I’m writing for tomorrow, and this is last article until after I return from my volunteer training. I will be off the grid, as there will be no time to even set up a computer, while I’m away. I spent the day running errands, preparing my material and packing, Although I had little time for research, I think I have some interesting material for you. I will post missed puzzles with my next Open Thread or Personal Update.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 3:31 (average 5:25). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From The New Yorker: Accusing them of involvement in “a widespread conspiracy to save President Obama’s failed health-care program,” Rep. Darrell Issa (R-California) today subpoenaed the approximately seven million Americans who have signed up for Obamacare so far.
Arguing that the impressive enrollment numbers “don’t pass the smell test,” the House Oversight Committee chairman told reporters, “Any rational person would come to the same conclusion that I have: namely, that this is a well-orchestrated conspiracy of seven million people trying to make Obamacare look good.”
The California Republican said that the seven million co-conspirators targeted by his subpoenas would be required to travel to Washington to testify before his committee or risk being found in contempt of Congress.
Andy’s great satire aside, I wouldn’t put it past him. Darrell Issa jerk!!
From Daily Kos: Wow! According to an analysis of financials for Hobby Lobby. Reporters for Mother Jones discovered $73 million in mutual funds with investments in the companies that manufacturer contraceptives including emergency contraceptive pills, intrauterine devices, and drugs used to perform abortions.
Documents filed with the Department of Labor and dated December 2012—three months after the company’s owners filed their lawsuit—show that the Hobby Lobby 401(k) employee retirement plan held more than $73 million in mutual funds with investments in companies that produce emergency contraceptive pills, intrauterine devices, and drugs commonly used in abortions. Hobby Lobby makes large matching contributions to this company-sponsored 401(k).
Several of the mutual funds in Hobby Lobby’s retirement plan have holdings in companies that manufacture the specific drugs and devices that the Green family, which owns Hobby Lobby, is fighting to keep out of Hobby Lobby’s health care policies: the emergency contraceptive pills Plan B and Ella, and copper and hormonal intrauterine devices.
They deny women, but take the money. How do you spell Republican? H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-T-E!!
From NY Times: The Republican budget for 2015, released Tuesday by Representative Paul Ryan, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, will never come close to being law, so it doesn’t have to pretend to be serious. This is a document designed solely to be reduced to a few bullet points so House Republicans can have something to show their most antigovernment voters.
That might work in their most carefully gerrymandered districts, but does the Republican Party really want to coalesce around a budget this destructive to the country’s future: harming the middle class and the poor; undercutting popular safety-net programs, including Medicare and Pell grants; and heaping tax benefits on the rich? Apparently it does, and the full House will probably support it in a few days. Voters should look closely at the details to see if they would choose the same course.
Lyin’ Ryan’s plan to fight poverty is still to take from the poor and give to the rich. Click through to see how his new budget is the same as his old budget, only worse.
Cartoon:
TC signing off with a sore butt, because SCROTUS didn’t use Vaseline.
21 Responses to “Open Thread–4/3”
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3:22 I found Nemo plus two!
4:02 I think I was the clown today.
3:27 I found Nemo and 3 others.
Mashed! 🙁
New Yorker ~ Absolutely wonderful use of satire today! Thank you. I can almost see the gears grinding in their petty little heads.
Daily Kos ~ Excellent article! Great journalism at work! Look at it, all you "news reporters" on TV. This is what real journalism is, not just repeating a meme from your handlers.
NY Times ~ I''m waiting for Pope Francis I to excommunicate him for his obvious hatred and abuse of the poor, sick and elderly. wouldn't that be something? I can dream…
Cartoon ~ Agent Orange should go back to his first job of sweeping barroom floors.
Can you start a petition to get him excommunicated? I will sign it.
I'm a lapsed Catholic so I don't think it would hold water if I started a petition, but I'm still more Catholic than Lyin' Ryan.
While Ryan's budget won't become law, it's wise to pay attention to it. A couple of the items reflect portions of the Republican end game that they seldom admit to: the total destruction – not reform or modification, destruction – of Social Security and Medicare.
I believe you are right.
Exactly!
6:59 Everything looked exactly like everything else.
New Yorker – saw this while I was reading yesterday's Andy. "Could be bigger than Benghazi." Giggle.
Hobby Lobby – Capitalism is worse than an octopus (or a Kochtopus) it's more a many headed Hydra that when you get one head two more grow. It's not easy for an individual who doesn't trade in the markets and doesn't use a financial adviser but just has a 401(k) which is heavily managed to divest from things one doesn't want to hold (Or even to find out what one does have). But I would think a corporation with the clout of Hobby Lobby could tell the institution that administers the 401(k) in no uncertain terms what they want and don't want and make it stick. As far as I know they haven't responded to this.
NY Times – The scariest thing is that he wants to chair the Ways and Means committee, where he could indeed do some serious damage. God forbid. I was thinking of starting a petition to His Holiness to excommunicate Ryan, but the fact is that the Pope loves everybody and would have to be convinced excommunication was for the benefit of Ryan's immortal soul before he would do it. And that's a durned difficult petition to write. But if anyone has some suggestions on how to write it, PM me.
Cartoon – Even with that expression it's still a barf bag alert.
I asked Patty, can you start a petition? I will sign yours, too.
Care2 has some really good petition folks. That is the best place to take it up.
Loved Andy's piece in the New Yorker – brilliant as always – but don't give the GOP/TP ideas! That cartoon looks genuine by the way!
As for the Hobby Lobby Daily Kos/Mother Jones article – well ain't THAT a surprise (not!). They couldn't give up being hypocritical if they tried – and God knows they just don't try. Kudos to the reporters who found out the facts.
Lyin' Ryan's budget is as vile as he is – how I wish their voters would actually THINK and listen and learn before they vote – and think about others of course…. well I can dream!
News just in – please celebrate with us in Europe – have just had emails and checked on the BBC – the EU parliament has voted for Net Neutrality – not to let ISPs bar services and restrict services and so on… I, like everyone else who values the internet in its present state and worries about the future, have been writing emails to all and sundry on this issue in between being rather horridly ill – and reason prevailed and we won! I can't believe it with all the bad news from all the world – it really is wonderful (if ratified by the EU council of ministers!)..
Congrats to the EU!!
4:38 – Ouch! That was really fishy!
If ya want something done by a crook, bring in Issa. Andy captures the idiocy in the Republican campaign to spread stupid rumors as only Andy could.
Interesting, Hobby Lobby owns big investments in birth control and yet still wants to tell women what prescriptions they can have? When we co-mingle religion with government we get this very slimy mess of using religion to simply control the freedom of others. This issue is really another case of 'learn to mind your own damn business'. Covering penis pumps and Viagra but not female contraception, but there is no war on women's rights. You bet!
Ryan doesn't have a budget he has a joke, fiscally minded does not mean ending the government. Though I have yet to see republicans be honestly fiscally minded.
Thanks Pat for letting us know about the EU and Internet Neutrality, to bad we don't have it here.
Thanks TC – hope your training session goes well.
Puzzle — 3:27 I found Nemo and 3 others.
The New Yorker — The persons that Issa should be subpoenaing are himself and all Republicanus/Teabaggers that wasted taxpayers' money with over 50 votes to repeal the ACA! That colossal waste of time and money is no help to the American people. Now THAT is a scandal! Issa cretin, a dishonest one at that!
Daily Kos — Interesting isn't it how the Green's who own Hobby Lobby can object to women's reproductive healthcare but like the money that the same companies generate for their retirement plan! Yep, you're correct . . . Republicanus/Teabagger is spelled "H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-T-E"!!!!!
NY Times — Wasn't it Albert Einstein who said that "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."? Lyin' Ryan is still trying to ram through the same old budget that will royally shaft the American middle and poor classes, and hasn't learned a thing. This is proof that Ryan is indeed insane, but then we already knew that, didn't we?
Cartoon — Ah, the Weeper of the House! Is he getting teary eyed over the thoughts of listening to 7.1 million people testifying? Or is it because he can't believe that, in his words, 7.1 million people were stupid enough to think they deserved affordable healthcare?
Thanks for taking time to research for us while you were so busy.
The New Yorker: I am not surprised by anything Issa and the Repubs accuse Mr. Obama of doing. I am sure if they could round up the 7 million and prosecute them, they would. Love Andy
Daily Kos: Isn't it interesting that Hobby Lobby doesn't want to spend money for contraception for their employees, but don't mind profiting from it? I heard today that they are creating a Biblical museum with all the artifacts they have collected. They can probably afford to do it with all the money they have saved on health insurance for their female employees.
NY Times:: Let us pray that Ryan never gets to be chairman. What a hypocrite he is! Yes the Rps will go along with this budget because they are lackeys to the rich and do not serve the people.
Cartoon: I am sure Mitch and the other Repubs needed some Preparation H after they read these numbers.
Thanks everyone.
5:20 – Puzzle (7.1 Million) I try to piss off a Republican everyday… 😆