No to No Labels, not my usual read, butterless crumble, and a fall of less color
October 5, 2023
What’s Going On?
I am not liking what I am reading about this No Labels party. Nope. Not at all. I don’t even want to include a link to its page.
I have just started down the research rabbit hole on all this, but for now, there are two points that make me very uncomfortable.
First: No Labels has the goal of getting on the ballot as an official party in all 50 states by the 2024 election.
[As of October 3, 2023] No Labels has secured ballot access in 11 states with a goal of getting all of them by Election Day next year. Its leaders say they’ll offer their ballot line to a moderate bipartisan “unity ticket” if the parties are on track to nominate Biden and Donald Trump for a rematch and they feel their candidate has a path to victory.
https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/labels-asks-state-democratic-chairs-back-off-after-103692611
I totally get why many people want more choices beyond the two major parties. I am one of those people. But now is not the time to run a third-party candidate in a presidential election.
From the same article as the above quote:
Many Democrats and other Trump critics say No Labels can’t win but could siphon enough votes to cost Biden the election.
Biden’s razor-thin Electoral College victory in 2020 depended on support from anti-Trump Republicans and right-leaning conservatives. He’ll need a similar coalition to win reelection, and even a small number of defections to No Labels or another third party could be enough to tip battleground states in Trump’s direction.
Second: No Labels Took More Than $100,000 From Clarence Thomas Buddy Harlan Crow
Yeah, Harlan Crow, the billionaire good buddy of Clarence Thomas. Um, no thanks.
What to Do?
Vote Democrat. If you don’t like any Democrats, vote for them anyway for now and get to work on getting people of your party of choice elected on the local and state levels so that your party of choice has a chance of growing its status from “alternative” (e.g., non-electable) to mainstream.
You can also join Moveon.org in its works to stop No Labels from disrupting the 2024 election. Here is an excerpt from an article Progressive group urges secretaries of state to investigate No Labels for misleading voters, about No Labels’ apparently deceptive practices:
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (D) alerted voters in her state back in May that some “may be unaware that they have enrolled in the No Labels Party, which is seeking party status in Maine.” She said voters were told they were signing a petition, rather than a registration form that would change their party affiliation. (My emphasis)
Bellows sent a letter to No Labels’ director of ballot access to raise “serious concerns” about the campaign’s apparent conduct “to enroll Maine voters in the No Labels Party for purposes of qualifying that party for the 2024 election.” New parties need 5,000 enrolled voters to get ballot access for 2024 primaries in Maine, according to the secretary’s office.
Registering as a member of the No Labels party would prohibit voters from participating in Republican or Democratic primaries in the state. (My emphasis) No Labels is a bipartisan group that has been looking to run a “unity ticket” in the 2024 presidential election, which would include a Republican and a Democrat.
One way to combat all this is to sign a petition to No Labels via Moveon.org:
TO: No Labels, a Third-Party Organization Stop No Labels From Re-Electing Trump
You can also donate to Moveon.org by clicking: https://act.moveon.org/donate/civ-donation/
And please be sure you are either registered as a Democrat or with no party affiliation and vote for the Biden/Harris ticket in the 2024 primaries and Presidential election!
Unless you think a lifetime of the former president or the like will be a good thing.
What to Read?
So, I shared a list of books in my September 23, 2023 newsletter that I had ready to read while recovering from knee surgery. But I ended up postponing the surgery, leaving me wondering how much time I would have to get through those books!
The good news is that I actually read one of the books already and am halfway through another. However, I am not sure whether to recommend the first book I read.
Here is the Kirkus Review of The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler:
"Froggy Welsh the Fourth is trying to get up my shirt,” begins this eminently accessible journey from self-hatred to confidence. Virginia is 15 and likes fooling around with Froggy, but she’s mortified by her fatness, a shame fueled continually by her emotionally distant and pressuring family. Has she been switched at birth? Why isn’t she perfect like her adored, overachieving older brother? But her brother isn’t perfect after all, and he commits a horrifying act that rocks her world—and prompts her to begin questioning her family’s values. Readers will be rooting for Virginia all the way as she moves from isolated TV-watcher to Website-creator with purple hair and an eyebrow ring. Sexuality, refreshingly, is treated as a good thing. Virginia’s emotions progress from despondence to anger, joy, and strong independence, all portrayed with clarity. An easy read with substance and spirit. (Fiction. YA)
Mind you, this is the book that I grabbed from the Sutton dump “give and take” section just because the title caught my attention. I actually thought it was going to be humorous along the lines of some of Nora Ephron’s books.
However, I will say that, especially when things went downhill for the older brother, I did keep turning the pages to see what would happen next. Contrived? Yes. Relatable for kids? Um, yeah, if you are a suburban white kid with parents of a certain level of income. I will say, though, that it was pretty good at capturing the narcissistic angst of teenhoodum.
But I am not going to recommend it other than if anything I wrote entices you to take a gander. But if interested, give it a try. Here’s how:
To purchase a used copy of a book, check More Than Words first, then Thriftbooks.
To support the author of the book and independent bookstores, go to Bookshop.org.
And, as I always say, there is a good chance you can find what you want at your local library.
What's Cooking?
Apple (or any fruit) crumble with the crumble bit made with olive oil instead of butter.
I LOVE it!
Don’t get me wrong; I still love crumble made with butter. But this is SOOOOO easy!!! And very, very tasty, too.
Click Here for the recipe I used. I prepared it as written. A few days before, I pared it down for a smaller-sized oil-based crumble to top off a few cups of strawberries I defrosted and cooked in a 1-quart square Corningware dish.
I used whole wheat pastry flour, but, as the recipe linked to above calls for all-purpose (white) flour, I am confident that will work just fine. OH, I only used 1/3 versus the called-for 2/3 cup of sugar in the crumble part. It was just fine without all that sugar.
What Else?
I will refrain from another zucchini picture or story other than to say that I have picked another fair-sized zuke and there are many more trying to grow. Not sure if the upcoming weather will let them, but I can always just wait and grab them before the first frost if they grow slowly or not much more at all. Note to self (repeated, I am sure): You only need one zucchini plant.
As I just noted, the weather is looking to get cooler and fall colors are certainly coming in, although word is that things are running late and the colors may not be as vibrant as some years due to all the rain.
But still lovely. I am thankful for the beauty.
Be kind,
Wendy