There is dumb, then there is Republican dumb, then there is Missouri Republican dumb. Yesterday, former special counsel Jack Smith testified before the Senate Judiciary committee. The low point of that hearing was MO Senator (R) Eric Schmitt’s attempt at a gotcha moment. His attempted ambush, pictured above, accused Mr. Smith of traveling to Atlanta for purposes of conspiring with Atlanta prosecutor Fani Willis against President Trump. His receipts were a series of text messages from Smith’s staff that discussed his attending a basketball game. Schmitt claimed that these messages were about an Atlanta Hawks game, while in reality they were about an Iowa Hawkeyes game that was occurring in Maryland, not Atlanta. Schmitt compounded his mistake by calling Smith a “Dirtbag”. This all occurred in real time during the hearing. This is not the first time that Schmitt has embarrassed himself. As the Missouri former attorney general, he ran for that office on the promise that he would serve out the term, but two years into his tenure, he dropped that promise and ran for an open Senate seat. So much for promises.
The Arabia was a side wheeler steamboat that sank in the Missouri River, on September 5, 1856, when it was gored by a submerged tree snag. The ship sank quickly, without loss of life, except for a mule that had been forgotten and left tied up. It was rediscovered in 1988 by local treasure hunters, an HVAC guy, his sons and some of their friends, near Kansas City. In the 130 years since its sinking the river has shifted, and the boat was found half-a-mile from its present-day course, beneath forty-five feet of mud, under a farmer’s field. The farmer gave permission to dig up his field, provided that they were done in time for spring planting. Over the course of one winter the wreck of the Arabia was excavated. Much of its 200-ton cargo was recovered. The following eyewitness account of the sinking was given by a Mr. Able D. Kirk:
“We embarked on the boat in Saint Louis and had been on the water about ten days. The boat was heavily loaded with freight but did not have a large number of passengers. One evening when many of the passengers were at supper the boat struck a snag. We felt the shock and at once the boat started sinking. There was a wild scene on board. The boat went down till the water came over the deck and the boat keeled over on one side. The chairs and stools were tumbled about and many of the children nearly fell into the water. Several of the men on board seized the lifeboat and started for the shore, but they came back and the women and children were put in the boat. They called for a small man to go with the boat and I was small and got on board. The river bank at the point were we landed had been carving off and was very steep. I climbed out and pulled the women ashore. Horses and wagons came down from Parkville and took us to the hotel for that night. Many of the trunks and valises were taken off the boat and stacked up in the woods near the river. That night they were broken open by thieves, and all the valuables were taken out. We were taken on the steamboat, James H. Lucus, and when we went aboard all that could by seen of the Arabia was the top of the pilot house. That sank out-of-sight in a short time.”
The recovered cargo fills a museum now. The ship was like a veritable floating Walmart of its day, full of every kind of trade good one could imagine. All bound for the western frontier. The amateur treasure hunters knew nothing about the recovery and care of the many items found. It was learned on the job. Word has it that the museum will be closing in November, a victim of parking or rather the lack thereof. There is talk of relocating, but no decisions have been made.
When we travel, we like to play the license plate game, where we eye the passing cars looking for all fifty states. That is a game that we can play together. Yesterday, I played a different version, by myself. It was time to renew the car’s plates, and I began the scavenger hunt that is that process. It is easier now than it once was. I get a postcard that lists the items that I need to assemble. Number one, as always, is the state inspection. In the past, when we were poorer and our cars were older, we needed to get a safety inspection. Then sometime along the way an emission’s inspection was added. Our present vehicle is relatively new, no longer Uber new, but only recently paid off. This year, I did not need the safety inspection, but I still needed the emissions one. I think that they only check the car’s computer for codes on that one. Anyway, my need to relicense the RAV4 coincided with a call from the dealer on the occasion of the car’s 70K mile checkup. So, I made an appointment. I had paid off its loan, and I want it to last.
It did not begin well. Alex, the clerk that I was assigned could not get his computer to work. He eventually handed me off to another, who got me checked in. On the way up to the waiting room, I walked through the show room and spied a new Toyota Corolla Crossover. Almost as big as the RAV4, but cheaper. The waiting room was packed. It was going to be a while. Fast forward three hours and the room had almost cleared out. It was pretty much empty, except for me and a grandma, who had by then fallen asleep with her knitting. Maybe they had forgotten about me and gone to lunch? Which they had, leaving one lone rather harried clerk. As I was waiting for him to get off the phone a mechanic dropped off my paperwork. I was soon on my way, but when I started the car, the gas engine ran rough and the car shook. It had not been like that. I took it back and the guy who had worked on the car quickly diagnosed the problem and set about remedying it. Part of the 70K checkup included a cleaning of the piston rings and valves. This involves spraying the cleaning fluid into the air intake. Sometimes this liquid pools and that was what was causing the problem. When I left the second time, after $666, everything was running fine. Everything is fine!
But wait there is more. I still needed to get my new license plate tabs, so a trip to the DMV was in order. Here in Misery, that is called the department of revenue, because it is really all about the money. I could have done this online, but it would have been good for one year. Meaning I would have to do this all over again then. An hour’s wait later, I left with my ’27 tabs.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey (R) has filed a lawsuit against Starbucks, claiming the coffee chain has violated anti-discrimination laws. He alleges that their initiatives promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) amount to unlawful discrimination. The filing asserts that Starbucks’ workforce has become “more female and less white.” Reaction to his suit came from the legislature, when it was followed by his request for a $2M funding increase. Bailey got pushback from both sides of the aisle. Republicans questioned the need for a $2M budget bump when he underspent the previous year’s budget by $2M. Democrats took aim at his Starbucks suit. Rep. Raychel Proudie (D) of Ferguson asked, “I’m just curious if white-served coffee tastes a little bit better because if it does, I’m happy to have some.” The truth is that Bailey is just showboating, by launching frivolous lawsuits to garner favorable publicity with the Republican base to further his career. Just like the previous state attorney general, now US Senator Eric Schmitt (R) did.
