Open Thread April 21, 2023

 Posted by at 7:05 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 212023
 

Yesterday, there was an update on the little girl taken from her parents because midwife. She’s going home! Details, including from the family’s attorney, here. In weather news, it’s supposed to snow tomorrow, although very early – it’s to stop by 9:00 am and then warm up. If it does, I”ll be fine with it. I’m to see Virgil Sunday. I hope everyone who celebrates had a lovely 4/20.

Cartoon – 21 0421Cartoon.jpg

Short Takes –

Daily Beast – Inside Jim Jordan’s ‘Charade’ of a Hearing on Violent Crime in NYC
Quote – Back when Jim Jordan was a collegiate wrestling champion, the strategy would have been called a double misdirection duck under…. In truth, the violent crime rate is declining in Manhattan, with murders down 14 percent, shootings down 17 percent, and robberies down 8 percent. Jordan was just seeking to undermine Bragg and therefore the 34-count indictment he had secured against Trump 13 days before…. To mask the actual crime numbers, Jordan applied a second misdirection, inviting the families of two murder victims, the father of a hate crime, and a Manhattan bodega clerk who was charged with homicide after killing a robber but later deemed to have acted in self-defense.
Click through for full opinion. Yes, it’s an opinion piece. When lies are being peddled as facts, sometimes an opinion piece is the best (or even the only) way to get to the truth. At least Jerry Nadler is there. I know he hates it, but he knows and does his duty.

Denverite – Aloft, Denver’s COVID-era shelter, closes as residents find housing and fear the streets
Quote – (The Salvation Army, the State of Colorado, the City of Denver and activists have found housing for all but two residents) On the second Tuesday in April, older homeless men at high risk of dying from respiratory infections joined members of the housing advocacy group the Housekeys Action Network Denver, or HAND, in a hot downtown parking lot, outside a soon-to-close shelter at the Aloft Hotel…. [D]odging cars, residents tried to figure out where they could go now that the City of Denver and the Salvation Army were shutting down a home that felt permanent, though they knew it never was.
Click through for story (and stories.) The subtitle (in parens) is the good news, and I’m proud of all who have worked on this, but it’s not good enough. A big reason why we can’t have nice things is TABOR.

Bonus: Crooks & Liars – Marge Gets Shut Down At Committee Hearing After She Breaks House Rules
Quote – Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) asked for Greene’s words to be “taken down” because they violated the House rules of decorum…. Still, when asked by Republican Rep. Mark Green if she would withdraw her statement, she declined…. [Rep. Daniel] Goldman noted that the rules prohibit her from continuing. “Point of personal inquiry,” Rep. Sporkfoot said. “There’s no such thing,” Goldman shot back.
Click through – there’s also video. I didn’t put this in the video thread because I figured we could all use a laugh – or at least a smile.

Food For Thought
(Hey, I can dream.)

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Video Thread 3/26/2023

 Posted by at 12:18 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Mar 262023
 

Talking Feds with Harry Litman – Former Prosecutor Decodes the Manhattan DA’s TRUMP INDICTMENT Plans (long, but very nuts and bolts – and Glenn skipped a day.)

MSNBC – Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg receives threatening letter with white powder

Farron Balanced – Fox Host Whines About Democrats Making Conservatives Look Like Idiots

Afroman – Will You Help Me Repair My Door? (This is funny [and the CC is not bad], but the incident was not at all funny.} https://www.wonkette.com/humiliated-cops-sue-afroman

Bulldog Obsessed With His Skateboard Hates When His Parents Try To Take It Away From Him

Beau – Let’s talk about the permafrost zombie virus….

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Open Thread March 25, 2023

 Posted by at 6:57 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 252023
 

Yesterday, well, actually a few days ago, so you may have seen it, Disney fired a shot at DeSantis by announcing that Disney World will be hosting a “major summit on gay rights” in September. And Steve Schmidt made a rare exception and released his entire column to unpaid subscribers, I presume because the ignorance of the Constitutional law displayed by Republicans, including members of Congress, impelled him. I’d bookmark this one, or print it out, for when I encounter talking points which make out the Constitution to be whatever Republicans want it to be.

Cartoon – 25 0325Cartoon.jpg

Short Takes –

Robert Reich – What connects Trump’s likely arrest with the bank bailouts?
Quote – Thiel and other wealthy self-described “libertarians” want Trump to be re-elected president in 2024…. Charges of hypocrisy have been leveled at Thiel and other wealthy depositors who claim to be libertarians but were rescued by the government. There was nothing hypocritical about it. Thiel and others like him aren’t really opposed to government, per se. They’re opposed to democracy. They prefer an oligarchy — a government controlled by super-wealthy people like themselves.
Click through for story. I might suggest that it is indeed htpocritical to call yourself a libertarian when you are in fact an oligarchist. But there’s certainly a precendent in Ayn Rand.

Civil Discourse – A nightmare for women in Idaho could be coming to all of us soon
Quote – Bonner General Health wrote that it was forced to take the step because of physician shortages and a downturn in births. Then it explained the context in which it was being forced to shut down its labor and delivery unit: “Idaho’s legal and political climate – Highly respected, talented physicians are leaving. Recruiting replacements will be extraordinarily difficult. In addition, the Idaho Legislature continues to introduce and pass bills that criminalize physicians for medical care nationally recognized as the standard of care. Consequences for Idaho Physicians providing the standard of care may include civil litigation and criminal prosecution, leading to jail time or fines.”
Click through for details. Translation: When government tells doctors how to practice medicine, that is a threat to ALL doctors practicing ANY kind of medicine, and they will go elsewhere. If this spreads, the ENTIRE United states could lose ALL its doctors and medical facilities.

Food For Thought

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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!

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Open Thread March 15, 2023

 Posted by at 7:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 152023
 

Yesterday, between spending Monday sleeping late even for me, and having my BFF ome over to help me with some – for me – heavy lifting (and when we get together, it never stops with the object of the meeting. We always have lots to talk about. For one thing, she just completed training and qualified as a notary), I had to start from scratch. That’s rare – I almost always have a little something left over. But I also did some catching up (or getting ahead.) One of today’s short takes is from Substack, and if you aren’t a sybscriber, it will probably present you with a popup with the choices “Subscribe” and “Let me read it first.” Just click on the latter.

Cartoon – 15 J Caesar RTL

Short Takes –

In the Writing Burrow (Margaret Atwood) – What Is This Health Care, Earthlings? #2
Quote – Tommy was keen on publicly funded health care because as a boy he almost lost a leg to osteomyelitis. His parents couldn’t afford to pay for advanced treatment, but an expert orthopedic surgeon treated him without charge and saved the leg. As he said later, “I felt that no boy should have to depend either for his leg or his life upon the ability of his parents to raise enough money to bring a first-class surgeon to his bedside.” We do tend to take things for granted once we have them. But what was it like before public healthcare? Well, my children, I can tell you. I was there.
Click through fpr article. Ms. Atwood’s style is lively (as if we didn’t know that from “The Handmaid’s Tale”) but her areticle on Canadian Medicare – and what Canada was like before Canadian Medicare – is revealing. (To read Pat #1, click on the top line – “In the Writing Burrow” You may have to scroll once.

The New Yorker – What We Still Don’t Understand About Postpartum Psychosis
Quote – Postpartum psychosis tends to come on suddenly, often within four to six weeks of childbirth, around the time of weaning, or following a period of extreme sleep deprivation; it is sometimes presaged by anxiety and insomnia. A woman experiencing postpartum psychosis may show signs of mania, depression, or both; she may have aural hallucinations, paranoia, or delusions; she may stay awake day and night. She may, for stretches of time, appear to be perfectly normal.
Click through for details. I had heard of postpartum depression, but not of postpartum psychosis. But I also haven’t rread about postpartum depression for a long time. This appears to be yet another way in which the patriarchy short-changes women (and ignores the welfare of children.) Yes, there are women working in medical research today, as there are in virtually any field. But can you name one profession/occupatiuion in which the ethics have altered as a result of the influx of women? I can’t/.

Food For Thought

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Video Thread 3/13/2023

 Posted by at 12:08 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Mar 132023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Mike Pence CALLS OUT Donald Trump at Gridiron Dinner? Will Pence now testify about Trump’s crimes?

Thom Hartmann – Is This Healthcare or a Crime?

Ring of Fire – Biden Baits Republicans Into A Trap On Medicare Funding

Armageddon Update – DeSantis DeStruction

Stray Cat Waits For This Guy At Work Every Morning For 2 Years

Beau – Let’s talk about Fox, a Zoom call, and the New York Times….

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Open Thread March 9, 2023

 Posted by at 6:40 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 092023
 

Yesterday, I slept late but woke up refreshed. In my emails, I found one from Lakota Law about a Two-Spirit Powwow held lastmonth in the San Francisco Bay Area. Unfortunately, there’s really nothing to link to, but I put up a remoinder for myself for (I hope) early enough next year that I will be able to find it and share links to live streaming. I also worked on some cartoons coming up

Added today at about 10:45 am Pacific – Mitch McConnell has been hospitalized following a fall at a DC hotel. Per a McConnell spokesman: “This evening [now last evening – JD], Leader McConnell tripped at a local hotel during a private dinner. He has been admitted to the hospital where he is receiving treatment.”

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Robert Reich – Greed needs guardrails!
Quote – The Labor Department is still woefully understaffed, and penalties are still too low. Every time the department’s budget is up for review, members of Congress — mostly (but not entirely) Republicans — refuse to appropriate enough funds for inspectors or to increase penalties. So of course migrant children coming into the United States, fleeing violence and poverty, have ended up in dangerous jobs. In Delaware, Mississippi, and North Carolina, young children are working in slaughterhouses. In Michigan, young children are making auto parts used by Ford and General Motors. In Virginia, girls as young as 13 are washing hotel sheets. In Florida and Tennessee, 12-year-olds are doing roofing jobs. In South Dakota, children are sawing planks of wood on overnight shifts.
Click through for full argument – not that we don’t already kniw this, and know why, but he does say things so well.

Mother Jones – Inside the Secret Working Group That Helped Push Anti-Trans Laws Across the Country
Quote – The emails demonstrate close collaboration between groups working behind the scenes to push bills banning transgender health care, including [Alliance Defending Freedom]—which has defended state-sanctioned sterilization of trans people in Europe—and the ACPeds—which has opposed adoption by gay couples and supported conversion therapy for LGBTQ youth. In recent years, ADF has drafted legislation banning trans children from using school restrooms or playing on school sports teams that align with their gender identity. (Both groups are also staunchly anti-abortion; ADF, which drafted the Mississippi abortion ban at the heart of the case that overturned Roe v. Wade, is currently representing ACPeds in a closely-watched lawsuit to ban an abortion pill, mifepristone, nationally.)
Click through for story. Back in the late seventies, when I was in my early 30’s and Bishop of Pueblo Charles Buswell was in his late 60’s, I met him as an informal gathering at my local church. Bishop Buswell was a truly good man (something which cannot be said about all bishops) and also a truly humble man (also rare – it’s easy to get caught up in all the ritual observabces and start believing one’s own PR.) I was chatting with him and the subject of transgender came up (at that time Trinidad, CO was about the only place in the country that a transgender could get gender-affirming treatment at all, and that was not as advanced as it is today.) He mentioned that a priest he had ordained, I don’t know how long prior, was transgender and the Bishop had released her and she had been treated in Trinidad. He then said, “I believe that in such cases the soul of a woman has been born into the body of a man,” and I replied, “That is my understanding too.” He grinned and said, “Well then, our diocese deserves the credit for having ordained the first woman priest.” He seemed qquite proud of that (as he had a right to be.) He died in 2008 (he would have been 95.) We need more like him – but I’m kind of glad he didn’t live to see all of this hatred.

Food For Thought

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Open Thread March 6, 2023

 Posted by at 6:49 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 062023
 

Yesterday, I was looking through videos for the video thread. Beau has been really hot lately, but I can’t share all of his because he’s doing 3-4 a day now and I wouldn’t have room for anything else. So I’m going to briefly sharethe information from one here. Last month, the 18th-19th, there was a “revival” in Kentucky (he didn’t specify, but “revival” sounds like Talibangelicals) and apparently someone who was there had an active case of measles. The possibility exists of new cases popping up just about everywhere in the US. I’m sure no one who reads here was there, and y’all already stay away from Talibangelicals, but it might be harder to avoid people who don’t systematically avoid Talibangelicals. The incubation period is 21 days, which would be March 11 or 12 (but of course anyone who caught it during that time frame would then have their own 21-day period.) If you ever go anywhere, or live with anyone who does, or have guests, check your immunizations and please be careful.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Letters From An American – March 3, 2023
Quote – Today (March 3) the Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee demonstrated that they will actively fight back against Republicans’ false narratives…. Rather than permit them to establish a false narrative, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), and the top Democrat on the weaponization subcommittee, Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands), today released a deeply researched and footnoted 316-page report that shreds the Republicans’ story…. In a section of the report titled “An Analysis of Witness Testimony Shows That Committee Republicans Are Working to Advance a Politically Motivated Messaging Campaign Unsupported by the Evidence,” Nadler and Plaskett show how the witness testimony directly rebutted the Republicans’ talking points. Under examination, the witnesses disproved that the Department of Justice was trying to pad its case numbers regarding domestic violent extremism, that it had diverted resources from child abuse cases to pursue January 6 offenders, and that the FBI had overreacted to threats of violence against school administrators and local political officials, all Republican talking points.
Click through for more good refuting of bad and ugly. I am for statehood for Puerto Rico and DC, but danf, maybe the Virgin Islands first. Stacey Plaskett needs and deserves a VOTE in the House. And we need her.

Crooks and Liars – 58 Years Later, Black Vietnam War Hero Gets His Medal Of Honor
Quote: [Biden] continued, “And although the men who were with him on that June day immediately nominated Captain Davis to receive the Medal of Honor, somehow the paper — the paperwork was never processed, not just once, but twice. But, you know what Captain Davis said after learning that he would finally receive the Medal of Honor? Quote, ‘America was behind me.'”
Click through for more detail. I have read that he was named after Paris in the Iliad. I feel that Davis was a FAR better soldier than Paris – but it’s complicated, and Paris did, in a way, get the “last laugh.”

Food For Thought

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