Time Warp

Dear Readers,

Please forgive me for not posting yesterday.  Another one of those days where I just simply couldn't squeeze my blog in with all the other tasks I had on my plate.  I suspect that you understand and that somehow (although I'm not sure how), you made it through your day.

So, today is Saturday and it occurred to me that my perception of time feels odd.  It just doesn't match up with reality.  Two days ago, James Comey gave sworn testimony in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee.  I don't know about you, but to me that event feels like it took place much longer ago than two days ago.

As I was driving to do my grocery shopping this afternoon, is when this 'time warp' hit me.  I thought about it and the conclusion I came to was that the immediacy of our access to whatever happens in our world, is overwhelming.  It may not be the same for Millennials, but this pace of information is what they grew up with.  I, being part of the Baby Boom generation, am a product of news papers, the 6:00 pm local evening news followed at 6:30  pm by the national news.  We did have two AM all news radio stations, but they didn't have the access to real time events that we have now, so the pace at which these two stations presented the news wasn't at the same speed as now.  So, in juxtaposition to what I grew up with, today's pace of information plays head games with my mind.  I can only speak for myself.

I'm going to slow things down a little bit and go back to Thursday.  I've already had my say on James Comey's written testimony, which was made public the day before his oral, sworn testimony.  I've already written about where I believe the focal point of his testimony is and where it is not.  I've already reminded us of the lesson of  Watergate; that the 'words' a person speaks are only part of how that person communicates.  What I have not written about is my impression of James Comey as a human being.

I'll start by saying that all I know about Comey, is the public face that he presents, but it sure is a damn sight better than the public face trump presents.  James Comey came across to me as a straight shooter.  What I heard was a man that gave his recollection of events without  making judgments.  Just as Joe Friday, the detective in the 1950's detective television show Dragnet, was known for saying; "just the facts ma'am, just the facts."  What I also saw was something very refreshing.  This guy answered questions without defensiveness and to the best of his ability.  And when he obviously perceived that questions where being asked to guide him to make a judgement or to validate a partisan point, he spoke clearly and plainly, again, with out a defensive posture.  When Senator Risch of Idaho, made an obvious attempt to have Comey agree with him that trump did not attempt to obstruct justice, to stop the investigation into Michael Flynn's possible collusion with Russia, because trump used the word "hope",  Comey reminded me of the lesson of the Watergate transcripts versus the actual recordings, without actually making the analogy.  He simply pointed out that the word 'hope', was just that ......... a word.  He did not attempt to give a lecture on the various forms of communication that also affect what is being communicated.  He, with decency and a pleasant tone, answered four variations of the same question without being perturbed or trying trying to deflect.

When Mr. Comey was questioned about how and why the press learned about his memos and the content in some of them, he was honest and above board, and again with no consternation.  He was clear that he had asked a friend of his to share this information with the press, in the hopes that a special prosecutor would be assigned to investigate possible obstruction of justice by trump.  By the way, it is vital to understand the difference between 'leaking' and sharing.  First of all Comey's memos were not classified.  Only the sharing of classified documents or information is 'leaking'.  Secondly, when Comey asked his friend to share this information, he was no longer a Federal employee.  Therefore when you put these two facts together, Comey was well within his First Amendment rights to speak up.

James Comey, was a breath of fresh air on Thursday.  I believe that the way he speaks, answers questions, behaves, carries himself, is something that Americans want to see and we appreciated it.  I've said it before, Left or Right, we know Wrong.  Well in this case we know Right, and Mr. Comey is the right person at a very bad time.  In essence, for me at least, James Comey is a time warp, a person that conducts himself with decency.  If I am to be taken back in time, this is the way that I want it it to be.  Thank you Mr. Comey.