It’s another busy day, here at the CatBox. Yesterday, WWWendy and I fixed the power chair. It went smoothly for the most part, but these things are always more of a struggle than what is shown in the instructional video. We could not find my lock-tight, so we’ll need do redo some of the work. Tomorrow, I will have a annual reevaluation visit from my case worker for Oregon assistance for disabled seniors. The state subsidizes about 15% of what I pay WWWendy. Every little bit helps. It should not interfere my writing.
Jig Zone Puzzles:
Today’s took me 3:13 (average 4:59). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (CNN Channel): Putin wins 6 more years in power, exit polls show
Americans should know more about the true head of the Republican Reich! This is the first election Putin (R-RU) has won since 11/8/2016. RESIST!!
From NBC News: Democrats enjoy a 10-point advantage over Republicans in congressional preference for the 2018 midterm elections, even as President Donald Trump’s job approval rating has ticked up, the latest national NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds.
Fifty percent of registered voters say they prefer a Democratic-controlled Congress, while 40 percent want a GOP-controlled one.
That isn’t good enough. We need to raise that to 60 – 30. RESIST!!
From Robert Reich: Trump is moving into a new and more dangerous phase.
Before, he was constrained by a few “adults” – Rex Tillerson, Gary Cohn, H.R. McMaster, and John Kelly – whom he appointed because he thought they had some expertise he lacked.
Now he’s either fired or is in the process of removing the adults. He’s replacing them with a Star Wars cantina of toadies and sycophants who will reflect back at him his own glorious view of himself, and help sell it on TV.
Narcissists are dangerous because they think only about themselves. Megalomaniacs are dangerous because they think only about their power and invincibility. A narcissistic megalomaniac who’s unconstrained – and who’s also president of the United States – is about as dangerous as they come.
The man who once said he could shoot someone dead on Fifth Avenue and still be elected president now openly boasts of lying to the Canadian Prime Minister, deciding on his own to negotiate mano a mano with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, unilaterally slapping tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, and demanding the death penalty for drug dealers.
For weeks, Trump has been pulling big policy pronouncements out of his derriere and then leaving it up to the White House to improvise explanations and implementation plans.
“Trump is increasingly flying solo,” report the Associated Press’ Catherine Lucey and Jonathan Lemire. “Trump has told confidants recently that he wants to be less reliant on his staff, believing they often give bad advice, and that he plans to follow his own instincts, which he credits with his stunning election.”
Trump has always had faith in his instincts. “I’m speaking with myself, number one, because I have a very good brain and I’ve said a lot of things,” he said on the campaign trail. "I’m a very instinctual person, but my instinct turns out to be right,“ he told Time Magazine last year.
The Reich on the left is right. Click through to read the rest. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
16 Responses to “Open Thread – 3/19/2018”
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CNN: Ditto to your comment. (Our ‘ongoing’ advisor to the Potus.)
NBC: I’d love to see more republicans go blue! This would be wonderful news, if it does.
RR: Love Mr. Reich, to which I agree with. dt left to his own devices, to act on situations on his own after all these firings??? Hell no, that’s like giving a small child a packet of matches and telling them to go play in the barn where the hay is. He needs monitoring every single minute of every single day!! Who’s going to step up to stop him though?? All of the republicons are spineless asshats. imho.
Cartoon: Nope, not ever.
Best to you on your home visit with your case worker. Hope that your re-do solves your problems with your chair. Relax, and enjoy your evening, take care, and Thanks, Tom.
CNN: Just what the Orange Ogre needs: More inspiration. And just what the rest of us need: 6 more years of Russian interference.
NBC: The ratio among registered voters doesn’t matter. What counts is the ratio of people who actually get their arses to the polls.
RR: This is why we need to put as much support behind truly Progressive candidates as we can – as well as VOTE!
Cartoon: Or anywhere else!
5:13 I’m highly irritated that this lovely creature with a brain more suited to rocket science than to balancing balls should be enslaved like this. I know he’s not a cousin, but I still hope you won’t eat him.
A couple of interesting items – US unhappy – MCCabe pension
This is not musical, it’s merely an interview, but Randy does it very well, and really captures Betsy.
CNN – Forgive me for sitting this one out. I did not watch “Silence of the Lambs” either.
NBC – What heppened to the other ten?
Reich – “[O]penly boasts of lying to the Canadian Prime Minister,” – you know there are several ways of lying (and even more of falsehood, which can include honest mistakes, as lying can’t), but I just want to single out two. One can know the truth and say something that isn’t it. One can have no idea what the truth is, but just make something up.The latter is what he did to Justin Trudeau. I honestly can’t decide which is more horrible. I’ll just stop there. There’s too much here to do justice to.
Cartoon – That’s for sure.
I do love me some Randy!
Loved your Randy ?, Joanne.
Thanks for RR!
You asked me to provide any updates WRT Marie Newman vs Rep. Lipinski in the IL-3 primary – which is tomorrow.
Well, although he’s the longstanding Democratic incumbent, but one of the deepest blue of the Blue Dogs being outright Anti-Choice AND having voted AGAINST Pres. Obama’s signature legislation of ObamaCare (PPACA), it looks like Ms. Newman is within striking distance.
As I’ve said before, I am NOT a “Purity” freak. I’ll take a Blue Dog over a republican any day. But this district is probably safe enough for an honest progressive to challenge a Blue Dog without worrying about turning it to an “R” in the general.
You have to know your District. As the late Speaker Tip O’Neil famously said: “All politics is local.”
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/one-of-the-houses-least-reliable-democrats-may-lose-his-primary-tuesday
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/19/17109856/illinois-primary-election-2018-dan-lipinski-marie-newman-democrats
????? Newman takes over from Lipinski. You could do with more progressive Democrats. DINOs should go the way of Republicans: to extinction.
Go Newman!!
Sadly, it looks like Lipinski by the razor-thin margin of 51-49.
Oh, SNAP!
CNN: The main opposition candidate was banned from running? And how many ballot boxes were stuffed this time around? I can understand that from a Russian’s point of view Putin may be seen as remarkable, but, a rigged election is a rigged election, as we are finding out here. Then, again, the Russians may not be too terribly conversant with democratic principles (snark).
NBC News: Yes, we need more. How tDump’s numbers can be climbing is way, way, beyond my capability to understand! What, he looks “tough” because he’s fired yet another cabinet member? What, they actually buy Nunes “Nope, no collision!” story?
Reich: Saw that yesterday, think it is a marvelous, scary, exposition of the situation. Three year old little Donny boy has found littler toy people with whom to play, who will just cuddle up to his every whim. Mussolini was very assured about his intuitive life also, said that he did not appreciate people making suggestions to him , as that just threw him off the path of his “perfect” intuition. “People who think they’ve got things all figured out, are almost always wrong.” Tom Gilovich
CNN: From what I’ve seen from newscasts from around the globe, the analysis is much the same as it is in this one. Putin is popular with the people in Russia, especially with the older ones who remember their dysfunctional country before Putin. And there’s this strange split in thinking between Putin and the government. Putin is the strong leader who puts Russia on the world map and brings stability, and everything that goes wrong or is corrupt is blamed on the government, not on him. (Much like Drumpf’s base thinks, except that there’s absolutely no basis there to think Drumpf a strong leader.) And voting for their president is a strongly nationalistic ritual that Russians won’t do without.
Putin didn’t leave the polls as a measure of his popularity to chance, though. There is opposition to him, but his major opponent was banned from entering the election, and on the election day officials stuffed ballot boxes with prepared ballot sheets (here‘s footage of some), people complained they were made to vote several times while others were lured to the polling stations with tables full of food. Yes, even a popular dictator has to make sure that the turnout is both high and in his favour.
NBC: 40% of the voters still want a GOP-controlled Congress? That’s both shocking and disappointing.
Robert Reich: In a few short words Reich describes how one of the most powerful men in the world is coming of the rails completely and yet nobody steps in. If not for your own sakes, intervene for the sake of the rest of us before he goes literally ballistic.
Cartoon: Nor anywhere else.
Puzzle — 3:44 This dolphin is smarter than a Republican . . . she can actually balance something! Republicans can’t! Get her to work in the US Congress, don’t eat her Puddy Tat!
CNN — I wonder what the results would have been had Alexei Navalny not been prevented from running by Putin? Was Putin that afraid that Navalny would win that he prevented him from running? It would not surprise me to see Drumpf using the same tactics, of course with the support of Republicans who want to hold onto power at all costs.
NBC News — “That isn’t good enough. We need to raise that to 60 – 30.” . . . or better still, higher! I agree with Freya: “The ratio among registered voters doesn’t matter. What counts is the ratio of people who actually get their arses to the polls.“
Robert Reich — I have to wonder how he will react when he finally realises that the whole world is laughing at him (not with him) and ignoring him. It won’t be pretty! And to think that he and Republicans accused Obama of “being king”. Obviously they were looking in a dark mirror.
Cartoon — GOP not welcome anywhere!!!
Good luck with the interview/assessment today. I have no doubt that the state’s support will continue. Say hi to Wendy and give her hugs from me next time you see her!
Thanks all. Hugs!!