zurich, Edinburgh, Philadelphia, Chicago, New York, and Windsor Locks know where the delinquent bicycle has been and is. But the flaming assholes at American Airlines have absolutely no idea. More on that as it happens . . .
17 August—Yesterday’s big not-really-news is that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Donald Trump’s unstable, mendacious, monumentally unqualified and distinctly disqualified Secretary of Health and Human Services whose Luddite sociopathic ignorance endangers the health and very lives of the nation and lots of the world, announced that he wasn’t going to run for president in 2028.
Did anybody other than the charlatan nut-case Robert F. Kennedy Jr. himself seriously think the current embarrassment to the Kennedy family would run for president again, after the sick asshole’s half-assed try in 2024? Ever? Now if he’d just get the hell out of Washington and slither into his feculent burrow, we’d all be better off.
Not considered newsworthy yesterday, for whatever reasons, was the fourth anniversary of the shameful and chaotic withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, marking the end of our totally pointless two-decade presence in that abject country and giving absolutely everything—and absolutely everyone unlucky enough not to have been allowed to flee on the insufficiently available aircraft—to the Taliban.
Here’s what I wrote about it at the time. Nothing’s changed:
Orderly and safe withdrawal: What a whopper!
11 September—“Just for the record, we shouldn’t have been in Afghanistan in the first place. That goes back at least four decades, when we sent matériel to the Mujahideen to fight the Soviets and protect the opium trade. And, as an ugly aside, the Taliban are recovering and using the magnificent military matériel we’re abandoning as our troops flee ignominiously. They and the Afghans who have depended on us deserve much better.”
That’s the last paragraph of my 22 August post. When I wrote it, I had no idea of the incredible magnitude of the matériel the United States was abandoning. Having spent—make that wasted—almost 900 billion dollars in Afghanistan since 2001, the geniuses in the Pentagon are leaving behind several billion worth of everything from bottled water, energy drinks, and MREs (meals ready-to-eat) to civilian vehicles to MRAPs (mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles).
Not to mention countless helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, Humvees, firearms and other ordnance, and . . . the catalogue of abandoned matériel is just too sickening to consider.
The Pentagon insists that many of the land and air vehicles and lots of the ordnance has been rendered unusable and that the Taliban don’t have the smarts to repair, operate, or deploy most of their booty anyway. Yeah, right. That’s the same Pentagon that promised an “orderly and safe” departure from Afghanistan. And the Taliban’s evil allies are bound to come to its aid at the drop of a hat.
Even given the antecedent condition of gratuitous American presence in corruption-riddled Afghanistan, did our exit have to be so poorly planned and executed, embarrassing, and dishonorable? And, not even considering that we effectively surrendered valuable matériel to our enemy, couldn’t the Pentagon—and the feckless Trump and Biden administrations—have planned ahead for the “orderly and safe” redeployment of matériel and rescue of human beings?
15 August—Forget about Donald Trump and his dick-tator pal Vladimir Putrid conspiring in Alaska to screw Volodymyr Zelenskyy. And the rest of the world, for all we know. Because the big news today is that it’s the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, celebrated by many Christian sects, including (of course) but not limited to Roman Catholics. For those few readers who need reminding, the Virgin Mary was Jesus Christ’s mother, a.k.a. the immaculate Mother of God. And don’t forget that she was immaculate not because she was a virgin, but because she had been conceived without original sin.
Although the circumstances of Mary’s conception—whether she was free of original sin when conceived apocryphally by St. Joachim and St. Anne—were hotly debated by mediaeval theologians, the Immaculate Conception didn’t in fact become a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church until 1854, when Pope Pius IX declared it thus in his famous bull Ineffabilis Deus (Ineffable God).
On the other hand, the Council of Trent in the mid-16th century had affirmed—albeit non-dogmatically—that Mary was free from personal (as opposed to original) sin. She was a virgin, after all. At least until after Jesus was born. Because, according to Mark and Matthew, for two, after Joshua (Jesus) was born, St. Joseph and St. Mary had four sons (James, Joseph [a.k.a. Joses, rather than Joseph Jr.], Simon, and Judas) as well as unspecified daughters. Not really fair to the girls. But Mary, being married, was legally, technically, and probably theologically free of personal sin for her whole life. So don’t worry.
On the other hand, some Christian traditions believe that Mary remained a virgin and didn’t have any kids after Jesus. Not that the little Jewish prince was a handful, to be sure.
Getting back to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, then, it’s the belief that she was taken body and soul into heavenly glory at the end of her earthly life, as it is said. It’s a Holy Day of Obligation for Catholics. But it was only as recently as 1950 that it became a dogma of faith (as opposed to a dogma of the church, which we won’t go into, so relax) when Pope Pius XII proclaimed in Munificentissimus Deus (Most Bountiful God), “We pronounce, declare and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma that the immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul to heavenly glory.” That was in Latin, of course, in case you’re wondering.
Religions would be so dull without human input . . .
14 August—As reported yesterday in Litchfield.bz, after a mirror of a van clipped a cyclist on Tuesday morning in Litchfield, state police and town firefighters rushed to the scene of the accident and the cyclist was taken to the Charlotte Hungerford Hospital by ambulance. From the photo that accompanied the story, the bicycle—it looks like an e-bike—doesn’t appear to have suffered any damage and it’s likely the cyclist didn’t either.
That brought to mind the 30 December 2021 daily disquisition about my own brush with death by mirror—which, however, although in the middle of busy urban traffic, failed to bring out police, firefighters, an ambulance, or the press.
So here it is. Again. Verbatim:
Ghislaine Maxwell and the heated toilet seat
Ghislaine Maxwell’s conviction yesterday on federal sex trafficking charges reminds me of the time in 1969 when I was knocked off my bike in front of her father’s bookstore and had the opportunity to observe the fabled heated toilet seat of Headington Hill Hall. Well, not her conviction, but Ghislaine herself, whom I never met. And who must have been a child at the time. Like the girls she pimped out to princes, presidents, and other predatory pricks.
Anyway, a few days before our guys made it to the moon—Apollo 11 was already en route—it was sunny and warm in Oxford, so I decided to bike to town from my flat in Cowley, rather than drive in. As I was coming off the roundabout (traffic circle) just before Magdalen Bridge, I was knocked off my bike by the mirror of a Land Rover the driver was lucky enough to be able to start that morning.
There was I, lying under my bike, helpless in the roadway. And who bothered to stop to administer first aid or even to see if I was still alive? Not a goddamn British soul. Except the good woman who was driving the murderous Land Rover. She had pulled over onto the pavement (what we more properly call a sidewalk) on the bridge and ran back to inspect the havoc she had wreaked.
The only other person to evince even a modicum of solicitude was publishing magnate Robert Maxwell, Ghislaine’s father, then also a Labour Member of Parliament, who happened to be visiting his bookstore at Magdalen Bridge. He was getting into his illegally parked Rolls-Royce when he witnessed the vehicular assault. So he got to me just after the assailant.
Maxwell lifted the bike off me and the nervous assailant helped me up while blowing fag (cigarette) smoke in my face. The bike had suffered no damage at all (naturally) and I had only superficial damage. But my mac and trousers (raincoat and pants) were torn and my Omega watch needed a new glass (crystal) and band (watchband).
Now that I was alive and standing, we introduced ourselves. Relieved, the female perp—obviously a member of the upper-class ride-to-hounds county set because she was driving a Land Rover—lit another fag. And, after giving me her registration and driving licence (drivers’ license), she asked me not to report the incident to the rozzers (fuzz), assuring me that her husband would take care of everything.
What the hell, I thought, Robert Maxwell, MP, was a witness, after all, and I had the woman’s information. So she lit another fag and drove off. The dutiful husband did in fact come through the next day. Suffice to say, I made out like a bandit. And, I learned, it wasn’t the first time the poor bugger (guy) had to bail out his careless, inattentive, chain-smoking wife.
So Maxwell walked me and the bike back to his bookshop. And on the way he came out with, “Rosenberg? Rosenberg. Du bist a Yid?” (“Rosenberg? Rosenberg. Thou art a Jew?”) He used the familiar pronoun. And he didn’t even know my middle name. “You wouldn’t know it, but I am, too.” Actually, it was common knowledge, as was just about everything about Robert Maxwell, some good, mostly bad. Naturalised (naturalized) immigrant, war hero, self-made publishing tycoon, opportunist, goniff, show-off. But, as Max Bialystok said in “The Producers,” which I had only recently seen at the Odeon, “When ya got it, flaunt it!” So why not give Maxwell a break—at least for flaunting it? And he was the only bystander who bothered to help me, after all.
So Robert Maxwell, MP, invited me for cocktails at his mansion, Headington Hill Hall, not far from his bookstore and even less far from my flat on Divinity Road. Jesus and wow! Not why you think. Because I don’t ordinarily drop names, you’ll have to take my word that an invitation to a nob’s (big-shot’s) residence wasn’t that big a deal. (I mean, it’s not like he was Richie Blumenthal.)
But the word around the university common rooms was that Headington Hill Hall had a heated toilet seat in one of its loos (cans). This was back in the sixties, mind you, considerably before everybody had them, as we all do today, usually as heated bidet seats.
The rest is—as they say—disappointing. Yes, I certainly made it a point to check out a loo, if only a powder room. (My mother had taught me to always check out bathrooms, one of the few things my wives agreed with when they came along.) And it did contain that certain piece of bathroom furniture. And there was indeed a wire running from the seat of that certain piece of bathroom furniture to a switch on the back wall. Robert Maxwell, MP, neither warned me about nor instructed me how to operate his wired toilet seat, so that’s all I can verify.
Because, being a gentleman, I lifted the seat . . .
13 August—As Donald Trump and his enthusiastic flunkies continue to pervert and subvert the United States to the delight of subversive perverts, relax with a little film from 1927 by Ladislas Starevich.
Trained fleas in flea circuses are nothing compared to the bugs Starevich trained and rehearsed for his fabulous films. This flick is particularly fabulous because it’s based on Aesop’s fable of the grasshopper and the ant, as retold in the 17th century by Jean de la Fontaine. As you’ll see in the titles, Fontaine calls it “La Cigale et la Fourmi,” which actually means “The Cicada and the Ant,” as in Aesop’s original.
Ladislas Starevich was Polish and born Władysław Starewicz in Moscow, but simplified his name when he moved to France, where he died at 82 in 1965.
You know the rather sad story about the grasshopper who hadn’t planned for the future and was turned away by the heartless ant who had, so you won’t need a translation of Fontaine’s elegant French verse.
The marvelous music is a little piece played over and over, titled “Mini Vandals.” It’s by someone called M. Fischer and is Youtube No Copyright Music.
Who would have thought bugs could be trained to act? And would you believe the ants built the sets?
Before you go, here’s Ambrose Bierce’s take on the fable, based on observation and reality:
One day in winter a hungry grasshopper applied to an ant for some of the food which they had stored.
“Why,” said the ant, “did you not store up some food for yourself, instead of singing all the time?”
“So I did,” said the grasshopper. “So I did; but you fellows broke in and carried it all away.”