Things are getting a little sketchy at the top of our government. Obviously, the vice-president is entering a period of mourning after the loss of his son, Beau. And now Secretary of State John Kerry has broken his femur in a bicycling accident in France. The administration is operating under an unusual amount of stress at the moment. Let’s hope things remain relatively calm for them at this time so they can gather their wits and begin to recuperate. It’s easy to make big mistakes in circumstances like these.
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BooMan
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
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Kerry’s broken leg is going to put him into a reduced role for 2-3 weeks. My mom (88) just broke hers in April (2 months ago). She was very impaired for a month. She is now at home, and I find out (away for a week) that she had another fall on Friday, possibly due to the leg. Mom never complained much about the pain, even though they had to stabilize the break with a plate (surgical implant).
With Kerry, a vigorous and active man, I expect him to be quite reduced in role for 3 weeks. After that, there will be PT to contend with along with the recovery.
Tony Blinken, who considering his closeness to the Biden family is probably operating at less than 100% today, too.
Very sorry to hear about your Mom. She sounds like my grandfather who fell off a ladder and broke his wrist at 90, cleaning leaves out of the gutter. If I make it to 90, I’m not even going to climb stairs.
Yeah, that happened to my dad at 82. That probably was the result of a mini-stroke which ended up killing him 3 years later.
We were out of town. In the meantime, my mom, living now in her apartment, fell down again on Friday and bruised her ribs. I will have to chat with the doctor. These falls coming so soon together are a little concerning.
Thanks for your note.
Definitely check. I don’t know your or her financial situation but is there some way to get 24 hour assistance? A live in, or relative or assisted living center? If she is in a home, are you sure the falls are falls? I’m thinking of those lawyer commercials I keep seeing on TV.
You said she was in her apartment and i asked if she was in a home. Twenty lashes to me for poor reading comprehension.
She is actually kind of embarrassed about the most recent fall, as it occurred, according to her, because she turned too quickly.
Falls in the elderly are very important, as I am sure you are aware. Breaking a hip in particular for someone of age 85+ is often the final straw which leads to death rather quickly. It’s so inconvenient, and so debilitating, that often older folks just give up and refuse to cooperate with PT and other rehab protocols. My great aunt who was 99 fell, broke her hip, and was dead in 2 weeks. Prior to that, she was vigorous, with all faculties intact except hearing, and her strong religious faith motivating her to write poems about Jesus, etc. I’m not a Christian myself, but her christianity was a great help to herself.
Luckily all my falls have been in the back yard onto grass and earth. Still need to buy a cane. I wonder if the hurrycane is really any good. I usually take a shovel into the back yard to use as a cane even if I’m not digging.
My wife fell outside last autumn. Didn’t have one of those beepers but called me inside the house on my cell phone. First time the damn things have been other than a nuisance.
How old are you and your wife? I myself am 62.
Last fall (Sept), I did a boneheaded move at the gym, and tore the rotator cuff muscle – “massive tear”. That was a 4 month rehab. I am just back to normal, but the strength of my right arm is considerably reduced. Any kind of injury at my age is not a good one. So, I am now a little reluctant to do much of anything risky – no biking, etc.
Kerry, at 71, probably thinks of himself as a vigorous man of middle age – 70 is the new 50, etc. However, despite his obviously good health (he is so thin, it makes me kind of annoyed), he is not 50. My brother-in-law is also kind of nuts about exercize. He continues, at 67, to mountain-bike off road. And he continues to have falls and breaks. Really smart guy but not clear on the limits stuff.
70 It’s not the new 50. It’s old! Some days, it’s just a struggle to stand up. I do a lot of sitting. I was going to spray my trees today (organic spray), but it’s COLD. Spent most of the day right here, reading blogs, reconfiguring my network and planning a dream computer that I need like a hole in my head. Driving to Alabama was easy because it’s done sitting down. Mind is still there. When it’s gone, I hope someone holds a pillow over my face.
BTW, thinking about driving, I don’t drive a Grand marquis like most guys my age or older. I drive a Chevrolet Impala, almost the GM equivalent.
Stress? Show me a photo of stress. Unless you are physically under duress you control the stress you feel. Easier said than done, I know, but achievable nevertheless.
And then there’s Rand Paul’s argument in the Senate today which may just knock off the Freedom/Patriot Act for a window of 72 hours, or more. Whether one agrees with the elements of the Patriot Act or not, this moment when combined with Biden & Kerry could be perceived as a window of opportunity.
The universe works in mysterious ways.
AG
I really don’t understand what’s wrong with roving wiretaps. It seems obvious that if a subject has more than one line, you tap them all. With a properly authorized warrant, of course. Why would a judge approve tapping the house but not the cell phone, for instance?
Bulk surveillance of everyone or “just on a hunch”, is crap, of course.
It’s the warrant that’s missing. Especially since the FISA court turned out to be a rubber stamp and not independent at all.
Well, yeah. But what I read is that without it, a separate warrant is needed for every line and every device. That’s crazy. If “roving wiretap” really means “I get to listen to anyone anywhere anytime”, then it’s clearly unconstitutional and has to go.
BTW, R’s claim that 54 terrorist plots were stopped because of bulk collection. With such a precise number, they should be able to cite cases. I’m willing to bet that in every case, they had evidence that would convince a sweetheart judge to issue a warrant, but they were too lazy.
Even the rubber stamp FISA court was legal, but with bad judges.
I wish Sec. Kerry a speedy recovery and all, but it really doesn’t matter all that much. SecState is a spokesman, a coach, a figurehead-in-a-good-sense.
The days when, if Secretary Seward doesn’t word the diplomatic note correctly, we go to war with Britain, is far behind us.
State has deputy-, under-, and assistant secretaries in profusion. That’s where the work gets done.
Policy is made in the White House, constrained by Congress, and sold by SecState.
I disagree with you in this instance; considering the holdovers who are causing problems I think Kerry’s got his hands full not only with new crises but working to get Obama’s agenda and sideline those trying to coopt usa foreign policy for their own agenda
There aren’t that many holdovers at State, unless you mean civil-service FSO bods.
In face, there have been complaints about the sheer volume of political appointees from career foreign-service types.
Like that crazy Obama donor in Kenya.
That said I think deal making and personal connections are important sometimes and certainly the prestige afford the opposite party by talking to sec of state also counts. Would they have hammered out a framework for an Iran deal if it gad only been underdecretaries involved?
well, let me replace holdovers with warmongers who disagree with Obama’s diplomacy agenda. imo Tarheel d’s comment above refers to just the most recent instance
IRAN? Thirty days to go before the congressional and AIPAC vultures move in. Do they get to tear their prey to pieces or not?
It is times like these that those at the top need direct reports they can trust to do the right thing. It’s not the big mistakes to worry about; it’s the little mistakes with big “unforeseen” consequences.
Most big mistakes are the results of stubborn willfulness.
The big fuck-up has already occurred.
CENTCOM watched ISIS truck bomb convoys rolled on Ramadi; No interdiction; No warning given
The set-up for post-Obama perpetual war?
Somewhere between Ashton Carter and Iraq, someone failed to order US air forces to attack the convoy as it had done successfully in other targets of ISIS attack.
And then the story line blames the local Iraqi army.
But is it true? Or just a way to pry some more weapons out of Congress?
Seems that DoD and the IC’s way of continuing to suck tax money is to let it happen. Sort of the same principal as the Baltimore FOP standdown.
hmmm…Ukraine and China…that is where the world will start to umm…shake apart at the seams…the USofA is going to have to get tough and make a stand with China, and it will happen soon…Russia is not going to let Ukraine settle down, so, we are looking at a world war, on two fronts with atleast two antagonists…the corporations had better figure out if war is more profitable than corruption….
Nothing like mentioning the three nuclear superpowers being in the same conflict.
The US can’t get tough with China. Chinese components are in every weapons system. The military wouldn’t last 90 days without Chinese components. And all the fighting would be in Chinese home waters. Meanwhile, the giant hacking organization outside Beijing and run by the Red Army has probably penetrated a lot of military computer systems, many programmed by Chinese nationals on contract.
When I was a young man there was the Buy American Act, passed around 1950 that specified that Defense materiel HAD to made in the USA. It was protectionist, but militarily sound.