Time Connections

I am fascinated by time. I can't tell you what it is. All I know is that the concept of time is perplexingly interesting.

I mentioned one of my favorite movies a couple of times here on The Table, the 1943 MGM release The Human Comedy. It gives a look back at important era in American history. Watching it today gives you a view of how the world was 80 years ago, a connection to another time. One scene is astounding on another level. In that scene, a little boy named Ulysses, the youngest in the family that is central to the film, goes to the library with an older friend, Lionel. While older, Lionel seems to be a bit slow in his metal development, hence his friendship with a boy half his age. While at the library, the boys are approached by the librarian, an elderly lady.

 

 

The boys talk with the librarian.

 

From today's perspective, this  scene provides a very interesting study in time when considering Lionel and the librarian.

The librarian was played by Adeline De Walt Reynolds. Reynolds was born in 1862, during the Civil War. After being widowed in 1905, Mrs. Reynolds survived the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. She lived until 1961.

Lionel was played by Darryl Hickman, older brother of Dwayne Hickman of television's Dobie Gillis fame. Darryl was born in 1931 and by 1943 had been performing in movies for several years.

 

That brings us to the library scene in The Human Comedy. Of the three actors with speaking roles in that scene, two of them are on a time line that connects the Civil War of 1862, through to -- this year. Darryl Hickman passed away in May, 2024. (Butch Jenkins, who played Ulysses, was born in 1937 and died in 2001.)

Between the two of them, those two actors in this scene saw the times of the Spanish-American War, the sinking of the Titanic, the introduction of radio, World War I, Prohibition, the Great Depression, the introduction of television, World War II,  the Civil Rights Movement, Viet Nam, and much more. Two people.

I can't help but be astounded by that.

 

Not another one

 A primary Election is coming to Texas on March 5. Among the many positions up for grabs this year is that of Harris County District Attorney (Houston).

The first I learned of this election was when I started seeing Facebook ads for one of the Democratic candidates, Sean Teare. So far I have seen three ads from him on Facebook and I have seen them repeated. Here are two of the ads.

I downloaded those two ads from my FB feed. It has been a couple of weeks since I saw the third ad. I could not find any of those ads on Mr. Teare's FB page. Similar to the above two ads, the third ad is about how no one should face criminal prosecution for exercising health care rights (spelled a-b-o-r-t-i-o-n). 

There is a funny thing about Leftists. They believe that "the people" should have a say in laws that are passed. That is why they want courts to cram decisions such as Roe v. Wade down the throats of everyone. When the Supreme Court decided that abortion was a matter for individual States to decide, Leftists had a fit. They believe that there is overwhelming support for abortion everywhere. They just don't like it when democratically elected representatives restrict abortion. A Democrat State Legislator wanted a Texas Constitutional Amendment to prohibit the Legislature from passing bills to restrict abortion. A poll taken in 2022 found that only 12% of Texas residents favor unrestricted abortions.

The main thrust of Mr. Teare's campaign seems to be that he will pick and choose what laws he will and will not enforce.

Where have I heard that before? That has worked out so well every place else that has been tried.

None of his ads say "I will fight crime" in unequivocal terms. 

Even if I supported "abortion rights," I would have to question why such a strong, single minded approach to the coming Primary Election. One would think that there are more pressing issues for a District Attorney to concern himself with.

On Mr. Teare's Facebook page, I saw some other things that I have not seen on my feed. Here is a post I found on his FB page.

His list of things he supports boils down to whatever a normal, law-abiding citizen would question. 

Climate Justice? Education Justice? Immigrant Justice? Whenever I see the word "justice" used in such contexts, I can't help but think that justice is the last thing on someone's mind. Health Equity? It seems more like "Let me promise stuff to people who don't have to pay for it in order to get those people to vote for me."

The group mentioned in that last ad, NAKASEC, is the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium. Among their positions is against Governor Abbott and the State of Texas for having the unmitigated gall to defend the border. They claim to be "an organization that champions the civil, immigrant, and human rights of all people."  In other words, let's milk Uncle Sugar for all that he is worth. And by Korean, is that South or North?

One thought came to mind as I thought about Mr. Teare. Oddly enough, I found that same thought addressed on Mr. Teare's Facebook page.

                        

 

II did not dig into that link, but it did show me that I am not the only person with the same idea.

Houston dodged a bullet in December when it did not elect Sheila Jackson Lee as its Mayor. My impression is that greater Harris County is more conservative than is the City of Houston. Hopefully our luck will hold out and we will dodge another bullet.

As of yet, I have seen nothing about the Republican candidate for District Attorney. That might be because he has no opponent. Hopefully we will hear more from him once the campaign for the General Elections begins.