This is today’s only article from me. The good news is that I seem to have recovered from Republicosis. The bad news is that the blog caught it. I went to update the poll this morning, and went to the administrators’ page that I always use to edit the sidebar widgets. It is blank. That means we have a conflict, between one of our plugins and WordPress, between two of our plugins, or between our theme and WordPress. I’m going to have to deactivate all our plugins and add them back one at a time until I find the culprit. During the process, the blog will be changing rapidly in appearance and function, so please be patient, and know that you are not the cause of this. At worst I may need to rebuild from scratch with far fewer bells and whistles. I needed this like America needs Trump! ARGH!!
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 3:23 (average 5:46). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (MoveOn Channel): 13 Men Deciding Health Care
I have nothing against men. I am one. I would not want 13 women to make decisions on my absolute need to scratch certain itches, and 13 well-intended progressive men, let alone 13 Republican misogynists, must not be allowed to make decisions on women’s health needs. RESIST!!
From YouTube (Full Frontal Channel): Sessions ‘n Cotton’s Movie Talk
The Red Queen should sue over her comparison to the Fuhrer. RESIST!!
From Exposed by CMD: This year’s legislative season saw a strong push in the states from right-wing groups, bankrolled by the Koch brothers and other ultra-conservative billionaires, hoping to convene a national constitutional convention in order to inject rigid fiscal constraints into our country’s founding document. Advocates of a federal “balanced budget amendment” (BBA) picked up two more states, Wyoming and Arizona, in their drive to win the 34 resolutions needed to bypass Congress and convene a convention to propose changes to the U.S. Constitution.
That momentum, however, was blunted by surprisingly successful campaigns to rescind convention calls in three states, New Mexico, Maryland, and Nevada. As a result, BBA proponents now claim 27 states in their column, down from 28 at the beginning of the year.
Two steps forward and three steps back…from the brink of a political experiment untried since 1787.
Click Through. A Constitutional Convention of, by, and for Republican Koch Suckers would be an unmitigated disaster. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
30 Responses to “Open Thread – 6/16/2017”
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4:18 I haven't been doing the puzzle as long as everyone else,but this one looks new to me.
Good luck – that's not a fun scenario at all. Try to keep in mind while you are doing that that your work is appreciated, proably more than we could say even if we tried.
YT/MO – The difference is that 13 well-intended Progressive men, in this day and age, would know better than to try. But this is how the patriarchy has always worked. Some of the patriarchy still believes that women are not human and don't have souls.
YT/FF – Do you mean the actual Red Queen, or the actress (who, difficult as she is to recognize through the miracle of CGI, is Helena Bonham Carter)? Or both? There might be a case but – wait! What am I saying! It would be SAM that she'd be suing! No way!
CMD – Kudos to New Mexico, Maryland, and Nevada. Garlic bouquets (or buckets of garlic) to Wyoming's and Arizona's vampires. Well, this is a fine kettle of fish. And an EXCELLENT demonstration of why we need to be as concerned about our state legislatures as we do about the feds. And even city councils and county commissioners.
Cartoon – I'd be tempted to steal one of Lona's barf emojis, except that they are so realistic the need barf bags of their own.
Thanks JD. This is a test.
I found and fixed the problem. The culprit was CKEditor, the graphics editor we were using. I replaced it with ARK, which has a lot few bells and whistles (Sorry Nameless. Fewer toys.
). But it appears to be stable. This cat is headed for the rack! 
Great going, TomCat. The CKEditor was missing for a few hours, so I gathered this was the villain. The new one may have fewer options, but it allows the speller of browser to do its job, so I won’t get caught out when I forget to the speller on and from your comment it looks like it has a lots of great emoticons
Thanks for all your hard work.
Thanks Lona. I just added two more sets of emoticons.
So sorry about the mess at the blog and the amount of work that creates for you, TomCat. Were these problems with the editor caused by the WordPress update to 4.8 they kept announcing?
MoveOn Channel: Each day Republicans take America further back into the dark ages.
Sam Bee: Yup, the Red Queen will now scream “off with his head” at Drumpf for his being compared to hers. That must surely trump his “you’re fired”.
CMD: Thank goodness, finally some movement in the right, I mean left, direction. Thank you all who have resisted the Kochs’ BBA in New Mexico, Maryland, and Nevada!
Cartoon: And in 2017 Drumpf put a ban on human decency.
It’s hard to tell exactly what set it off. But CKEditor has been flaky for years.
Thanks, TC for the repair!! Looks good!
YT: This is so bad. Most unfortunate that these guys think they fix everything (their way) on writing the health care bill. I guess they ‘shut up’ their wives, daughters, and mothers if/when they come up with a better idea?? ugh.
FF: Love Sam!!
CMD: Not good. Not good at all.
Cartoon: Very Scary!!!
Hope all the computer glitches get remedied. Have a good, relaxing evening, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
*I mailed you a get well card, and addressed it to the Hospital with your room # too. I got it back ‘Return to Sender’ today in the mailbox. I mailed it when you were still in the hospital too. Sorry about that. Tom.
Thanks Pat. I appreciate it. When I lost my leg, a different hospital forwarded a box of pears JL sent me months after I returned home.
I just lost my entire comment as I tried to put my “Resist and Persist!!!” graphic in. There is only the standard text size, no amending the alignment, I tried to copy Lona’s “Resist” and put in to no avail as I was able to do before, and putting in links sucks because now the “underline” follows to the next word. I am pissed and I am tired so screw my comment! Obviously, I am not tech savvy.
Puzzle — 3:50 That cow was turned into Trump steaks so I do not recommend dining on said cow!
https://www.7thstep.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/ResistPersist_9.png
https://www.7thstep.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/ResistPersist_9.png
Just something I noticed before the repairs which may still be true – comments work differently whether one is logged in or not. But – yes – ouch. I am logged in and there’s all the loss you describe.
I did manage to figure out how to embed a video – a 30-second one from the DSCC about Republicare which I think is pretty good.
Great video, Joanne
I would have uses the code command or the source code button. Which did you use?
At the time, there wasn’t a source button. But the code command looked like it did similar things, so I tried it, and it worked.
The source code button is two angled brackets and is next to the block code button.
Thanks! Plus, the new “Preview” button may help.
I just tried it, and it can’t be closed. I’ll need yo remove it.
I’m sorry that happened – but in the circumstances, glad I brought it up.
Indeed!! Better it fail on me than someone else.
Good vid JD.
I am always logged in when I do comments, partly because I will go back and forth with the dashboard and partly because that is the only way to get the larger font etc.
Me too, same reasons – except that TC says the new settings give the options to non-admins. I hope that does work. There are a lot of creative people out there!
I’m sorry. You might make it a graphic and store it in the image library.
Burgers tonight!! BURP!! Almost as good as dawg!!
Lona’s graphic in the library is what I tried to use but it would not work either. I’ll see what happens today, but so far, I’m not impressed.
Fixed!
OK, this should be easy, even for me.
Daily Kos has a transcript of Drumpf making a toast at his daughter’s wedding. Here is the first part and you can click through for the remainder. He proves that he is an ignorant, narcissistic racist who has no business being the president.
ARGH!
Hopefully this will help your blood pressure a little:
Thanks all. Hugs!