Author: coastcontact

I am a somewhat cranky but mostly optimistic 65 plus who refuses to give up on this maddening world. The purpose of this BLOG is to express my feelings, thoughts.

The Supreme Court of the United States continues to Dismantle American Law

The justices agreed with lawyers for West Virginia, saying Congress did not give environmental regulators broad authority to reshape the system for producing electric power by switching from coal to natural gas, wind turbines and solar energy.

“Today, the court strips the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the power Congress gave it to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time,” Kagan wrote.

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court took away the president’s administration authority to implement regulations under the Clean Air Act to reduce carbon emissions at power plants. The majority opinion was delivered by Chief Justice John Roberts.

“Today, the court strips the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the power Congress gave it to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time,” Kagan wrote. “The Court appoints itself—instead of Congress or the expert agency—the decisionmaker on climate policy. I cannot think of many things more frightening. Respectfully, I dissent,” Kagan concluded.

I am no environmentalist but if agencies created by congress are not allowed to do the job assigned to then our administrative system becomes dysfunctional. What is next on their agenda? Could it be the Voting Rights Act or same sex marriage?  Since Black Clarence Thomas is married to a White woman. Loving v. Virginia, 388 U.S. 1 (1967) is not likely to be overturned.

The Mamas & The Papas – California Dreamin’

In honor of another 100° plus day in the San Fernando Valley I have written new words to “California Dreamin'”

—

All the tree leaves are brown

And the grass is dead watering lawns is limited

The sky is blue on a hot summer’s day

I tried to take a walk but it wasn’t safe sidewalk is too hot

It would be so nice on Cape Cod Bay

Massachusetts dreamin’

On such a summer’s day

Stopped into an orchard

I passed along the way

The owner said

All the plants are dead and I’m going away

I am going north far far away

Massachusetts dreamin’

On such a summer’s day

Divided America

Based on news reports thousands and maybe millions of Americans believe the 2020 election was fraudulent.

The disparate responses from the governors of the two most populous states in the nation highlighted the stark political divide in America, deepened by radically different approaches to healthcare, gun control, the COVID-19 pandemic, LGBTQ rights, immigration and now, once again, reproductive rights.

California Governor Gavin Newsom, Governor Kate Brown of Oregon, and Governor Jay Inslee of Washington joined together in announcing a multistate commitment to defend access to reproductive health services and contraceptives.

Bill Maher’s monologue on Friday’s episode of “Real Time.” joked that “It’s gonna be a fun America that we’re going to live in, isn’t it?” and eventually lamented that “we are going to be living in two very different Americas.”

On Saturday June 18 thousands of Texas Republicans approved a new platform at the 2022 party convention in Houston calling on the state legislature to authorize a referendum on secession from the United States. There are 275 planks in the platform and among the planks it defines homosexuality as “an abnormal lifestyle,” marriage as only between “one biological man and one biological woman,” and supports eliminating sex education from schools altogether. On the political side, it calls for abolishing the direct election of U.S. Senators, nullifying Supreme Court decisions, ending birthright citizenship, repealing the Voting Rights Act, and holding an Article V convention to rewrite the U.S. Constitution.  I am not making this up. The convention decisions were reported in The Week magazine.

Perhaps it is time for the United States to split apart. The Calexit plan started in 2015 calls for succession of California. The South, those that tried to succeed in 1861, calling themselves the Confederate States of America never really surrendered. The Confederate flag is still in prominent use.

Abraham Lincoln speech June 16, 1858: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” He was correct but his solution has not brought peace to the people of those southern states.

I believe is it is time we all went our separate ways. 

Supreme Court’s Confusing Contradictions

Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. may not be the chief justice of the Supreme Court but he is clearly the leader of the majority conservative members of that court.

In a matter of just one day the Supreme Court has voted against human rights and for gun lovers. The Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade. Then rules the rights of gun owners to carry a loaded weapon in public is legal in all states. They ruled that the 2nd Amendment right to “bear arms” overrides laws in New York and California that restrict who may legally take guns when they leave home.

The inconsistency of these rulings is mind twisting. Abortion rights should be determined by the individual states BUT New York and California gun laws cannot be enforced.

Juneteenth Day

Juneteenth, also called Freedom Day or Emancipation Day, commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. June 19, 1865 — more than two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been implemented, America’s remaining enslaved men, women, and children are freed.

Originating in Galveston, Texas in 1866, it has been celebrated annually on June 19 throughout the United States as an official federal holiday since 2021, when President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act.

Carnivals and parties in celebration are all over the country. US post offices will be closed and mail will not be delivered from the USPS on Monday, June 20. Because the federal bank reserve will be observing Juneteenth on Monday most banks will be closed including Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JP Morgan. However, TD Bank will be closed Sunday, as is their normal schedule, and will be open Monday.

A Phony Effort to Control Guns in America

Senators felt the necessity to show they care about the never ending mass shootings. So a bipartisan group of senators said Sunday that it has an agreement in principle on gun control legislation, though the lawmakers did not provide specific and detailed legislation.

The group said its plan “increases needed mental health resources, improves school safety and support for students, and helps ensure dangerous criminals and those who are adjudicated as mentally ill can’t purchase weapons.”

The agreement doesn’t include a provision that would expand background checks for all firearm sales or transfers in the country. Currently, background checks are not required for gun sales and transfers by unlicensed and private sellers. Also left out is a federal ban on military-style assault weapons. Additionally, the agreement doesn’t include a change to the age at which a person needs to be to purchase an assault-style weapon.

This absurd effort to prevent mass shootings does nothing to control the guns now in the public’s hands. Today, one of out of every five firearms purchased in this country is an AR-style rifle, according to a NSSF (National Shooting Sports Foundation) estimate. Americans now own an estimated 15 million of those weapons.

We love our guns more than we love our family and friends.

Brace yourselves, spicy-food lovers

Is there no end to the shortages? First it was toilet paper, then computer chips and now this.

Brace yourselves, spicy-food lovers: The world is now facing a sriracha shortage.

Huy Fong Foods Inc., the maker of one of the nation’s most beloved condiments, has been forced to suspend production of its iconic spicy sauces due to a shortage of chili peppers.

The Irwindale company confirmed Wednesday that a shortage of peppers in its inventory had affected production of Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce, Chili Garlic and Sambal Oelek.

What appears to be a letter from the company to buyers of the products, dated April of this year, recently came to light online.

“Currently, due to weather conditions affecting the quality of chili peppers, we now face a more severe shortage of chili,” the letter reads. “Unfortunately, this is out of our control and without this essential ingredient we are unable to produce any of our products.”

Chili-heads didn’t take the news lightly on social media, with some lamenting the “worst news of the year” and the “end of days.” Others said they were planning to bulk-buy Huy Fong’s sauces in case shelves ran empty.

Laws Cannot Protect us from the Mentally Ill

Nicholas Roske, 26, A Simi Valley native who studied philosophy at Cal State Northridge now stands charged with plotting to kill a Supreme Court justice.  He surrendered to Montgomery County, Maryland police officers outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. 

Roske had a black tactical vest, pepper spray, duct tape, a knife, a hammer, a screwdriver, a crowbar, more zip ties, and a Glock 17 pistol with ammunition.

He told police he had planned to kill Kavanaugh and then commit suicide.

Nicholas Roske Was Upset About the Leak of the Roe v. Wade Draft Opinion & Believed That Kavanaugh Would Side With Decisions That ‘Would Loosen Gun Control Laws,’ Authorities Say.

Simi Valley Police Department Cmdr. Ritchie Lew told the New York Post that Roske had no prior record with the police in his hometown but for what the paper called “a minor traffic infraction in 2015.”

Would raising the age limit to buy a gun from 18 to 21 have any impact on Roske’s plan? Obviously the answer is NO.

This is an example of situations that no law could stop a deranged individual.

California voters send a stark message to Democrats

Liberal progressive Democrats have been in control of San Francisco and Los Angeles for at least a decade and during that time homeless has grown, crime has risen, and the poor cannot find affordable housing. Most people have become alarmed in both of those cities.

Everyone elected is sympathetic but talk about those issues has not resulted in any changes.  The public is fed-up with the lack of progress.

The consequence is obvious.  Rick Caruso is leading in the primary for Los Angeles mayor.  The recall San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin is a symptom of public frustration. There is a project to recall Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon because he too is conducting his office in a manner similar to Boudin.  The leading candidate for State Controller is Lanhee Chen, a Republican.

The public wants action not words.  The message has been sent.