Glenn Kirschner – Republican billionaire & Clarence Thomas’s bestie Harlan Crow says he won’t provide info to Senate
MSNBC – Fred Guttenberg on gun control: ‘stop listening to the liars’
Ring of Fire – DeSantis Hit With Lawsuit Over Bogus ‘Election Fraud’ Arrests
Parody Project – Should Old Offenses Be Forgot?
Rescue Kitten Begs To Go To Sleep So She Can Snuggle Her Dad In The Morning
Beau – Let’s talk about a Tuberville quote and readiness….
Yesterday, the radio opera was “Peter Grimes” by Benjamin Britten. It’s based on a poem by George Crabbe (1754-1832) called “The Borough.” It is also one of two operas I would never take Virgil to or even let him liisten to, despite the fact that he learned to love opera almost as much as I do – and not just the ones considered easy to like, but also some baroque and 20th/21st century stuff (“Tea: A Mirror of Soul” composed in 2002 by Tan Dun is probably his all time favorite). Rather, it’s because they contain or allude to conduct which could be abusive directed at a young boy. The other is “Amahl and the Night Visitors” – such a sweet opera, if you can only get around that one thing. Certainly, if there is a villain in either one, it is intended to be society (that’s more explicit in “Peter Grimes” but also I think true of “Amahl.”) Peter is a fisherman, and is an outsider, and “an ordinary, weak person who, being at odds with the society in which he finds himself, tries to overcome it and, in doing so, offends against the conventional code,” as described by the tenor who originated the role. He’s intended to be sympthetic. But – there are those dead apprentices. People who don’t know opera may still be a little familiar with this one through Brtitten’s “Four Sea Interludes,” orchestral peces which describe some of the many moods if the ocean. The title tenor role is sufficiently demanding, both vocally and dramatically, that many who play it are known as Wagnerian “heldentonors.” The tenor today is British, and a Britten specialist, and is certainly built lke a heldentenor (of course there are exceptions.) He’s little known outside of the UK (which I predict will change) but has won numerous awards there.
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Daily Beast – Pro-War Russians Duped Into Torching Kremlin Military Offices
Quote – Throughout Russia’s war against Ukraine, baffling reports of Russian pensioners trying to set military enlistment offices on fire have emerged with amusing frequency. But they’re not what you may think. Seen at first glance by some as brave protests against the war, the string of bizarre arsons have actually been part of a now widespread scheme in which scammers convince the confused pensioners they’re on a secret mission to help the war effort.
Click through for story. Our MAGAt problem is so obvious, and so severe, that it’s easy to forget that these people are not confined to the United States. They are all over the world.
The Project on Government Oversight, in the person of its President, Danielle Brian, testified before the Senate Armed SErvices Committee last week. Being on their mailinglst I received an email afterwards, including links to the testimony itself.
Quote (from email) – The testimony was especially topical as it was reported just this week that the former director of the National Security Agency took on a $700,000 contract as a cybersecurity adviser for Saudi Arabia, a nation notorious for its human-rights violations. With close to 700 former high-ranking government officials now working for major defense contractors and over 500 former servicemembers working for foreign interests, closing the lucrative revolving door and pipeline is a matter of utmost urgency.
You can click through to the video of the event (the hearing begins between 17:30 and 17:40 with ELizabeth Warren. At 27:32 Rick Scott starts speaking. At 32:17 Wilkerson’s testimony begins. At 37:23 Brian begins. I’m afraid I didn’t follow past that, so there may be some back and forth). Alternatively, you can access the written testimony as presented to the comittee, or the transcript on the POGO site (they have the same content but the POGO page has larger type and more visual spacing.) The problems addressed are of long standing, It’s good that they are being discussed at this level.
Food For Thought
Yesterday, I did more work on cartoons. I had planned to get this done earlier, and then stuff happened, so now I’m kind of on deadline. I finished through the 15th, and, since there was only one more to go (the 29th), I finished it also. I’m not even going to look at April before next week sometime – bu it’s less sressful on me if I get them worked out well in advance.
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PolitiZoom – McConnell Brandishes Inspirational Letter From Capitol Police Chief, Joins Schumer In Denouncing Fox News
Quote – Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says Tucker Carlson’s whitewashing of the Capitol insurrection was a “mistake.” “My concern is how it was a depicted … Clearly, the chief of the Capitol Police … correctly describes what most of us witnessed firsthand on January 6th.”
Click through for story. Obviously this happened before he fell – and you know at least some MAGAts are going to claim that his fall was retribution for this. I think not.
Crooks & Liars – Wisconsin Supreme Court Election Is About Abortion Rights
Quote – When the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe vs Wade, the State of Wisconsin immediately reverted to an abortion ban that was passed in 1849. This law is so old and archaic and so poorly written, it is practically unenforceable. It is also all but guaranteed to come before the Wisconsin Supreme Court at some point in time. This naturally makes it the top issue in the upcoming election for an open seat on the state supreme court.
Click through for details. I don’t like the idea of electing judges, but it is what it is. Janet Protasiewicz, the progressive, was the top vote getter in an3-way open primary, BUT she received only a plurality, not a majority, and the third place (loser) is throwing support to the second place MAGAt. So this is not only important, but also precarious.
Food For Thought
Yesterday, I got the New Yorker’s Name Drop on the first clue (and the cheeky little respone they provide, whether you get the answer or not, said “Now go tell everyone you know.”) I don’t know that everyoe would get it on the first clue (I happen to be a huge fan), but there’s a lot of information scattered through the six clues, and I think most people would get it at some point. But thegood news is that Dianne Feinstein has announced she will not run again. Not that there won’t be a primary, but it looks like it will be between Katie Porter and Adam Schiff, and possibly Barbara Lee. Much as I hate the thought of losing any from the House,let alone all three, any of them would dramatically improve the Senate. Does anyone know whether the losers will be able to run for their House seat instead? That varies from state to state, and I’m not even 100% positive how it works in mine. Speaking of mine, another announcement today – Adam Frisch will take on Boebert again.
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PolitiZoom – Ask Not For Whom The Bell Tolls, GOP. It Tolls For Thee
Quote – The next day he went into Rick Skeletor Scott’s backyard in Florida to spread the good word. And as people walked into the auditorium for the rally, there was a leaflet of Senator Scott’s 11 point plan on every seat. Biden almost gleefully led a Sing-Along-With-Mitch of the part that sunsetted Medicare and Social Security after 5 years
Click through for full list. Considering the bubble in which MAGAts live, I don’t know how long these achievements are going to carry us, but it won’t hurt to take a small victory lap.
Politico [from 2019] – The Spy Case That Made Adam Schiff a Russia Hawk
Quote – This was no ordinary FBI surveillance operation: The “acquaintance” Grishin referred to was himself an FBI agent—a man who, out of greed, desperation, and spite, had begun an affair with Ogorodnikov and agreed to sell classified information to the Soviet government. Eventually, this man—Richard W. Miller, a 47-year-old Los Angeles-based counterintelligence agent on the Bureau’s Soviet squad—would become the first FBI agent ever convicted of espionage. And the man who would finally secure Miller’s conviction in 1990—after three trials over the course of six years—was a young U.S. attorney in Los Angeles: Adam Schiff.
Click through for background. This is not news, but since Adam is running for the Senate, I thought some background wouldn’t hurt. I will also from time to time look at background on Katie, and if and when Barbara announces, on her as well.
Food For Thought
Yesterday, the Smithsonian newsletter included a link to their Andean Bear cub cam (at a month and a half, their eyes have not yet opoened, nor can they hear), and that page also includes a link to the Giant Panda cam. I didn’t try the pandas. I watched the cubs for a minute or teo, saw no motion, but heard a tiny “squeep.” It might have been a baby snore – not, I think, a baby sneeze. Also, I received a grocery delivery.It looks like i got everything except the lip balm, and there’s no huge hurry on that. In actual news, The PCCC (Bold Progressives wants to know whether or not we think it would be a good idea for Katie Porter to run for the Senate next time. Initially I shuddered, thnking of Tim Ryan (and so many others),. and then I thought, wait a minute – her district was already red, and redistricting just made it redder – she probably actually has better prospects state wide. So I answered yes. Of course they also want funds but they’ve labeled it “optional,” so no pressure. Here’s the link.
I cannot say it was a slow news day. In fact, it was so much the opposite that it’s going to take me a while to digest it.
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Crooks & Liars – Russian Wife Wants Her Husband To Go Die In Ukraine For A New Car
Quote – A Russian woman named her goal in the war against Ukraine…. [O]ne Russian woman confirmed that she wanted to send her husband to die to get a car for him…. And she did it right in his presence…. The Russian confirms that he supports the dictator Vladimir Putin and will go to the front when he is summoned.
Click through – If this is real, and not some twisted joke, it’s easy to see why GQP voters are so in sync with Russia.
CPR News – Colorado sees more avalanche deaths than any other state. A training course at this mountain park hopes to change that
Quote – While carrying avalanche safety equipment has become the norm for many backcountry skiers and other recreators, remembering how to use it in an emergency properly is another skill entirely. So where can one practice for the unthinkable? At a park just outside of Minturn, now open for its third season, there are eight transmitters that people can practice finding with their beacons.
Click through for story. Good thing we have technology, because avalanches are a phenomenon which climate change is not going to make less common. Now people just need to learn how to use it.
Food For Thought
Yesterday, my eyebrows were raised hearing that I25, north of Denver, southbound was closed by a 25 vehicle crash, at about 2:30 p.m. (Then, to rub it in, the station played “Journey through the snow” from the Nutcracker.Clearly, Denver and points north have snow. We don’t. We have dry ground. That shouldn’t be surprising, given that in the years I have lived in Colorado, I have seen things liek an actual line on the roadway with snow north of it and dry ground south of it. Many places in the US and the world use the saying, “If you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes.” Only Colorado, in my experience, scan say, “If you don’t like the weather, just move about a hundred feet – in any direction.” Of course, it isn’t always true – but it can be true fairly often. Also, I did receive confirmation to see Virgil Sunday. ( was getting nervous!)
Cartoon – (background if you are interested)
Short Takes –
The Daily Beast – Far Right Turns on ‘Faker’ & ‘Liar’ Marjorie Taylor Greene
Quote – In a phone interview with The Daily Beast, [far-right radio host Stew] Peters said that Greene was “actually a threat to national security” and declared that she would “burn in hell” one day. “Marjorie is NOT America First, but regrettably a faker and a liar who raised millions claiming she would impeach Biden, and now backs a man for Speaker who refuses to impeach Biden,” he said Friday evening. Additionally, Peters—like many other far-right pundits—engaged in an extremely sexist attack referencing the allegation that Greene had an affair with a “tantric sex guru” ahead of her recent divorce.
Click through for details. This may sound like good news – but it isn’t really. The iissue is that she’s not extreme enough for those who are turning against her. We might be able to use that to our advantage in the battle for the Speakership, but I don’t know that our delegation is savage enough to do so.
Crooks & Liars – Blue America Says #DraftLucas
Quote – Blue America started running [a #DraftLucas ad campaign] across Missouri [Monday] morning before dawn. So far, the ads are on Facebook and Instagram. We’re primarily asking people in Missouri to join us in calling to #DraftLucas– and anyone else… please use #DraftLucas on social media.
Click through for details and video ad. This is really for Nameless, as the rest of us aren’t big social media users – but useit when you can (maybe put it in an email signature?)
Food For Thought
Yesterday, I learned that Tom Lehrer has relinquished all copyyright on all of his work, and has posted it all on the internet where it may be freely downloaded. He doesn’t intend to leave it there forever, and it’s already been up more than a month and a hlf, so I have started on it. “Everything” means, if he wrote the music, full lyrics, sheet music, and at least one mp3. If he didn’t write the music, it includes full lyrics. That’s because the music he wrote parody lyrics for is owned by its composer(s) under copyright law. I’m barely up to “D” so I don’t yet know how that applies to “The Elements,” since Sir Arthur Sullivan has been dead long enough that that tune is in the public domain. Since there aren’t that many mp3s, I think if you select one for each song that has one, you could probably fit thosw, all the sheet music, and all the lyrics-only PDFs on a 1 gB thumb drive. And a lot of receivers and players these days will play mp3s straight from a thumb drive. I’m guessing they (or at least mine) will ignore the PDFs and just play through the mp3s and them stop. It may take me a while to find that out.Meanwhile, I did see Virgil today. We and the guard were the only three people in the visitation room – so there was no issue getting the deck of cards. The weather was good – no precipitation, no wind, cold but bearable. It was kind of overcast, which let up for a while and then became worse. I ended up leaving a bit earlier than I had planned, and am glad I did. It doesn’t take long at all to get home. It does, however takeme a while tounwind, change clothes, make dinner, and get to the computer.
I don’t want to forget to remind y’all of thefinal Jan 6 hearing tody, at 1:00 pm Eastern. This link is to the COmmittees own page at House dot gov, and it should live stream as the hearing starts. But just in case it gets overlooked (it did for one hearing so far), this link is to the “videos” page at the Committee’s YouTube channel. The hearing should also go live hee, and, maybe more importantly, this is where it will be available after it’s over if you have to miss it live.
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Vox – How an obscure Christian right activist became one of the most powerful men in America
Quote – It’s a significant decision in its own right, and will only prolong uncertainty at America’s southern border. But Kacsmaryk’s order in this case, Texas v. Biden, was merely the capstone of an unusually busy week for this judge. His busy week, and months of earlier actions, show the havoc one rogue federal judge can create, especially in today’s judiciary. The previous Thursday, Kacsmaryk became the first federal judge since the Supreme Court eliminated the constitutional right to an abortion to attack the right to contraception.
Click through for details, if you can stand to. Ugly as this is, I feel there’s a need to know – or at least, a need to know where to find this information.
Daily Kos (Thom Hartmann) – What the Final Stage of Reaganism Looks Like
Quote – Back in 1981, when Ronald Reagan was sworn in and implicitly promised to destroy our government because it was “the problem,” many of us who strongly opposed him wondered what the final stage of Reaganism would look like.
Spoiler – We know because we are in it.
Colorado Public Radio – Michael Bennet proposes a bill that would reform the farmworkers’ visa program
Quote – For more than two years, Bennet and Republican Sen. Mike Crapo of Idaho had been working to come to a compromise on the issue using the House-passed Farm Workforce Modernization Act. This smaller bill is a sign that the effort has failed. Bennet said he was “disappointed” and admitted there have been problems disentangling what this bill does with the politics surrounding border security and immigration writ large. “I think we have to set that politics aside if we’re going to do the right thing for American agriculture,” Bennet said.
Click through – not that it’s exciting. Senator Bennet just quietly works and gets things done. – as much as he can. I am so glad he was reelected. We need him.
Food For Thought
Yesterday Today is the runoff election for the Senator from Georgia. I’m devoting as much time and space to that as I reasonably can. I am not expecting final results today, although it certainly could happen.
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Civil Discourse – Are The Frogs Boiled?
Quote – All too often, elected officials get away with ducking. They avoid the cameras, they say it was a joke or that Trump didn’t mean it. They refuse to hold public meetings with constituents to avoid being asked point blank questions. Sometimes they condemn Trump, as on January 6, but then return to the fold. They know they can do that, because the media moves on with the news cycle. And they get away with it. So this, what’s happened now, has to be a job for all of us. It’s civil discourse. Let’s ask our elected officials where they stand and stay on them until they answer. Or not. Because sometimes a repeated, documented, failure to respond tells us what we need to know.
Click through for full column – it’s short. Out of four officials (Governor, two Senators, and Representative), I only need to write to one. Poor Joyce has a quadrifecta. I most certainly am referencing my own oath as a veteran (particularly since my rep spends so much time and effort BSing veterans.)
Politico – Warnock focuses on turnout as early voting ends in Georgia runoff
Quote – “If you have already voted, spend all weekend calling the folks who haven’t voted, or you don’t know if they voted,” Warnock told the crowd. “Call them — that’s your job. Your job is not over.” The event was part of what is often called “Souls to the Polls” events, where faith leaders like Warnock, who is also a senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, host events that end with attendees voting. These events, often held at predominantly Black churches, are also key to engaging Black voters, a core constituency of the Democratic Party.
Click through for article. Like every other article on this race, is devotes attention to how much money has been spent in this campaign. Money alone wll not determine the winner. Turnout is what does that.
Food For Thought
