Louisiana Voice

DR. DONALD

“What is the medical evidence?”

––Question by a CNN reporter to Dr. Anthony Fauci, about the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine in treating the coronavirus.

“Do you know how many times he’s answered that question? Maybe 15.”

—Dr. Donald Trump, interrupting before Dr. Fauci could answer.

“The question is for the doctor. … He’s your medical expert, correct?”

––CNN reporter.

“You don’t have to ask the question,”

—Dr. Donald. [Typical adversarial press conference held to provide “information” about the COVID-19 pandemic that is killing people worldwide. And we still haven’t heard the medical evidence of the drug’s effectiveness.]

“Fire him. He continues to contradict our president and hurting his re-election chances.”

—Sunday tweet in response to headline which said, “Fauci says we are struggling to get the coronavirus under control.” [ignore the message, just shoot the messenger]

“The mouths of their rancid features opened like caverns, and sounds like the wailings of damned souls issued there from.”

—Des Moines Leader Review of the singing Cherry Sisters in 1901, which prompted a libel lawsuit against the newspaper by the indignant sisters, from Dan Abrams’s book Theodore Roosevelt for the Defense.  After watching the sisters perform in his courtroom during the ensuing trial, the judge ruled in favor of the paper. [Apropos of nothing—I just thought we could use a good laugh.]

LouisianaVoice normally holds two fundraisers per year—one in April and the other in October.

We are now in April, but it’s an April none of us has experienced in our lifetime and hopefully, never will again.

Because of the sacrifices being made by all of you, we are forgoing our April request for contributions. We are all feeling the stress of the financial hardships being forced upon us by necessity and any request for funds would be, I believe, a display of greed and arrogance.

I would ask, however, if you do feel you do have expendable income, please help someone in dire need at this trying time. There are those out there who are truly hurting and those federal checks may be months in arriving for them. Donations of food, toiletries, running errands, even mowing an elderly person’s lawn, are all things we can do that would help.

Thank you for your years of loyalty and let’s pull together like never before.

Stay healthy.

Tom Aswell

“it’s supposed to be our stockpile — it’s not supposed to be state stockpiles that they then use,”

—Jared Kushner, protesting the release of ventilators held by FEMA to states hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. [We’re not exactly sure what he meant by “our stockpile.” We apparently have been under the misconception that FEMA exists to help us during crises.]

The FEMA website on Friday morning described the Strategic National Stockpile as “the nation’s largest supply of life-saving pharmaceuticals and medical supplies for use in a public health emergency severe enough to cause local supplies to run out.” The website further said on Friday morning, “When state, local, tribal, and territorial responders request federal assistance to support their response efforts, the stockpile ensures that the right medicines and supplies get to those who need them most during an emergency.”

By noon Friday, the website’s wording had been mysteriously changed to say, “The Strategic National Stockpile’s role is to supplement state and local supplies during public health emergencies. Many states have products stockpiled, as well. The supplies, medicines, and devices for life-saving care contained in the stockpile can be used as a short-term stopgap buffer when the immediate supply of adequate amounts of these materials may not be immediately available.”

“Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views beyond the comprehension of the weak, and that it is doing God’s service when it is violating all His laws.”

—John Quincy Adams

“If we are to have another contest in the near future of our national existence, I predict that the dividing line will not be Mason and Dixon’s, but between patriotism and intelligence on the one side, and superstition, ambition, and ignorance on the other.”

—Ulysses S. Grant 

“We’re not looking to shoot the messenger here.”

–Admiral Michael Gilday, after Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly announced that apt. Brett Crozier, commanding officer of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, was relieved of command after writing a letter pleading with Navy brass to address concerns over the coronavirus outbreak aboard his ship. Modly assured the media that Donald Trump had nothing to do with the decision. [of course not. Why would we think that? So, just who are you trying to shoot, then?].

“I knew it could be horrible, and I knew it could be, maybe, good … I want to give people a feeling of hope.”

–Liar-in-Chief Donald Trump, trying once again to spin his way out of a web of lies spun over a period of weeks in which he denied the severity of the coronavirus pandemic.

“Individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad, but we didn’t know that until the last 24 hours.”

–Idiot Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, in finally issuing a shelter in-place order. [Isn’t Atlanta, Georgia the headquarters for the CDC? This goes far beyond stupidity; it’s arrogance and reckless disregard. It’s malfeasance.]

EDITOR’S NOTE: I am re-posting here, with only minor editing, a comment made yesterday by one of our readers in response to another reader’s criticism of Gov. Andrew Cuomo. I found his thoughts particularly important not because of any defense of Cuomo, but because the reader so accurately pointed out the tactic of Trump supporters, repeated over and over, of deflection and misdirection of all criticism of Trump by pointing to others’ shortcomings and failings, a ploy I consider to be the underlying characteristic of failure.

This will doubtless prompt the usual outcry from the handful of Trump apologists who regularly comment on this site. That is their right as Americans and as long as their comments are not racist or vulgar, they are invited to share their views in accordance with the First Amendment, which I wholeheartedly support.

Here is yesterday’s comment by Keep the Faith:

“Why not distract from the death and destruction Trump has created all on his own? No, let’s attack Gov Cuomo and his family and friends.

“Can you provide the conviction rate of Trump’s previous administration members? Can you fathom those on his transition team who are now serving in prison?  Don’t remember the past 3 years of this presidency? His children’s wealth and how they got it? How Trump inherited his and lost $450 million in 1985? The single highest bankruptcy in this nation?

“Don’t go after Gov Cuomo. There are criminals surrounding Trump’s past and present. The here and now is what’s important – people are dying. Your president declared this COVID-19 a Democratic hoax. Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!

“His leadership in this pandemic is less than stellar. In case you have forgotten, this is the United States of America, the richest, most powerful, most influential country in the WORLD. This is an emergency! This Pandemic which Trump knew back in January and refused to prepare his country saying instead that a miracle will transform the country in 14 days to zero.

“His doing little to nothing in helping the survival of our citizens who are DYING. How unconscionable are you to refer to Gov. Cuomo as whinny, Gov. Lamont of Connecticut, Governor Whitmer of Michigan asking for help, but instead, being accused by Trump of stockpiling? Accusing Doctors and nurses on national TV of selling the much-needed medical equipment out the back door of hospitals – even as they’re putting their lives on the line to help others.

“Those same hospital personnel, overwhelmed, facing possible death, working long hours desperately trying to save those in their care while hooked up to ventilators, dying. Don’t complain about Trump’s politics for a moment. Let’s bring up the impeachment, Pelosi, Schumer, anything but the realization of today, The Pandemic is life or death here and now, not the Trump train to re-election months down the road. A bridge too far to cross, with its crumbling infrastructure which he promised to replace and repair in 2016.

“They are asking for beds, PPE, ventilators to help save their sick and dying citizens, front line responders – Doctors, nurses during this pandemic. While Trump has chosen to ignore them and us and only worry about his re-election campaign? I guess when it finally hits home, when family members or close friends test positive and die, maybe you will begin to FEEL something, but I doubt it.”