It has been abysmally hot this year in the Southwest and Gulf Coast regions of the Nation.
Phoenix endured 30 straight days of 110-plus degree temperatures (the “dry” heat) and Florida has experienced numerous miserable 110 degree “heat index” days, which are those days where the high temp plus high humidity makes outdoor activities “a living Hell”.
I’ve never understood the fascination with Florida. It is, essentially, a reclaimed swamp (with no land in the State exceeding 100’ above sea level), the heat and humidity absolutely brutalize the human body, there are lots of nasty things in the environment (alligators, poisonous snakes, mosquitoes, ticks, chiggers, etc,), and the State is annually besieged by tropical storms and hurricanes. Home insurance, if you can get any, is EXHORBITANTLY expensive.
The Winter temperatures are mild in Florida, probably the State’s saving grace along with the miles and miles of white sand beaches. We have a similar situation in our home State (Nevada) minus the beachfront property, where “snowbirds” come to avoid crappy weather in the North. We, too, have some miserable months in the Summer (July and August are the worst), but, as the saying goes, “it’s a dry heat”. On the positive side, our city of Mesquite has no tropical weather dangers, no gators, no insects to speak of, and no annoying New York/New Jersey tourists with nasally voices.
No Governor (“I want to be President!) Tom DeSantis, either, for God’s sake. What an imbecile!
Speaking of imbeciles and heat, ex-Prez Donald Trump (yeah, the “Stolen Election” Guy) is going through the criminal justice system meatgrinder lately for his role in a number of tawdry escapades like publicly defaming individuals (which he continues to do each day), the unauthorized possession of Top Secret documents, his role in inciting the January 6th Capitol Riot, trying to reverse the results of the 2020 Presidential election, and attempting to extort the Governor of Georgia to miraculously “find” enough new votes for Trump to reverse Joe Biden’s election victory in that State.
All of this is inconvenient for Trump, who is simultaneously trying to run for President again, even though he doesn’t believe in elections (he thinks they are all “rigged”).
The ex-President has suggested publicly that all of his problems with the justice system are “witch hunts” incited by Democrats who just want to hobble his 2024 Presidential campaign. (Truth be told, Democratic Party officials are probably praying that Trump wins the G.O.P. nomination, as he has lost the past two Presidential popular votes by 3 million and 7 million votes, respectively.)
Trump also claims that all of the grand juries, prosecutors, judges, and witnesses involved in his cases (many are Republicans who once worked with him) are “stupid”, “corrupt”, and are “out to get him”. He claims that he is being prosecuted/unfairly persecuted for being Donald J. Trump.
And he is absolutely correct on that score, because all of his legal problems are self-induced.
Donald Trump has considered himself “above the law” for most of his life, has gotten progressively bolder with his disdain for laws that attempt to regulate his criminal behavior, and has used an army of attorneys to delay trials for months and years. He is now hoping/expecting his current Presidential campaign will inoculate him against his prior criminal behavior. His political base is, of course, enraged that the justice system is targeting its hero.
Which is, of course, exactly what the ex-Prez wants. It’s like one of his famous “rallies”, where rabid fans fawn over him and demonize his opponents for not understanding the wonderfulness of the man. He is the “elect of God” according to many of his Bible-thumping supporters, and his opponents (prosecutors, judges, juries) are Satan’s Disciples.
Anyway, Donald J. Trump is feeling the HEAT, moving from one courtroom to another, proclaiming his innocence, and rapidly running out of attorneys that are willing to jeopardize their bar credentials by lying to protect him.
It may well come to pass that come November, 2024, America will be presented with a choice between two old fogies for President, including one who was previously impeached twice when he was President and is, by then, a convicted felon and social leper.
The Founding Fathers would not be amused that their noble experiment has come to this.