It was so muggy last night that I had trouble sleeping, so I am feeling quite tired. I’ll probably have to turn on the A/C by mid-afternoon. If you are near Florence, please take care.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:47 (average 4:40). To do it, click here. How did you do? (Maybe we can tag-team a dawg or two).
Short Takes:
From YouTube (Media Matters Channel): Experts warn that climate change is making extreme weather worse
Even the Republican Reich know this is true, but they lie about it, as long as the polluters keep them in power, and they think the poor and minorities suffer most of the bad effects. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!
From Alternet: Some of Willie Nelson’s conservative fans are angry that the country legend is throwing his support behind Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke.
Nelson posted an announcement on his Facebook page that he’ll join his sons, Lukas and Micah Nelson, and musicians Joe Ely, Carrie Rodriguez and Tameca Jones to perform at a rally for O’Rourke, a Texas congressman challenging Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, reported KTRK-TV.
That outraged some of his fans, who lashed out against the 85-year-old Nelson on social media.
Beto joined Willy on the 4th of July. He comes in near the end.
I am now a bigger Willie Nelson Fan! RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!
From NY Times: Since his appointment 16 months ago as special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III has granted no interviews and held no news conferences. The spokesman for his office is known around Washington as “Mr. No-Comment.” Even public sightings are rare: A photograph of Mr. Mueller at an airport gate, with Donald Trump Jr. in the background, went viral.
Silence as a public relations strategy is risky, especially for someone who is impugned almost daily by Fox News pundits, Trump allies like Rudolph W. Giuliani and tweets from the president himself. Supporters fear that the fusillade is eroding public confidence in the special counsel’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election before Mr. Mueller has a chance to present his findings.
“The risk you always assume is, if your critics and your opponents are the only ones doing the talking, then they get to write the headlines,” said Kevin Madden, a communications strategist who served as a spokesman for the Justice Department under President George W. Bush.
Yet veterans of similar investigations say that keeping quiet may be Mr. Mueller’s only viable option, given the limited set of strategies available for federal prosecutors to communicate with the public. By law, special counsels must follow Justice Department guidelines that restrict them from sharing details about pending investigations, making leaks a potential criminal matter.
I agree that it’s his best bet, but from my perspective as a commentator/satirist that gets very frustrating! RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!
Cartoon:
10 Responses to “Open Thread – 9/14/2018”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
MMC: Once again, the first thing I heard about climate change, from a boa-fide climatologist, was: “The extremes are going to get extremer (sic)!” Roker puts it succinctly, in his last comment. Now, if we can send Florence’s next of kin, to Mar-a-Largo!!!!!!!!!!
Alternet: Nelson rocks, no pun…well, yes, pun intended.
NYT: At this point,it may be that Mueller does not have to say anything, his actions, and the early results speak for him!
‘Toon: THAT IS NOT FUNNY!!!!!!
The intent of the Cartoon is to inspire outrage, not humor.
MMC: I agree with Al re: the facts on climate change.It’s here, and it’s now, and each year it gets worse with intense heat, freezing winters, floods, droughts, we must change in order to sustain life and the environment. Here’s a good article from NASA about this siubject:
https://climate.nasa.gov/causes/
AN: Willie is an icon who is supporting Beto, and for that I’m so grateful !!! Those making rude comments about Willie can have their opinion, but I’m all for BETO for the WIN!! WTG, Willie and Beto. The political rally is Sept 29th, in Austin, and I’ll watch it on TV, as I don’t drive up to there anymore. Too old for that traffic.
NYT: I respect the position that Mueller has, and if any thing ‘leaks’, it’s on him. I know that he is upholding the law, and abides by the rules. It’s his job, and doing it the best way he knows how.
Cartoon: GASP!!! Oh, hell NO !!!!
Yea, some folks decided to stay….I pray for them, and any affected by this hurricane. It’s a big ‘un. Hope that you have a good evening, take good care, and Thanks, Tom.
p.s. Got my shirt today, Thx, Mitch & TC!!!
Hottie Alert!!
The vote on Kavanaugh has been delayed, which is good news for us – it means we have more time to lean on our Senators and Say NO to Kava-not. Keep calling your Senators, and emphasize that Kavanaugh is bad news for the working class, for the environment, for church-state separation, for women, for scientific literacy and more. Remind your Senator that Kavanaugh has been caught lying to the Senate at least five times. Remind your Senator that Republicans are breaking the very rule they used to keep Obama from replacing Scalia. Call daily, and keep sending e-mails, postcards, tweets, singing telegrams, messenger pigeons – anything you can think of to tell your Senators NO on Kavanaugh! This could be our last chance to stop the USA from sliding into fascism.
4:50 I know you don’t eat your family, even when the family member in question is giving you industrial grade stink-eye.
A cool, downloadable guide to what to look for instead if you are boycotting Nestlé (and Starbucks).
In view of Lona’s post, this might be a good time to share this petition to the Aussie government
Climate – I am (sort of) near Florence, but not Hurricane Florence – just Florence, Colorado. I was in Pueblo, La Junta, and Las Animas, and it was mostly in the high nineties. We are one week short of when the aspens have traditionally been best for viewing, and they haven’t even started turning. I don’t say every year will be like this one, but I will suggest this is the new normal.
Willie – Anyone who thought Willie is a RWNJ, cannot have been much of a fan; he has made it plain for some time what his values are.
NYT – Yes, Mueller is in the right. Us commenters ands satirists, however, have plenty that is already public and on the record. Like when he said “Russia, if you’re listining, maybe you can find those emails,” and within a few hours, there was a huge dump of (perfectly non-criminal, of course) emails. Or the was he behaved with Putin. (Incidentally, Daily Kos’s “Freeway Blogger” posted signs from all over, and the very first one was “TRUMP WAS PUT IN” – in Fresno, of all places – Devin Nunes ‘hood.
Cartoon – Riiiiiight.
MM: Of course climate change is making extreme weather worse. But unless right-wing governments start thinking about tomorrow right now and forget about the profits they can make today, it won’t really matter any more. This globe will have warmed up that threshold of 2 degrees in no time and then there will no turning back. We’ll all be in a constant emergency mode and all coastal areas need to be abandoned for good. The old boys in government probably won’t live to see it, but their children and grandchildren might. Sins of the father…
Alternet: Kudos to Willie Nelson. Apparently one is never too old to earn and change one’s mind. Though I know little of Nelson and considered him an old hippy who was left-leaning anyway.
NYT: Keeping silent and out of the public eye is probably Mueller’s only viable option. If he gives the media one finger now they’ll take his whole hand, nay, tear his arm from his trunc. He can’t afford that; anything that comes out now will be used against him. Leave him be and just wait for the subpoenas and arrest warrants. They’ll come soon enough.
Cartoon: Hold on Ruth!
He is an old hippie, and was always left-leaning. Anyone who thinks differently was a poor excuse for a fan anyway, since they were dead wrong about him.
Puzzle — 3:45 At least I don’t have to worry you’ll eat cousin Harry! But “tag-team a dawg or two”? Not on my watch!
Media Matters — Climate change is very real and anybody with half a brain knows that! Just the intensity of the current storms should say something. The eye of Florence is the size of Toronto, a city with more than 2.7 million people.
“Even the Republican Reich know this is true, but they lie about it, as long as the polluters keep them in power, and they think the poor and minorities suffer most of the bad effects.” — AMEN!!!
AlterNet — I have never been a fan of Willie Nelson’s, or country music for that matter. But obviously, all that tokin’ that was reported over the years didn’t hurt his brain. Beto is for the people and not corporations which is the way it should be, and again, obviously so is Willie. Cruz must really be worried since he has called in Diaper Don. May his worries grow larger and larger!
NY Times — Playing cards close to the chest I think is a good policy most of the time. Let actions — think 13 indictments, 5 guilty pleas etc — talk for the record. Of course, there is also Diaper Don doing some of Mueller’s communications work with his bullshit. Having said that, I too am curious as to where things are going!
Cartoon — Just like Diaper Don and the Republicans!
I was busy yesterday visiting a cemetery making arrangements to have my mother, step father and grandmother interred. My mother had the ashes at home so I inherited them and now have to deal with all of them. After leaving the house at 1030 hours yesterday, I did not return home until about 1900 hours. To say the least, I was exhausted. We have had a lot of rain in the past few days and humidity is over 95% with temps around 12C (53F). Hope you get some more satisfactory weather so you can sleep!
Thanks all. Pooped hugs!