I don’t know why I’ve been feeling lethargic, but after doing my morning research, I needed to take a nap, so I’m running late again, and still feeling tired. My green cloud is gathering strength.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:46 (average 4:04). To do it click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From Daily Kos: In other states, Sam Brownback’s Kansas revolution is still being treated as a model for pared down government, but those close to ground zero are a bit less enthused.
… many of the same Republicans who helped pass Brownback’s plan are in open revolt, refusing to help the governor cut spending so he can avoid rolling back any of his signature tax measures.
If Brownback won’t reconsider any of the tax cuts, they say, he will have to figure out for himself how to balance the budget in the face of disappointing revenue.
Brownback sold the state on a flood tide worth of trickle down tax cuts, arguing that massive reductions would spur a surge of growth in the state and actually generate increased revenue. Instead, Kansas got a huge budget shortfall, education cuts, service cuts, and still more debt as top Republican economists proved for the nth time that they’re simply wrong. Oh, and instead of rocketing growth Kansas has actually underperformed neighboring states.
When Republicans are in charge the only thing that trickles down onto the poor and middle classes is urine.
From NY Times: Even as his chances of winning the Democratic presidential nomination slip away, Senator Bernie Sanders and his allies are trying to use his popularity to expand his political influence, setting up an ideological struggle for the soul of the Democratic Party in the post-Obama era.
Aides to Mr. Sanders have been pressing party officials for a significant role in drafting the platform for the Democratic convention in July, aiming to lock in strong planks on issues like a $15-an-hour federal minimum wage, breaking up Wall Street banks and banning natural gas “fracking.”
Considering all the effort Bernie is making to transform the Democratic Party, those who would abandon the Party, if Bernie loses, would be working against Bernie.
From Alternet: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, elected last fall, campaigned on a promise that his Liberal government would legalize marijuana. Now, we’re getting an idea of just when that is going to happen.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on Drugs Wednesday, Canadian Health Minister Jane Philpott said the government will introduce legislation to legalize and regulate marijuana in spring 2017.
Does this mean our beloved Squatch will be getting even loonier? 
Cartoon:
13 Responses to “Open Thread–4/25/2016”
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Amazing to see some GOP sense honoring oaths of office for a change.
Bernie's votes earned his team those kind of rights; if it is denied, then I wouldn't blame people for turning their backs on the party that finished abandoning them.
Nice to see Trudeau honoring another campaign promise.
3:27 (4:04) Do be careful; I see no lifeboats.
DKos – Hard to believe anyone in any other state is stupid enough to believe that hype in the face of the facts – of course, maybe they don't, but are just followung their masters' instructions to do so.
NY Times – Oh, Lord, I agree. But they think they are "thinking for themselves," "not blindly following a party line," etc. etc., and in general acting as spoiled as Republicans. One thing, it's easy to tell that they are new to politics!
AlterNet – Wait – you mean is she going to be toking the nationsl bird?1???11? Somehow I don't see that.
Cartoon – And apparently we should have listened to him. Though his record is now overshadowed in Google by the publication of information on double helix DNA – and Rosalind Franklin is STILL not credited.
Oklahoma is doing the same as Kansas! We are cutting education at a record pace! SO many millions of dollars given away to the wealthy and NOW the OK City school district is cutting teachers and administration jobs because we have a budget shortfall of MILLIONS of dollars that has been lost to Big Oil and their kickbacks! Brownback seems to be giving lessons to Failin' Fallon on how to screw-up the economy of a state!
Sanders followers need to grow up!!! I love Bernie and voted for him in the primary in OK. But, c'mon guys! We gotta keep the White House BLUE!!!
If Canada legalizes marijuana, it makes Canada so MUCH MORE a place that I will be going if (gag) Drumpf gets in!!! They will have to build a wall to keep the Americans from storming THAT border, in that case! (hopefully) LOL!!!
Viv, we're not into walls, but . . . look out for slapshots with frozen hockey pucks! Perhaps we could try to hit Drumpf or Cruz if either one makes it to Pennsylvania Avenue.
AlterNet: This is great/wonderful news…wish we'd do it here. Can you envision a stoned guv'nor here in TX? lol
Cartoon: Morse spoke for 22 hours and 26 minutes to stall debate on the Tidelands Oil bill in 1953. He also served terms in the Senate as both a Democrat and a Republican. *wivb.com
Hope that you get some well needed rest. Enjoy your evening, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
DK: Brownback, and anyone who pushes trickle down concepts is, esentially, a traitor to his/her consituents, except the very wealthy ones, of course. But, then, any plan that purports to make sence out of closing educational opportunities is one the REPUGS will love. What we have here is further proof that Repugs can not govern!! Do the same dumb shit, get the same bad results, and do it over, and over. Oh, is that one of the definitions of lunacy? Who would'a thunk?
NYT: All Dems need to vote for whomever the Dem candidate is, to keep the lunatics out of the oval office, out of SCOTUS; to sustain the chance that they will EVER get to vote again!
Justin Trudeau is showing what is possible: Telling the truth, and still getting elected-What a crazy idea!
2:46 So we're going on a cruise together, eh?
3:21 I went overboard! Help!
Let's go fishin'!!
Your body is telling you to slow down so that it can do its job. You have had a rough six months.
DK: If our new governor has his way, Kentucky will be in the same boat. It is plain for anyone to see, that this does not work, never has, never will, but it gets their corporate sponsors big tax breaks.
NY Times: I believe the deck was stacked against Bernie as soon as he announced his candidacy as a Dem. Being an independent for so long did not endear him to the party faithful. I also believe it is past time for Wasserman-Shultz to be removed from her position. She has acted more like a Republican lately. They did not expect Bernie to get the support that he has, and fully believed this was Hllary's turn for the office. I don't like it, but I will still vote for her if she is nominated. She won't be the Progressive that I wanted in the office, but she is still better than any Republican. We all know that voting for a third party candidate is effectively a vote for the republicans.
Alternet: I like Trudeau better every day. I, a child of the sixties, have never tried marijuana. I do believe it should be legalized, though.
Cartoon: Apparently we should have listened to him.
Puzzle — 2:46 So we're going on a cruise together, eh?
Daily Kos — In the case of Kansas, that's not trickle down . . . it's a frigging tsunami! A Republican Brownback tsunami!
NY Times — Democrats better get their shit together or the fractured, bigoted, racist Republican party will be marching down Pennsylvania Avenue into the White House! As I used to say to my staff, the other bank on the corner is the "enemy", not our own branches. Know who the real enemy is!
Alternet — "Canada's is a parliamentary system, which generally means that if the government introduces a bill, it becomes law." — This is inaccurate. Yes we are a parliamentary system. However, if there is a minority government, which frequently happens, bills do not automatically become law. Mr Trudeau has a strong majority government so a bill is likely to become law. As to marijuana, I have never used it and would never use it if it were only available to smoke. I do however support its legalisation with the proper safeguards in place.
As to being loonie, if I had a buck for every time that was said, I'd be rich in both countries!
Cartoon — That's a lot of hot air!
You don't know why you are lethargic but your green cloud is gathering strength, TomCat? Hmmmm…Could there possibly be a relationship there 😉 🙂 But kidding aside, you've been very busy these past few days and you have to deal with things you have no control over, both of which may have been contributing to your tiredness. Take it easy and nap whenever your body tells you to. You've earned it, my friend.
DK: One could argue they have brought it upon themselves by voting for a Republican governor and state congress, but I do feel sorry for the people in Kansas nevertheless. Apparently a lot of the Republicans believed the tales their governor and the GOP establishment spun them about the trickle-down economy, but to their credit quite a few are acknowledging their mistake and try to get Brownback to change course. Sadly, like so many GOP governors, after a few years in power Sam Brownback believes himself king of a country who doesn't bear any responsibility for the welfare of his subjects and doesn't accept to be spoken against. In short, he's a tyrant. Let's hope that the rebellious Republicans, who may have felt Sam's idea of trickle down (LOL, TomCat) staining their suits, can turn this around soon together with the Democrats in Kansas.
NYT: Kudos to Bernie Sanders for being a true Social Democrat and continuing to do what is best for the country even if he personally may not be getting what he wants. He has woken up a sizeable part of the population to economical and political possibilities, especially among the younger generations, and knows and feels that he can't abandon his and their cause just because he doesn't get the nomination. He'll continue to fight from within the Democratic party to change America for the better and so should all Democrats. Bernie may leave the Democratic party in time because it resists change and doesn't listen to the people, but only THEN is it time to leave too and join him in starting a progressive Social Democratic party to the left of the Democrats whose remainder will then fill the gap that the GOP's disintegration has left in the political spectrum.
Alternet: With Justin Trudeau working down his to do list, Canada is turning into the Netherlands I used to like, but which is slowly disappearing as the right-wing populists are gaining more and more power. Justin should come over here and show us what we're in the process of loosing. In the meantime I can't wait for him to get to the next item on his list, though: doing something about the appalling situation of Indigenous Canadians.
Cartoon: Let's hope this is truly part of history now. I'd hate to see Cruz and his ilk start to read from children's books again.
Thanks all! Hugs!!
In his Town Hall last night,. Bernie said that, win or lose, he would do "everything humanly possoble" to keep a Republican out of the White House.