My eyes have always been super sensitive to the drug used to dilate them, and it was almost midnight before I could see normally again. I now know that apparent veli are rarely malignant. I’m still quite frustrated that I have to deal with yet another malady that will consume large bunches of time that I could put to productive use.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:26 (average 4:18). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From The New Yorker: Bernie Sanders failed to impress major media outlets over the weekend as he barely managed to win seventy per cent of the vote in three western primaries.
The major cable networks briefly mentioned Sanders’s vote tallies in Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii but noted that he ran out of steam well shy of eighty per cent.
“There’s no point in sugarcoating it,” one analyst put it. “Rough night for Sanders.”
According to one cable executive, Sanders needs to “put up some big numbers fast” if he expects the networks to continue giving his campaign airtime.
“It’s going to be harder and harder to justify covering him while he’s stuck down in the seventy-per-cent range,” the executive said.
Did Andy nail this one or what?
From Huffington Post (H/T Daily KOS: The Supreme Court has taken four big whacks at the Affordable Care Act in as many years. But the conservative justices still don’t seem to understand how it works.
During oral arguments this week in Zubik v. Burwell — a set of seven challenges to Obamacare’s contraceptive-coverage mandate on behalf of religious nonprofits — Chief Justice John Roberts and his colleagues on the court’s conservative wing gave the impression that they don’t really grasp what the ACA’s health insurance exchanges do, or indeed how the market for health insurance itself even functions.
In a nutshell, Zubik hinges on the question of whether it’s a “substantial burden” for religious nonprofits to be required to fill out a form noting their objections to providing contraception under the law. The Little Sisters of the Poor and a smattering of religious nonprofits from across the country argue that it does — that, in fact, it essentially makes them complicit in providing coverage for services they view as sinful. The federal government, which provided this accommodation, obviously disagrees.
During a back-and-forth in the courtroom about women whose employers don’t cover contraception, and the subsequent lengths they must go to get it, Roberts suggested that it’s not actually a big deal if women in such situations have to get their birth control covered some other way. Justices Anthony Kennedy and Samuel Alito appeared to share the same belief.
“They’re on the exchanges, right?” Roberts said, implying that women without access to contraception from their religious employers can just sign up to receive it through the federal insurance exchanges instead.
For Justice Sonia Sotomayor, this seemed to be the last straw.
“They’re not on the exchanges,” she said. “That’s a falsehood.”
Injustices ReichRoberts, Scalito, KKKennedy, and TEABAG (who, as usual, said nothing) knew the truth. Pretending not to gives them an excuse to ignore the Constitution and discriminate against women. Kudos to Justice Sotomayor for calling them on it and getting the truth on the record.
From NY Times: The Justice Department said on Monday that it had found a way to unlock an iPhone without help from Apple, allowing the agency to withdraw its legal effort to compel the tech company to assist in a mass-shooting investigation.
The decision to drop the case — which involved demanding Apple’s help to open an iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook, a gunman in the December shooting in San Bernardino, Calif., that killed 14 people — ends a legal standoff between the government and the world’s most valuable public company. The case had become increasingly contentious as Apple refused to help the authorities, inciting a debate about whether privacy or security was more important.
When the government hacked the phone, privacy rights lost. Nevertheless, those organizations claiming to have won the debate, and requesting donations, based on that victory, are still lying. Please give them nothing, inform others, and ask others to give organizations, who lie to get money, nothing. More and more left wing organizations are adopting unethical Republican fund raising tactics. Even though many are worthy causes, the worst thing we can do with our dollars is teach them to act like Republicans. People who act like Republicans to defeat Republicans become Republicans.
Cartoon:
16 Responses to “Open Thread–3/29/2016”
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AB nailed it since some ran normal programming instead of election coverage like they had for every other primary date.
Sotomayer does deserve kudos. I'm sad that it was 4-4 on union fair share case of the CA teachers' case. Glad that a majority defended Tongass.
It is no worse than Clinton asking for $1 when it costs the campaign over $2 to process a donation IMO when public pressure was at least a factor in the result.
An important anniversary to remember as our troops' involvement in Iraq is escalating again.
Oh, Andy…once again you' ve hit the nail on the head….I was excited for Bernie but there surely was not the coverage Hillary got for her wins.
I don't mind at all if companies decide to not pay for birth control because it's against their religious principles. Never mind the "separation of church and state" stuff…it's just fine with me as long as viagra is not longer covered either…and since it' s against my religious principles to kill animals for food we should exclude that somehow…and my religion surely doesn't approve of fracking so that must go. Not to mention paying huge sums of money to Congressional folk who do nothing. Well, heck, we can just bring the country to a grinding halt in a hurry if we try hard enough….
You're religious beliefs don't matter to Congress. Only pseudo-Christian piety codes matter.
4:15 If he's a night bird, does that mean that even if you win handily, you have to wait until it gets dark to eat him?
New Yorker – Alas, more straight news.
HuffPo – Indeed. Incidentally, IMO she used the perfect word – "falsehood." Just short of calling them liars, which would have been rude. Much stronger than "mistake" or "error" or "misunderstanding." But it nails them as being either liars or fools – and they are damned whichever way they choose to take it.
NY Times – I have very mixed feelings on this. It appears to be a kind of ethical quagmire where no one is right. My personal solution is to keep my landline and mostly use it, while maintaining a cell phone that way predates smartphones and using it only for emergencies. (It is at least 14 years old and still on its original battery.) But living like that would be an extreme hardship for many, and they should not have to worry about being spied on. Who will fight for us? And will withholding donations help if we don't tell them we are withholding, and why?
Cartoon – and I wasn't anywhere near. But later, in 1975, when all the US civilians were evacuated, I was close enough to have had a small hand in it.
NYer: Is this great or what?? Spot on, Andy!! LOL.
NYT: “Now that the F.B.I. has accessed this iPhone, it should disclose the method for doing so to Apple,” she added. “Apple ought to have the chance to fix that security issue, which likely affects many other iPhones.” I think the FBI should share how they unlocked it, but I am concerned about the security of it too. I don't know much about iphones, I have an old cell phone. I prefer landline, call me old anytime.
Cartoon: My husband was in Vietnam, and to this day, he doesn't talk about it, like a lot of my generation. My father spoke a little of the horror of Pearl Harbor, but it was with deep sadness. War begets nothing.
Kudos to you, Joanne for assisting those civilians in their evacuation. You are a part of history.
I also have difficulty with the mydriatics, I sit in a darkened room for a spell, afterwards. Hope that you have a relaxing evening, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
2:25 I was trying to save that birdie and I think I snatched him up from the jaws of de-cat in the nick of time!
That Squatch foot flattened my lunch.
"People who act like Republicans to defeat Republicans become Republicans." Agreed! I have become inured to all the constant money begging- so many, if not all, of the petition signings, on line, are connected to a donations request, that I am fairly convinced that the petitions are mere afterthoughts to fund raising; not that I don't sign, mind you.
Sonia Sotomayor is my newest Bronx hero!
Borowitz just continues to please!
I agree. This applies moreso when Democratic organizations are directing the results to Republicans knowing that they couldn't care less about our signatures,
Puzzle — 2:25 I was trying to save that birdie and I think I snatched him up from the jaws of de-cat in the nick of time!
The New Yorker — Andy's correct! Bernie could get 99% and I don't think the MSM would notice. He's a social democrat AND he's not flashy or obscene. He's a 'from the heart' kind of guy. Go Bernie!
Huffington Post — What part of "There is no such thing as a “birth control only” policy." do the Injustices not comprehend? But then, that's the point, they DO understand! They just don't care that women not covered will be discriminated against. More war on women. It will be interesting to see how the court rules.
NY Times — "People who act like Republicans to defeat Republicans become Republicans." — AMEN!!!
Cartoon — So long ago and yet so recent.
I am so sorry that you have another malady to contend with, but you are a trooper, who always will defeat whatever it is.
The New Yorker: Love Andy! He always gets to the heart of the subject. No matter how many votes Bernie receives, the media will still cast him as the loser.
Huffington Post: Those Scotus members who pretend not to understand probably have huge bank accounts. I try, but I still don't understand why so many GOP members are so averse to women having birth control. They don't want to feed the kids after they get here or they wouldn't keep cutting money for Food Stamps.
NY Times: I agree, TC, don't give money to these organizations who claim they are responsible for this, it was only a matter of time before the government found a way to hack the I phone. There is no such thin as privacy in our country anymore.
Cartoon: I celebrated that day!
You're frustration about losing more time with yet another ailment that needs monitoring is very understandable, TomCat. Your ophthalmologist will have reassured you cataract removal is a minor operation and also that choroidal nevus is seldom malignant, but as you say, it all takes up so much of your precious time. Have a catnap on me, you'll feel so much better.
TNY: Where's the satire, Andy? It's spot on and not really funny. This is as close to news reporting as you've ever gotten.
HuPo/DK: It's a disgrace for a country to have justices on their highest court pronouncing judgment on whether certain laws are applied correctly – because that is what all supreme courts do, even for laws they do not like – and either have no idea what the law and its protocol entail or play stupid because that's more convenient for them. There should be an outrage among judges and law pundits for bringing so much discredit to the profession.
NYT: Has the FBI disclosed which outside company has offered its services and unlocked the telephone?
Good one, Lona! What a lovely ans economical way to say "The FBI is so dumb, they couldn't possibly have hacked that phone by themselves. I wonder who helped them."
Ditto JD!!
Thanks all!! Hugs!!
"People who act like Republicans to defeat Republicans become Republicans." I coined that one during the 2008 election season.
Thanks, TC! Great one!