Open Thread April 22, 2023

 Posted by at 6:10 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 222023
 

Yesterday, another much-longed-for update came through. Jamie Raskin had chemotherapy for the last time – because it has worled. This makes me so happy, please forgive me if I miss any errors trying to proofread. Of course he will now need to recover from the chemotherapy, but at least his body will not be constantly getting attacked, and I hope it will be easier and less painful.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

The Conversation – The presidential campaign of Convict 9653
Quote – Debs was behind bars in the federal penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia, serving a 10-year sentence for sedition…. Debs had defiantly disobeyed a law he deemed unjust, the Sedition Act of 1918. The act was an anti-free speech measure passed at the behest of President Woodrow Wilson. The law made it illegal for a U.S. citizen to “willfully utter, print, write, or publish any disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language about the United States government” or to discourage compliance with the draft or voluntary enlistment into the military.
Clivk through for history. Of course Eugene V. Debs is about as far distanced from Trump** as it’s possible to be – politically, as a human being, and proabably other ways as well. But Debs had the experience, and I don’t begrudge Traitor Tot sharing it.

Daily Beast – Little Girl, Parents Shot After Basketball Rolls Into Neighbor’s Yard: Report
Quote – A 6-year-old girl and her parents were injured by gunfire on Tuesday night after a basketball rolled down a residential street in North Carolina and into a man’s yard, enraging him, neighbors told WSOC-TV. Witnesses told the station that the gunman ran up and down the street, firing until he ran out of bullets…. The young girl, Kinsley White, was hospitalized after being seriously wounded. She was released overnight, family members told Queen City News. Her father, William White, remains in the hospital.
Click through for story. A basketball, for heaven’s sake! You’re not safe even if you stay out of the neighbor’s yard. Not even if you’re white. And five years old.

Food For Thought

Share

Video Thread 4/21/2023

 Posted by at 12:04 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Apr 212023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Dominion takes Fox to the cleaners, then Smartmatic, then Fox’s own shareholders. Will Fox survive?

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party – April 18, 2023

Thom Hartmann – He Lied His Way To Power To Take Your Healthcare

Ring of Fire – Republican Governor Says Her 2-Year-Old Granddaughter Already Owns 2 Guns

Guy Gives Squirrel CPR

Beau – Let’s talk about the RNC, Milwaukee, trouble, and loyalty….

Share

Video Thread 4/18/2023

 Posted by at 11:45 am  Open Thread, Politics
Apr 182023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Dominion v. Fox defamation trial begins: could this lawsuit signal the end of Fox “News”?

Thom Hartmann – You Won’t BELIEVE What the NRA Is Up To Now…!

Ring of Fire – Ted Cruz Runs For Reelection On Platform That He Shouldn’t Be Allowed To Hold Office (I don’t agree with Farron. Term limits in practice hurt Democrats – if not every single time, still more than 2/3 – enough to dislike them.

Scared Kitten Learns How To Be A Happy Cat

PUPPET REGIME – Putin’s pep talk for Trump

Beau – Let’s talk about Jordan falling into a trap….

Share

Video Thread 4/17/2023

 Posted by at 11:47 am  Open Thread, Politics
Apr 172023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Justice Clarence Thomas violates federal financial disclosure laws; DOJ MUST investigate!

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party – April 11, 2023

Thom Hartmann – Proof Trump Committed Wire Fraud?

Mrs. Betty Bowers – God Gets Salty About Guns (It is on YouTube – but one must sign in “to confirm your age.”

Fox Has Been Visiting Her Favorite Person For Years

Beau – Let’s talk about Missouri libraries….

Share

Video Thread 4/1/2023

 Posted by at 12:13 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Apr 012023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Donald Trump INDICTED! What will happened when he’s booked by the police & arraigned by the judge?

MSNBC – Maddow: Prepare for New York D.A.’s Trump case to be… boring.

Ojeda Live – No More Thoughts and Prayers

Mrs. Betty Bowers – Trump Indicted!

Tiny, Scared Puppy Falls In Love With A 120-Pound Great Dane

Beau – Let’s talk about making the right move….

Share

Open Thread March 30, 2023

 Posted by at 6:53 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 302023
 

Yesterday, it was pretty quiet. Getting my taxes done was probably the high point of the day. Which is really how I like it. But it does leave me with little to say.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

The Warning – Must read: The Washington Post’s “The Blast Effect”
Quote – In response to my video commentary, which I shared last night, on the devastating tragedy at The Covenant School in Nashville, a The Warning community member suggested that the media do the “horrendous but necessary” job of showing what a semi-automatic weapon does to a child’s body. This morning, The Washington Post did just that. I would encourage you to read this, and to share it with your family and friends…. Entire categories of weapons have been illegal in America since 1934, including the Thompson submachine gun (the “Gangster gun”) and sawed-off shotguns.
CLick through for the article if you like but the real story is in the Post. It did not paywall me, and I think that may have been deliberate (in case the connection to Schmidt was why, I did not cut the link.) Trigger warning – it’s hard to get through. It’s interctive, so if any animation stops scroll down just a tad to restart the movement. That’s deliberate, to give you time to read the accompannying text. And share it if possible. If I find a gify long or an archive link after this posts, I’ll put it in a comment or in the next day’s post.

Crooks & Liars – Al Franken Reveals How To Get Around ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law
Quote – But Franken revealed a workaround: “Luckily, though, it doesn’t say you can’t sing about being gay,” he said, before breaking into a pertinent ditty. Franken continued by wishing Florida teens good luck. “I think you’ll really enjoy reading classics like, “Moby Large Whale With No Subtext Whatsoever,” he added.
This is not the only humor, and there is a video also. The first short take being so serious, I though some relief was needed. (Incidentally, I believe I know why Beethoven became so profoundly deaf, and it wasn’t hereditary.)

Food For Thought

Share

Open Thread March 29, 2023

 Posted by at 7:13 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 292023
 

Yesterday, Looking at the 10-day weather forcast, I said to myself, “I guess spring is really here.” But for those who haven’t lived in the Rockies, I think I had better qualify that. The predominant spring weather in Colorado is wind. And six of those ten days, including both the 30th and the 31st, showed wind as the predominant weather. So, after coming in like a grumpy lamb, March may go out like a blustery lion after all. (But we can also expect some warmer, possibly up to 70°F.) Also, I found I had overcut the extra yesterday – here’s the correct link (plus it’s now on YouTube.)

Cartoon – 29 Niagara rtl

Short Takes –

The 19th – Nashville shooting suspect’s gender sets attack apart from most mass shootings
Quote – Law enforcement officials in Nashville released the identity of the shooter, whose last name was Hale. Chief John Drake of the Nashville Police said the authorities currently believe that the shooter is transgender. However, local authorities and news media reports have varied on how they refer to Hale’s gender identity, as well as what pronouns they have used. The 19th is waiting on further information related to Hale’s identity before publishing a first name.
Click through for more. Yes, everyone has heard about the shots and the victims. I’m using the 19th because it is not afraid to look at this from a different perspective (and is being very careful not to over-report.)

PolitiZoom – Will Ivana Sabotage Donald From the Grave? SECRET FBI Files Released Under FOIA Reveal Investigation
Quote – What if I was to tell you that I was writing a fiction story about a supposed KGB asset, groomed since the 80’s, and his fashionista wife, whom the FBI has also been watching since the 80’s, and then we fast forward to the 21st century, where the alleged asset has been elected president of the United States, with the help of Vladimir Putin, and then a few years later the fashionista wife tumbles down the stairs of her condo one night when she’s alone and breaks her neck?
Click through for juicy details. This seems pretty far-fetched to me. But then everthing involving Trump** is far-fetched. And Ursula doesn’t even mention the suspicious weight of the coffin considering she was cremated.

Bonus News of the Weird:

Law & Crime – Jurors subject ‘dominatrix’ to potential 25-year prison term for trying to murder lookalike eyelash stylist with cheesecake tainted by powerful Russian benzo
Quote – Nasyrova allegedly fled Russia in 2014 before she could be charged with the drugging and murder of a different friend, this one a man. During a 2018 interview with 48 Hours while she was detained at Rikers Island, the so-called dominatrix Nasyrova was also asked whether it was true that she had also drugged and robbed men she met through dating sites. Nasyrova denied the allegations and said (according to a translation), “I would be happy to comment on that, but I can’t talk about it.”
CLick through for story. The concept of identity theft is not new. It appears in countless fairy tals, certainly from all over Europe – I can specifically pint to one in Czechoslovakia,one in Scandinavia, and at least a dozen in Germany collected by the Grimm brothers. And the victimgenerally either survives or is magically resurrected – fairy tales are big on justice for victims. But the detail of the perp being an alleged “dominatrix” is new.

Food For Thought

Share

Open Thread March 17, 2023

 Posted by at 6:58 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 172023
 

Yesterday, I got an email from Move On, who have an insidious plot. They did not post the contents of the letter so I can’t provide a link, and will summarize. They want to put up three billboards with quotes on the route which Trump** must use to get to the airport, since his Mar-a-Lago heliport is gone. They want each one to highlight a different Tucker Carson text from the trove in which he admittied he does not care for Trump** This, they believe, will cause Trump** to post – let’s say shade – at Carlson every time he takes that road. This will cause Tucker’s viewers to leave him. That’s far more than they say even at the donation site. I think they don’t want the right to get even a hint of it unless and until it’s a done deal. That’s a pity, because it’s quite amusing, but it’s a good strategy. If and when they get the billboards up, we can share the details. Also, I got The New Yorker’s Name Drop answer from the first clue – and actually, any of the clues alone would have given me the correct answer. In this case it was just someone I know so much about that it would have been difficult to wrtie a clue whivh wouldn’t have given me the answer immediately.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

CPR News – As gun deaths rise, Colorado is trying something new — a public health approach to gun violence prevention
Quote – In a first-of-its-kind partnership, the Office of Gun Violence Prevention within the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is teaming up with researchers from the Injury and Violence Prevention Center in the Colorado School of Public Health. They’ll create and maintain a resource bank of regularly updated and accurate materials regarding gun violence in Colorado. In addition to the resource bank, officials at the new office also developed a grant program to fund evidence-and-community-based gun violence prevention initiatives.
Click through for details. I really thought it was more widely known than apparently it is that guns are a public health problem. It’s too early to say what this iniriative will accomplish, but we can hope

The Conversation – The retention problem: Women are going into tech but are also being driven out
Quote – So, questions arise: Why does the technology industry have a retention problem? Why are women who are employed by the technology industry quitting in such high volumes? What factors contribute to this low retention of women in the technology industry, and what kind of support do women need to stay and succeed in it?… Mainstream media often reports on open-source software’s toxic “tech bro” culture. In recent years, high-profile leaders in open-source software have been exposed for their abusive behavior.
Click through for full article. Back in the day, women who went into male dominated professions knew we had to be tough and we prepared for it. Is it a drawback of greater societal acceptance in general that we don’t sufficiently prepare kids to cross invisible lines?

Food For Thought
Now, this is what I call trolling!

Share
 Older Entries  Newer Entries