"Never Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste."

Remember back in April and May when meatpacking plants were hotspots of coronavirus? Do you wonder why they're no longer in the headlines? Do you think it's because the owners reformed how they are run and reopened them safely? Think again. The plants might still be hotbeds of coronavirus. We don't know because governments have allowed the plants to quit reporting statistics of the spread of coronavirus among their workers.

An old political precept is "Never let a good crisis go to waste." The idea is to take advantage of a crisis to advance a political agenda. The Bush administration used the notion to escalate the 9/11 attacks into a war on Iraq, which was not involved in the 9/11 attacks. The saying itself was popularized by Rahm Emmanuel, who saw the financial crash of 2008 as an opportunity to do the things he once thought were impossible. Today's crisis is the coronavirus pandemic. President Trump has proven himself incompetent at combating the pandemic, but that doesn't mean he isn't using the crisis to advance his own political agenda.

POTD: Cairo Alleyway

From 2019 11 18 Old Cairo

Today's photo-of-the-day is of an alleyway in the warren of streets near the Saints Sergius and Bacchus Church (Abu Serga) in Cairo, Egypt.

POTD: Cavern Church

From 2019 11 18 Old Cairo

Today's photo-of-the-day is of the cavern under Saints Sergius and Bacchus Church (Abu Serga) in Cairo, Egypt. It's one of the oldest Coptic churches in Egypt, built in the 4th century and burned and rebuilt and restored constantly ever since. Beneath the church is the so-called cavern church, which legend says is where Joseph, Mary, and the baby Jesus stayed after fleeing King Herod in Judea.

The Notebook (2004)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Notebook (2004): Old-fashioned melodrama, a sad tale of summer romance and missed opportunity. Can love conquer class difference and parental interference? Hits all the right notes. The second tragic tale is of trying to remember youth as Alzheimer's steals your memories. B-

#VeryTardyReview

Mucho Mucho Amor (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes

Mucho Mucho Amor (2020): Documentary of Walter Mercado, a flamboyant TV astrologer/fortune teller/motivational speaker from Puerto Rico. Think Liberace. Or Tiny Tim. If you're a fan, you might love this; if you've never heard of him, you'll be shaking your head in wonder. C+

POTD: Pigeon Towers of Cairo

From 2019 11 18 Old Cairo

Today's photo-of-the-day is from Cairo, Egypt. It shows a pigeon tower. "Perched on rooftops across Cairo, like water tanks on elevated platforms, are rickety wooden cages where Cairenes keep their pigeons." It's a thing. If you're ever in Cairo, look up.

Comet NEOWISE...and Saturn

We went out Saturday night to see Comet NEOWISE. According to Space.com, the comet "is delighting skywatchers around the Northern Hemisphere." I'm here to say, "delighting" is an overstatement. At least if you are in a city. Even on a clear night, in a location with no nearby lights, there's enough ambient light pollution to make it hard to do much star-gazing of any kind. Because the comet was low on the horizon, that ambient light pollution is even more of a problem. From Richardson, Plano is kind of bright. And Comet NEOWISE was hanging low over Plano.

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Rotten Tomatoes

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968): Classic Western. Lots of desolate scenery, haunting music, stoic staring. Plot stripped down to essentials. Product of its times. Macho showdown between Hollywood tough guys, with an Italian femme fatale. Sexist with a touch of racism. B+

#VeryTardyReview

Closed Mic in Richardson

Richardson City Council meetings used to feature a "Visitors" section of the agenda. Members of the public were allowed to address the City Council on any topic. Each visitor was given five minutes at an "open mic." The City Council seems to have used COVID-19 as an excuse to do away with the "open mic" portion of meetings.

POTD: Hanging Church

From 2019 11 18 Old Cairo

Today's photo-of-the-day is from Cairo, Egypt. It's a photo of what's best known as the "Hanging Church" in that it was built above a gatehouse of the much older Babylon Fortress. As near as I can figure out, the Babylon Fortress was built about 100 CE and the Hanging Church about 500 years later. I'm guessing Nile River floods filled in the area in that time and the church was originally built at its era's ground level. Sometime in the last 1,400 years, the fortress was excavated and stairs had to be built to reach the now "hanging" church. If so, it isn't the only such architectural oddity we saw in Egypt.

Bonus photos after the jump.