Yesterday, I got an email from Common Cause sharing its accomplishments at the state level. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything a their website with the same information. They cite four states – Ohio, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Connecticut (I’m far less worried about New Mexico and Connecticut than about the other two.) Also, Colorado now has avian flu in Weld County (dairy ranching country, nowhere near me) and one case of bubonic plague in Pueblo County (I’m 15 miles from the county line, but do go there to visit Virgil.) With only the one case and the experts looking into it, I’m not worried about it now, but I will be watching for updates. And then, i learned Steve Schmodt, after losing two family dogs within months of each other, has a new puppy, a 3 pound Havanese named Mabel.
Jasmine Crockett is someone we need more of. Smart – but not only smart, but also knowledgable and realistic. I hope Democrats are listening.
Marcie Jones is fairly new at Wonkette, but she has the style down. Here she points out that, as bad as Project 2025 is, Trump’s personal plans may be even worse
“Morals of an Alley Cat”, Tfrump, political cartoon
Yesterday, the radio opera was Mozart’s “Don Giovanni.” I think everyone knows the “Don Juan” story, and I have seen and heard it many times since I was introduced to it in college. I think this is the first production which attempted to bring a little “Me Too” spirit to it – for one thing, setting parts of it in a butcher shop. Of course being Mozart, the music is wonderful, and the singers were competent. I also received a grocery order – not large in volume but kind of pricey. Light bulbs and fancy coffee will do that, despite other sales.
This is one of his best columns. It’s on the topic od down-ballot roll-off. I remember TomCat used to complain about it. But now at least someone is doing something about it. He has a video with her (but no CC – sigh), but he also talks about her organization “Sister District,” and what it’s doing. At the end of his article, he provides a link to an interview of Heather Cox Richardson by Christiane Amanpour whish does have CC (it has it in the upper left of the screen, and if you accidentally let your mouse slip into the video part of the screen, it gets covered. Also, after you click on the video in the list, you need to scroll to the top of the screen to see it. Not difficult, just different.) She doesn’t mince words.
I didn’t even hear the rumor until yesterday. Of couuse I don’t frequent places which peddle stuff like this, so that’s probably why.
Yesterday,Robert Reich posted episode 6 in his DEBUNK series, and I tripped over a link to the Biden response to Project 2025. If you can’t possibly read all 920 pages (and I can’t), this has the parts that Joe most wants you to know about.
I saw this first on Democratic Underground, but it was originally on Daily Kos. I’m providing both links – you can go to whichever you prefer. I have had the image for a while, but it’s far to big to be legible here – even with the screen set at 150%. Fortunately, both sources also provide the full list in type so it can be read.
It takes something fairly substantial to rattle Joyce Vance. But Kevin Roberts appears to have done it.
Yesterday, because I forgot about the time difference, I livestreamed the final third of a Capitol Fourth. It was fine. I was glad to see a lot of performers of color, including the host. And the cannon in the 1812 overturewould have done Tchaikovsky proud. I personally wold not have programmed “God Bless America,” simply because it annoys me that Christians seem to think it’s a Christian song so they have a monopoly on iy, when in fact it’s a Jewish song, written by Irving Berlin. But they certainly could have done worse.
I’m not sure why this never occurred to me before … but in view of the fact that so many uptight Republicans live in rural areas, it seems odd that they appear tp think they can “protect” children from learning about sex by regulating porn. Kids living on farms and especilly ranches probably see more sex (granted betweem animals) than even the most enterprising city and suburban kids can manage to access on the internet. Do you suppose this isn’t about morals at all, but rather about rural people reproducing more, and the rest of us reproducing less?
I figure we’ll all be talking about this for a while. This article not only discusses the topic, but provides additional reference to knowledgeable people’s responses which could sstart a lot of conversation. I don’t, owever, think we should lose sight of the facts that our number one priority needs to be re-electing Biden, and our number two (a very close two) is giving him the Congress he needs to work with.
The above is a snapshot. I would not deliberately send y’all to Xitter. The full text is here.
Yesterday, The Borowitz Report addressed the Supreme Court. Andy apparently can’t count, and only two of his proposed replacements are lawyers, but it’s still delicious to think about – and the devil is in the details.
I expect that everyone remembers [retired conservative] federal judge [J. Michael] Luttig from his testimony to the January 6 Select Committee. His delivery was so slow and deliberate that some people thought he was age-impaired, but that was not the reason. The actual reason he spoke that way was because the matter was (and is) so important and he wanted to make sure that not a syllable was missed. Well, he’s in the news again, and this time with thoughts so powerful that no one else has the spine to say them out loud. I hope Jack Smith has the spine to hear them. I suspect that if anyone does, it is he.
Robert Reich‘s point, expressed in the first few paragraphs is something I have known foe so long that I tend to forget that not everyone knows, which allows so many to be misled. Heck, I learned in business school that the very word “bureaucracy” was coined to describe what Reich must now call the “administrative state” because the other has been so tarnished. Federal agencies and the regulations they impose are designed to protect we the people from the most dangerous monster on earth – corporations.
Yesterday was quite a day.When I got into the car to go see Virgil, of course it started right up, but when I backed up and started to turn, the power steering was clearly dead. I decided not to call USAA, even though that’s already paid for through my insurance, because they are kind of a one-trick pony – if it doesn’t fit into the most common categories, they’ll only tow it. And if it turned out to be just brake fluid, I wanted to be able to see Virgil. Instead I called the guy who (you may or may not remember) I called on our anniversary who successfully jumped it, noticed there was a spill under my front end ad topped up the radiator, and noticed my tires were low and inflated them all. Well, it wasn’t the fluid, and it wasn’t any of the fuses,so he went under the car, and it turned out it was simple after all. I learned that under the car there are spindles around which the belts get rotated which send electric power to whatever needs it. there are more than one (I think he said three) and there are at least two belts on any one of them. It turns out the steering is on the same one as the air conditioner. The steering belt was in place, but the air conditioner one had gotten knocked off (which can happen if one hits a pothole or a bump) and without both belts, the spindle wasn’t turning right. He put the A/C belt back in place and that fixed the steering belt and therefore the steering. Trying to explain it to Virgil, I just said “Dude’s a wizard,” but actually he’s just a mechanic who is trained all around and therefore has a lot more know-how than the guys who just jump or change tires or bring gas or tow cars. And, yes, he charges, but he also gives veterans a discount. So I got there, almost 2 hours later than I had planned, but I was and am so happy to have gotten there. We weren’t able to play as much cribbage as usual but we did play some. The hands ranhed from dire through mediocre up to halfway decent. But we enjoyed it. Also – las night – my local radio station devoted is pretty new Broadway show to “1776” For me that’s a hanky alert in a good way
On Friday, Marian Wright Edelmann posted a piece on the Sandy Hook survivors now graduating from high school. It’s a hanky alert. and I held it over the weekend to try to stay upbeat. But it deserves a read.
It’s anybody’s guess what SCROTUS is going to do with this when it gets there – and, in some form, it will. Personlly, I think if they ere truly the originalists they claim to be, they would decide, Sure, anyone can have a gun, aslong as it was made prior to 1800, or a replica of a gun made prior to 1800 with no updates. (‘m inclined to doubt whther any of the RW gun nuts can even load a musket.
Yesterday, the radio opera was “The Fairy Queen” by Purcell, which is an adaptation of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” recorded by an early music group in Utrecht, Netherlands. I streamed it – my local radio staion is now broadcasting the summer schedule, but they started a week late, so, if I don’t sream, I’ll miss the last one, and I don’t want to do that. However, The Fairy Queen is just over half the length of last week’s, so when The Fairy Queen ended, I switched over to the radio, just in time for the third and fourth acts. An also just in time for the static it was making earlier to have quieted down. So, the best of both worlds. And today, I’m off to see Virgil. As always, I’ll post a quick comment when I get back.
If you need a lift, and need to see Joe being Joe and apreciated for it, here’s a link to the North Carolina rally from Friday.
This is short, and simple.. Though about a complex issue, it makes it not to difficult to understand. And it’s good news, as far as it goes.
Remember the mayor elected in Alabama with an overwhelming majority, who couldn’t take office because the previous, unelected white mayor (who had not even bothered to run against him) would not turn over the keys? Well. Here’s the latest in that saga – and, hopefully,the last we’ll ever need to hear about it. Though I’m not holding my breath.
Yesterday, Robert Reich posted episode 5 in his DEBUNK series. Joyce Vance summarized what happened in SCOTUS Thursday, and what didn’t happen (more important actually). And it’s worth reading her post to the end for a little good news. And, SCOTUS told Steve Bannon to go pound sand (they declined yo hear his emergency appeal.) And then there was this: “Supreme Court guts agency power in seismic Chevron ruling.” And finally, Heather Cox Richardson and Robert Hubbell were the only two in my feed who saw the same debate I saw. I’ll let Heather tell it.
If you are looking for actual information about performance-enhancing drugs (which Joe Biden is not taking), I can recommend Evan Hurst’s article at Wonkette, from which I want to share this quote: “Every Republican accusation — literally every one — is a confession. If they’re talking about things, they’re talking about the things they do, and that’s why they know about them.” This weekend I am trying to keep the reference to either good news or funny/amusing. I for one need that break. We’ll see how it works.
This is short and succinct, and absolutely right on target. It hits literally close to home. It might even influence somebody. (and with all that, it’s also amusing.)
