I had virtually no sleep yesterday, because of the women’s march. I’m not complaining, just pooped. See today’s lead article. Wendy just left. We fumigated the stinky TomCat, did the dreaded task, completed some paperwork that I can’t see,did some light housekeeping, and had brunch. Tomorrow, please expect no more than a Personal Update. I have an appointment with my Ocular Oncologist to determine whether or not the surgeries I had six months ago for my eye cancer were successful. If so, I can start dealing with cataracts. If not, I’ll lose the eye. The odds are very favorable. After being completely dilated I will not be able to see well enough to type until Tuesday morning at the earliest.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:30 (average 4:16). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (SNL Channel): Kellyanne Conway
The fame would not be worth all the grabbing with tiny hands. RESIST!!
From Robert Reich: The ongoing contest between the Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders wings of the Democratic Party continues to divide Democrats. It’s urgent Democrats stop squabbling and recognize seven basic truths:
The Party is on life support. Democrats are in the minority in both the House and Senate, with no end in sight. Since the start of the Obama Administration they’ve lost 1,034 state and federal seats. They hold only governorships, and face 32 state legislatures fully under GOP control. No one speaks for the party as a whole. The Party’s top leaders are aging, and the back bench is thin.
The future is bleak unless the Party radically reforms itself. If Republicans do well in the 2018 midterms, they’ll control Congress and the Supreme Court for years. If they continue to hold most statehouses, they could entrench themselves for a generation.
Robert Reich is spot on. I shared one of his points. Click through for the other six. RESIST!!
From Common Dreams: About an hour after President Donald Trump was sworn in on Friday, his administration suspended indefinitely a scheduled cut in mortgage insurance premiums—effectively raising costs for middle-class borrowers by about $500 a year.
The drop in rate, which was announced January 9 and supposed to go into effect on January 27, had been lauded as an opportunity to make homeownership more accessible to an estimated one million first-time and low-to-middle-income borrowers.
The Fuhrer is wasting no time kicking the poor and middle classes in the balls. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
13 Responses to “Open Thread – 1/22/2017”
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this must be the alternate reality she talked about today on the mainstream media………
Sunday January 22, 2017, 3:00 pm
YT: Personally, I can't stomach KAC, with her "alternative facts", but Kate performed wonderfully!
http://time.com/4642689/kellyanne-conway-sean-spicer-donald-trump-alternative-facts/
RR: Good article, I certainly agree. "The question hovering over America’s future is which form of populism will ultimately prevail. At some point, hopefully, Trump voters will discover they’ve been hoodwinked. Even in its purist form, authoritarian populism doesn’t work because it destroys democracy. Democrats must offer the alternative." Wise words, Mr. Reich.
CD: In the first hour, no less. Yep, screwing the folks and hitting them in the gut…and meanwhile, the rich get richer. boy, oh boy! ugh!
Has anyone viewed SNL's tribute to President Obama? I needed my hanky.
Here it is:
http://www.thewrap.com/snl-ends-musical-sidney-poitier-inspired-obama-dedication-sir-love-video/
On twitter, writing comments re: Spicer's comments about the comparison of the two pictures of the inauguration crowds. Obama/DT. Two twitter comments that hit close to home w/me.
DG Curry- "That was not empty space…that was millions of people wearing sheets." re: DT
Mr. Mini12- "Everytime DT tells a lie, an angel gets his/her wings."
My guys, GB is failing miserably….it's painful to watch them. (I was rooting for them). Atlanta moves on.
Best to you tomorrow at your Ocular Oncologist appt. Enjoy your evening, get some much needed rest, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
4:14 We have seen it before, and it's still orange.
Prayers coming your way. And good thoughts.
YT/SNL – I am speechless. Sort of. SNL was certainly leading a charmed life when they signed Kate McKinnon, no?
RR – "Bleak" is kind of throwing roses at it. On the other hand, I'm not sure there is a word scary enough.
Common Dreams – Of course, not everyone needs mortgage insurance (it's based on equity), and, if you do need it, you and pay the principal down to where you don't, on an FHA loan, you can get it back. Or so it was ten years ago. I know things change. But I agree, it is the low and middle income borrowers, and particularly those with no savings, who will be hurt the most. And who are the most in need of accurate explanations and good counseling, and the least likely to get them.
Cartoon – I never needed one myself, but I am old enough to remember how terrible it was, and what bad things happened to good women. We need to keep it, and expand upon it, not lose it (and how familiar does THAT sound)?
YT: The Conway, and Putin skits were so on point!
RR is so very right, in so many ways. Bernie was torpedoed by the DNC, and the situation we are in is the result, in large part, of the divided vote afterwards. The "establishment," as represented by Debbie Wasserman Schultz, did, indeed, blow it for the Dems. We can not have another alternate party, a "Pink Party" comes to mind, because we will just split our votes yet again! In my mind, we need an ELIZABETH WARREN Democratic party, in 4 years. First, we need to make hay out of the lies E.O. (Empty Orange) puts out, and the foul taste he will have left in the rust belt mouths, in 2018!
Even if The Great Empty Orange gets impeached, as has been noted elsewhere, we will still be under the leadership of mysoginist, bigoted, only, then, also, theocratic clowns!
Cartoon: I am hoping that the march shows the GOPigs how bad it might be for their careers to take Roe v. Wade away. Their careers, and the related opportunity to make still more, more, more money out of them is all they care about.
RESIST!!!!!!!!!!
"Even if The Great Empty Orange gets impeached, as has been noted elsewhere, we will still be under the leadership of mysoginist, bigoted, only, then, also, theocratic clowns!"
That's true – but at least Pence is NOT batshit crazy.
The question is if THAT is better or worse for America!
Best of wishes on you eye exam!
Just had my annual eye exam last week. The mydriatic dilation is always a pain, so I always schedule as early as possible. Fortunately mine wears off in ~ 6-8 hours.
Fingers crossed!
Mine up to 24. Thanks.
Puzzle — 3:07 Tiptoe through the tulips . . .
YouTube — Unfortunately, SNL is not available in Canada. However, if it mocked Drumpfenfarten in any way, it has to be good!
Resist!!!
Robert Reich — He is of course Reich on! If Democrats don't change their paradigms to create and sustain a progressive movement, they will be part of the dust bin of history.
Resist!!!
Common Dreams — And so it starts!
Resist!!!
Cartoon — It starts with a woman's right to choose! That can never be surrendered!
Resist!!!
Good luck with your appointment tomorrow. It has already been a long wait but it is almost over. I lit a candle for you at church this morning. You still have our God Squad behind you! I had my annual eye exam 10 days ago and I am good for another year. This coming week is busy, especially Tuesday and the press conference in which I am involved. Take care.
Oh, man. Such goings on! I would never in my wildest nightmares thought that this country could be brought to its knees by and angry orange turd! I, sadly, am wrong! He's brought the whole world into our nightmare! That's why we gotta get this fixed and RIGHT NOW!
OK. That was my depression talking. Depression over a country that has gone so OFF THE RAILS! Makes me wish for, ugh, days of Shrub!
Best wishes and prayers for your eye exam TC! Oh yes, I had forgotten – to look at your eyes they have to have ?atropine or some such to dilate the pupils don't they? Last time I had that done my eyes looked like the eyes of one of those cats drawn by Louis Wain a hundred or so years ago – and I bet you will too TC!
Like yourself, I've really high hopes for the outcome of your appointment with the Ocular Oncologist. The prognosis has been good from the time the tumor was detected (early, that's always good) and even better after your operations. So I'm keeping fingers and toes crossed you'll come home with a list of data to get rid of your cataracts next. I also hope you'll be able to get some sleep now the demonstrations have quietened down.
YT(SNLC): KellyAnne who?
Robert Reich: Sad, but true, Reich is spot on again. Like all people in power, the Democratic party leadership will not admit to having made a terrible mistake by backing the wrong horse (sorry, Bernie, Hillary and horses), but worst of all they are still persisting in the mistake at the cost of any unity on progressive side. Bernie is not getting anywhere he had hoped within the party, so I hope he and his followers have a real hard look at their options very soon and come to a decision. I know it's revolutionary, but the age of Drumpf asks for revolutionary measures and it is time to shed the ball and chain of the old Democratic line and start anew with a Democratic Socialist / Socialist Democratic party. There are enough people out there who put the country before their own interests and will prove great assets to this truly new political wind. If they do it now they may have it all in place by 2018 and save the country from further ruin.
CD: Am I wrong in thinking this was not mentioned on Faux News and all of the other Drumpfian media? The non-president sure didn't tweet about this great accomplishment, did he.
RESIST!
Thank you, Pat, for the SNL link – lump in the throat stuff, isn't it? Also watched CNN's show on the writers and workers in the White House – there is no way in holy hell Trump can begin to compare favorably. He's already showing the middle and poorer class how much he cares about them.
TC, wishing you the best results for tomorrow…may all be well!
Thanks all hugs!