Open Thread April 19 2025

 Posted by at 6:03 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 192025
 

Yesterday, everyone had the story that Senator van Hollen had been able to meet with Abrego Garcia. Some said “in the prison” or “in the concentration camp.” Others said the meeting took place in a hotel. I can’t confirm the hotel story for sure, but from the photos, it was not in a prison and definitely not in a concentration camp. I can’t even imagine the thought of a concentration camp having a visiting area. A prison might – but it wouldn’t look like that. Glass glasses? Ceramic coffee cups? Metal forks? Chairs made of anything other than molded plastic? Tables with inlaid tops? Not hardly. The only ting which might be in an actual prison visiting room was the plastic water bottle. A hotel is at least believable. Sadly, it did not result in Abrego Garcia being released, and although he looks pretty good, the Senator reported that Abrego Garcia had been traumatized. I didn’t watch the Meidas Touch video (I just wasn’t up to it) but the print article has details and is pretty short. This is not over yet.

Do we have any real bakers reading this? A casual cookie baker like me would not be up for this recipe (no to mention I couldn’t use wheat, so the lottery would be wasted on me). But here’s a recipe for authentic Ukrainian Easter Cake using flour made from wheat grown in a demined field in the Kharkiv region. Like other Ukrainian recipes I’ve seen, it does sound yummy. You don’t have to belong to Instagram to see it – just close the popup and it’s all there.

Speaking of food, Robyn at Wonkette likes spinach. So do I – especially with a squirt of lemon juice. But (except for what I have in the freezer, purchased before the Rockmelon Regime*

took over) I won’t be eating any more either, until it’s safe again. Assuming I live that long. Guns are not the only things that can kill you or me which will become more widely available with less warning.

On a new topic, it isn’t often lately that Harry Litman

or any other legal expert finds something that he or she believes will make history, especially in a good way. The full opinion should certainly shame anyone in the Executive branch who is capable of shame, if there is any such (I wish I could believe that there is.) I thought I’d best share.

 

*In case you are wondering, “rockmelom” is another word for “cantaloupe.”

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Open Thread April 18 2025

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 182025
 

Today I am expecting snow in the afternoon and overnight. This is not the latest in the spring we have had snow. I remember one year in the late 90’s when we had snow during the third week of May. It wasn’t that much, but it was enough to ice the roads as I drove home from work. When I got home, I called the announcer of my local radio station and requested “Come un bel di di Maggio” (Like a lovely day in May) and she played that and also “Die Wunderschöne Monat Mai” (The amazingly beautiful month of May.) And we are not the only ones expecting un-spring-like weather. Hail is predicted over an area of the plains from roughly Iowa to Oklahoma city. They are not predicting but cannot rule out tornadoes there also. Sorry about the missed post – I did put it up when I realized it thanks to Nameless because there was so much in it, including a Borowitz. If you’ve been reading what I have put up, you’ll know I am being gut-punched by the news😢. It must not be stopping me from signing petitions, though. Yesterday I got 5 responses from my Congressman within the space of a minute, and I’m sure they are all responses to petitions and/or group sponsored letters.

This is about as straight talk as it gets. I’m going to be flippant for a moment and say, “Gee, there sure must have been a lot of people in Nazi Germany bitching about the price of eggs.” But it’s really no time for flippancy. I just get that way when I feel helpless. It’s good to know we still have some judges who are not corrupt – and I’m confident there are many more we are not hearing about because they haven’t been assigned a case like these – yet.

Personally, I don’t have anything against lawyers in general. I’ve been fortunate enough to know some really good ones – good people besides being good lawyers – and on principle I tend to assume a person is a decent human being until proved otherwise. But Joyce’s point that many Americans would have no sympathy for lawyers is probably sound (and for that matter, not just for Americans, but for just about every group since before Shakespeare’s time.) Most layers do not deserve to be treated like this. Sadly, some with firms that capitulate now are likely soon to do something that does deserve negative consequences.

More pretty much straight news from Andy (I don’t believe in the poll, but I do believe if there were one, this would be the result.)

Rachel Maddow interviews Senator Van Hollen

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Open Thread April 16 2025

 Posted by at 12:44 pm  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 172025
 

Posted late because I filed to schedule it.  Ooopsie.

Yesterday, Robert Reich announced two awards – a Joseph Welch award for Harvard, and a Neville Chamberlain award for all law firms capitulating to the regime. Joseph Welch, you may remember for saying “Have you no decency?” to Tail Gunner Joe McCarthy – the beginning of the end of McCarthyism. The Chamberlain awards speak for themselves. But the cool thing, the reason why I’m featuring this, is that shortly after the column came out he received a lovely thank you note from Welch’s granddaughter. Sometimes humanity is hereditary, despite many counter-examples.

I really used to like Jon Stewart. I have been really disappointed in him since he returned to the airwaves (and I don’t even watch – it’s the quotes in my news sources which have me cringing.) Wonkette explains this better than I could.

TomCat used to like to say, when Andy Borowitz came up with a particularly pointed satire, that he was reporting straight news (again.) But this time he really is doing that – it’s not satire. The closest it comes to satire is the title. Past that, it literally is straight news.

Belle has been covering the economy very thoroughly lately, from Tariffs and inflation/deflation/stagflation to chances of a recession or even a new Great Depression, and I think I get it. She’s probably overwhelmed with questions about money from a huge chunk of her audience. But it means she’s not covering the currently happening coup. So today I’m going to substitute this highly righteous rant by Lawrence O’Donnell on Harvard. Yes, it’s long, about 20 minutes. I didn’t notice an excess word in any part of it. If you do, feel free to cut it short.

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Open Thread April 17 2025

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 172025
 

Yesterday, Senator Van Hollen (D-MD) was in my prayers all day.  He is in El Salvador to do everything he can to bring back his constituent, Kilmar Abrego Garcia. I have two D Senators, but I doubt whether either of them would do anything like that. They are hung up on “collegiality.” Senator Van Hollen did inspire me to send a single-sentence email to both my Senators, though: “So – what are you going to do when he starts disappearing people who are legally residing in Colorado?” I do hope the Senator is safe himself – that is far from guaranteed. Speaking as a white person, I wish we could bring back Ellis Island, or something like it and screen immigrants, not for tuberculosis, but for white supremacy. Not by asking them whether they are a white supremacist, but with a psych screen. Elon would never have made it through that. Just in case anyone thinks I am overreacting (I know, not likely), here’s a link with thought. Also yesterday, Judge Boasberg issued a ruling that there is cause to hold the Trump** Regime in criminal contempt, and gave them a week to come clean (turn over all information he has requested.) HuffPost has the story.

This all along is what has worried and frightened me the most. And here we are. I may be wrong, but I don’t think Marcie at Wonkette is a lawyer, so I’m also posting the same story as explained by Joyce Vance, who is a lawyer, and not just a lawyer, a former DOJ prosecutor.

Nobody says it better or clearer than Joyce Vance. She doesn’t sugar coat it, and I certainly don’t want to either. And I am about out of words of my own at this point.

May as well add Heather Cox Richardson to the chorus. I really do not think there is any way to over-report this.

John Pavlovitz weighs in also. I think this can be called a righteous rant.

Had I found this in time, I would have used it Tuesday. But it wasn’t posted until late enough Tuesday that I had already scheduled Wednesday.Here it is now.

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Open Thread April 15 2025

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 152025
 

Yesterday, Harvard at least stood up to the regime. I’m pretty sure they are the first (at least the first household named university), but I hope will not be the last. And at that, it decided not to use the language “will not negotiate” in the rejection letter. Axios broke the story and by now has more details. Most of my sources yesterday were fixated on the economy, and I certainly am not trying to blow off the possibility of another Great Depression. But it is Robert Reich, IMO, who has the real story – and it isn’t good.

Robert Reich has the direst warning yet. And I might also refer to Harry Litman. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote during the Civil war: “The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, good will to men.” It’s a nice thought, but peace and good will will not by themselves turn the trick. Accountability is needed. Has our democracy onl exisited up till now because the Nuremberg Trials were held? Would stronger enforcement of Reconstruction have prevented the 1939 Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden? Will we ever learn that no consequences means no accountability, and no accountability means the poison never leaves. White supremacists – not all of whom are whie, sadly – ARE the enemy, along with misogynists (and I should add that there is massive overlap.)

This from Heather Cox Richardson on April 9 because that was an important anniversary. Its relevance is not limited to that day – far from it. We are still dealing with consequences of decisions made then.

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Open Thread April 14 2025

 Posted by at 5:56 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 142025
 

Yesterday, John Fugelsang in his podcast had as guests God and Jesus from the “The God Pod” podcast. Like John himself, The God Pod is apparently serious but doesn’t take itself  seriously. I think it will make you laugh; it did me. It’s under 10 minutes and I wished it was longer. Also, Trinette was by to take my recyclables out (and trash if I had enough, but I didn’t.)Some weeks I have more that I need help with … but much or little, we enjoy each other’s company.

I hate to break it to pro-lifers, but – oh, wait, that’s not true. I am delighted to have the opportunity to break this to pro-lifers. There is another situation in which a fetus, or even a baby, is not a person. See today’s cartoon. It doesn’t appear that the medical people are using this as a defense, although they may well be and it didn’t get into the article. But this whole case is a strong argument for not letting celibate men (which, by the way, Scripture does not call for) decide the morality of reproductive matters with no input from women or even from married men.

I would file this CPR story under “No s**t, Sherlock” – but it seems to have escaped a lot of younger people, including highly educated ones, whose education may be somewhat deficient in history. In an autocracy, you don even need to f**k around to find out. Doing your job to the best of your ability appears more than enough.

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Open Thread April 13 2025

 Posted by at 5:56 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 132025
 

Yesterday, the radio opera was Mozart’s “The Magic Flute.” – or I should say “Die Zauberflöte,” since it was the full opera and in German – except for a few interpolated jokes by Papageno. Such as, in the second act when he and Tamino were supposed to be refraining from food, drink, and even speech, he whistled and then sang a snippet from “New York, New York,” quoting “These little=town blues,” to be exact. I think Emanuel Schickaneder, who wrote the libretto and was the first to play Papageno, would have loved it (he was quite the card himself, and an improviser.) Today’s audience certainly did. Also yesterday, ProPublica reported that both Leonard Leo and Charles Koch are among plaintiffs (both as parts of groups) suing the the Mango Monster over tariffs. Did you ever expect to be grateful to either of those two for anything – anything at all? I certainly didn’t. Also, I chose the video I did because virtually everyone is riffing on “Who Shot The Sheriff” – besides Don Caron, the Riccardis, Founders Sing and  Patrick Fitzgerald have all covered it – with slightly different lyrics, but the same issue – tariffs.

I’d call this very good news indeed. Colorado appears to contain some very courageous people – and, more importantly, have at least some of them in positions where it is needed.

I don’t want to post a single-source open thread, so I’ll need a third one. But this one even CPR marks as good news – which they can’t do on political stories very well.

Here’s some good climate news from Wonkette. “Doktor Zoom” is the writer there who is most into climate change news, though all are to some degree.

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Open Thread April 12 2025

 Posted by at 6:08 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 122025
 

On this date in 1945, we lost President Roosevelt. But, in spite of having to preside over a World War (which our side won, and I’m not sure we could have done so without him), he pushed for and got legislation which set us up for national prosperity which lasted 80 years. And which it has taken less than three months to trash.

I think I accidentally deleted the Open Thread for Friday.  And I have no backup.  So sorry.  If you had commented, that will also be gone.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/supreme-court-alien-enemies-act_n_67f56408e4b046bb946e0242
The Supreme Court has made several decisions regarding immigration and deportation. including good, bad, and indifferent. The net effect is not all that good. HuffPost explains.

https://www.theroot.com/michelle-obama-has-an-answer-for-those-who-think-her-ma-1851775610
If you are not on social media, and don’t follow black news outlets, you may not even be aware of the rumors. I was aware of them and was also pretty sure they were BS. But then, I have lived through a lot of the same kinds of interactions she has, so I know the territory. The little video in the middle is pretty short and really part of the article so I recommend not skipping it (and yes, the fact that I watched it does mean that The Root has stopped disappearing mid-read for me. Yay!)

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100220226632
Be sure to at least scan the comments on the Democratic Underground post. I checked the link to Snopes, but feel free – it is a good solid link. Yes, this is what ICE is doing.

Belle Debit Card

Cat

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