Open Thread – 1/3/2021

 Posted by at 11:05 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Jan 032021
 

It’s a busy day here in the CatBox.  I’ve had a ton of beginning-of-the-year file keeping to do.  It the past, I’ve planned for and done most of it well in advance, but this year, I was not supposed to need it.  I’m caught up on most of it.  For the first time in my life, I won’t bitch about paperwork.  Today is a Holy Day in the Church of the Ellipsoid Orb.  My Broncos are playing the Raiders in their last game.  Of course it’s not televised here.  Tomorrow please expect no more than a brief Personal Update.  It’s a WWWendy day, and she’s coming earlier in the morning than usual because of her schedule.  May the Holy Orb shine its blessed light on your team, unless they raid lost wages.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:24 (average 5:11).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: One of the criticisms of former President Barack Obama in his first term was a lack of focus on judicial nominations, letting many vacancies go unfilled even while Democrats held the Senate. President-elect Joe Biden learned the consequences of letting nominations languish and is already on it, contacting Democratic senators to get their recommendations for judicial candidates. And not for just any good candidates: for the kinds of judges that have been lacking in the federal judiciary.

“With respect to U.S. District Court positions, we are particularly focused on nominating individuals whose legal experiences have been historically underrepresented on the federal bench, including those who are public defenders, civil rights and legal aid attorneys, and those who represent Americans in every walk of life,” reads a Dec. 22 letter obtained by HuffPost from incoming White House counsel Dana Remus to Democratic senators. Remus continued that Biden doesn’t just want those names for a list for potential nominees, he wants recommendations—as soon as possible and with a final deadline of Jan. 19—for any existing district court vacancies. That sets him up to get those nominations rolling literally on Day One, Jan. 20. Additionally, Remus told senators that Biden will expect nomination recommendations from them “within 45 days of any new vacancy being announced, so that we can expeditiously consider your recommendations.”

I am pleased to see and do support the areas in which Joe wants to focus with respect to fixing the judiciary. However, without both GA Senate seat wins, it’s meaningless, given the smug smirk of Blatant Bought Bitch Midnight Moscow Mitch.  RESIST!!

From NY Times: Vice President Mike Pence signaled support on Saturday for a futile Republican bid to overturn the election in Congress next week, after 11 Republican senators and senators-elect said that they would vote to reject President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s victory when the House and Senate meet to formally certify it.

The announcement by the senators — and Mr. Pence’s move to endorse it — reflected a groundswell among Republicans to defy the unambiguous results of the election and indulge President Trump’s attempts to remain in power with false claims of voting fraud.

Every state in the country has certified the election results after verifying their accuracy, many following postelection audits or hand counts. Judges across the country, and a Supreme Court with a conservative majority, have rejected nearly 60 attempts by Mr. Trump and his allies to challenge the results.

And neither Mr. Pence nor any of the senators who said they would vote to invalidate the election has made a specific allegation of fraud, instead offering vague suggestions that some wrongdoing might have occurred and asserting that many of their supporters believe that it has.

The senators’ opposition to certifying Mr. Biden’s election will not change the outcome. But it guarantees that what would normally be a perfunctory session on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to ratify the results of the presidential election will instead become a partisan brawl, in which Republicans amplify specious claims of widespread election rigging that have been debunked and dismissed for weeks even as Mr. Trump has stoked them.

I suppose the fly got away with whatever gray matter that evil Republican Vice Fuhrer Pence used to have. Stay tuned. Wednesday is going to be a zoo, and I’ll be following it closely.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): Jefferson Airplane – Somebody to love

Ah… the memories.  If they had ruined the beautiful music quality, if they had changed the weed in the clip to Clorox, and if they had changed “love” to “hate, this would have become the Republican theme song.  RESIST!!

16 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/30/2020

 Posted by at 11:12 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 302020
 

It’s another tired day here in the CatBox.  It appears that the progression of my disease demands that I spend more time getting bed rest.  Nevertheless I managed to put together a full article today and hope to do so into 2021 as well.  Happy Hump Day!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:14 (average 5:59).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: Although the pandemic rescue package finally signed by a pouting Donald Trump last night extends the federal moratorium on evicting renters who cannot make their payments, it’s only a temporary reprieve. The House and Senate-passed bill extends the eviction moratorium by only one month. We’re right back here in February, albeit with a new president not permanently sidelined by his own narcissistic delusions.

And the underlying problem is not going away. After the bungling incompetence of government responses from March onward, we are in a new pandemic surge. One in every thousand Americans has died from the virus. Without more lockdowns, the death toll will double in coming months; vaccines simply cannot be manufactured and distributed fast enough to prevent it. And all that means that those who have lost their jobs in a shattered pandemic economy cannot pay rent, and haven’t been able to pay rent, and will not be able to pay months of backlogged rent with a new $600 check, or a $2,000 one. $600 will go to food first, medicine second, rent third.

Here in OR, the legislature had already passed a three month extension on Oregon’s moratorium on evictions. In addition, they passed a financial aid package for landlords who need help staying afloat, because so many tenants have to live rent free. I have no doubt that we will continue to help those in need, because Oregon leads the way.  RESIST!!

From Crooks and Liars: Why weren’t we told about this sooner? Details at justscream.baby.

 

I have a better idea. If you need to scream, call (202) 456-1111, the White house phone number, but only before 1/20.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (Robert Reich Channel): Defeating McConnell: The Real Stakes of the Georgia Runoffs

 

Of course the Reich on the left, Robert Reich, is right. In this case I know, because I’ve been saying the same things ever since I learned that Senate control depends on the outcomes of those elections. Bought Bitch Midnight Moscow Mitch personifies the Reich on the Right, the Republican Reich. If they retain the Senate majority, BBMMM will do to Biden what he did to Obama. RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): The Moody Blues – Nights In White Satin

 

Ah… the memories!  RESIST!!

20 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/24/2020

 Posted by at 11:26 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 242020
 

It’s a tired day, here in the CatBox.  I overslept this morning, so I’m running a bit late.  It’s Christmas Eve, and if you live in a red state, you need to beware.  I trust that you understand that Republicans have invented a fake version of Jesus, Republican Supply-side Jesus.  He uses Jesus’ name to spread the Nazi Republican pseudo-gospel of war, hate and greed.  Republican Supply-side Jesus is the exact opposite of the real Jesus.  The reason red state residents need to beware is that there is also a Republican Supply-side Santa.  Like the real Santa, he comes down the chimney on Christmas eve, but instead of bringing presents, he steals the presents from poor and middle-class red state children, sells them, and uses the proceeds to buy presents for Republican billionaires, like new sheets and hoods to replace the ones Republicans have worn out through excessive use.  So if you live in a red state, build a big fire in the fireplace, put flash-bangs in the stockings and replacer the cookies with turds.  Merry Christmas Eve to you all, and SantaCat knows who’s been naughty and nice.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:43 (average 8:13).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Tracking Santa:

 

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: Ever-shameless, Donald Trump is now using the pardon power to promote outright corruption. In a slew of pardons tonight, Trump used the power to sabotage convictions of private-contractor war criminals, an array of Republican elected officials caught using their office to engage in crimes, and two of Trump’s own allies who pled guilty to lying to federal law enforcement officials in an effort to block special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of communications between the Trump campaign and Russian officials during the 2016 campaign.

Receiving pardons tonight—and surely, there will be many more coming—are George Papadopoulos and Alex van der Zwaan, who both pled guilty to lying to federal investigators probing Russian hacking and propaganda efforts on behalf of Trump. They join the previously pardoned Flynn, who pled guilty to lying as part of the same cover-up.

Also receiving pardons are three Republican congressmen caught committing crimes in office. California ex-Rep. Duncan Hunter stole donated campaign funds for his own personal use. New York ex-Rep. Chris Collins pled guilty to lying to the FBI and to attempting to commit securities fraud after being caught engaging in insider trading. Texas ex-Rep. Steve Stockman was convicted of money laundering. All three were unquestionably guilty of corruption in office; in pardoning each of the disgraced House Republicans, Trump is clearly signaling his contempt for those that would attempt to hold his political allies to account.

For good measure, and as reminder that aside from personal fealty of allies there are few things as seemingly dear to Trump’s heart as torturing or killing the innocent, Trump has also pardoned four Blackwater private contractors responsible for killing 17 civilians in Baghdad’s Nisour Square, an act that fomented terrorism against U.S. forces for years afterwards.

There’s no subtlety to these pardons, and its almost certain that they are the prelude to a host of even more egregious ones.

When I think of the egregious losses, grief and suffering these bastards caused to victims and their loved ones, I want to scream!  RESIST!!

From Crooks and Liars: Holy smokes! It looks like Diaper Don was correct with his complaints of faulty election results in at least two states. But he probably doesn’t really want to draw too much attention to them.

In Delaware County, Pennsylvania,, there was a confirmed incident of voter fraud:

In the weeks leading up to the presidential election, Elizabeth Bartman and Elizabeth Weihman registered to vote as Republicans in Nether Providence Township, Delaware County officials said Monday. There was one problem: Both women had been dead for several years.

The man behind those applications, Bruce Bartman, now faces two felony counts of perjury, as well as one count of unlawful voting for successfully casting an absentee ballot for President Donald Trump in the name of Elizabeth Bartman, his long-dead mother.

Bartman was arraigned Friday and released on $100,000 unsecured bail.

His lawyer, Samuel Stretton, said the 70-year-old takes full responsibility for the crimes, and will cooperate with investigators

“In his political frustration, he chose to do something stupid,” Stretton said. “And for that he is very sorry.”.

Bartman used his deceased mother’s driver’s license to register her to vote absentee and successfully cast a ballot for Trump in her name. He tried to do the same thing for his dead mother-in-law. But in that incident, he used her Social Security number, which triggered an alert in the state’s system. Even though Bartman signed a letter confirming that she was alive, he never tried to vote for her.

How many times have I said that, when isolated instances of voter fraud do occur, the perpetrators are virtually always Republican?  RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Trump Vetoes Defense Spending Bill Setting Up Showdown With Congress

 

The disrespect this shoes to our men and women in uniform is totally disgusting! To Trump* and the Republican Reich, our troops matter only as cannon fodder. I have no doubt the veto will be overturned.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast of Christmas): Silent Night arranged by Dan Forrest from Beckenhorst Press

 

Whether or not you are one who you believes in the deity of Jesus Christ, may the celebration of his birth, albeit poorly timed, bring you peace, love, comfort and joy. This year our nation is about to be given another chance. HUGS!!

26 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/16/2020

 Posted by at 11:06 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 162020
 

It’s a tired day here in the CatBox, and I’m hurrying to get back to bed.  Tomorrow is gruesome hospital day.  Please expect no more than a very brief Personal Update.  Because of the notary appointment afterwards, I will probably not have the time or strength for a back and OK message, but if anything is wrong, I’ll text Nameless to let you know.  Happy Hump Day!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:11 (average 5:08).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: Sen. Kelly Loeffler’s campaign claims she had no idea she was posing for a photo with a former Ku Klux Klan leader who was once convicted of a violent assault on a Black man. Loeffler was photographed beaming alongside Chester Doles at a Friday campaign event.

“Kelly had no idea who that was, and if she had she would have kicked him out immediately because we condemn in the most vociferous terms everything that he stands for,” a campaign spokesman told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. But Loeffler was at a September event for QAnon candidate Marjorie Taylor Greene that Doles attended—and was kicked out of. You’d think that someone being a no-go for Greene would stick in the mind. After that event, a Loeffler campaign spokesperson said Loeffler didn’t know who Doles was. But again, that was her opportunity to learn. Apparently she didn’t bother.

We need all hands on deck to win the Georgia Senate runoffs on Jan. 5, and you can volunteer from wherever you are. Click here to see the Georgia volunteer activities that work best for you.

1216LoefflerKKKDoles

Perhaps the reason she doesn’t recognize him in plain clothes is that, when they are together, both are almost always dressed in their sheets and hoods.  RESIST!!

From Crooks and Liars: The U.S. government pays disability benefits to people with a serious condition that leaves them unable to work full time. But the Trump administration has been trying to cut the number of people on the program for a while, and now Trump is planning to redefine full-time work as 30 hours per week for purposes of determining whether someone is disabled. Many people would lose their meager benefits as a result. Via Huffington Post:

 

This is not Trump’s* sole doing. Stealing money from the needy to provide more welfare to greedy billionaires is what Trump has to do to keep a few Republican elected officials actively supporting his election theft and sheeple-fleecing operations.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast of Christmas): The First Noël

 

Beautiful! Ah… the memories. HUGS!!

34 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/14/2020

 Posted by at 11:33 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 142020
 

It’s a Republicitis day here in the CatBox.  I just spent 45 minutes on the throne and cast an unbelievable number of electoral votes, among other things.  Speaking of Republican feces, we just passed 300,000 Americans murdered by Donald Trump* and the Republican Reich with their plague.  WWWendy is coming tonight.  I want to get as much rest as I can this week, because Thursday is a Hospital/Infusion day, followed by a will notary appointment, followed by a WWWendy day all on the same day.  Expect exhaustion.  Oh God, it’s Monday!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:31 (average 4:48).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Religious Ecstasy:

1213Broncos32-Panthers27

And a glorious, wonderful Orb it is!

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: One of the great strangenesses and perversions in the QAnon conspiracy theory is that part of what Donald Trump—a man who was good friends with convicted child molester Jeffrey Epstein—is doing in his fight against the “deep state,” is to clean up a vast child-sex human trafficking cabal. The idea that there are powerful people engaged in illegal human sex trafficking that involves underage children is very believable. In fact, Donald Trump seems to have intimately known some of those people, and even hired the former Florida Attorney General Alexander Acosta—one of the main guys who cut a deal to let one of those human traffickers off with a hand slap.

Anywhos, QAnon theorists have evolved the Hillary Clinton and Pizzagate and whatever else anti-Semitic globalist bullshit theory that makes them feel like they know what’s going on. It’s like chemtrail conspiracy theory with a touch of sex and child abuse because QAnon is even more of a religious cult than Pizzagate was. And religious cults usually help define themselves by saying other groups of people do terrible things to children. And guess what? Republican QAnon conspiracy theorist and failed Louisiana candidate Ben Gibson was just pulled into custody on Wednesday and charged for … yup: four counts of possession of child pornography “involving juveniles under the age of thirteen.”

I’m not surprised. Republicans are not original enough to invent new crimes and perversions for their conspiracy theories, so they fall back on their own behavior for reference material and accuse Democrats of doing it. We call this projection.  RESIST!!

From NY Times: In Michigan, Democratic electors have been promised police escorts from their cars into the State Capitol, where on Monday they will formally vote for Joseph R. Biden Jr.

In Arizona, state officials are holding the vote at an undisclosed location for safety reasons, far from what is expected to be a heated hearing on election integrity issues that Republicans will conduct in the Statehouse.

Even in Delaware, the tiny, deeply Democratic home state of the president-elect, officials relocated their ceremony to a college gymnasium, a site considered to have better security and public health controls.

For decades, Electoral College voters have served as the rubber-stamping bureaucrats of American democracy, operating well below the political radar as they provided pro forma certification of a new president. Despite its procedural nature, the role has long been considered an honor, bestowed as a way to recognize political stature or civic service.

This year, the Electoral College is another piece of routine election mechanics thrown into the cross hairs of President Trump’s sustained assault on voting integrity. After five weeks of lawsuits, recounts and Republican inquiries into unfounded claims of fraud, Americans will turn to the 538 members of the Electoral College to provide a measure of finality to Mr. Biden’s decisive victory.

And as small-town electors face harassment and more prominent figures adapt to increased security measures, a duty long considered a privilege has also become a headache.

I find it shameful that these people have to perform their civic duty under the threat of death and violence from the Republican Reich!  As of now 168 Biden votes have been cast.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast of Christmas): Frank Sinatra *☆* Adeste Fideles * (O’ Come All Ye Faithful)

 

Believe it or not, I first learned to sing this carol in Latin, as an assignment for sixth grade Latin class. Ah… the memories! HUGS!!

36 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/9/2020

 Posted by at 10:56 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 092020
 

It’s a lazy day here in the CatBox.  I did my research and rested for an hour and a half for my back.  Tomorrow I’ll be in the saddle, but it will be a grocery delivery day.  Happy Hump Day!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:32 (average 5:51).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Crooks and Liars: Dr. Rebekah Jones built her own COVID-19 dashboard to track Florida infections and deaths after being fired for accurately reporting that data as part of her job with the state.

Since then, she’s been reporting COVID stats on her own from her own hardware in her own home. Until today. (WARNING: The video in her first tweet is triggering):

 

She is guilty of truth-telling. If the Republican Reich is not destroyed, they will continue to fight to make opposition to Republican lies a capital offense.  RESIST!!

From NPR: The federal government on Monday released detailed hospital-level data showing the toll COVID-19 is taking on health care facilities, including how many inpatient and ICU beds are available on a weekly basis.

Using an analysis from the University of Minnesota’s COVID-19 Hospitalization Tracking Project, NPR has created a tool that allows you to see how your local hospital and your county overall are faring. (Jump to look-up tool.)

It focuses on one important metric — how many beds are filled with COVID-19 patients — and shows this for each hospital and on average for each county.

This is a handy tool. Click “(Jump to look-up tool.)” above to use it.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (Robert Reich Channel): The Biden Administration: Who Will Hold the Power?

Of course the Reich on the left, Robert Reich, is right, and in this case, most informative!  RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Chris Hayes: The Rot Won’t Go Away With Trump

Of course you know that I’ve been saying this for years. Trump is not the cause of the National Socialism in the Republican Reich. He is the reflection of it. They are turning on him now, because he is a scapegoat to blame for who they are and what they have done. The only you to make the rot go away is to destroy the Republican Party.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast of Christmas): Nat King Cole – Away in a Manger

I pray this season brings peace and beauty to you and yours whether or not you celebrate Christmas.  HUGS!!

41 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/7/2020

 Posted by at 10:39 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Dec 072020
 

It’s a comparatively lazy day here in the CatBox.  Tomorrow, please expect no more than a Personal Update, because WWWendy is coming in the morning to destink the TomCat, cook, and do chores.  Oh God, it’s Monday!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:31 (average 5:40).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Religious Agony:

1206Broncos16-Chiefs22

The Broncos played a hell of a game, but I have to admit that, having watched pro ball since the 1950s, the Chiefs today are the best team I have ever seen.  Beware of Nameless.  We may see some swollen head syndrome.

Short Takes:

From Crooks and Liars: Well, it looks like COVID has yet another trick up it’s sleeve: Long term erectile dysfunction. Yes, that pesky problem that men take little blue pills for to allow them to continue … you know, having sex. Well, it looks like COVID causes vascular problems that are now being shown to cause ED! Even “mild” cases of COVID are causing this issue.

So your cousin/coworker/GOP politician who says “it was just like a little cold” may actually be wrong.

 

Hmm….. Is this sufficient cause to tell Republicans to attend super-spreader events without masks?  RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Why Trump’s Imprint On The GOP Is Likely To Remain

 

Considering the influence criminal Fuhrer Trump* will have on the future Republican Reich is a premier reason that the demise on the Republican Reich is imperative.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast of Christmas): Mary’s Boy Child

 

The man’s voice rings like a bell!  Hugs!!

43 Days Until the Big FLUSH!!

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Open Thread – 12/1/2020

 Posted by at 10:40 am  Open Thread, Politics
Dec 012020
 

It’s a new month here in the CatBox.  Debora’s visit yesterday was routine.  The problem with health visits is that I cannot lie down to rest my back in the morning, and that’s why I have excessive pain on those days.  For a brace to give me relief was a long shot, and since it’s not likely to work, the insurance company won’t pay for it, so I won’t be getting it.  Tomorrow will be another rough day, because WWWendy has to work.  Therefore Dianna is coming to change my pain patch, and I’ll miss my morning nap again.  Tuesday is Flush your Republicans Day.  You might consider sitting on the lid for an hour.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:24 (average 5:08).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: Gerardo Gutierrez, 70, died alone from COVID-19 in April. He contracted the virus at work in a Publix grocery story deli. Early in the pandemic, he asked his employer to allow him to wear a mask at work. According to Gutierrez’s family—who have filed a wrongful death suit—Publix refused his request. The chain eventually changed its stance to allow employees to wear masks, but it was too late for Gutierrez, whose adult children had to say goodbye to him on a video call. The lawsuit they brought last week includes numerous complaints made by Publix employees to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) about the refusal of the grocer to allow them to use masks and gloves because they didn’t want to cause shoppers to panic.

“This is a case that needs to be prosecuted and that we need to push forward in our court system and shed light on what Publix was doing and why they were doing it,” the family’s attorney, Michael Levine, told the Tampa Bay Times. “The fact the they would chose profits over employees is shameful and disappointing.” It is shameful and disappointing and it’s how corporate America—with a big assist from Senate Republicans—operate. One of the primary poison pills for COVID-19 stimulus Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has refused to budge from is blanket liability protections for employers like Publix to prevent suits like the Gutierrez’s. Or the suit from the family of the late Isidro Fernandez, who was killed by the virus after contracting it in a Tyson pork processing plant in Iowa—the plant where supervisors and managers were allegedly placing bets on how many workers were going to get sick. McConnell would let them all entirely off the hook, but even worse, he has been using it to hold essential relief for millions and millions of Americans hostage for months.

This is not a case of Bought Bitch Midnight Moscow Mitch backing criminal Fuhrer Trump*. It’s a case of Bought Bitch Midnight Moscow Mitch representing the Republican Reich. RESIST!!

From The New Yorker: In an attempt to demonstrate that he is in better physical condition than President-elect Joe Biden, Donald J. Trump spent part of Monday morning playing fetch with Mike Pence on the White House lawn.

The press corps was invited to the event, at which Trump, seated on a golf cart, hurled tennis ball after tennis ball at his Vice-President, who obediently retrieved them.

At one point in the demonstration, Pence paused to praise his boss’s “amazing stamina.”

Well, Andy, I have to admit it was fair. After all, both Biden and Trump* were playing with a dawg.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast for the planet): After the Gold Rush

 

Indeed, mother nature is on the run from the Republican Reich. We must stand up on her side!  RESIST!!

49 Days (7 weeks) Until the Big FLUSH!!

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