It’s been a hectic day here at the CatBox. CCC may have found me a new CatBox. Tomorrow, please expect no more than a Personal Update. I’m wheeling to the Golden West Building about sixteen blocks away with a CCC Manager to check it out and see if it can accommodate my needs. That will also interfere with my EOM routine here, so the new poll and monthly report will probably be late. My second article was Samantha Bee, but her videos from yesterday’s show have been removed from YouTube.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:28 (average 4:19). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Uncovered Secret Memo Could Shed More Light On President Trump Firing Comey
Drip… Drip… Drip… RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!
From Alternet: Federal prosecutors have charged two brothers with bilking Republicans across the country of “more than $50 million” in a giant scam where they posed as conservative political action committees (PACs) dedicated to furthering right-wing causes like supporting law enforcement and opposing reproductive rights.
“These nine PACS—which collectively raised more than $23 million between 2014 and 2017, and more than $50 million the last 10 years—were scams, operated to enrich the defendants and their co-conspirators,” the federal indictment said. “The PACs targeted victims across the country, including in the Southern District of New York, raising funds on the fraudulent basis that donations would support education regarding, and the political campaigns of those who supported, ‘autism awareness,’ ‘law enforcement appreciation,’ and pro-life causes.”
“In truth and fact, virtually all of the money raised was paid to the scheme participants or else used to perpetuate the fraud through additional telemarketing and fundraising expenditures,” the indictment continued. “Less than 1 percent of all donor money to the PACs was spent on political contributions during the relevant time period.”
The brothers had the audacity to compete with the party’s own sheeple fleecing. Either way, SCAMS are all Republicans have to offer. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!
From Daily Kos: The study was sui generis: Two Harvard Law professors, Alma Cohen and Crystal S. Yang, set out to analyze 1,400 federal judges’ sentencing practices over a 15-year period affecting more than 500,000 defendants. The results were predictable but disheartening.
They unearthed a stunning number of influences on sentencing, from years of experience and level of racism in a state to the party of appointment. Its major finding: Republican-appointed judges give black defendants harsher sentences than their white counterparts.
“Republican-appointed judges sentence black defendants to three more months than similar nonblacks. … These differences cannot be explained by other judge characteristics and grow substantially larger when judges are granted more discretion.”
Three months’ discrepancy accounts for 65 percent of the baseline racial sentence gap, meaning the average sentence disparity between similarly situated white and black defendants. The convictions driving the gap: serious drug and violent offenses.
Racism is a plank in the Republican platform. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!
Cartoon:
13 Responses to “Open Thread – 5/31/2018”
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5:04 Another butterfly I have no idea of toxicity about.
For those of you wondering why Obama did not release a statement on Russia before Election Day in 2016, this article won’t completely answer it, but it will probably come closer to answering it than anything except the book it’s about.
From Truscott’s keyboard to God’s monitor.
Brian – Of course the right is jumping on this as a way to undermine Rod Rosenstein. I pray THAT doesn’t happen. I read somewhere that what’s keeping Sessions in the DOj is that the Republicans in the Senate have advised Trump that they will NOT consent to confirming a new AG. incidentally , Trey Gowdy, at the time that Sessions was appointed everyone was still pretending that nothing happened with Russia … including Sessions still pretending he didn’t talk to any Russians anywhere, no sir, not him. Why is Brian giving Giuliani even seconds of air time?
AlterNet – I really just glanced at this to confirm the name was neither Koch nor Mercer. Since it wasn’t – ho hum. GOP business as usual.
DKos – And this was peer reviewed and printed in the Journal of Well, No Shit? (Apologies to Sam … the video is not on YouTube but I saw it on Raw Story – but that’s another story.)
Cartoon – Well, of course they do. I’ll bet if all gerrymandering could be undone they wouldn’t be so hot for it.
MSNBC: Gotta get a bigger shovel, as the hole is getting deeper and wider now!! So many ID’s.
AN: ‘$50 million the last 10 years’? Holy moly! What a scam!
DK: Very disheartening.
Cartoon: Yep.
The very best to you tomorrow on your adventure, and I hope all goes well, to and from. Enjoy your evening, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
I am so hoping that you will find a much better housing situation where the afternoon sun doesn’t beat you down and where there aren’t as many (or better none at all) fire scares. I’m sending positive energy your way!
Hope the Golden West will be what you’re looking for – and available.
NOTE: There will be NO “Friday Fun” tomorrow.
My brother (on his SIXTH admission since our Mom’s funeral on 2/13/16) has been moved to the ICU.
Talked to his nurse and he said it was for atrial fibrillation (not bad) and he’s stable.
Me? I’m wreck. I just went through all this anxiety-inducing phone calls w/ Mom. Not really looking for a reprise of all that.
But one’s gotta do what one’s gotta do for family.
Hope your brother is out of the ICU soon and stays out of it for a while. That’ll help to get your stress levels back to a more normal level, I’m sure. Good luck to the both of you, Nameless.
Chit! Chit! Chit! Yes, for heaven”s sake do what you have to do. Thought and prayers.
I am so sorry to hear that your brother is back in the hospital, Nameless. It is a good thing that I lit a candle last Sunday for your family. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your brother my dear friend. Please look after you too!
I texting with Nameless now. His brother is critical, on DNR and not likely to survive. Please keep family in your thoughts and prayers.
Good luck with CatBox viewing, TomCat. I hope it is to your liking and perhaps even better than where you are now.
Puzzle — 3:48 That tiny little butterfly will not keep the Puddy Tat satiated at all!
MSNBC — “Drip… Drip… Drip…” is looking a lot like Gush… Gush… Gush…! And it is aimed at the pResident in the WH. This is one time when gushing upward is in the best interest of the country. Drumpf is big on, in words only, law and order . . . but only when it does not include him. It may not be fast enough for We The People, but he is going down . . . hand over hand to hell in a hand basket at his own doing.
AlterNet — There’s a bumper sticker seen up here that reads “Don’t steal: the government hates competition!” I think a small rewording is in order: “Don’t steal: Republicans hate competition!”
“SCAMS are all Republicans have to offer.” is a real understatement!
Daily Kos — Unfortunately, this does not surprise me. I read that African Americans comprise 12.6% of the US population (Wikipedia) “but they [males only] make up 35% of jail inmates, and 37% of prison inmates of the 2.2 million male inmates as of 2014 (U.S. Department of Justice, 2014).” (Wikipedia). So much for justice being blind! I fear that this happens in other countries too, not necessarily with blacks but with other minorities. In Canada, indigenous peoples are over represented in jails and prisons but I don’t have the numbers for it.
Cartoon — No doubt there!
The potential of the new place is sounding positive — may it be so and to your liking! Moving is such a pain that to move only once and to a better place is ideal. Thinking positive thoughts for your foray “into Portland real estate”.
Thank all. Tired frustrated hugs!
Rethuglicanazis apparently want a hereditary monarchy – starting with King Donald I.