"We'll picket your house"

Yesterday about 50 tighty righties showed up to protest at the home of the state inspector who ticketed the outlaw Salem gyms – the ones that defied the governor's shutdown order. 

Not a problem, says the local police chief down there where the inspector lives, in Silverton. The demonstrators stayed on the sidewalk. 

The cops are very big on the First Amendment when the "patriots" show up. Funny thing.

Anyway, it went on for a couple of hours. I wonder how many guns were present.

I picketed someone's house once. Unfortunately, they weren't home. Only a couple of neighbors even saw us. It was kind of a dud. This was in Lake Oswego, as I recall. A beautiful day on the cul-de-sac. No guns. We had colorful flyers. We left one on the culprit's doorstep. It was 20 years ago or so.

We were outliers then. But nowadays everybody's got a grievance. We are a nation of aggrieved people. Perfect for Festivus, at least.

As for the underlying issue, I was glad to see the gym owner get whacked with fines. That is exactly what should happen. What I don't get is how the state got the number up to $90,000. I thought the penalty was $1,250 per infraction. You math majors are way ahead of me; that would be 72 infractions. The freeze took effect on the 18th. It works out to something like $9,000 a day.

Meanwhile, America is laughing the virus off, but it's a real high-pitched, nervous, hollow stage laugh. After this past weekend, the countdown is on to a big disaster scene at the hospitals. It's only a week or two away now. And it's going to run well into the new year.

But this country is no longer capable of learning a lesson. You think Thanksgiving was bad? Wait 'til Super Bowl Sunday. You think all the football is bad? They're already playing basketball, too. With fans in the stands in the red states. 

I believe the Blazers start group workouts this weekend. There will be no bubble this time. They'll be flying in and out of town, and so will their opponents, playing at the Moda Center. Maybe the Proud Boys can rent a luxury suite.