The Threat Level Is High (from the WH) June 6, 2017June 5, 2017 But first . . . It was 50 years ago, today! (Roughly.) Sergeant Pepper taught the band to play! And I was sitting in the dark in style . . . in my 1967 Acapulco-blue mustang (bought new for $2,411 including tax with my own student earnings) listening full blast on 8-track cassette . . . so let me introduce to you . . . as I listen at the start of every summer and you might, too . . . this account of the album’s importance, from Head Butler. Enjoy. Headed to Paris? Visit the Airshow June 19-25 and don’t miss WheelTug’s booth (Hall 5 – E250). Failing that, there’s a new “pyramid” display on the WT website that shows nicely how time will be saved at the gate. Time is money. The FAA approval process — normally about two years — crawls along. And now back to the reality of our petty, petulant, erratic, constantly lying, boorish, bullying, ignorant CEO (who kept a book of Hitler’s speeches by his bedside). Can this end well? For Putin, maybe. “Trump’s Incompetence Won’t Save Our Democracy:” Masha Gessen for the New York Times . . . A nation that historically prides itself on its sophistication and competence, even mastery, of all things from economy to warfare will naturally have a hard time internalizing the fact that a delusional egomaniac with no demonstrable intellect, talent, or other redeeming quality can bring the entire nation down with his fumbling grasp. Even George W. Bush, seen by many as a President far out of his depth, had the political experience to surround himself (mostly) with competent, if rigidly ideological people with at least a cognizance of basic governmental protocols. Trump’s modus operandi appears to be to obstinately thumb his nose at all of the country’s institutions, with a heedless disregard to history or the consequences of his acts. But that utter lack of interest, that stunning embrace of ignorance, is exactly what Trump tapped into in order to get where he is today. By and large his voting base is made of those who shun complexity and deliberately shut their ears to complicated solutions. These are people for whom ignorance is a warm cocoon against the realities of modern existence. These are the people who want to “build a wall” or “bring back coal.” They embrace the rejection of reason and science that Trump embodies. This simplistic, anti-intellectual attitude, with a dose of media-generated charisma thrown in, is terribly appealing to many millions of Americans. . . . Trump “loves the poorly educated” — as we all should. But he loves them for the wrong reason. Here’s the link to Gessen’s article that the Daily Kos was summarizing above.