Dec 272021
 

Yesterday, I discovered that our blog’s commenting system it being discontinued by WordPress. At the moment, it still works, except that every comments has to be approved by an administrator or editor. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. because something has also happened to the spam preventer, and some atrocious things are getting into the moderation queue,, and they need to be DISapproved by an editor or administrator. I spent hours searching through 51 pages of plugins (although I searched for “commonet systems,” most weren’t, which made it more tedious) without finding much. I want to find one that has all the features we are accustomed to and love, including nor requiring a login to comment, and that is being hard to find.  I don’t want to jump in on anything we’ll hate, so I hope you’ll all bear with me.

Cartoon –

Short Takes

Mother Jones – Hero: Fernanda the Tortoise, Whose Species Everyone Thought Was Extinct
Quote: And, at about 100 years old—middle-aged in tortoise years—Fernanda could, in theory, produce offspring. All she needed was a mate. Suddenly, Fernanda went from assumed-to-be-dead to the world’s most eligible tortoise.
Click through fpr story. We can but hope.

NPR – Desmond Tutu’s laugh was contagious. His fight for freedom was deadly serious
Quote – Yet time and again, Tutu, dressed in his flowing clerical robe, would appear at a potentially explosive scene and invoke his gift of gab to defuse a crisis, often sending the crowd home with a smile on their faces. His impish grin, laughter and amusing stories were always employed in the service of nudging South Africans to retreat from the precipice of a racial confrontation.
Click through. What a devastating loss!

Democratic Underground – The Mousetrap
Quote – A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. “What food might this contain?” The mouse wondered – he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap. Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. “There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!”
Click through for story – nothing to do with the Agatha Christie play but a parable about karma, and a caution.

Food For Thought (from a tweet sent by David Corn):

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  7 Responses to “Open Thread for December 27, 2021”

  1. Joanne – Please. Take ALL the time that you need to figure, and remediate ‘our’ link. Bummer that our commenting system is being discontinued. I’ll stand by, while you work on this. Again, THANK YOU for all you do. 
    Cartoon: I remember this. Indeed, a very, very sad day. 
    MJ: Scream it to the rooftops, for our Tortoise Fernanda! Yes, she’s a Hero! 
    NPR: His life was full of love and kindness. Call this beloved man a saint. 
    FFT: Word. 
    TJI – “Let’s never forget sadly that Daunte Wright was initially pulled over for an air freshener hanging on his rear view mirror, a simple traffic code violation.” ~ Yamiche Alcindor ~
    2. “Today, we are heartbroken to learn of the passing of a true servant of God and of the people, Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. We send our deepest condolences to the people of South Africa who are mourning this great loss. ~ President Joe Biden ~
    3. “I just wanted to say thanks on Christmas Eve to the pharmacist who honoured our 5 pm appointment even though she hadn’t eaten, then looked at the folks hovering outside hoping for a walk in, and wearily opened another box of Pfizer. True Christmas hero for real.” ~ Jordan Heath Rawlings ~
    4. “President Biden has appointed 40 judges to the federal bench in his first year — more than any president in decades.” ~ The Democrats ~
    5. “In fall 2022, UT Rio Grande Valley will begin to offer free tuition and fees to students whose family income is $100,000 or less. It’s believed to be the largest free tuition program of its kind at a four-year university in the country.” ~ Kate McGee ~

  2. Yesterday I just made a list of the ones that were actually for comments.   While I didn’t dig deep, it was clear almost all (if not all) require a login to comment.  I was hoping to avoid that.  But with so many sites now requiring two layer log in, I realize WordPress is just going with a trend – and, sadly. probably a necessary trend.  Today I’ll try to make a short list and do some comparison (not necessarily in that order).

    TJI #1 – So many people of colorhave died after being stopped for a minor traffic or vehicle issue. Yet so many wypipo don’t get that this is a problem. Beau talks about this in today’s video thread.
    TJI #2 – Not surprising. It takes one to know one. (Not trying t brag about being so hit by it. I just aspire. Joe’s the real deal.)
    TJI #3 – A hero indeed. And you know far more lives were saved by this than just the number of those standing in line.
    TJI #4 – Being able to get them confirmed helps. (I’m willing to bet he actually nominated a bunch more. And that Chuck Schumer has worked hard to get these 40 through.)
    TJI #5 – Wonderful news.

  3. Comment from Mitch – 

    Bearing with you.’Toon: Of course they would think of it that way!  Their disappearance would be the real “No loss!”
    MJ: Hoping!  Finding a randy male would be very special.
    NPR: The loss hurts, but we ought to be glad that we had him as a fellow human, in the first place.
    DU: A most poignant story, reminiscent of this poem:
    First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
    Because I was not a Socialist.

    Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
    Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

    Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
    Because I was not a Jew.

    Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

    FFT: Show that to today’s GQP folk, and they’ll band Jesus as a “Goddamned Commie!”

    Mitch

  4. After reading all that you’ve researched regarding the unacceptable comments, it sounds to me that you’re getting close to resolving the issue. Like Pat mentioned, take as much time as you need. We’re patient. We do thank you for all you do.
    Cartoon: Sad loss.
    MJ: Way to go Fernanda. You’re out to save your species.
    NPR: A great lost. He did so much for others including bringing happiness and love to so many.
    DU: The poem sure sounds familiar….Wonder why? 
    Take care. Thanks Joanne

  5. Having to log on to comment doesn’t bother me, Joanne; I’ve been doing that since the day I joined PP because WordPress keeps me logged in for a few weeks at a time and that makes commenting easy during those weeks. But I’m not sure this option is granted to everyone or just those with designated roles. I’m sorry WordPress keeps throwing these changes at you without providing a solution. You have to spend far too much time with solving problems like this.

    Cartoon: Despite her murder and a number of wars/border clashes in Rwanda, Fossey’s mountain gorillas seem to be doing well at the moment.

    MJ: Screaming hero seems to be rather premature; let’s wait and see if there are indeed any other tortoises of her species left alive and if they are male. If middle-aged Fernanda then proves fertile and can be induced to reproduce, she has earned her hero badge. Until then she’s just a very sad and lonely “last of her kind”.

    NPR: That incredibly kind man and his infectious laugh will be missed terribly. A devastating loss indeed.

    DU: Lovely parable; karma connects us all.

    FFT: In other words, a very engaged Social Democrat.

    • The designated role of “Subscriber” fits.  But with at least Disqusm and possibly others, the registration would be through the plug-in’s database.  For examle, my credentias for Disqus will allow me to comment on any site that uses Disqus, even a site I didn’t know existed.  And Disqus will also keep me logged in for some time, unless I log out.  And makes it easy to log back in if it’s been too long , with a pop-up so my place isn’t lost.  I doubt they are the only one who does that.

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