Blog News – Page 31 – Politics Plus

Patty Still Has a BIG Mouth! ;-)

Posted by TomCat at 12:02 am Blog News, Politics

Mar 082014

51-Patty

Patty is a regular, and you’ll find her excellent comments on virtually every article, almost every day. She comes to us from Care2, but not recently, because a bug at that site nixed her ID again. This is her seventh Big Mouth Award, having also posted the 28,000th comment in January, the 31,000th comment in May, the 33,000th comment in July, the 35,000th in September 2012. She posted the 41,000th in March and the 49,000th in November 2013. Patty’s is still a MAJOR Jig Zone predator, and is now known as the Patty Monster. She attacks those puzzles with all the zeal of a Republican politician trying to steal a grandma’s benefits. Though seldom Cat Boxed, she does get Bigfooted and Kitty Kitty Klobbered on occasion. She remains a completely welcome regular here. Please be generous with your praise, which she certainly deserves.

Monthly Report for February 2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:02 am Blog News, Monthly Report, Politics

Mar 022014

In February, Politics Plus remained dead slow, because for most of the month, I was ill or doing volunteer work. It was even down from January, and that is completely my responsibility.

Here is our latest summary:

usage2-2014

Stats2-2014

In the monthly totals, a Site is any website from which someone accessed our server, a Hit is every access attempt to our server, and a File is every access attempt to our server that returned data. The difference between Hits and Files is from access attempts that were sent in error or damaged in transit and failed attempts by hackers, spammers, phishers, and Republicans to access the back end and take control of the site. Any questions?

Here is our latest Clustrmap:

Map2-2014

Our map was archived in February 2013, so what you see is from March 1 to February 28, when it was last updated. This should be the last map before it resets again

Here are are top five articles:

Jane Smiley: Capitalist Pigs
Wasteful Government Spending
The Report You Won’t See on Faux Noise
A Republican Freedom
Why Fox Is Banned in Canada

While pleased that articles from 2010 – 2013 are still bring traffic, it worries me that only one was from last month.

Here are our top non-blog/news referrers.

Care2 3,259
Stumbleupon 272
Facebook 118

Thank goodness for Care2!!

Here are our top blog/news referrers.

Putting their links here increases the ratings of their sites, so this “linkey love” is our thank you for their support.

Here are our top commentators:

Lynn Squance (87)
Patty (81)
Joanne D (52)
rixar13 (50)
Edie (49)
Jerry Critter (37)
SoINeedAName (20)
Pat A (18)
misstexaskitty (12)
Arielle (7)
Avril Lomas (7)
Phil Hanson (7)
Yvonne White (7)
Lee Evans (6)
Angelica (3)
Deb E (3)
john dasef (3)

Those who leave their URLs in their comments, also get “linkey-love” here.

We have 357,997 links on other websites.

Our Technorati rating is 113, down 1 from last month, but still low on the B list. These ratings yo-yo and do not depend on our traffic or our overall links, but only links on sites registered with and recognized by Technorati. If only Care2 would register their front page of C2NN news with Technorati, we’d be A list again every month, once I started posting in sufficient quantity to justify it.

As of Midnight, March 1, we have 4,722 articles and 50,875 comments.

I recommend using your own avatar. Go to Gravatar. Sign up using the email address you use to post comments here and upload the image you want to use as your avatar. Whenever you comment under that email address here or on any WordPress blog (several others too), that image will become your avatar.

We see Republicans running further and further to the right, and rejoice, because the further right they go, the more voters they alienate. We need to maximize gains while we can, because it will change as soon as primary season ends. At that point they will shift to the center. If elected they will continue the same extreme policies, and their war against the American poor and middle classes will continue, but they will move heaven and earth to fool voters. For the most part, media will parrot their lies, so we need to stand ready to confront them with the truth and to educate and energize voters. Thank you for everything you do to make Politics Plus part of that effort.

Poll Results–3/1/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:20 am Blog News, Politics

Mar 012014

Here are the results of our Unemployment Extension Poll. Politics Plus Polls are not scientific, because those who respond are not balanced according to demographic categories. Therefore, we do not accurately reflect the makeup of the US population. Nevertheless, our polls are often both accurate and indicative of the nation’s view.

And here are your comments:

Showing comments 1–8 of 8.

Posted by Rixar13 February 15, 2014 at 1:26 pm.

NO…

Posted by Lynn Squance February 15, 2014 at 1:06 am.

I voted "Only for something BIG in return." The GOP are either too stupid or too ornery to understand the economic implications of extending unemployment benefits. They will find a way to twist things . . . a real FUBAR . . . so that they can crown Obama with economic failure. The GOP are ideological idiots. I hope the electorate give them a free pass to the unemployment line . . . and no unemployment benefits. I presume you have to have worked in order to collect benefits.

Posted by Patty February 14, 2014 at 1:47 am.

I voted "yes, before Oct. 1". I think they won’t get "something big" before then and they will decide they need the votes in November if they want to hold onto shaky seats in Congress.

Posted by Edie February 13, 2014 at 5:29 pm. From 98.159.136.x Report Abuse

They don’t care about the people who are suffering because there are no jobs. They will only vote to extend UI benefits after they get some big concession that will hurt other poor people.

Posted by gene jacobson February 13, 2014 at 8:28 am.

Well, I was torn over this one. In any year but an election year, I’d say no unless they got something big in return, but then they did get to cut SNAP benefits and Obama signed that bill. So, while I believe completely that the Republican party does not have the soul of a rock and would not extend a helping hand to anything or anyone that didn’t provide a profit to them ideologically or financially, this IS an election year and those out of work for so long, well, I expect they will find a way to vote. And I am quite sure the republican party knows that. Then again, they knew it in 2012 too and just look at what THAT platform contained. They don’t seem capable of learning from past mistakes, they continue to alienate any and all minority groups as well as women and those of us who believe that investment in America and Americans always returns a profit, so yeah, they may will stick to their master plan. But for that fact that so many are hurt by it, I wouldn’t mind, because they are on the way to making themselves an historical afterthought, and nothing could be better in the long run for America and Americans than that.

Posted by Lynn Squance in reply to gene jacobson February 15, 2014 at 12:55 am.

Well said Gene. I was thinking the same thing but you say it so much better. "an historical afterthought" . . . what a wonderful thought!

Posted by Helga Ganguly February 13, 2014 at 7:55 am.

My husband was out of work for 25 months. Unemployment and the extension is all that saved us.After being home owners since 1981,we missed our first house payment on election Day of 2008 and.My husband has been a CTO anCEO for much of his career and as the last company defaulted ,my husband had taken out lines of credit to sustain the company and our household. The board of Directors was Japanese.Since when do the Japanese run out of money? Any way,long story short,my husband is a scientist,not an accountant. Incentive to work? You think $450 a week is incentive to a man with a $7,000 mortgage payment? He found another job but took it at a level lower than VP even though the salary was good and equal to his former salary. At Thanksgiving,he was downsized.We have no insurance after March.I am disabled.All of my pills cost $1500 a month ,or did 2 years ago.We’ve been in foreclosure since 2009 and bankruptcy.There are not a lot of VP CEO,and CTO jobs around. Ask the wife.I never asked him to join start-ups but I wasn’t asked. Wives aren’t ever asked.In 40 years,I’ve never been asked,did I want a husband with no IRA,no savings,no bonus,no pension,so that HE can be fulfilled. I wonder if that’s why I’m a cripple.Ya think?

Posted by Joanne D February 13, 2014 at 4:26 am.

I feel like I am voting in hindsight – there has already been one vote, Democrats caved on everything they asked for, and they still voted no. I can see why they might want to wait until September, but if they think that will reap them electoral gratitude, they ought to read the fable about the genie in the bottle again.

Two choices tied in this one. Because I am convinced that Obama and the Democrats will not offer them anything BIG in return, I voted ‘Yes – before Oct.1’. It won’t happen soon, because the immediate threat to Republicans who might vote for it is to be TEAbuggered in the primary. But after the primaries are over, they will be changing their tunes in a desperate attempt to fool voters that are not the extremist, hateful bastards that they really are. Extending unemployment benefits may well be a late desperation attempt on their part to accomplish this.

The new poll is up. Don’t forget to vole!!

Poll Results–2/13/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:02 am Blog News, Politics

Feb 132014

Here are the results of our Debt Ceiling Poll. Politics Plus Polls are not scientific, because those who respond are not balanced according to demographic categories. Therefore, we do not accurately reflect the makeup of the US population. Nevertheless, our polls are often both accurate and indicative of the nation’s view. This time, however, only two of us got it right.

And here are your comments:

Showing comments 1–7 of 7.

Posted by SoINeedAName February 9, 2014 at 2:28 pm.

Harming Americans?

It’s what they do.

What can you expect? It’s in the Repubican DNA!

Posted by Joanne D February 2, 2014 at 5:29 am.

Actually right now I am sweating getting my last 1099 to file taxes before they freeze everything. I won’t starve, I have savings, but it could be an inconvenience. I know, first world problem.

Posted by Edie February 1, 2014 at 5:02 pm.

They will have to posture and show their "strength" before they will pass it, in the meantime the rest of us will suffer.

Posted by Lynn Squance February 1, 2014 at 9:27 am.

I truly believe that the Republicans are so blinded by their ideology that they are incapable of learning from their past actions and mistakes.

Posted by mamabear February 1, 2014 at 4:48 am.

I voted other but yes after they do more to brainwash the country. After all Tom Obama is the one who is "Alien from another country."

Posted by dave c February 1, 2014 at 3:25 am.

no clue….can’t figure out the brainless

Posted by Patty February 1, 2014 at 2:17 am.

Of course they will have to hurt the country before they do anything even slightly positive.

I was one of the two people who voted correctly that Republicans would cave-in and pass a clean debt-ceiling. This is an election year, and the Republican leadership remember what happened the last time they shut down the government. Provoking another major public outcry, this close to an election, would have worked at cross purposes to their highest goal, establishing a permanent, totalitarian Republican Reich. As humiliating as the cave-in was, the alternative was even worse for them.

A new poll is up. Don’t forget to vote.

Open Thread–2/4/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:29 am Blog News, Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Feb 042014

I’m writing for tomorrow and feeling quite tired, after what I suspect you already know was a horrid day for me. There may be no Open Thread on Wednesday, because tomorrow I have a Podiatrist appointment. It’s my routine quarterly visit to cut the recurring growth from my foot. In addition, Politics Plus will be completely offline for up to an hour, sometime between 8 PM Tuesday Night and 4 AM Wednesday morning. Our HSP is installing the Linux 3.4 kernel update on the server that runs our software.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:00 (average 4:35). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From The New Yorker: A “visibly troubled” man was spotted today outside MetLife Stadium just hours before the kickoff of Super Bowl XLVIII.

The man, his eyes darting about menacingly, alarmed passersby who were gathering at the Super Bowl venue.

Harland Dorrinson, who was participating in a pregame tailgating party, said he overheard the belligerent man making several “threatening remarks.”

LOL Andy! The question is this. Was it PIGnocchio, or was it the Met Life blimp? 😉

From Upworthy: Watch A Clever Senator Smack Down Deniers With His Extraordinary Commentary

It’s not uncommon for politicians to make "the jobs argument" against mitigating climate change. Their reasoning is that slowing our carbon emissions would be too costly for the economy. But what about the people whose jobs have already been affected by carbon? This senator does a darn good job of explaining the other jobs argument.

Sen. Whitehouse is spot-on. Note that the Republican on the committee failed in his attempt to sidetrack him. The problem is that you’ll never see this on most of the mainstream broadcast media.

From NY Times: Six months into peace talks dominated by discussion about security, President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority has proposed to Secretary of State John Kerry that an American-led NATO force patrol a future Palestinian state indefinitely, with troops positioned throughout the territory, at all crossings, and within Jerusalem.

Mr. Abbas said in an interview with The New York Times at his headquarters here over the weekend that Israeli soldiers could remain in the West Bank for up to five years — not three, as he previously stated — and that Jewish settlements should be phased out of the new Palestinian state along a similar timetable. Palestine, he said, would not have its own army, only a police force, so the NATO mission would be responsible for preventing the weapons smuggling and terrorism that Israel fears.

“For a long time, and wherever they want, not only on the eastern borders, but also on the western borders, everywhere,” Mr. Abbas said of the imagined NATO mission. “The third party can stay. They can stay to reassure the Israelis, and to protect us.

This is the most reasonable proposal I have seen from either side, but I suspect Israel will reject it, because the NATO forces would also protect Palestinian territory against ongoing Israeli incursions in their attempt to enforce a one-state solution by attrition, through new settlements, in violation of the Helsinki Accords.

Cartoon:

0204Cartoon

Monthly Report for January 2014

Posted by TomCat at 1:01 am Blog News, Monthly Report, Politics

Feb 022014

In January, Politics Plus remained dead slow, because for most of the month, I was ill or doing volunteer work. Nevertheless, we had an increase from December in every category, except Page Views. There were so many days that I posted only an Open Thread that readers had little need to change pages to comment on multiple articles.

Here is our latest summary:

usage1-2014

Stats1-2014

Here is our latest Clustrmap:

Map12-15-2013

Our map was archived in February, so what you see is from March 1 to December 15, when it was last updated. This may be the last map before it resets again

Here are are top five articles:

Jane Smiley: Capitalist Pigs                    01/17/2010 – 1,159

A Republican Freedom                            09/24/2013 –   697

Why Fox Is Banned in Canada                 03/07/2011 –   378

Did Rachel Apologize?                             01/05/2014     343

A Woman’s Right to Choose Under Fire   01/05/2014 –   341

People came from an external site with the specific purpose of reading these articles more than any others. It’s unfortunate that only two of the five are from last month.

Here are our top Non-blog referrers.

Stumbleupon         2,602

Care2                   1,626

Facebook                 180

Thanks to Richard (aka Rixar) for putting our articles on Stumbleupon and occasionally elsewhere.

Here are our top fifteen blog/news referrers for January.

http://frieddogleg.blogspot.com/
http://infidel753.blogspot.com/
http://bildungblog.blogspot.com/
http://alterx.blogspot.ca/
http://oakcreekforum.blogspot.com/
http://zenman1550.tumblr.com/
http://hamsandwich66.blogspot.com/
http://www.synapticstew.com/
http://annette-justmylittlepieceoftheworld.blogspot.com/
http://theleftinme.blogspot.com/
http://whohijackedourcountry.blogspot.com/
http://tinfoilandtea.tumblr.com/
http://buckdogpolitics.blogspot.com/
http://disaffectedanditfeelssogood.blogspot.com/
http://rixar13.wordpress.com/

Every time we link to their sites, it increases their ratings, so here’s some linkey-love in return. The best ways you can spread the message to others is to use the share button at the bottom of each article to list our articles on the the networking sites where you belong. Quote PP articles on your own blogs also helps. The operative commandment here is “thou shalt steal.” We’re on the same side here, and I encourage it. Even if you want to repost a whole article, that’s OK. Just link back, please. Also, feel free to swipe my graphics in the articles. If they are labeled with our Politics Plus URL, they are my work.

Here are the top fifteen commenters for December. I remembered and copied them off in time. I don’t count, as I’m the resident big mouth, and I try to reply to almost every comment, except replies directed at someone else. Those who leave their URLs in their comments, also get linkey-love here.

Patty (78)

Edie (65)

Rixar13 (54)

Lynn Squance (51)

Joanne D (49)

Jerry Critter (45)

Pat A (35)

SoINeedAName (29)

misskitty (24)

Angelica (16)

James Thompson (13)

Avril Lomas (7)

Dotti Lydon (7)

misstexaskitty (6)

Arielle (5)

Yvonne White (5)

OOPS! That sneaky Kitty snuck in twice!! 😉

We have 241,147 links on other websites. For a couple years now, I’ve been reporting well over one million external links. Today I discovered that, because of the way I set up the site originally to preserve front end flexibility, it appears to Google Webmaster Tools that most of our internal links are external. I just learned how to separate them out. and I apologize for over reporting it for so long. I assure you that I never intended to deceive you.

Our Technorati rating is 114, up 1 from last month, but still low on the B list. These ratings yo-yo and do not depend on our traffic or our overall links, but only links on sites registered with and recognized by Technorati. If only Care2 would register their front page of C2NN news with Technorati, we’d be A list again every month, once I started posting in sufficient quantity to justify it.

As of Midnight, February 1, we have 4,677 articles and 50,332 comments.

We are hard pressed in an election year, and Republicans are going all out to deceive people into voting for them and prevent people they can’t fool from voting. If they can’t do that they will try to fool people into thinking their vote does not matter and staying home or wasting their vote on a candidate with no chance to win. However, they have given is many tools we can use to defeat them. One is to make the minimum wage an issue in state and local elections, not just federal. We must press on!

Poll Results–2/1/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:23 am Blog News, Politics

Feb 012014

Here are the results of our What Should Bring Christie Down Poll. Politics Plus Polls are not scientific, because those who respond are not balanced according to demographic categories. Therefore, we do not accurately reflect the makeup of the US population. Nevertheless, our polls are often both accurate and indicative of the nation’s view.

0201Poll

And here are your comments.

Showing comments 1–10 of 10.

Posted by Angelica January 26, 2014 at 11:52 pm.

Christie only goes up in smoke if you watch MSNBC, however. Chronicles of his epic downfall are almost non-existent on other networks.

Posted by Patty January 26, 2014 at 1:58 am.

I went with 4 reasons; the bridge plot, his general bullying, his theft of Sandy funds and his war on women.

I would like to add that he is a prime example of Pignocchio because he is a big, fat liar!

Posted by Rixar13 January 25, 2014 at 2:23 pm.

(Check all that apply)

His alien birth

His bridge plot

His drug addiction

His gay lover

His general bullying

His theft of Sandy funds

His war on women

Posted by SoINeedAName January 19, 2014 at 3:40 pm.

Emails linking him, or his staff, to gross malfeasance.

His lawyer MAY be able to keep him out of an orange jumpsuit – but he ain’t going to help him get elected President … THANK GOD!

Posted by Edie January 17, 2014 at 6:01 pm.

Bridgeghazi, of course is the main one. Think of the millions of lives he adversely affected by this. No way do I believe he was unaware of this. The Sandy funds were to help people who lost their homes, not to promote him.

Posted by SoINeedAName January 17, 2014 at 2:16 pm.

I went w/ the Sandy malfeasance.

… BUT only because as of today (1/17/14) there’s nothing directly connecting him to the Bridgegate (that seems to be the going term).

If anything does tie him in – or if another bullying scandal develops – he’s TOAST!

Posted by Rixar13 January 16, 2014 at 2:17 pm.

1. His bridge plot

2. His theft of Sandy funds

3. His war on women

Posted by Lynn Squance January 16, 2014 at 9:28 am.

I voted "bridge plot", "bullying", and "Sandy funds". However that is what should bring him down, and hard. However I fear short memories and attention spans from the electorate!

What I really wanted to vote for was his alien birth. Afterall, don’t you think he looks like Alf?!

Posted by Joanne D January 16, 2014 at 8:13 am.

I’m just hoping for some combination but mamabear is very perspicacious and I fear is correct.

Posted by mamabear January 15, 2014 at 1:50 pm.

Well all I will say is if were President Obama he would already have a rope around his neck So I say "none" But I hope I am wrong. We do not need another power hungry man running the country. Who will sell his mother just to save his skin

Some of you answered the wrong question. It was not what would bring Christie down, but what SHOULD bring him down. I voted with the majority, except for one choice. I was one of the six who voted that “His alien birth” ought to bring him down. Christie may not come from another nation, but he does come from another planet. Using a slightly different spelling, he’s from Uranus! 😈

A new poll is up. Please vote!

Poll Results–1/16/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:48 am Blog News, Politics

Jan 162014

Here are the results of our New Years Resolutions Poll. Politics Plus Polls are not scientific, because those who respond are not balanced according to demographic categories. Therefore, we do not accurately reflect the makeup of the US population. Nevertheless, our polls are often both accurate and indicative of the nation’s view.

0116Poll

And here are your comments:

Showing comments 1–12 of 12.

Posted by Fred Lemon January 4, 2014 at 10:29 pm.

Never have made resolutions until one year a friend made me somehow. That was ringing in 2010. I spent most of that year in the hospital. So I made a resolution to make no resolutions ever again.

Posted by Jerry Critter January 4, 2014 at 9:16 am.

I don’t make New Year’s resolutions. I wait until Lent, then give up Polo.

Posted by Lynn Squance January 4, 2014 at 9:04 am.

I want to become more active but it will also depend on my back and being able to walk more (I fell Catmas Day doing in my tailbone – that’s what happens when you go to sit on your mother’s walker and miss!

but the desire is there

I also ticked ‘other’ because I am in the midst of making big changes which I hope will help me generally.

Posted by Arielle January 2, 2014 at 2:54 am.

I said no resolutions but I forgot that I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change – I am changing the things I cannot accept.

Posted by Edie January 1, 2014 at 5:11 pm.

I quit making resolutions a long time ago because I never kept them.

Posted by Rixar13 January 1, 2014 at 1:44 pm.

No resolutions, just keep on track with my no smoking…

Posted by Deb January 1, 2014 at 6:22 am.

I learned a long time ago I don’t need the year to change in order to resolve to do something for my own good and, being of a rebellious nature anyway, I tend to not go along with how those who run this country would prefer we act and think and do. So, in short, I never make New Year’s resolutions

Posted by gene jacobson January 1, 2014 at 5:05 am.

Since 2014 is an election year, and a very important one as all those 2010 tea party governors are up for election again this year and I believe their constituents have now seen enough of them to know who they truly are inside, my only resolution is to do everything I can to support progressive candidates and begin the process of taking back our government from those who would, in essence, destroy it in favor of no government and even greater gaps in wealth distribution than we have now.

Posted by Patty January 1, 2014 at 12:50 am.

As much as I would like to make a resolution, I can’t because it’s hard to improve on perfection.

Posted by Jerry Critter in reply to Patty January 4, 2014 at 9:18 am.

LOL!

Posted by Patty in reply to Jerry Critter January 7, 2014 at 1:51 am.

I was going to resolve to be more active to improve my health but it’s going to be impossible right now. I wanted to start walking to get up to 3 miles a day again but another surgery on my leg is scheduled for Thursday AM. Pray for me.

Posted by Marva December 31, 2013 at 5:32 am.

I forgot, then when reminded, I couldn’t think of any that I might actually keep.

I voted ‘To make no resolutions’. I figure that my level of commitment to something is so pathetic that it takes New Years to get me to resolve to actually act, it will never make it to February.

Holiday fun time is over, and while the new poll (top of right column) does contain some humor, it’s a serious one this time. Don’t forget to vote please!!

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