Open Thread February 19, 2024

 Posted by at 5:42 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Feb 192024
 

Yesterday, Trinette was over and said “Hi back” to everyone. She brought my ballot in from the mailbox, I filled it out, signed the enveloe, stamped it, and put an ostentatious veteran sticker on the back, which I doubt will be needed, because Trinette took it and will mail it at a Post Office pickup. I forgot to mention that Saturday I started looking for Colleen’s phone number, and actually found it – had to pay $1 for it, which I thought was well worth it. And I did reach her yesterday, and she is safe and well, but the weather has continued to be soggy and windy, which has affected her internet, and on top oof that she had a rare visit from her son and grandson, who are now on their way to Italy. Neither she nor the internet are ready to come back, but she definitely will when she can, and continues to pray for all of us. She says hello to everyone (Then, today, I got a message from my credit card company that they hadhad correctly charged the $1.00 but had also incorrectly separately charged $155.40 – twice yet. So I was also on the phone to them. This is different from every other time I have had unauthorized charges – those were always strangers, so there was no choice but to cancel the card and issue a new one. This time there is a chance the vendor just goofed. I have called them (but at leas on weekends they have  no phone service – the message gave me an email addresss and I have sent an email to them. But one way or another, I will not lose the money.)

Heather Cox Richardson has put together a lesson in (recent) Ukrainian history to include the ups and downs of Paul Manafort, which is pretty revealing.

Canadian Black history … brought to you by who else but Wonkette? (part of Substack so remember to look for and click the “keep reading” button.)

If anyone cares… the ad that came up for me right after this was for a “Trumpinator Bobblehead.” Seriously.

This is not a cartoon today – it is a link to a promotion for Joe Biden made by Harrison Ford, stressing what real Presidents do and don’t do (such as they don’t do thing he did in his role in “Air Force One.” It also contains a complete transcription of his thoughts, so you can skip the clip if you prefer.

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Open Thread February 7, 2024

 Posted by at 6:34 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Feb 072024
 

Yesterday, I got to thinking about “The City at the Edge of Forever – Episode 29 of Season I of the original Star Trek, it first aired in the spring of 1967. It made a deep impression on me. Just the thought of having to make a decision like that gave (and still gives) me the heebie-jeebies. But there is also trmendous relief associated with realizing one does not personally required to make that decision. Except that we are. Any election (not just Presidential) in which there is a spoiler candidate requires every eligible voter to make exactly that decision, and do it without the benefit of an omniscient entity who can show us exactly what the future will be on both sides of that decision. I can still hear in my mind the dialogue (Kirk) “But she was right!” (Spock) “Yes, she was. But she was right at the wrong time.” ooking back 57 years, I probably don’t have the exact words. But the meaning is exact. If you want to view it, it can be streamed free (but with ads) here, [You may need to turn on the sound and tell it to restart] or paid at Paramount Plus (you mught be able to get it on free trial) or Apple TV if you use either of those. If you just want to refresh your memory of the plot, Wikipedia is the place – and thrown in you get production history, information on all kinds of production disagreements, history of the music used, and a whole lot more, if you want it. And yes, I deliberately put together this and today’s cartoon.

Not only did the GOP (in the House) kill the National Security bill this week, but the GOP (all of them, even non-elected ones) are working overtime to make sure that security spending stays higher than is manageable. They yell at us for “Tax and spend,” but to me spending money you don’t have, and don’t have any idea how to get, is far more irresponsible.

At least something good happened (besides the Appeals Court verdict)- “The Post-Conviction Justice Unit of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office moved to exonerate the two men after an investigation with defense counsel found the teenage witnesses who testified at trial had been treated as suspects.” No, they haven’t been locked up since 1987, thank God- they were released, one in 2007 and one in 2011, but that’s still way to long, and until now, they didn’t have a citizen’s full rights. And they’re far more gracious about it than I would be.

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Personal Update December 25, 2023

 Posted by at 6:14 am  Politics
Dec 252023
 

Well, the USPS must have been listening to Lona – the prescription they expected to deliver next week came Saturday. It didn’t come before I started filling pill bottles for the next 2 weeks – but the informed delivery email did come before I started, so after doing the evening ones, I waited before starting the morning ones. All this while listening to Tannhäuser on the radio, which was also included in the summer season, so I won’t go into detaii, I’ll just mention it’s anoter Wagner opera in which a man achieves salvation through the (death of the) woman who loves him. This concept was huge during the Victorian era (not just in England though -a;ll over Europe.) The same time period during which they romanticized tuberculosis (which they called “consumption.”) Before you laugh too loud, remember every time period has at least one idea (usually more than one) which is generally accepted but which in a hundred years or so will leave everyone wondering how they could possibly have been so deluded. That includes us today. We don’t know what that idea (or those ideas) could be because we are in the blind time period, but you can be sure there is something.

Don’t let it – or anything else – ruin your Christmas (Catmas -we may not all celebrate Christmas, but, as followers of TomCat, surely we can all celebrate Catmas together) holiday. I’m sure I don’t have to warn anyone not to be a bully just because the two cats on the left and right are.

I’m giving you the DU link for this animal rescue video because it has some back story which IMO wasn’t clear enoughin the video alone.
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10181939014

And today’s humor – a large helping of truth.

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Video Thread 10/17/23

 Posted by at 12:03 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Oct 172023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Judge Chutkan to decide whether to impose gag order on Trump to protect witnesses/promote fair trial

The Lincoln Project – Strong in a Crisis

Farron Balanced – Jimmy Kimmel Torches Trump In First Monologue Since Writers Strike

John Fugelsang on Christianity (old but good)

Litter Of Kittens Found Living In Someone’s Wall

Beau – Let’s talk about the BBC report and Ukraine….

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Video Thread 10/11/2023

 Posted by at 12:04 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Oct 112023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Jack Smith pushes back on Trump’s attempt to move his documents trial until AFTER the 2024 election

Thom Hartmann – A War Against America is Already Underway

Ring of Fire – Trump Tries To Pin The Blame On Banks For Him Committing Fraud

Puppet Regime – World High: Biden won’t let Zelensky rush

When Your Baby Falls In Love With Your Eight Rescue Cats

Beau – Let’s talk about Ukraine, Russia, and the Black Sea Fleet….

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Video Thread 9/30/2023

 Posted by at 11:51 am  Open Thread, Politics
Sep 302023
 

Glenn Kirschner – Trump loses in NY court, AGAIN! His civil fraud trial on remaining counts to begin on Monday.

The Lincoln Project – Monster Impeachment Extravaganza

Robert Reich – Biden Chooses Workers Over Wall Street

Puppet Regime – Actors strike: Putin and Kim cross the picket line

Senior shelter cat desperately hugs woman for adoption

Beau – Let’s talk about McCarthy, Ukraine, and confusion….

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Open Thread September 30, 2023

 Posted by at 5:57 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Sep 302023
 

Yesterday, arguments about whether DiFi should resign came to an end with her passing. Governor Newsom has said he will make an interim appointment. Even Chuck Grassley said nice things about her. Since I was born and grew up in California, in the San Francisco Bay Area, this feels like the end of an era to me. I have known of her, and of her achievements, for so long – it’s true that at my age when someone who has been a fixture of one’s life for so long, one doesn’t grieve just that person, but also one’s own lost youth. Also, The White House made available online a partial transcript of Joe Biden’s speech at the John McCain Library in Tempe, AZ. There’s also an opportunity at this link to sign up for pratial transcripts whenever anyone in the administration says something significant. Wow. The first plea deal in the Fulton COunty case was  sealed. And last (and kind of least compared to the preceding) my Dark Brandon mug came. So I immediately made a cup of coffee. And it works as advertised (what with being carried in a postal vehicle in the sun all day and then stuffed into a hot mailbox, the eyes were actually red when I opened it. The directions advised putting it in the freezer for a few minutes – which worked like a charm.)

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

The Daily Beast – Why Are Republicans Playing Politics With Ukraine?
Quote – Over the course of more than 30 interviews with members of Congress, The Daily Beast set out to trace exactly how and why providing aid to Ukraine became such a controversial endeavor among Republicans. To Democrats, the $24 billion package in front of Congress right now is the best money Washington could spend on national defense…. The issue, many Republicans in Congress agree, shouldn’t be partisan. But these Republicans are also keenly aware of the reality—that it is…. The story of how that happened is a case study in the workings of a congressional GOP loyal to Donald Trump, one in which the former president and a small handful of right-wing figures wield immense power to set the agenda of the party base, which in turn commands immense power to shape the actions of lawmakers eager to use uncompromising tactics to achieve their goals.
Click through for full article. One thing that leaps out – if the poll cited is accurate, and 55% of Americans nationally do not support aiding Ukreaine, we need to ne doing a better job of messaging. 62% Democratic support isn’t enough.

Colorado Public Radio – What the impending government shutdown means for Coloradans
Quote – Perhaps the biggest impacts will be felt by the state’s approximately 38,000 federal employees and 12,000 active duty military service members, who will not get a paycheck during a government shutdown. Their first missed payday will be October 13, if the shutdown drags on that long…. Gov. Jared Polis is ordering the Colorado Department of Natural Resources to develop a plan to use state money to keep the parks and other federal land in the state open, although any plan will need a federal sign off…. The governors of Arizona and Utah have also said they’ll use state funds to keep some of their parks open…. States that opened their parks in 2013 were never reimbursed…. When it comes to airport travel, a shutdown could fuel passenger exasperation and worsen staffing challenges at Denver International Airport….
Click through. As promised, here’s the shutdown article. Not every state is going to step in on National Parks (or anything else), and it’s not certain that Colorado is this time. But – like everything else – red states are going to suffer the most. And there’s more. CPR really looked at everything they could. It’s very thorough.

Food For Thought

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Open Thread September 23, 2023

 Posted by at 6:04 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Sep 232023
 

Yesterday, I received a Substack newsletter from Mary L. Trump about the Meet The Press interview with TFG. She watched it so you and I don’t have to. (Beau did the same thing, taking notes, but, since TFG can lie faster than Beau can write, his notes are incomplete.) And Mary’s article really also just hits low points. (There were appaently no high points.) Here’s the link if anyone wants it. Also, Andy Borowitz’s headline was “Zelensky Offers to Broker Peace Deal Between Kevin McCarthy and House Republicans.” Yahoo cut off the subject line after “between,” so I wasn’t expecting that – I was expecting something more like “red states and blue states.” So I did laugh out loud.

Cartoon – 23 0213

Short Takes –

The New Yorker – Inside the War Between Trump and His Generals
Quote – Both Esper and Milley found new purpose in waiting out the President. They resisted him throughout the summer, as Trump repeatedly demanded that active-duty troops quash ongoing protests, threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act, and tried to stop the military from renaming bases honoring Confederate generals. “They both expected, literally on a daily basis, to be fired,” Gates recalled. Milley “would call me and essentially say, ‘I may not last until tomorrow night.’ And he was comfortable with that. He felt like he knew he was going to support the Constitution, and there were no two ways about it.” Milley put away the resignation letter in his desk and drew up a plan, a guide for how to get through the next few months. He settled on four goals: First, make sure Trump did not start an unnecessary war overseas. Second, make sure the military was not used in the streets against the American people for the purpose of keeping Trump in power. Third, maintain the military’s integrity. And, fourth, maintain his own integrity. In the months to come, Milley would refer back to the plan more times than he could count.
Click through for complete story. This article is a bit over a year old, but Milley is in the news again because the Atlantic has just published a profile. I can’t get into the Atlantic, but Steve Schmidt referenced this New Yorker article – which broke the existence of a never-submitted letter of resignation – as back-story, and I can get in to the New Yorker. The Atlantic profile also influenced Beau amd MSN and probably others to discuss it, so you could find more in a lot of places. My take is that the military is commonly considered to lean to the right – but “right” does not necessarily mean “authoritarian.” I (and I think Pat would agree, but she’s off now and through the weekend having fun) would trust the Generals in a crisis – with the caveat that they can function better when their promotions are confirmed, and only 3 of over 300 have gotten past Tuberville and those 3 were already months late. (Lawrence O’Donnell had some words on that.  His Aunt Mary was a senior officer’s wife, and they had 7 kids.)

PolitiZoom – Zelenskyy: Russia Has Weaponized Food (In Addition To Energy)
Quote – So there’s that, but let’s get to the substance of what President Zelenskyy dove in to because it’s an impressive laundry list. BBC News has a nice piece that if you scroll down starts with the pre-speech stuff but it does a nice job of emphasizing those main points. Zelenskyy starts out throwing a hard punch, noting that Ukraine gave up the third largest stockpile of nuclear weapons once upon a time. (If you didn’t know this was a carefully negotiated treaty and Russia signed on – with a promise not to try and take over Ukraine I might add) He flat out said it was Russia, who is acting as a terrorist State that should have had to give up its nukes!
Click through for article. My first reaction was that with TFG “promising” that if reelected he’ll weaponize – fill in the blank – DOJ is probably at the top of the list-he’s sure to pick up this too. He won’t have to read PolitiZoom. He’ll get all the info he needs from Putin.

Food For Thought

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