Holiday – Page 12 – Politics Plus

Open Thread June 19, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:34 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 192022

Yesterday, The radio opera was “The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs”[sic] by Mason Bates, libretto by Mark Campbell, in a recording from the Santa Fe Opera, where it premiered in 2017. My biggest surprise of the week was that it was aired on my local radio station. There had been no promotion for it, and these programs are expensive to air, and the most recent fund drive had not made goal. So maybe it is a one-time broadcast – the most recent new manager had made the one announcer who is as nuts about opera the program director, and this opera is, to say the least, a rarity. It is told with multiple out-of-sequence flashbacks – the composer structured it in a musical circle, in homage to Jobs’s belief that life is a circle. Its characters are real people and it’s based on events which occurred, but it makes no claim to be accurate in detail. It has had subsequent performances, and it has been commercially recorded (in fact, it won a Grammy) One of the things I love about Santa Fe is that they do a premier every season. So many companies are terrified of premiers and a contemporary composer has a had time getting a new opera perfi=oemed. But Santa Fe has been so successful that other companies are now putting on new operas as well. I’ve seen a couple I’d love to see again, and there are some I haven’t seen that I’d love to see – several that I’ve heard and one in particular that I haven’t (but if WFMT is going to keep including premiers I eventually may) – “The Lord of Cries” by John Cotigliano in which he fuses “The Bacchae” and “Dracula” – yes, it wounds weird, but Corigliano is very good at combining stories and making the result seamless. I might just add that WFMT knows that opera is meant to be seem, and works hard to post folders of excellent professional photos of the productions it presents so that one can at least get a feel of the visuals.

Cartoon(s) –

Short Takes –

Robert Reich – What the crypto crash tells us
Quote – Earlier this week, Bitcoin dropped 15 percent over 24 hours to its lowest value since December 2020, and Ether, the second-most valuable cryptocurrency, fell about 16 percent. Last month, TerraUSD, a stablecoin — a system that was supposed to perform a lot like a conventional bank account but was backed only by a cryptocurrency called Luna — collapsed, losing 97 percent of its value in just 24 hours, apparently destroying some investors’ life savings. The implosion helped trigger a crypto meltdown that erased $300 billion in value across the market.
Click through for details. No, I can’t imagine anyone here has “invested” in this stuff – but if you know someone who has. you can pass it on. And, in any case, what a bunch of random idiots do can affect everyone, especially if they do it with money.

Wonkette – The Myth Of The ‘Normal’ Republican
Quote – The Republican Party is very confused. On one hand you have GOP politicians hoping to move forward with their regularly scheduled GOP political terribleness. On the other, GOP politicians are doubling down on being led by a twice-impeached former reality TV host who cost them the White House. In some cases, you have both in the very same GOP politician! Let’s check out a few examples from this week’s Sunday shows.
Click through for examples. In today’s Video Thread, Trae describes certain Republicans as “Team Normal” (As opposed to “Team Bugf**k,” but he also stresses that “Team Normal” is not to be trusted either.

Food For Thought

Open Thread June 14, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:38 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 142022

Yesterday, I watched the second hearing – not live, but the Committee’s offical video on YouTube, here. In case you missed it, it was mostly proof of zero election fraud, but at the end it covered the corrupt fundraising Trump** did on the strength of those election lies and hw many small grass-roots donors were cheated. (Ironically, the answer to the day’s Wordle was “DONOR.”) I have still not been surprised at any revelations, just glad that the chain of evidence is so strong.

Cartoon – 14 Marengo RTL

Short Takes –

The Daily Beast – Steve Bannon Digs Into Roger Clemens’ Playbook to Try to Beat Congress
Quote – In both cases, they asked for legally “privileged” congressional records that wouldn’t be released. In Rainey’s case in 2015, when no politician or staffer would waive their right to those privileges, the federal judge thought it appropriate to exclude any evidence of “obstruction of Congress” and dropped that charge. With half the criminal case gone, a New Orleans jury acquitted him of the only remaining charge a few days later.
Click through for story. I won’t go into what this smells of. I think the prosecutor and he judge can shut it own – but who knows whether they will.

She’s Baaack! Sarah Palin To Face Off Against Santa Claus For Congress
Quote – Before changing his name from Thomas Patrick O’Connor in 2005, Claus spent time in several US cities. … [H]e often played Santa Claus during holiday events and became an advocate for at-risk children…. On a walk on a snowy road in 2005, he had prayed about how he could use his Santa Claus-like appearance to help children. As he finished, he recalled, a white car drove by, and someone inside shouted: “Santa, I love you!” “So,” he said, “I took it to heart.”
Click through for details. In Alaska, name recognition might just carry Mr. Calus to the runoff. Good luck to him.

Food For Thought

Video Thread 5/29/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:01 pm Open Thread, Politics

May 292022

Glenn Kirschner – New reporting disclosing Trump’s statement about Pence suggests Trump committed the crime of treason

Meidas Touch – Desperate Republican makes DISGUSTING ATTACK on Stacey Abrams

Robert Reich – Why We Need a Windfall Profits Tax

Farron Balanced – Russian State Media Slams Trump And Calls Him A Fascist

PBS – Trailer for the National Memorial Day Concert – TONIGHT – Check local listings

Liberal Redneck – On the Horrific Texas Shooting

Beau – Let’s talk about renaming military bases….

Open Thread May 5, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:21 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

May 052022

Yesterday, it rained heavily enough so I couldn’t go out and run the car, But we don’t generalally have two days of rain in a row, so today should work. Instead, I did a little more knitting. There is one hour every week day, from 7 to 8 pm, when my regular radio station runs a program with a host whose voice just grates on my ears, so I try to find something else for that hour. This week I’ve been watching programs about Dracula – not the fiction, but the actual person (you wouldn’t Have liked him – I knnw I don’t.) Uesterday’s and the day before were about his building projects. He was a much better architect than he was a human being. Most interesting.

Cartoon – 05 0505Cartoon.jpg

Short Takes –

HuffPost Personal – My 11-Year-Old Patient Was Pregnant. Here’s What I Want You To Know About Being ‘Pro-Life.‘
Quote – I tried in vain to coax the truth of what happened out of Sophia, sitting next to her with a large anatomy atlas flipped open in my lap. She said nothing. I was thankful there was a female police officer that was among the throng at the clinic. It was this officer, when permitted to speak with Sophia, who discovered the identity of the family member that did this awful, unspeakable thing to her. And when the cops left to arrest that relative, they headed to church, because the perpetrator was at choir practice.
Click through for complete story. Maybe a hanky alert.

The Daily Beast – White Nationalists Are Tearing Each Other Apart Over Ukraine
Quote – Others stand with Russia because they believe Putin is a bulwark against Western liberal ideals and alleged “globalist” (read: Jewish) plots that supposedly threaten white Christian civilization. And because they like the cut of his performatively hypermasculine jib. As one prominent American white nationalist put it in a recent and especially ugly post, they hold “faith that Vladimir Putin is a Christian King sent by God to free Christendom from the clutches of the Jewish homo agenda.”
Click through for analysis. There are some Nazis in Ukraine, but that’s another story. This article is about American Nazis heads exploding, and what it could mean for us sane people here.

Colorado Public Radio – Most people who lost homes in the Marshall Fire were underinsured, Colorado insurance regulators say
Quote – Standard homeowners’ insurance that mortgage companies require homeowners to have covers the repair and replacement of homes lost or damaged in a wildfire — but that doesn’t mean the entire cost is covered. Different policies will have different levels of payout, and it’s impossible to give a one-size-fits-all explanation of insurance benefits. Less than 10 percent of homes lost in the Marshall Fire carried coverage that guaranteed coverage for the entire cost to rebuild, the state’s data show.
Click through for more information. One of the first things one learns when starting work in property/casualty insurance (auto and home)is that the mortgage company required coverage and the minimum liability limts on auto policies are both generally insufficient. Ideally, liability coverage (on home or auto) should be “If you were getting sued for everything you own, how much cash would you need?” And a mortgage comapny just wants you covered for enough to pay off your mortgage, not necessarily what it would cost to rebuild the entire home – which in any case can vary – what if you want to do something differently in a rebuild from what was originally there? Probably the best compromise if you want more or less adequate protection but don’t want to spend your entire income on insurance is to look into different kinds of Homeoowner policies which may be written to cover the best guess, but also have a cushion nuilt in. There are other variables too. I’m all for people making their own decisions, provided they actually know what they are deciding, and that’s not always the case.

Food For Thought

Video Thread 4/26/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:45 am Open Thread, Politics

Apr 262022

Glenn Kirschner – Meadows had advance reports of possible violence on Jan 6 yet he & Trump did zip to protect Capitol

Meidas Touch – Texas Paul REACTS to Shameless Kevin McCarthy Border Stunt!

The Lincoln Project – Former President Obama on Challenges to Democracy

MSNBC – Democrats May Have A New Weapon In The Fight Against The GOP’s Culture War

Cake and war: Ukrainians mark sombre Orthodox Easter (I’ve been to Orthodox Easter services – just Russian and Greek. They are absolutely gorgeous, and a feast for the senses Orthodox Easter is almost never on the same day as it is in the west. This year it was a week after ours.)

Cute Cat Stands Up Like A Person When She Wants Treats

Beau – Let’s talk about Disney and Desantis…. Beau’s take is sound. The branding he describes goes way, way back tobefore Disney World. It was part of Disneyland from its inception. But then Beau’s takes are usually sound.

Video Thread 4/17/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:50 am Open Thread, Politics

Apr 172022

(Putting this before Glenn – because it was recorded before the verdict, and Glenn recorded after it)
Ring of Fire – MAGA Rioter Says Trump ‘Authorized’ The Attack On The Capitol

Glenn Kirschner – Insurrectionist Dustin Thompson Testifies he was following Trump”s Orders, Jury Finds Him Guilty

Meidas Touch – CAUGHT: Top Republicans Endorse Putin | #PutinsParty

MSNBC – What’s Behind The RNC’s Decision To Quit Presidential Debates

NJ Spotlight News- Creating Pysanky: The Unbelievable Art Behind Ukrainian Easter Eggs

This Is The Tiniest Baby Bunny In The World (of course you knew I had to)

Beau – Let’s talk about Russia’s long-term futures….

Open Thread April 17, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:44 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 172022

Yesterday, the opera was “Elektra,” by Richard Strauss, about one of the earliest and most dysfunctional families. They weren’t doing so badly until Paris met Helen, whose brother-in-law was Agamemnon (a much better general that Menelaus, Helen’t husband), who in irder to assure victory in Troy sacrificed one of his daughters, Iphegenia, for which his wife, Klytemnestra, (understandably) never forgave him. So in the ten years he was gone, she took a lover, Aegisth, and when he got back they mirdered him. This did not sit well with the children – Elektra, Chrysothemis, and their brother Orest (who had fled in fear for his own life), but Elektra and Chrysothemis did not feel competent to kill their mother and stepfather so they were stuck waiting for Orest to return. And here the opera begins. Chrysothemis really just wants a normal life; it is Elektra who is obsessed with revenge, and rants a lot to anyone who will listen, and to the gods. Eventually Orest does return and kills the guilty pair (off stage, thankfully), leading to Elektra’s final rant, a dance of victory. (Incidentally, the situation put Orest into a bind with the Furies – he was cursed if he killed his mother, but equally cursed if he failed to avenge his father’s murder. His trial by the gods is how the Furies got their other name of Eumenedes, and their other mission of resolving impossible situations. But that trial was after this opera ends.) Nina Stemme, who sang Elektra is probably the top dramatic soprano of today, as were Kirsten Flagstad and Birgit Nilsson before her. And a soprano really needs to be at the top to sing this part. But the rest of the cast cannot be slouches either. It also demands a fair amount from the audience – as do all Greek tragedies, whether spoken or sung. They weren’t intended as entertainment.

Cartoons

Short Takes –

Crooks and Liars – Russian Wife Laughingly Authorizes Her Husband To Rape Ukrainian Women
Quote – A conversation in which a woman invites a man to rape Ukrainian women was published by the Security Service of Ukraine on April 12. From the recording, it can be assumed that the published fragment is part of a longer dialogue. The man turned out to be Roman Bykovsky, a former conscript of the Russian Guard, and then a soldier of the 108th Guards Airborne Assault Regiment, which participated in the annexation of Crimea. It was here that he recently moved his family from Russia.
Click through – if you have a barf bag. I am not making this up.

Daily Beast – FDA Grants Emergency Authorization to First COVID-19 Breath Test
Quote – The first breath test for the virus collects a sample in a manner similar to blowing up a balloon, and can be analyzed for results in under three minutes. “Today’s authorization is yet another example of the rapid innovation occurring with diagnostic tests for Covid-19,” Jeff Shuren, the director of the F.D.A.’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in a statement. The company behind the test, InspectIR, reported that, in a study of just under 2,500 people, it could correctly detect a COVID-19 infection 91.2 percent of the time
Click through for details. I just received my first shipment of four free tests (rapid, swab in the nose) which take about 15-20 minutes. I can handle the annoyance if necessary, but this is a great development for peole for whom the discomfort is a deal breaker.

Daily Kos (Marissa Higgins) – Watch openly gay Democrat tell anti-trans Republican colleague exactly what he needs to hear
Quote – [Mackey (D)]: “I recall a story you told. About your brother….And I remember you said that your b[r]other, or, rather, your mother called to tell you that your brother had some news that he was afraid to tell you…. And your brother wanted to tell you that he was gay, didn’t he?… Can I tell you, if I were your brother? I would have been afraid to tell you, too.” [Basye (R)] “Well, I’m sorry.” And that was meager remark was enough to let Mackey really unleash the heart of his argument.
Click through for full argument. You might need a tissue.

Food For Thought:
Peace
I think thr author would give me permission to republuish it. But I want to share it today, on Easter. And this is a short and easy-to-save link. (The picture is not of the author’s property, but it is of a place within the historic Onondaga territory.)

Open Thread April 15, 2022

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

Apr 152022

Yesterday I overslept – the only surpise there is that it didn’t happen sooner after the weekend. But at least I had gotten pretty well caught up the previous day, so I was able to keep up.

Cartoon

Short Takes –

Why ‘bad’ ads appear on ‘good’ websites – a computer scientist explains
Quote – Programmatic advertising is a powerful tool that allows advertisers to target and reach people on a huge range of websites. As a doctoral student in computer science, I study how malicious online advertisers take advantage of this system and use online ads to spread scams or malware to millions of people. This means that online advertising companies have a big responsibility to prevent harmful ads from reaching users, but they sometimes fall short.
Click through for more detailed explanation, I used to see people in comments complaining about site advertising (and assuming everyone else was seeing what they were seeing) on a daily basis Nowadays I don’t. But the problem is still real – in fact worse, because not it has infested newsletters (from large sites which use a mail service to send them out.) Not that anyone here ever does … but never click on an ad in a newsletter, even from a trusted site.

Dr. Seuss’ Banned Anti-War ‘The Butter Battle Book’ Is Now a Netflix Kids’ Show
Quote – Written in 1984, The Butter Battle Book centered around the war between an orange race called Zooks and a blue race called Yooks. Their countries were divided by a wall over a disagreement on which was the right way to butter bread: Yooks preferred them butter-side up while the Zooks preferred butter-side down. Given the time of the book’s publication, The Butter Battle Book was considered a direct commentary on the Cold War. Seuss unapologetically delved into exploring the consequences of nationalism and the nature of war via the military-industrial complex. Most of the book focused on a heated arms race that got so deadly, it ended with a dour, open-ended conclusion.
Click through for synopsis of original, synopsis of adaptation, and a trailer (plus a link to a John Olver video torching Ted Cruz ove Dr. Seuss which is probably not new.) Theodor Geisel was not a perfect person … but his propensity for making people think (which too many people don’t like) was a great gift.

truthout (OpEd) – Republicans Refuse to Name Courthouse After Black Judge in Overtly Racist Move
Quote – Hatchett retired from the court in 1999 and went into private practice. He passed away last year at age 88, a widely praised and highly admired jurist. “Joe Hatchett is a person who lives and has lived by the ethical precepts which have historically guided the conduct of truly great judges and lawyers of our past and present,” said former American Bar Association (ABA) President Chesterfield Smith when Hatchett was awarded the Florida Supreme Court Historical Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award. “Joe Hatchett to me exemplifies what is best in an American judge, one who is sometimes lonely, but one who never shirks standing alone.”
Click through for full opinion. Yes, this is truthout, and yes, truthout is pretty far left. Bu there’s only one phrase in it I could conceivably disagree with, and that because it is too kind to Republicans. See what you think.

Food For Thought:

Older Entries Newer Entries