GOP Insanity – Page 47 – Politics Plus

Video Thread 6/4/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:09 pm Open Thread, Politics

Jun 042022

Glenn Kirschner – With J6 hearings to begin 6/9, we finally learn that DOJ is criminally investigating Trump. Why now?

Meidas Touch – Tucker Carlson admits he LIES to viewers in SHOCKING new interview

The Lincoln Project – The Republican Army

MSNBC – Jail: Facing Criminal Subpoena, Trump Aide Threatens Biden, Pelosi, Fauci (including very nice eyeroll)

CNN – He helped decode Mark Meadows’ texts. What he found scared him (Long but meaty. Partial transcript here.) https://crooksandliars.com/2022/06/intelligence-expert-says-jan-6-data

The Daily Show – The Story of Covfefe: Based on a True Typo

Beau – Let’s talk about Georgia showing Wyoming the way….

Video Thread 6/3/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:32 am Open Thread, Politics

Jun 032022

Glenn Kirschner – Durham case fails; Judge Walton takes on the Supremes; Norm Eisen on AG Garland “coming for Trump”

Meidas Touch – WOW: NRA Boss Contradicts Himself with UNHINGED Statement in Speech

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party – May 31, 2022

Ring of Fire – Former Trump Advisor Sues January 6th Committee And DOJ After Multiple Subpoenas

MSNBC – Caught On Tape: GOP Plan To Steal The Next Election Revealed

Randy Rainbow – Lida Rose/Will I Ever Tell You?

Beau – Let’s talk about a comprehensive gun control strategy….

Open Thread June 2, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:46 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 022022

Yesterday, I finished that last new cartoon for June, which is for the 28th. It kind of got me thinking. Some of us have probably heard about the “Habsburg jaw,” which this Habsburg certainly had, and the beard didn’t do much to hide it. These days I see a lot of jokes about moronic and generally poor MAGAts who perhaps result from inbreeding – but historicall, all the way back to ancient Egypt, it was not the poor butthe wealthy who famously inbred (presumably under theimpression that no one but others in their class were good enough for them.) Tutankhamen for instance – his mummy has been examined and by modern specialists, who indicate he had so many deformities he may never have had a pain free day in his short life. In Eurpoe, not only the Habsburg jaw but the Russian royal family’s hemophilia came from inbreeding. Of course it sometimes occurred among the poor as well, particularly if there were some reason which required them to live in isolation, such as the Sawney Bean case in Scotland – that family was anything but rich (although modern Scots with the surname Bean are thoughy to be descendants of MacBeth, so go figure.) I also have established my list to make a record for July of which cartoons from 2014 I can reuse and which I can’t. I haven’t started that actual reviewing yet, and I won’t start this week fur sure, but when I am ready, I’m prepared.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

The Daily Beast – This QAnon Leader Could Control Key Elections in 2024
Quote – While the 65-year-old Willott remains all but unknown outside of QAnon, he’s a figure with growing influence in both the conspiracy-theory universe and the broader conservative movement. Along the way, many of Willott’s supporters have come to believe he’s John F. Kennedy Jr. in disguise. He’s also befriended Q-friendly celebrities, including comedian Roseanne Barr and The Passion of the Christ star Jim Caviezel…. Despite his growing influence, almost nothing has been reported about Willott’s background. The Daily Beast has amassed the most extensive reporting on Willott yet, from his background as a second-rate investigator looking into Bill Clinton in the 1990s to his reinvention as the cosmopolitan secret agent Juan O. Savin, to his new role as a power broker on the far right.
Click through for more than you will find anywhere else… stuff we probably ought to be aware of.

Politico – ‘It’s going to be an army’: Tapes reveal GOP plan to contest elections
Quote – The plan, as outlined by a Republican National Committee staffer in Michigan, includes utilizing rules designed to provide political balance among poll workers to install party-trained volunteers prepared to challenge voters at Democratic-majority polling places, developing a website to connect those workers to local lawyers and establishing a network of party-friendly district attorneys who could intervene to block vote counts at certain precincts.
Click through for story. I’m aware Politico is considered to be right leaning. But they seem to publish a lot of stuff one would think the right would not want us to know

Democratic Underground – The Party of the Brave
Quote – Republicans are more afraid of a teenaged boy wearing mascara than a teenaged boy buying an AK-15….
They are more afraid of losing their ‘white privilege’ than they are of losing their country….
They are more afraid of being called-out by Sean Hannity than they are of being called-up by the January 6 Committee.
Click through for full post. Nance Greggs is a community member at DU, but is highly respected aby other members, and this post may suggest why.

Food For Thought

Open Thread June 1, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:37 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 012022

Yesterday, I got an email from WellRed Comedy. That’s not terribly unusual,since I get emails on their tours But this one was about a new series which I had seen a little of on Trae’s channel but which now has its own channel, which they call “Puttin on Airs.” I had seen a couple on Trae’s channel, but the new channel (which has videos and clips ranging from under a minute to over an hour) puts them together in a way which – shall I say – makes them ore coherent. I may be able to use some in the Video Thread (not that I’m ready to just yet. I do suspect looking at, for instance, Marie Antoinette and Henry VII through Trae’s and Corey’s eyes may well be worth a look see.

Also, I have to admit that that tiny little patch, smaller than a postage stamp, actually stayed in place overnight. Amazing.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

No More Mister Nice Blog – MAYBE THE COMMENTARIAT SHOULD TRY LEARNING SOME BASIC FACTS
Quote – I’m pleased that he recognizes the uniquely American nature of this sick fetishization. But how can he not “fully understand the message”? This ad shows a little kid fondling an assault weapon under a Bible verse (Proverbs 22:6) because — as is obvious to anyone who’s paid a reasonable amount of attention to U.S. conservatism in recent years — right-wing Americans don’t just believe they have an unlimited right to bear arms, they believe that this right was given to Americans by God.
Click through for full blog. I don’t know what the answer is. I am coming around to the idea that, since “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people,” we should concentrate on regulating gun owners before trying unsuccessfully to get rid of the guns, and also that a big part of that should be getting ANY guns out of the hands of domestic violence perps and animal abusers who are provably associated with way more than their share of incidents.) This also may not work, but at least it is in line with their own rhetoric, and not just ours.

Daily Kos (Walter Einenkel) – Qronicles of Anon: It’s all about saving the children—until actual children are killed
Quote – This has been a hard week in America. They’re all hard weeks, but this one was particularly difficult. It was a glaring reminder of the violent cost of our country’s obsession with guns and weapons, and how conspiracy theories like QAnon help feed the paranoia that’s necessary to believe everybody should own an assault rifle. The fact that the QAnon world, not unlike its Republican leadership, hides behind children while allowing their actions and inaction to end in dead children as collateral damage is breathtaking and gut-punching all at the same time.
Click through – the article doesn’t so much develop the headline; instead, it rounds up all kinds of QAnon insanity surfacing.

Raw Story – Pope Francis sends ‘powerful message’ by elevating liberal Bishop over Archbishop who banned Pelosi from communion
Quote – “The choice of Bishop McElroy is the biggest surprise of this consistory [the council of cardinals] for the church in the United States,” reports the Jesuit publication America. “A graduate of Harvard, Stanford and the Pontifical Gregorian University, Bishop McElroy has demonstrated that he is one of the strongest supporters of the pope’s vision of church among the American bishops since Francis appointed him to be bishop of San Diego in March 2015. By choosing him to be a cardinal, instead of others, Pope Francis is sending a powerful message to the American bishops and church.”
Click through for details. So many of the humorous things we see are just pure idiocy (like “gazpacho police”); our laughter diesn’t affect them, and the stories lead nowhere. This is a story I can laugh at and treasure – because accountability.

Food For Thought

Open Thread May 31, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:16 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

May 312022

Yesterday, I did more work on a physical conditin I haven’t yet mentioned – a wart. I’m sure part of my problem is that it must have taken me the=ree yers to igure out it was a wart. Hey, it’s right a at the end of my elbow. Have you ever tried to look at the end of your elbow? Even without shoulder issues, I doubt I could have seen it without a mirror, preferably a magnifying miirror. All that time I thought it was a callus.Anyway, it is somewhere in diameter between a penny and a dime. the normal wart remover applications which come with pre-medicated strips that look like bandaiuds have a medicated area the diameter of an aspirin. I’m using those – trying to move them around to cover different parts – but I’ alternating that with other things. Today I received my order of gel and am using that. It has been impossible to keep the other strips in place for 48 hours (the recommended time frame – I doubt the tiny patches which come with the gel will last any longer, if so long. They’s be foe for an aspirin sized wart. I think they might cover mine if I could ut them on with a mocrometer. Maybe duct tape might help – allthough it didn’t much with the original strips. I suppose I should get some cheese to go with this whine.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Daily Kos (David Neiwert) – Far right trains its eliminationist sights on LGBTQ community with deluge of threatening rhetoric
Quote – The mood at far-right chat rooms has grown more openly violent as well, particularly as white nationalists have embraced the Buffalo shooter and his eliminationist “replacement theory” motives—and the threatening rhetoric around Pride events such as the one planned in northern Idaho in June has sharpened. As this recent study warned, the previous year’s relative calm in terms of far-right violence is manifestly over.
Click through – though it’s hard to stomach, if we ignore it, it will only get louder.

Crooks and Liars – Audience Mocks Boebert Relentlessly At Primary Debate
Quote – Coram is challenging Boebert for her Congressional seat, positioning himself as a rational Republican (I know, I know, but his site and the media he shares really does suggest he’d be more of a friend to Democrats than Joe Manchin is,) and Bobo actually shows up to debate him. Speaking a mile-a-minute (from notes, which was prohibited by the debate rules,) she sounds like an unprepared 6th-grader making up lies about a girl she’s trying to beat out for a date with the dodgeball king
Click through for one-liners (and video.) There used to be some rational Republicans in Colorado, so maybe there still is one. I don’t know how heavily the new district is rated Republican, but I certainly would hope Coram wins the primary, and maybe some of those atendees are Democrats feeling the same way. And if so, I would certainly forgive them for ratf***ing the primary.

The Mountain Ear – Carousel of Happiness: A history of making smiles
Quote – After rescuing the empty frame of the Looff carousel, [Scott] Harrison immediately began hand-carving wooden animals to help bring the carousel back to life. Harrison still carves to this day, and has created more than 50 unique animals for his vision, each with a story and a deeper meaning to their creator. Once the Carousel of Happiness (COH) was completely restored Harrison created a non-profit organization and, with help from the Nederland community, raised the $700,000 needed to build the carousel its permanent home on 20 Lakeview Drive.
Click through for a little joy in a sorrowful time. Harrison is a Vietnam veteran, so this story is not completely off topic. (Closeups of the animals can be found here.)

Food For Thought

Video Thread 5/30/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:32 am Open Thread, Politics

May 302022

Glenn Kirschner – Kevin McCarthy decides to commit crime of contempt of Congress rather than “snitch” on Donald Trump

Meidas Touch – Texas Paul REACTS to Lauren Boebert’s Dumbest Statement Yet

Robert Reich – How SCOTUS shapes economic rights for the little guy (a very old video but just posted. He posted 9 Thursday – old, new, long, short – I’ve picked just a couple at this point.)

Mallory McMorrow – The speech Michigan Republicans adjourned the State Senate to avoid hearing (hanky alert)

Mrs. Betty Bowers – CHURCH S_X SCANDALS!

Parody Project – RUSSIAN ARMY NOTABLE

Beau – Let’s talk about cops waiting outside, Rule 303, and the way…. (Wow.)

Open Thread May 29, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:16 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

May 292022

Yesterday, the radio opera was “Akhnaten” the third opera in Philip Glass’s “portrait trilogy” (the first two being “Einstein on the Beach” and “Satyagraha.” The three touch on science, politics, and religion respectively, Glass explains.) Akhnaten was (as far as we know) the first monotheist in history. He decreed that Aten (the sun) be the only god worshiped in Egypt (Akhnaten was not the name he was given at birth, but the name he chose to honor Aten.) Needless to say the priests, especially the priests of Amon-Ra, who had been considered the king of the gods, were not happy. And it will come as no surprise to anyone who has paid attention to history, or to contemporary politics, that the people were also not happy. Theocracy can only hang on to power when thee are enough people in sympathy with its exact teachings to cush those who aren’t. Still, he might have been more successful had he paid more attention to governance – and defense. Without his failure to send reinforcements to his armies fighting on the borders, there might not have been quite such an opening for him to be overthrown. (And the Egyptians were not as dilatory as we are about removing monuments to discredited figures, so there is much about the historical Akhnaten we don’t know.)

Cartoon – 29 0529Cartoon.jpg

Short Takes –

CPR News – Wildfire smoke and poor air quality are coming. Here’s how scientists protect their homes.
Quote – [Alex] Huffman[, an associate professor studying air contaminants at the University of Denver,] recommends households explore … methods to monitor outdoor and indoor air quality. To help manage his asthma, he keeps a careful eye on the EPA’s fire and smoke map, which tracks nationwide smoke plumes and air quality readings. To monitor indoor air quality, he purchased an egg-shaped monitor from PurpleAir, which now sits on a table inside the front door of his home in Centennial. It glows green, yellow or red depending on the severity of suspended particulates.
Click through for methods and details. This is applicable, not only to Colorado and California, not only to the entire southwestern US, but really to everywhere. Sadly.

Mother Jones – He Did Not Act Alone
Quote – [W]hatever we learn about the Uvalde shooter, or any future ones—because there will be more—don’t say they “acted alone,” which is largely media code for “this doesn’t appear to be Islamic terrorism.” No matter the particulars, these “lone” gunmen all have scores of accomplices. Here is a wholly incomplete list of those who bear direct responsibility in this slaughter of 19 children and two teachers, and the brutality visited on those still in the hospital, all the families, and the community and country at large:
Click through for [in]complete list. Did you find your Representative or Senator in there? Or maybe even yourself?

The Daily Beast – The Texan Working Overtime to Customize 19 Little Caskets (hanky alert)
Quote – The funeral directors in Uvalde decided that it should all go through a single casket distributor and customizer, Trey Ganem of SoulShine Industries in Edna, Texas…. “The funeral directors know who I am, and they said, ‘If anybody can do it, you can. Would you help out in Uvalde?’” Ganem told The Daily Beast. “I said, ‘100 percent.’” Ganem added that he would cover the cost of the coffins, around $3,400 each. And he would not charge for any customizing.
Click through for full story. There is a reason why the motto of The Daily Beast is “Truth is a beast.”

Food For Thought ( Nameless)