Glenn Kirschner – ANOTHER damaging tape in Trump case, but this one was made by his lawyer!
The Lincoln Project – You think Biden Could do That?
MSNBC – Biden has once again defied expectations from haters and his own party
Parody Project – The MAGA Song – Make Attorneys Get Attorneys
Cat Chronicles His Journey With Unrequited Love
Beau – Let’s talk about Paxton and turning Texas blue….
Yesterday, the radio opera was Mozart’s “Die Zauberflöte” (The Magic Flute). If you saw “Amadeus,” you probably have an idea what a departure this was from the symphonic and opera seria music on which Mozart had built his career. It was actually addressed to a different social class from the ruling class for whom most of his works had been written. It’s also quite progressive (at least if you can ignore the fact that it’s patriarchal) – it can be summarized: virtue and justice require concentrated effort to obtain, but witht them, the world can be paradise. It premiered just two years after the storming of the Bastille, so revolution was in the air. Of course it is also highly allegorical and includes multiple references to Freemasonry, but one doesn’t need to know that to appreciate it. I suppose everyone has heard “The Queen of the Night’s aria” (Actual title – “Der Holle Rache” and affectionately known to musicians as “The Holy Racket”). But there are many other charming melodies. It’s not necessary to know that the setting is suporsed to be ancient Egypt, nor that the name “Sarastro” comes from “Zoroaster” to appreciate it all. Well, I’m off to see Virgil. I’ll check in when I get back.
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
HuffPost – 5 Takeaways From The Debt Ceiling Drama
They are: 1. Joe Biden set the terms of debate.
2. McCarthy surprised everyone by taming the Freedom Caucus.
3. Democratic ‘grown-ups’ held their nose and saved the bill.
4. Republicans will take the debt ceiling hostage again.
5. The next big fight over spending is just around the corner.
Click through for more on each. WRT #5, I would say “Be careful what you wish for.” Prior to there being a “debt ceilng, the President had to come to Congress every time he wanted to borrow any money. The debt ceiling was established to give him (it was always him then and so fr still is) some freedom to make borrowong decisions. If we abolish it, we need to make sure we don’t revert to that.
The Daily Beast – GOP School Board Members Bring Book Ban Debate to Newtown, Connecticut
Quote – But Republicans on the Newtown Board of Education sought to have Flamer by Mike Curato and Blankets by Craig Thompson removed from the local high school library as if Connecticut was some benighted red state. After the 20 youngsters and six staff members were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary school, there was a nationwide call for an assault rifle ban. Fools of the far right continued to insist that civilians should have easy access to such weapons of war even as another mass school shooting is followed by another and another and another. In recent years, those same fervent opponents of banning assault weapons have begun to clamor for banning books that professional educators have deemed appropriate for students.
Click through for story. This is not your normal book ban (not that any book ban is or should be normal – but the GQP is trying hard to make them so.)
Food For Thought
Glenn Kirschner – Donald Trump caught on tape, PROVING he lied about declassifying national security documents
The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party – May 30, 2023
Thom Hartmann – America’s Rich Don’t Want You To Know This Simple Way To Stop Oligarchy
Parody Project – Say It Again – MONEY SUCKS THE CONGRESS DOWN (a tad too much bothsiderism for my taste)
Rescue Dog Stayed in Her Crate For Five Days Until She Realized She Was Home
Beau – Let’s talk about Russia’s nuke promise….
Yesterday, the radio opera was (finally!) “Champion” by Terence BLanchard. It’s based on the life of Emile Griffith, a closeted black welterweight boxer whose career began in the late 1950s and went off the rails (though it dontinued, and for a while with a stream of victories before becoming a string of losses) after an opponent who had outed him and whom he defeated with series of 17 blows went into a coma and died. The story has all the elements of tragedy except that he didn’t die young but lived into old age and dementia, which may be an even greater tragedy. Dying is easy – living is hard. (Living is also harder to write about, which may explain why so few creators have chosen to deal with it.) Blanchard chose to address it head on by splitting Emile’s role into three parts – in order of appearance, the old man, played by Eric Owens; the young man, played by Ryan Speedo Green; and even Emile as a child (Ethan Joseph.) Anyone who has ever had any regrets for anything (and what decent person hasn’t?) will appreciate the mechanism of the two adult Emiles having duets. It does feel like that. Not really on topic, but having kind of followed Green’s career and backstory, I’m aware he has mommy issues – and so did Emile, having been abandoned (along with six siblings) by her and raised by a fundamentalist cousin. Also interesting that when cast, he went out and studied boxing and did bodybuilding to be “worthy of the role.” And that Blanchard himself revised and added to the opera because he wanted it to be “worthy of the Met.” I wish I could tell them both that it’s sweet that they did that, but that they ARE WORTHY. Period. Except that that is something one really can’t tell anyone else. Everyone has to find it for themself. And that – is kindof the essential meaning of the opera. Also yesterday, the Texas House of Repuresentatives voted to impeach texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Under Texas law, he must now step down while he is tried in the Texas Senate. And one more thing – the White House and the GOP have reached a “tentative” deal on the debt ceiling.
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
Crooks & Liars – PIGS FLY: SCOTUS Rules In Favor Of The Little Guys In Tax Sale
Quote – The Supreme Court [Thursday] gave a 94-year-old Minneapolis woman a chance to recoup some money after the county kept the entire $40,000 when it sold her condominium over a much smaller unpaid tax bill…. A handful of states in addition to the District of Columbia allow local governments to keep the excess money, according to the Pacific Legal Foundation, a not-for-profit public interest law firm that represented Tyler at the Supreme Court.
Click through for details – Not that $25,000 will go that far, assuming she sees any of it – but the decision id a good one, and those are becoming increasingly rare.
The Nib (Levi Hastings and Dorian Alexander) – Drag Balls of the Civil War
Quote – The Civil War has always been romanticized as a tragic narrative of conflicting American idealism. It doesn’t matter if you’re a yankee or a rebel though, queerness has never been considered an American ideal. Naturally, that doesn’t mean that it didn’t exist…
Click through for graphic article (perfectly SFW). I have a couple more graphic articles which I want to get in – I now need to try a bit harder since The Nib is folding in August, and I don’t know how long they’ll be available.
Food For Thought
For this Glenn video, I pushed a Talking Feds forward a day, so the one on venues will be Friday.
Glenn Kirschner – Donald Trump’s lawyers send ABSURD letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland
MSNBC – How Biden gave McCarthy a ‘victory’ on the debt limit — while giving away absolutely nothing
Parody Project – Still Jail-Free After All These Years
Marjorie Taylor Greene demands “decorum” — and hilarity ensues
Dalmatian Rescues An Abandoned Puppy In The Middle Of Nowhere
Beau – Let’s talk about Biden warming to the 14th Amendment….
Talking Feds (while Glenn is on vacation – he has some fillers but not to cover every day) – Novel Legal Theory TESTED in New Lawsuit to Counter Extremism
Farron Balanced – Giuliani Hit With Lawsuit From Man He Falsely Claimed Assaulted Him
Robert Reich – Haven’t We Learned?
Parody Project Strangers on the Right
Guy Is The Best Friend A Squirrel Could Have
Beau – Let’s talk about Democratic messaging issues….
Glenn Kirschner – Interview w/comedian Buddy Winston (part 2): writing for Jay Leno & appearing on … Bill O’Reilly?
The Lincoln Project – Brand Unsafe
Robert Reich – The First Step to Fixing the Electoral College
Parody Project – The Normalization Song
Mama Dog Who Lost Her Puppies Was Heartbroken Until She Got Kittens
Beau – Let’s talk about the Durham report….
Glenn Kirschner – Justice Matters public service announcement; Interview series – Using Humor in the Fight for Justice
The Lincoln Project – How Many Lies
MSNBC – We don’t have a choice’: Sen. Markey on expanding Supreme Court to 13 seats
Rocky Mountain Mike – Drag Ron (Parody of “Rag Doll” by The Four Seasons)
Growling Baby Foxes Turn Into Sleepy Puppies On Their Rescuer’s Lap
Beau – Let’s talk about Missouri and a failed power play….