Apologies, Eclipses, Etc.

Did you miss me last week?

First, I must apologize: I owed you all a post last Monday and, between being out of town for the eclipse and many other things, Substack slipped my mind (as it almost did today too!)

Eclipse

As many of you know, there was a solar eclipse last Monday, April 8, and I had the privilege of being able to visit a location that experienced totality. The actual eclipse was of course breathtaking, as in the middle of the day, the sky went dark and I could see stars. One of the more unexpected curiosities was the behavior of the birds as the light started to dim: even before it was meaningfully darker out (at least to my eyes), the birds became a bit noisy, appearing almost confused. While many people have probably spilled plenty of further ink (literal or metaphorical) on the experience of the eclipse, I’ll leave my commentary at appreciation of the beauty of creation.

Current Events Commentary

I have been rather delinquent in monitoring current events to be honest, but I have a few ongoing stories to watch:

• The Trump-Stormy Daniels trial: I don’t put much stock in the case, but it’s more lawfare against the former President-cum-presumptive GOP nominee, and notably, he will be obligated on pain of arrest to be personally in court every day of the trial, which could impede his campaigning, though I do wonder if it could backfire and draw attention to the ridiculousness of the case.

• Iran and Israel face off: after Israel bombed an Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, killing some top brass, Iran retaliated by lobbing missiles into Israel, with few injuries on the Israeli side as the Iron Dome did its job. Israel doesn’t appear ready to let this go, US President Biden’s hand-wringing notwithstanding. I’m all for keeping peace here, but I do wonder what the next step is. Keep an eye on this potential Middle Eastern war.

• After the horrific Francis Scott Key Bridge (Baltimore) collapse after a ship hit it, the federal government is opening a criminal investigation. I’m curious to see what kind of corruption/malfeasance is suspected.

Well, this is a short one. Next Monday I will keep up with election predictions and potentially dive deeper into some other topics. Until then!