I’m getting started way late, because I went out to get my ears lowered, and had a meal and a much-needed car nap when I returned home.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:52 (average 4:29). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Fantasy Football Reminder:
Lefty Blog Friends, don’t forget that our live online draft is tomorrow, Saturday, at 11 AM Pacific (12 Noon Mountain, 1 PM Central, 2 PM Eastern) Daylight Savings Time. If you haven’t already done so, I recommend participating in a mock draft or two between now and then.
Short Takes:
From Daily Kos: It’s amazing what garbage gets tossed into must-pass Congressional appropriation bills. Perhaps one of the most heinous in a long time was a land grab tucked inside last year’s National Defense Authorization Act at the last minute, when no one was looking.
The Act included an eleventh-hour rider that would swap land between the National Forest Service and Resolution Copper Mining, a subsidiary of Anglo-Australian mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. The deal would turn 5,300 acres of Resolution-owned land over to the US Forest Service, in exchange for about 2,400 acres of public land, including an area known as Oak Flat. No secret what Resolution plans to do with Oak Flat: dig 7,000 feet into the ground to get at one of the world’s largest copper deposits.
Sounds like a good deal, huh? The Forest Service takes in twice the amount of land it gives up, and the company claims that its new mine will create 2,400-plus jobs and generate $61 billion in local and state economic activity and tax revenue. And the copper? Well everyone knows the world needs copper!…
…But this isn’t just any area around Superior; this is Oak Flat, a stunning piece of land in the Tonto National Forest. It is a sacred holy place to the San Carlos Apache tribe, where tribe members have performed traditional acorn gatherings and coming of age ceremonies–mostly for girls–for generations. And there’s plenty of archaeological evidence to back this up. The land has been protected since 1955, when President Eisenhower decreed it closed to mining due to its cultural and natural value. Even Richard Nixon’s administration renewed the ban in 1971.
Ah, but today’s Repugnicans feel no such need to preserve the sacred. Especially when both of Arizona’s Senators, John McCain and Jeff Flake, have been on the Rio Tinto dole.
This would never have happened had the land been a memorial to a Nathan Bedford Forrest, or some other racist icon, sacred to Republicans.
From MSNBC: In most states you can be fired for being gay
Rachel Maddow reports on a new effort to ban discrimination against gay people by amending the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity, and notes that most people don’t realize that right doesn’t already exist.
Jeff Merkley (D-OR) is leading the fight for passage in the Senate.
From Alternet: School vouchers were never about helping poor, at-risk or minority students. But selling them as social mobility tickets was a useful fiction that for some twenty-five years helped rightwing ideologues and corporate backers gain bipartisan support for an ideological scheme designed to privatize public schools.
But the times they are a-changin’. Wisconsin is well on its way toward limitless voucher schools, and last month, Nevada signed into law a universal "education savings account" allowing parents to send their kids to private or religious schools, or even to home-school them—all on the taxpayers’ dime. On the federal level, a proposed amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that would have created a multi-billion-dollar-a-year voucher program was only narrowly defeated in the U.S. Senate…
…With vouchers gaining momentum nationwide, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which is meeting in San Diego this week, has decided to drop the pretense that vouchers have anything to do with social and racial equity, and is now pushing vouchers for the middle class—a project which, if pursued enough in numbers, will progressively erode the public school system and increase the segregation of students based on race and economic standing.
I’ve been saying this for years. Republicans want YOU to fund education for the rich and pseudo-Christian fanatics, while YOUR kids’ services get cut because of it.
Cartoon:
22 Responses to “Open Thread–7/24/2015”
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4:11 (average 4:29) I would expect goshawk to be delicious. Not the easiest bird on the block to hunt, but wel worth it. But, what do I know?
DKos – I've signed several petitions to oppose this trade. Native Americans are the n-word for the rest of the country besides the South, and it makes me furious. You are right, TC, and it also never would have happened if the land were named for Chivington or Custer. I will say this is the most detailed and clearest explanation of exactly what is happening.
MSNBC – Naturally it is difficult for most people who don't pay attention to realize that although gays now have the right to marry, that is about the only right they have. Not just one kudos, but several kudoi, to your Senator Merkley.
Alternet – Not to sound like a broken record, but most people are not paying attention. Plus the fact that the GOP pushes hard to divide those who have children from those who don't, and convince the atter they have no stake in education so should pay no taxes. You would be amazed (well, no, YOU probably wouldn't, but many would) how many people don't grasp that if yu don't have children of your own (actually, even if you do) you are depending on your medical, first responder, financial – ALL services – to be handled by other people's children. I have none myself, but I want all children educated (not mis-educated), for a lot of reasons, but selfishly because I don't want ignorant people providing services to me.
Cartoon – Yup. But apparently it won't slow down Santorum. So Rachel said yesterday.
I cannot get the video of Rachel to load. The cartoon reminds me to tell you that I finally have a very good lead on a dog to adopt. I have only seen a picture of him. He is brown and black and I shall rename him Bandit. You can imagine why. Re: your jig zone puzzles. Any hints from anyone how to speed up my time. Never, ever worked a jug saw puzzle 'till yours, Tom.and I am enjoying doing them. I will keep you posted on "Bandit".
Good for you and Bandit, Dotti! My rescue dog and rescue cat are the joys of my life – they had problems, but together we solved them, and felt slightly proud that my animals and I had solved what others felt were too large problems to be tackled – and they are the best animals ever – and I am sure that Bandit will be as rewarding and loving to you too!
Congrats Dott! The forst thing to do with your new dawg is teach him to pee on Republicans.
Surely equal with that TC is to for Bandit to love cats!
Daily Kos: This is disgusting, yet so typical of our Congress today. They think with their pocketbooks, and have no consciences. I wish the President could veto it, but I suppose since it was a rider, he can't.
MSNBC: I did not know that a person could be fired because of their sexual orientation, either. I hope the bill passes, but it sounds like the Republicans will be unwilling to let it.
Alternet: Of Course ALEC is pusing this, it fits their agenda. I am totally against school vouchers. We have public schools that are struggling due to lack of funds all ready, this just takes more money from them. If a person chooses to send their child to a no public school, or to home school, then they need to foot the bill, not the tax payer.
Cartoon: Spot on.
I forgot to add, my AC is back on, just in time. It is supposed to be 90 tomorrow with 70percent humidity, which will make it seem like 100.
Just in time is ruight!! Phew!!
2:51 Snatched from the claws of a certain Puddy Tat! No Goshawk fricassée for you today Puddy Tat!
2:55 Flying too fast for me to catch.
Poor kitty!!
Puzzle — 2:51 Snatched from the claws of a certain Puddy Tat! No Goshawk fricassée for you today Puddy Tat!
Daily Kos — This is outrageous! Let me guess . . . the 5,300 acres is land that has been spent and has little remaining value. We know the 2,400 acres is rich in copper so has a great monetary value . . . greed! To me, this is a case of cultural genocide. The US government is still stealing from the First Nations with impunity without so much as a by your leave. Totally disgusting and the matter needs to be challenged through the courts.
MSNBC — I knew that people could be fired for being part of the LGBTQ community in some states, but I did not know it was so many states — 32! That is despicable! And of course the fanatical right wing will never vote to change that. After all, these are the same people, and I use that term loosely, who promote "right to work" legislation in states (what a misnomer), try to destroy unions and collective agreements, keep the minimum wage low or try to abolish it, and deny women parity for equal work.
Alternet — Just as I am opposed to 2 tier medical, I am also opposed to 2 tier, or more, education. I venture to say that the brightest and most innovative minds are not from the wealthy set. If a country wants to grow the economy through innovation, it needs to promote education across the board. There must be equal access to quality education no matter the financial status of a child. Put all students on the same footing. If a 1% family wants to send little Johnny to private school, fine but the parents pay for that privilege, not the taxpayers. The public system must be maintained in high standing for ALL students.
Cartoon — Looks like it isn't working. No mark on the wall. Republicanus/Teabaggerum should listen to Reich and Krugman!
Very well said!
Historically the best minds have always come from the Middle Class (when there was one) – Pericles, Socrates, Catullus, Vergil, Cicero – they weren't lower class, but they weren't blue-blooded elite either. Back in the days of the medieval guilds, that's where the brains were. In the Enlightenment – Voltaire was no aristo. Mozart was a servant. Beethoven was one of the first musical freelancers (he was actually sued once for using the "van" in his name, which came from the Dutch and didn't mean a whole lot, but people thought he might be fraudulently pretending to be a German "von" which did impliy noble birth). Franklin was a publisher, John Adams was a lawyer, Washington and Jefferson were farmers. Not many British Dukes and Earls in the New World at that time. Of course there are manu others and I am probably leaving out everyone's favorite. But where I was going is, no wonder the GOP wants to destroy the middle class. They think it will protect them from brains.
Daily Kos – I too have signed petitions on this subject, but I fear that the corrupt blighters will win. Utterly disgusting.
MSNBC – good grief, I had no idea it was that bad!!
Alternet – horrible – as others have said we should not have two tier health care or two tier education – and especially not the rich (as usual) being paid for by the poor. Disgusting.
Cartoon – quite so!
Daily Kos ~ The land the Greedy Olde Pharts are giving away doen't belong to them. Would they like it if someone destroyed their pseudo-Christian church? No, but they could rebuild a church. You can't reclaim the land after it's been destroyed by mining. Their own Republican Presidents Eisenhower and Nixon saw fit to protect these lands for our Native Americans. What gives them the right to destroy them? Money? Here's a petition to protct the land. http://org.salsalabs.com/o/676/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=17267
MSNBC ~ Despicable! Human rights! Good for Jeff Merkley.
Alternet ~ You're preaching to the choir. I have no children or grandchildren. I keep trying to tell people about this and I can't convince them of ALEC's agenda. I fell sorry for the people who will be left in this country after we are gone.
Cartoon ~ Yup!
I signed and shared the petition.
Sounds like you had your priorities straight today, TomCat. Some grooming, a meal and a catnap (love your typo) before getting back to the never ending stream of Republican sewage. Sounds about right to me.
Daily Kos: Besides my recurring failure to understand how democratic legislation allows for all kinds of amendments and bills to be slipped unseen between the pages of a larger bill/Act and then giving Senate or House members only a couple of hours to read more than 1000 pages to make sure these addenda pass unnoticed, the very fact that this "land swap deal" had to pass this way shows exactly how shoddy it was and that the legislators who hid it among the Act knew precisely how shoddy it was. This isn't democracy, this is fraud and the San Carlos Apache tribe should have it reversed and be given their sacred land back, no matter how much Rio Tinto has paid John McCain and Jeff Flake.
MSNBC: Sigh…I think I've commented at least three times in wonderment about American federal anti-discrimination law. In reality it is a law that allows discrimination unless it the type of discrimination is explicitly mentioned in the law. That's turning anti-discrimination upside down; no wonder so many people think that you can't be fired if you're gay or transgender. But as far as I understand it, you can also be fired for being fat or old or bald, because these aren't exceptions mentioned in the anti-discrimination law. The lack of an all-inclusive anti-discrimination law seems to stem from the good ald days when it was quite alright to discriminate (against non-white people and women for instance) and sadly the Republican frame of mind is very, very attached to "the right to discriminate" so there's little hope that this law will never become anything more than a growing list of descriptions of what is not allowed, each new item added fought hard over or very long in the making like LGBT discrimination.
Alternet: I'm too flabbergasted to say anything to this, this is so contrary to what is/was happening in my own country that I can't get my mind around it.
Cartoon: Not much trickling there, I see.
People in your country are better off.
"Republican sewage". . . I love the phrase. Consider it borrowed indefinitely!
Thanks all! Hugs!
Many in Congress are training to become flim-flam men…but Merkeley is showing them a better way.