November 19, 2021: Big Numbers -

We’ve got the infrastructure bill actually signed, hooray, and I was thrilled to see an OPB article about how maybe now the Warms Springs reservation will be able to repair their water pipes, and stop having to rely on, and distribute, thousands of bottles of water every day. One man reports crying with joy that the bill passed, and I can understand how he feels.

But then it all started to go tentative and overwhelming. Sixty miles of pipe need replacing. Senators in Oregon prioritized $250 million for water projects “like this one,”  which still sounds like there is some maybe in the mix. The tribe is already lining up contractors in order to be ready when and if the money comes through, but it will  take years to fix sixty miles of pipe. It’s been four years since a critical valve broke, which feels like a long time. But then, in the grand scheme of big numbers, that’s only four years in over a century of struggle. The article ends:

Louie Pitt Jr. says lack of clean water is just the latest struggle in a long history of problems the tribes have been forced to endure, including violations from the U.S. government of the original treaty signed with the tribes in 1855. Pitt says he’s hopeful this funding can heal — a bit — the relationship between the tribes and the government, as it’s an opportunity for the government to make good on the promise to share resources, even though it’s long overdue.

It's just helping you folks not make liars out of your great grandpas," says Pitt.

Ah, family. What if we could not make liars out of all our relatives, past and present?

That’s the other big number that I’ve been pondering. I have been trying not to rent out precious head space to too many cranks and bad guys - taking a breather, if possible. But Rep. Paul Gosar has nine siblings (big number!), and at various times (Google ‘Paul Gosar siblings’ and watch the cascade of links appear), up to six of them have endorsed his opponents, called for his removal from office, and labelled him a traitor.

And I’m not arguing with them!

But for some reason, I woke up at three a.m. thinking: What of the other three? What’s their story? Are they saying, “Oh, you guys, it’s just PAUL, can we for ONCE not have to talk about PAUL?” Or are they saying, “Leave me out of this, you nest of vipers.” Or what? 

And it’s interesting that the fraction here is overshadowed by the count: If you had three sibs, and two were publicly against you, that would be one thing. But six out of nine - even if, yes, it’s still only two-thirds! I can do the math! I get it! - six out of nine is a big number.