This week's offerings: conservatives on Trump; American education; capitalism; summer monsoon; sexism and technology.

An AZ conservative's view. Jeff Flake (R), the state's junior senator, has written a book that is far from complimentary of President Trump. At one point, writing about the presidential campaign, he says, “ 'These are the spasms of a dying party,' [while] surveying the anger that has consumed conservatism in recent years." Other Republicans are looking more critically at the path and progress of Special Prosecutor Muller's investigation, wondering, among other things, why President Trump is drawing "red lines" for the investigation over which he has little, if any, control. As Richard Nixon found out, firing Archibald Cox did not help his cause.
     As Muller's investigation continues, I have begun reading Washington Journal, Elizabeth Drew's excellent journal written as the Watergate investigation progressed. The parallels to the current situation are sobering, to say the least. In the end, President Nixon's actions (firing the special prosecutor, the attorney general and his assistant) led not to vindication, but to resignation.

Poor schools. As a retired teacher, this story's headline was, to say the least, troubling. "What should America do about its worst public schools? States still don’t seem to know." The article noted, “We don’t know what to do about chronically low-performing schools. Nothing has worked consistently and at scale,” said Michael Petrilli, president of the conservative Thomas B. Fordham Institute. “I suspect we’ll see most states and districts just go through the motions.” Sadly, no one saw much hope for public schools.

Capitalism. Last evening our local PBS station showed Michael Moore's documentary, "Capitalism: A Love Story." (released October 2009, link here)  That was "yesterday." Is all well today? After an impressive string nine stock market "highs," the Economist wonders about the lack of creative disruption. Yes, profits are up, but that "could [also] be a sign that things have been going profoundly wrong with the way the system is working." Higher profits should begat more investment which, in turn, should begat more competition, holding profits down. That is clearly not happening. "Creative destruction may not be happening any more. And that may explain why economic growth and productivity improvements have been sluggish in recent years."
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August monsoons. The CO mountains are getting their yearly late-summer drenching as the shifting wind patterns draw moisture from the Gulf of Mexico into the high country. Of course, this has brought two hurricanes ashore in Mexico, where Franklin just hit the Yucatan peninsula. National Hurricane Center link

Google's tech culture. An anonymous memo "hit the wires" at Google, suggesting that it may be the biology of women that holds them back. The author also lamented what he perceived as Silicon Valley's increasing willingness to discriminate in order to achieve equal representation. The author was found out and summarily fired, bringing comments about freedom of speech. No crying "Sexism in a crowded workplace?" Will we hear a presidential Tweet on this one?
     Paraphrasing of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.'s opinion in the United States Supreme Court case Schenck v. United States in 1919, which held that the defendant's speech in opposition to the draft during World War I was not protected free speech under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. 

Thank you for reading and enjoy the "dog days of August."