Here at the CatBox, the outside temperature got down to 23° this morning, setting another record. After today, it should start to warm up. I hope you all have a wonderful, Republican-free weekend!
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 4:12 (average 5:27). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (Media Matters Channel): How conspiracy theories about Parkland shooting survivors spread
Barf Bag Alert!!
As usual, the Republican Reich has earned a PhD (pilled higher and deeper) in Bullshitology! RESIST!!
From YouTube (CNN Channel): Trump considers pulling ICE agents to punish California
Barf Bag Alert!!
If Fuhrer Drumpfenfarten pulled ICE from CA, wouldn’t most Californians call that a blessing, not a punishment? RESIST!!
From NY Times: The only armed sheriff’s deputy at a Florida high school where 17 people were killed took cover outside rather than charging into the building when the massacre began, the Broward County sheriff said on Thursday. The sheriff also acknowledged that his office received 23 calls related to the suspect going back a decade, including one last year that said he was collecting knives and guns, but may not have adequately followed up.
The deputy, Scot Peterson, resigned on Thursday after being suspended without pay after Sheriff Scott Israel reviewed surveillance video.
“He never went in,” Sheriff Israel said in a news conference. He said the video showed Deputy Peterson doing “nothing.”
“There are no words,” said Sheriff Israel, who described himself as “devastated, sick to my stomach.”
Two other deputies were placed on restricted duty on Thursday because they may have mishandled tips called in to the sheriff’s office over the past two years warning that the suspect, Nikolas Cruz, appeared intent on becoming a school shooter, Sheriff Israel said.
The revelations added to a growing list of failures and missed signs by the authorities that might have helped prevent one of the deadliest school shootings in American history.
Peterson should not be allowed to retire. His pension should be stripped, and he should be fired. The GOP/NRA "good guys with guns" mantra is hogwash! On the missed signs and mishandled reports, incompetence just what foolish voters get, when they elect Republicans. RESIST!!
From The New Yorker: Donald J. Trump was reportedly “furious” on Wednesday morning after a purge of right-wing bots by Twitter left him with a total of fourteen remaining followers, aides have confirmed.
Rising at 3 a.m. to engage in one of his trademark early-morning tweetstorms, Trump was incensed to discover that his Twitter following had plummeted from more than forty-eight million to a little more than a dozen.
At Twitter headquarters, in San Francisco, a company spokesman confirmed that Trump had indeed lost 48,076,920 followers in the bot purge. “It turned out that over forty-six million of the President’s followers came from a single troll farm in Macedonia,” the spokesman said.
As of Wednesday, Trump’s fourteen remaining Twitter followers included his daughter Ivanka; his sons Eric and Donald, Jr.; several White House aides; and someone named Heinrich Himmler III.
Dang Andy! LOL!! I’m sure not surprised. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
I’ve used this on this date for five years now. It’s perennially relevant.
12 Responses to “Open Thread – 2/23/2018”
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The only armed deputy ran for cover when the firing started? What a chickens–t! So much for the “good guys with guns” codswallop.
If people had been reporting that kid for years, yes, somebody should have checked on him, given him the therapy he needed. But our gub-mint’s deep cuts in mental health care probably prevented that.
The Orange Ogre had 46 million “followers” from a troll farm? Too funny for words! Good thing I didn’t have a mouthful of beverage when I read that or I’d be busy cleaning my MacBook.
4:32 Also (informally) known as a DYC.
MM – These students may be new to activism (as we once were), but they have been around the block enough not to allow this conspiracy crap to derail them. I have faith in them.
CNN – I didn’t see this, but I read about it a Daily Kos. I only wish his handlers WOULD allow him to do that. But they know, as he does not, that if he did, it would only make a great state greater.
NYT – Actually, I and many other veterans do not agree. One veteran, for example, says that after seven years of training specifically for firefights, still, on going into his forst one, he forgot to take off the safety on his weapon and thought it had jammed (he did eventually remember and, obviously, survived.) Another points out that by the time a single person armed with a handgun can aim – for the head, because there’s a good chance a shooter like this is wearing body armor – he will have himself (or herself) been shot between 15 and 50 times. In ten years in the military, I was never under fire, because at the time my gender wasn’t allowed there. So in order to make judgments, I have to listen to those who were. Please, let’s listen to all the opinions – and experiences – before passing judgment here.
TNY – The only satire here is the numbers – the story itself is factual. I do hope archaeologists are paying close attention to what parts of Europe, North Africa, and Asia are having earthquakes right now. They might be able to solve the mystery of the exact location of the tomb of Alexander the Great – because he is surely spinning in it!
Cartoon – And 73 years ago today six Marines raised a flag on the highest point of a little island off Japan and Joe Rosenthal took their picture.
And one of those marines was a Native American!
Ira Hayes. One of my heroes. His later life was sad.
BBA: I support our young determined generation for standing and saying ‘BS’, because that it was this is. BS!!!
BBA: While we’re at it, pull them out of Texas too!! That’s a no-brainer, imho!!
NYT: Additional training, (unfortunately) is what is required for law enforcement to monitor the schools, which to me, is distressing enough to wrap my head around, personally. I can’t state why this officer was non-compliant to this emergency. I have seen SRO’s come on campuses with a vengeance and others come on with determining (assessing) the situation, and rather than pulling out the handcuffs immediately, instead talk to the student as an equal. I believe that students who are disruptive or even belligerent to authority should be and can be talked to for a positive remediation. I too, never served on a ship, or been in combat, but I believe as a human, all kids are worth the time and effort to help them resolve their difficulties and issues. I certainly do not have the answers, but most times, kids will speak their minds if they find a confidant. We can be part of the solution, not the problem.
TNY: Do your work tiny little bots….LOL !!
Cartoon: Thank gawd!!!
*Thank you, Joanne for the reminder. United States Marines raising a U.S. flag atop Mount Suribachi.
It’s been rainy and icky all day, but it’s starting to warm up too. Thankfully. Hope that you have a great evening, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
With regards to arming teachers, which I’m against– I read this yesterday, and would like to share it here:
“If a gunman (Nidal Hasan), US Army Major & psychiatrist) can walk into a military base like Fort Hood (2009) with 100% of the populace ‘highly trained’ in firearms usage, and still murder 13 people and injuring more than 30 others, with a pistol, do you honestly think that 20% of teachers having a gun is going to stop the next killer who may have an AR-15?? *Brian Krassenstein
Amen!!!
MMC: What bunch of s**tholes! La Pierre has the gumption to comment about how the left did not a minute go by? Yes, well, when minutes have gone by before, days, and weeks, and months…, nothing useful has come form him, or anyone else on the right!
Limbarf? anything he says is putrid, rancid, before it leaves his mouth. Apparently, he was the one who flagged the Empty Orange as “Our guy!” in 2016, to his imbecilic followers.
CNN: Blessing, indeed, I’d guess. and, this is how his vaunted, imaginary, “business acumen” works, by way of bullying and threats. It’s been that way for decades.
NYT: Someone ought to take that story and shove it for La Pierre! What a shame! Maybe Florida will wake up to the nightmare it has become politically…i did say “maybe.”
New Yorker: Did I miss something, when did Andy stop doing fiction?
TC!!!! your wonderful state just enacted a gun control bill, closing the so-called “Boyfriend” loophole. I tried to get the link for the speech that one of the Republican reps presented to his colleagues, but could not do it. He got teary with actual human emotion!!!!! Three Republicans joined the demo on passing the bill.
MM: Yes, the Right is falling back on its usual tactics of slander, smearing and conspiracy theories to avoid talking about the real issue, gun-control, and seems to be more vicious than ever because the agitation and debate isn’t dying down as soon as they thought it would. But this time the NRA/Republicans have lost the momentum. Their tactics are exposed everywhere and the movement the Parkland High students have initiated seems to grow only stronger from it. I hope this strong wave will only increase in strength and will finally lead to change.
CNN: Thank you, Mr. Drumpf, California is now thinking on ways to get you to turn words into action and have you pull out ICE and border patrol. The richest state with the highest taxes and the best economy would be very grateful to have you butt out and may even come begging you to do so.
NYT: As I said yesterday, Peterson’s failure to go in and intervene shows that having armed security around schools doesn’t make pupils any safer, but like the lock-down drills only makes them feel very unsafe all the time. And as an armed principal, who detained a shootist at after the shooting at another school stated, going in and trying to stop him would have led to a shoot-out with many more casualties. Arming people (teachers, staff or security personnel) would either be useless or lead to bloodbaths OK-corral style, and may have accidental shootings as a consequence.
The fact that authorities missed so many signs is far more worrisome, even though it is doubtful that with lacks screening flagging Cruz would have prevented him from buying a military-style weapon.
TNY: You exaggerate a little, Andy. A quarter of those 48,076,920 followers aren’t bots, but Trump opponents who want to be the first to laugh over his latest Tweet and ridicule it.
Puzzle — 4:07 Nice and bright on a snowy day like today here in Metro Vancouver.
Media Matters — Thoroughly disgusting! “a PhD (pilled higher and deeper) in Bullshitology!” is too nice for these flagrantly false and demeaning statements from the right. LaPierre, Jones, Limbaugh and others should be sued for defaming the students, especially David Hogg who spoke out courageously as did Emma Gonzalez. One of these students may very well a future president of the US!
CNN — Of course I have heard of MS 13 but knew very little so of course I googled. IMO, MS 13 sounds a lot like the Republican Reich . . . From Wikipedia — Criminal activities: Drug trafficking [price fixing for profit], illegal immigration, people smuggling, robbery [Republican tax scam], larceny, human trafficking, extortion, murder [Republicare], money laundering [Wall Street], child prostitution [Roy Moore], prostitution [family values on display at the RNC among other places], racketeering, battery, kidnapping, and arms trafficking [sales to certain other nations]. The red text is my addition. I guess the Republican Reich and Drumpf don’t like competition!
NY Times — “Peterson should not be allowed to retire. His pension should be stripped, and he should be fired. The GOP/NRA “good guys with guns” mantra is hogwash!” — I agree! His resignation allows him to apply and be hired by another police force who does not do adequate vetting of potential employees.
The New Yorker — LMAO!!! I can envision Drumpf throwing a fit as his numbers go down! Could not happen to a more deserving psychopath.
Cartoon — And Republicans are still trying to overthrow the legislation with their voter suppression tactics! Shameful!!!
I won’t say it is sunny here today, but has stopped snowing. We have about 23 cm (9 in) of snow this morning. At times yesterday, it was a blizzard and accumulating at a centimetre per hour. Traffic was snarled, transit had many issues, and some businesses were closed because of the weather. The local universities, with one exception, were closed as were some schools who were not already closed for a teacher pro-D day. From what I saw (yes I did venture out), lots of kids were enjoying the snow! How did tropical Portland fair?
It stayed frigid all day, but today my window is open.
Thanks all! Hugs!