Patterico's Pontifications

12/14/2019

Weekend Open Thread

Filed under: General — Dana @ 7:40 am



[guest post by Dana]

Feel free to talk about anything you think is newsworthy or might interest readers.

I’ll start.

First news item: The Supreme Court to decide:

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Friday to hear President Donald Trump’s appeal of lower court orders, now on hold, that require his banks and accountants to turn over financial records to the House and local prosecutors in New York.

The cases could yield major rulings on the power of the House to demand records for its investigations and the authority of a president to resist such demands. By granting review now, the justices made it possible for these cases to be heard during the current court term, in March, with a decision by the end of June, just as the general election campaign heats up.

Second news item: Joe Biden jumps on Boris Johnson win to promote himself:

[A]s the scale of Johnson’s victory became clear, former Vice President Joe Biden suggested it was a warning for his party, which is considering centrist and liberal candidates for president.

“Boris Johnson is winning in a walk,” said Biden, the leading moderate in the Democratic race. He predicted headlines that say: “Look what happens when the Labour Party moves so, so far to the left. It comes up with ideas that are not able to be contained within a rational basis quickly.”

“You’re also going to see people saying, my god, Boris Johnson, who is kind of a physical and emotional clone of the president, is able to win,” he added.

Third news item: Tightening the circle:

President Donald Trump’s senior aides have further restricted the number of administration officials allowed to listen to the President’s phone calls with foreign leaders since his July 25 call with Ukraine’s President was revealed and became the centerpiece of the impeachment inquiry,according to multiple White House sources [.]

“Nobody is allowed on the calls,” a White House official said, describing the new effort to limit those with access to the President’s senior-most aides. “The barn door officially closed after the horse escaped.”

Fourth news item: Brainstorming a Trump victory in 2020:

Crushing the Never-Trumpers: They’ve “remade” the state parties in “the president’s image,” per one official — with 42 state party chair elections since the 2018 midterms. The Trump campaign isn’t tolerating anti-Trump officials in state party leadership positions in 2020.

“New math”: Tiny counties traditionally overlooked by candidates helped deliver Trump his 2016 victories in states like Wisconsin (where the smallest 48 counties = 22% of the statewide vote) and Pennsylvania (where the 45 smallest counties = 20% of the statewide vote), senior officials said.

“The DJT Disengager”: This is another focus for the campaign. These are voters who remain enthusiastic about Trump but didn’t vote in the 2018 midterms when Trump wasn’t on the ballot.

Making the best of his unpopularity: Impeachment has been good for business…

Fifth news item: That time the President let a 16-year old get under his skin:

(Cross-posted at The Jury Talks Back.)

Have a great weekend.

–Dana

109 Responses to “Weekend Open Thread”

  1. Good morning.

    Dana (643cd6)

  2. Who’s under who’s skin?


    Greta Thunberg tells cheering crowd ‘we will make sure we put world leaders against the wall’ if they do not tackle global warming as she attends climate protest in Turin

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7789463/Greta-Thunberg-arrives-Turin-Italy-star-turn-huge-climate-change-demonstration.html
    _

    At least she admits she approves of far-left solutions.
    _

    harkin (15bd84)

  3. Ryan Crocker on Afghanistan and the Afghanistan Papers:

    When Hamid Karzai was appointed chairman of the Afghan Interim Authority, he had nothing to work with. No institutions, no accepted or enforceable body of laws, no army, no police, no economy. There were 900,000 Afghan children in school, all of them boys. One of the first things we did after the fall of the Taliban was to open schools for girls. In January 2002, I took our first congressional visitor, then-Sen. Joe Biden, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, to visit a class of first-grade girls. They ranged in age from 6 to 12; the older girls reached school age after the Taliban came to power and eliminated female education.
    When I left Afghanistan as ambassador in 2012, 8 million Afghan kids were in school, a third of them girls. Does that sound like a disaster?
    The United States’ mission in Afghanistan has involved complex issues that don’t lend themselves to bumper-sticker solutions. For instance, I warned — as did many others — against pursuing major infrastructure projects. The landscapes of Afghanistan and Iraq are littered with the bones of infrastructure projects that were great U.S. ideas but had no local buy-in, were too sophisticated for the host country and could not be operated, let alone maintained.
    But it’s complicated. I could see in early 2002 that for badly needed non-infrastructure initiatives to progress — such as education, health care or the revitalization of an agricultural economy — infrastructure in the form of roads was essential. So we built roads. Unfortunately, we didn’t identify or set aside funds to maintain them.

    It would be another Vietnam if an unrepentant Taliban took over, a group that to this day has not dissociated from al Qaeda or renounced terrorism, but there are no good Taliban. The best we can do is continue to train up Afghan forces, use Special Ops against valid confirmed targets, and partner with the government on appropriate infrastructure and governance. Oh, and the US should tell the truth about the situation.

    Paul Montagu (af70d6)

  4. Good morning, Dana.

    Yeah, I guess a sixteen-year old Swedish girl making a speech in Italy is within the McTrumpface clan’s wheelhouse when it comes to international crises.

    nk (dbc370)

  5. The full quote makes it clear she wasn’t talking about some kind of execution:

    “World leaders are still trying to run away from their responsibilities but we have to make sure they cannot do that. We will make sure that we put them against the wall and they will have to do their job to protect our futures.”

    It was a poor choice of words, to be sure.

    Dave (1bb933)

  6. Our friend Megan Rapinoe was named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman– er, Sportsperson of the Year. You could make the case that she was the most impactful athlete in 2019, though I do think that she was largely the beneficiary of the hard work her teammates did in setting her up to score so many of her goals, but naturally SI makes their case for her mostly along the lines of trendy social justice issues. Their runner-up candidates also come mostly from the world of the wokedy-woke. I think after reading the magazine for nearly a half-century I am going to let my subscription lapse.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  7. Joe Biden suggested it was a warning for his party, which is considering centrist and liberal candidates for president.

    Try “hard Left and liberal”. There isn’t a centrist left standing anywhere in the Democrat party.

    Kevin M (19357e)

  8. Brainstorming a Trump victory in 2020

    Two words I never thought to connect.

    Kevin M (19357e)

  9. There is a big difference between Boris and Trump:

    Johnson has years and years of experience as a British politician and knows how the gears and levers of the State work. He’s been Mayor of London, an M.P., and a Cabinet official. He’s paid his dues and made political connections.

    Trump has only his intellect to rely upon.

    Kevin M (19357e)

  10. Barr’s false words are music to Putin’s ears.

    When Barr scrapped Mueller’s findings, he asserted that Mueller never pressed for an interview with Trump, that Trump fully cooperated with the investigation, that Trump never tried to fire Mueller, and that Trump’s cover-up attempts were directed only at the press. Barr also claimed that Trump “did nothing wrong,” that the investigation found “no evidence” against Trump, and that suspicions of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign were “without a basis.” Every one of these claims was demonstrably false. Barr even defended Trump’s attacks on the investigators. He said that if he were in Trump’s shoes, “I’d be comfortable saying it was a witch hunt.”

    He called a legitimate investigation into the extent of Putin’s meddling a “travesty”. AG Barr is a sh*tty American, and he should know better, being old enough to have seen the Cold War and Putin’s Cold War propaganda tactics.

    Paul Montagu (af70d6)

  11. Making the best of his unpopularity

    Don’t conflate his unpopularity in your local area with his popularity elsewhere. His margins will increase in some places. He’ll do even worse in CA, but will probably do better in places like Ohio. Given the way his support is going to be focused, it’s possible that he’ll win the popular vote and lose the electoral vote. Which would put a lot of pressure on blue states and their insane Compact.

    Kevin M (19357e)

  12. “The full quote makes it clear she wasn’t talking about some kind of execution:”

    They never are.

    Kind of like post-US pullout Vietnam Nam where they told those on the ‘List’ to pack two weeks of clothing/medicine etc. for their re-education.

    When none of them returned after a month or so and their friends and relatives complained to the party “you said they were only going to be gone two weeks”, the response was:

    No, we only told them to pack for two weeks”.
    _

    harkin (15bd84)

  13. “At least she admits she approves of far-left solutions.”

    She should have said “helicopter rides” instead.

    Davethulhu (fe4242)

  14. Good question: How is Nunes funding five active defamation lawsuits?

    Rep. Devin Nunes’ critics have obsessed over how he is paying for the six lawsuits he filed this year, but there are no public records showing how he has paid his Virginia lawyer.
    That means Nunes is either paying for the lawsuits out of his own pocket, promising to pay his lawyer a portion of any money they’re awarded in court at a later date, or flouting House Ethics rules that would require him to publicly disclose who is funding the legal work.

    The Fresno Bee’s parent company is being sued by Nunes, so their continued reporting on him is a signal that McClatchy likes their chances in court. In case there’s any doubt, I want his “cow” and his “mom” to prevail, with prejudice.
    The curious thing, assuming the lawsuits are on contingency (and each one likely costing his law firms somewhere in the six-figures), is why these attorneys would take the cases when the probability for wins in these kinds of cases is so low. A well-heeled law firm wouldn’t take those cases if there wasn’t some kind of payoff down the road. The other possibility is that he wants to make it financially painful for his “enemies” to report on him, but the money to funds his lawsuits is coming from somewhere. Or is this some sort of backdoor contribution by said lawyers?
    Oh, and Nunes is a co-sponsor of the Discouraging Frivolous Lawsuits Act. Irony squared and cubed.

    Paul Montagu (af70d6)

  15. Paging nk:

    A help-wanted ad in the suburbs raised eyebrows this week – with its suggestion that only Democrats need apply.

    Such a restriction would be illegal.

    The ad was posted by the Joliet Township government. They are looking for a part-time deputy town clerk.

    The ad lists all the standard requirements and a job description that involves filing and answering phones.

    But here’s the whoopsie – it says the candidate must have “voted in a Democratic primary election.”

    That kind of stipulation, again, is illegal.

    CBS 2 reached out to the township. They said they didn’t realize that, and they have since removed the requirement.

    Odds that they knew it was illegal??

    Dana (643cd6)

  16. As if more confirmation is needed, Stephen Miller is a white nationalist, according to former workmate and ex white nationalist, Katie McHugh. Mr. Miller has Trump’s ear on immigration probably more than anyone else in the White House.

    Paul Montagu (af70d6)

  17. “ Odds that they knew it was illegal??”

    Odds that it was part of the background check but mistakenly got added to the posting?

    harkin (15bd84)

  18. Odds that they knew it was illegal??

    They probably didn’t know it was illegal. I’m totally willing to believe that there are adults in this country and world who don’t think twice about imposing a party loyalty oath on a government job.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  19. “ Today’s children, as they become more politically aware, will be much more radical than their parents, simply because there will be no other choice for them. This emergent radicalism is already taking people by surprise.”

    Ending climate change requires the end of capitalism. Have we got the stomach for it?

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/mar/18/ending-climate-change-end-capitalism

    Color me not surprised.

    harkin (15bd84)

  20. The Who (Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend, with Zak Starkey and others on drums, Pino Palladino on bass, Benmont Tench on keyboards) just released their first new album since 2004, entitled “WHO”. It was the number one album in sales last week.

    The Who are my first or second favorite rock band of all time (with Pink Floyd), and Pete Townshend is my favorite rock composer hands down.

    I think it’s their best work since Who Are You (1978). Definitely recommended.

    Dave (1bb933)

  21. I’m totally willing to believe that there are adults in this country and world who don’t think twice about imposing a party loyalty oath on a government job.

    Indeed, approximately half the voters and politicians in the US apparently think it’s fine to use foreign aid drawn from the treasury to buy a personal political favor for your re-election campaign from a foreign government.

    So why wouldn’t a party loyalty oath for a government job be OK?

    Dave (1bb933)

  22. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31eBO-A5G_I&feature=emb_logo

    Lying liars and their unending lies.

    NJRob (4d595c)

  23. I think it’s their best work since Who Are You (1978).

    Huh. That’s probably my favorite Who album. I may have to check out the new record. Saw them in Boulder in ’89, a truly great show.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  24. ‘Joe Biden jumps on Boris Johnson win to promote himself’

    Stealing thunder; thievery: a plagiarist does that.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  25. When I was young, I could never get why my friends liked The Who, with so many other incredible bands coming up. Now that I’m older, I still don’t get the attraction…

    Dana (643cd6)

  26. I should put up an open music thread.

    Dana (643cd6)

  27. I wish President Trump hadn’t worn his red MAGA hat to the Army-Navy game. That’s too close to politicking for my tastes. The head referee was pretty effusive in his praise though.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  28. Wow, President Trump signed an Executive Order stating that cadets from the military academies who are drafted into professional sports leagues are allowed to suspend (or even forego?) their service commitment in order to play.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  29. The Executive Order apparently does not remove the academy graduate’s service obligation, it just allows for it to be suspended while the graduate plays professionally. But seriously, someone is going to play ten years in the NFL, retire, and then join the armed forces as a Second Lieutenant or an Ensign at age 33? I don’t see that happening.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  30. I may have to check out the new record. Saw them in Boulder in ’89, a truly great show.

    I saw them on the previous “farewell tour”, specifically on September 30, 1982 according Wikipedia, at the Pontiac Silverdome. Was great to see them, but massive arena shows are kind of lame and my seats were pretty crappy. The Clash opened.

    Saw them again in 2002 at the Greek Theater in LA, on the tour where Entwistle died.

    They’re touring North America again next summer. The final (and westernmost) dates announced so far are in Las Vegas, but I suspect more will be added.

    Daltrey is 75 and Townshend is 74.

    “Hope I die before I get old…”

    Dave (1bb933)

  31. #26:
    I tend to be proud that my tastes are generally not those of the common lot (though I kinda liked Fleetwood Mac when I looked into them late in the day). But if I find something I love, and I tell people “You’ve gotta hear this; it’s the best!” and their reaction is a mystified silence, I then think “What is wrong with people?”

    As it turns out, my current favorite popular (or semi-popular) music groups have always been little known in the U.S., and I’ve wondered if that’s part of the reason I like them. I hear (& watch) them as my individual discovery, not as what I ought to like because everyone else does — but they still have enough favor somewhere to endorse my appreciation of them.

    Radegunda (36778b)

  32. Huh. That’s probably my favorite Who album.

    Quadrophenia for me. Probably my favorite album, period.

    In the process of surfing around to read about the new Who album, I discovered that Townshend released a classically arranged version of Quadrophenia, performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and sung by British opera singer Alfie Boe. Listening to it now, and its excellent.

    Dave (1bb933)

  33. Music open thread up!

    Dana (643cd6)

  34. There’s a lot of ‘truth’ behind Pinball Wizard— in the pre-video gamer days, Soho and Brighton [played a few there in both town and on the pier] were literally festooned w/pinball games in the gaming parlors back in the day when it was made along with those crane games to grab cigarettes. Pedestrians entertain themselves by stopping and watching ’em play as if it was a soccer game.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  35. Wow, President Trump signed an Executive Order stating that cadets from the military academies who are drafted into professional sports leagues are allowed to suspend (or even forego?) their service commitment in order to play.

    Sort of a DACA for the right…

    What happens when President Warren or Ocasio-Cortez reverses it?

    Dave (1bb933)

  36. What happens when President Warren or Ocasio-Cortez reverses it?

    Well, according to several of our courts that would be patently illegal. Especially if we can find something in Fauxcahontas or Deluded Niece’s backgrounds where they once criticized professional athletics.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  37. Weird, my Facebook account has been disabled without warning or explanation.

    Other than occasionally commenting on HotAir (and since they’ve paywalled half their content, I do that much less than I used to), I basically never use it for anything else.

    Will be interesting to see if I can get them to tell me why. Purely speculation, but the only reason I can think of is that Trump trolls have spammed complaints on my comments because they don’t like them.

    Dave (1bb933)

  38. @30 The only way I can see it working is if they give them some kind of option for joining the reserves during their athletic career.

    Nic (896fdf)

  39. But seriously, someone is going to play ten years in the NFL, retire, and then join the armed forces as a Second Lieutenant or an Ensign at age 33?

    Quite possibly a filthy rich Second Lieutenant or Ensign, too.

    The political motivation behind this is obvious, but I don’t see how it can be justified in any way based on the interests of the country.

    The reason we admit people to service academies is to train for a career as an military officer, not a professional athlete.

    Dave (1bb933)

  40. I would prefer it if the professional sports team or the athlete just reimbursed Uncle Sam for four years of education, and the athlete would then be honorably discharged but ineligible for any ongoing benefits. I do get the idea that having a David Robinson or a Chad Henning playing in the pros brings a great deal of free publicity to the service academies, but this sets a bad precedent. Should a very talented actress or musician get to skip out on his/her service commitment to make movies and records? Like a lot of stuff with President Trump, I don’t think this was fully thought-out.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  41. Like a lot of stuff with President Trump, I don’t think this was fully thought-out.

    Hey, if it buys him one vote, any future damage to the country is an acceptable loss.

    Dave (1bb933)

  42. College athletes more than earn their keep while benefiting the NCAA criminal combine, and I don’t imagine the military academies are any different. Besides, isn’t it bad enough that our hapless tranny tatters are finding themselves led by officers who got into the military academies by political appointment? Do we also want them led by illiterates who couldn’t spell c-a-t but got in because they could play football (or whatever other group-grope)? Just let them go and say “Thank you for that 70-yard pass at the Army-Navy game.”

    nk (dbc370)

  43. Actually, things are even more complicated than JVW’s brief summary suggests:

    President Barack Obama in 2016—the final year of his second term—signed a similar order to allow some athletes from service academies to play professional sports and defer their obligated service after graduating. That policy helped then-Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds to go pro. The Trump administration rescinded that order in 2017, according to Sports Illustrated.

    When former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis rescinded the Obama order, he said service academies “exist to develop future officers,” and those who graduate will serve as “full-fledged military officers carrying out the normal work and career expectations” for a person who received an education paid by taxpayer dollars, according to the Associated Press.

    Then Trump in the spring of 2019, while honoring the Army football team and presenting them the Commander-in-Chief trophy, directed the Pentagon to find a way that service academy athletes can play professional sports without going directly into duty.

    Defense Secretary Mark Esper last month signed a memo that set the guidelines for it to happen. First, the defense secretary must approve the athletes. Secondly, the athletes must fulfill their service obligations or repay the costs of their academy education.

    This is classic.

    Trump, through Mattis, rescinded Obama’s order. Because Obama.

    Then he reinstated it. Because Trump.

    End result: Trump will now take credit for a policy that was already in effect when he took office, which he himself rescinded – diabolical!

    Dave (1bb933)

  44. Mattis was a general in his previous life; Esper was a lobbyist. That’s where the difference is. Trump is consistently cretinous corrupt criminal traitor New York sewer scum.

    nk (dbc370)

  45. Trump, through Mattis, rescinded Obama’s order. Because Obama.

    Then he reinstated it. Because Trump.

    Good Lord. I wish I could call this unbelievable, but sadly enough it is all too believable.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  46. Under Obama’s previous policy, could they repay the cost of their education? Seems like that’s the difference between then and now.

    whembly (c30c83)

  47. If you are ever tempted to engage a Trump supporter seriously … https://people.com/politics/trump-campaign-photoshops-his-head-greta-thunberg-time-cover/

    Don’t! Just don’t!

    nk (dbc370)

  48. Greta: Blah, Blah, Hate Trump, blah, blah.
    Trump: Just Simmer down.

    Trump is out of control! Trump is so angry. Wow, Greta sure trolled him.

    Yeah.

    rcocean (1a839e)

  49. I think “Make America Great Again”, is a pretty radical statement. I’d hate to see the navy and army associated with that sort of partisan statement.

    rcocean (1a839e)

  50. What, the fake Man of the Year covers that he posted in his golf clubs for years weren’t good enough?!

    And it’s not some random, inbred MAGA troll from InfoWars or Gateway Pundit posting this – it’s his re-election campaign…

    Dave (050ab0)

  51. To be fair, President Trump and I did share the 2006 Time Magazine Person of the Year award.

    JVW (54fd0b)

  52. I think “Make America Great Again”, is a pretty radical statement. I’d hate to see the navy and army associated with that sort of partisan statement.

    Just like Hope and Change or Stronger Together, right?

    JVW (54fd0b)

  53. I have very little tolerance for 16 year old girls telling me what to do or blaming me for ruining their life… I put up with it with our daughter and a few of her friends because I love them.
    I don’t really care about Greta. I’ve lived through at least 8 climate crises and we are better off now than before. She is too young to know of what she recites

    steveg (354706)

  54. Can you imagine the drama in a world run by 16-year-old girls

    steveg (354706)

  55. It makes me wonder how much greater David Robinson’s hall-of-fame career would’ve been had he served his five years after his NBA career.

    Paul Montagu (561c44)

  56. Can you imagine the drama in a world run by 16-year-old girls

    You’re right – we’re much better off with Vladimir Putin and his whiny, lying, degenerate little bitch.

    Dave (1bb933)

  57. 46. Of course, Trump tweaked it a little bit, so it wouldn’t be reinstating exactly wa=hat Obama had done.

    Sammy Finkelman (1e81da)

  58. I have very little tolerance for 16 year old girls telling me what to do or blaming me for ruining their life… I put up with it with our daughter and a few of her friends because I love them.
    I don’t really care about Greta. I’ve lived through at least 8 climate crises and we are better off now than before. She is too young to know of what she recites

    I agree with every word of that. So … what kind of effeminate orange poofter with pretensions of being President of the United States would mix it up with her? Somebody who is even smaller than she is, or not?

    nk (dbc370)

  59. 15.

    The curious thing, assuming the lawsuits are on contingency (and each one likely costing his law firms somewhere in the six-figures), is why these attorneys would take the cases when the probability for wins in these kinds of cases is so low. A well-heeled law firm wouldn’t take those cases if there wasn’t some kind of payoff down the road.

    The lawyers might be interested in creating a precedent, figuring a case involving Nunes might have more chances of being expedited, and they may have some clients lines up or have a fee sharing arranged. And maybe, without telling Nnes. they are getting paid, or guaranteed, a payoff.

    Nunes probably didn’t come up with the idea for these lawsuits on his own. But rather, someone went to him and maybe supplied the lawyers, who may not be billing Nunes (except on contingency)

    This would be someone or an organization who might like to use the precedent themselves.

    Sammy Finkelman (1e81da)


  60. The NRA’s next spokesperson should be a teenager

    https://spectator.us/nra-next-spokesperson-should-teenager/amp/?__twitter_impression=true
    _

    harkin (15bd84)

  61. sorry, harkin.
    first time at a rodeo

    mg (8f83ac)

  62. @63. Memo to A.S.S. Miller:

    Hitler Youth were much cuter in their brown shirts, arm bands und lederhosen playing with their daggers. But golly, if any of those Yankee-Doodle-kids had survived Sandy Hook into their teens, they may have had a shot at the gig.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  63. The NRA’s next spokesperson should be a teenager

    Do prominent gun control advocates publicly attack the NRA’s spokesperson by name, with references to their medical conditions and personal life?

    Dave (1bb933)

  64. Thunberg has apologized, saying she did not mean to suggest violence.

    She said “putting someone against the wall” was a literal translation of a Swedish idiom meaning “put someone on the spot with tough questions”.

    It would be about like American giving a speech in Swedish, saying they wanted to “grill” someone, and the Swedes interpreting the literal translation as a reference to cannibalism…

    This Swedish synonym website indeed indicates that “stalla mot vaggen” (literally set against the wall) means “utfraga” (question or interrogate).

    Dave (1bb933)

  65. Trump is apparently lying about his trade deal with China.

    I’ll give everyone a moment to recover from their shock before continuing.

    Donald Trump says China will spend $50 billion a year for U.S. farm products as part of a “phase one” trade deal between the countries. But doubts are surfacing whether that’s even possible, bolstered by China’s reluctance to confirm the figure.

    While the president expressed confidence China would meet the goal “pretty soon,” doing so would require a huge jump in China’s imports, potentially stretching its capacity to absorb the products. Trump’s trade representative, Robert Lighthizer, laid out some numbers to reporters, but declined to get very specific.

    Meanwhile, Chinese officials repeatedly didn’t answer questions on the exact size of their commitment in a briefing Friday.

    Dave (1bb933)

  66. I very much doubt that the NRA would approve of 9-year olds shooting machine guns, even from a tripod. They are first and foremost a gun education and safety organization.

    Now, effeminate dog-molesters who don’t know the difference between an AR-15 rifle and an M-60 machine gun, but think 16-year old girls are fair game for their b!tch-queen snide … ah, f*** ’em! Who cares what they think?

    nk (dbc370)

  67. He is the President of the United States and he is jealous of a teenager.

    noel (f22371)

  68. That’s right, Dave. Thanks for reminding us that he even printed fake newsmagazines with his picture on the cover. From the man who made “fake news” a catch phrase.

    Whenever you see Trump making an accusation, know that he is either doing the exact same thing… or he is already done.

    noel (f22371)

  69. Wonder what’s Swedish for “where did all these bombs come from?”

    “Swedish police are dealing with unprecedented levels of attacks, targeting city centre locations too. The bomb squad was called to deal with 97 explosions in the first nine months of this year.
    “I grew up here and you feel like that environment gets violated,” says Joel, 22.
    The front door of his apartment block in the central Stockholm neighbourhood of Sodermalm was blown out and windows were shattered along the street.
    Who is to blame?
    This category of crime was not even logged prior to 2017. Then, in 2018, there were 162 explosions and in the past two months alone the bomb squad have been called to almost 30.”

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50339977
    _

    Pretty safe bet that a lot more Swedes are going to have anger issues.

    harkin (15bd84)

  70. “I very much doubt that the NRA would approve of 9-year olds shooting machine guns, even from a tripod.”

    Kind of like fronting a 16 year-old with a mental disorder and behavioral issues as spokesperson for climate policy.

    Make sure to read that Spectator article to the end.

    harkin (15bd84)

  71. USA Today has a video of former VA Sec. Shulkin discussing his being fired by tweet. He had met with Trump just hours before his exit without any sign of what was to come.

    How many others have been fired by tweet? The bravado President has no courage.

    noel (f22371)

  72. “The real chasm which has arisen is between a Conservative party that committed itself to fulfilling the will of the people, and two Left-wing parties which had devoted the past three-and-a-half years to subverting it.

    It is a divide between people who have real-world concerns and those focused on niche and barely significant ones. It is a divide between those who worry about the way they are governed, how the nation will fare and how high immigration should be and those who hector them as backwards or bigoted for even noticing such things.”

    Britain’s divide isn’t North v South or red v blue. It’s between the ugly intolerant Left and the rest of us

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-7793275/amp/DOUGLAS-MURRAY-Britains-divide-ugly-intolerant-Left-rest-us.html?__twitter_impression=true
    _

    harkin (15bd84)

  73. CNBC talking about Trumps third term, I guess that means they have conceded his second, and their crazy.

    bud (b48f3e)

  74. Oh, and I really mean “their”, they own it.

    bud (b48f3e)

  75. I guess that means they have conceded his second

    Never bet against Putin.

    Dave (1bb933)

  76. 65. DCSCA (797bc0) — 12/14/2019 @ 9:29 pm

    if any of those Yankee-Doodle-kids had survived Sandy Hook into their teens,

    Some did.

    https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/23/us/sandy-hook-survivor-joins-parkland-students/index.html

    Lauren Milgram has a mission. The sweet and funny, shy yet confident, 12-year-old will join an anticipated hundreds of thousands of people at the March for Our Lives in Washington on Saturday.

    The screams for change by survivors of a school shooting are very personal for her. Because for almost half her life, Lauren has been a survivor, too.

    Back on December 14, 2012, Lauren was trapped inside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, after a man shot his way inside the school. By the time it was over, the shooter had fired more than 150 rounds, and taken the lives of 26 people, including 20 children from kindergarten and first grade, and six adults.

    Lauren was a first-grader, just 6 years old. Her quick-thinking teacher crammed 15 students into a tiny bathroom off the classroom, saving all of their lives and her own….

    Although most of those who were children at the time are still considered too young to be featured.

    But still..

    https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sandy-hook-shooting-survivors-anniversary_n_5c12ca97e4b0860b8b5c99a6

    it was the love of Mrs. Clements, a teacher, that softened my daughter’s heart and opened her mind. In so many ways, Mrs. Clements brought my daughter back to us. And for that, there are no words to truly describe the gratitude in my heart.

    My daughter has many years to decide what she wants to do with her life. But this year, she has decided she wants to be a teacher at Sandy Hook School. I can’t imagine the courage it will take for her to walk in that school and teach and breathe life into children. The joy of her conquering her greatest fear, is beyond my adult comprehension. Perhaps because my daughter knows firsthand what the love of a good teacher can do for a child.

    Sammy Finkelman (1e81da)

  77. I didn’t close the quote. The first quote ends at:

    Lauren was a first-grader, just 6 years old. Her quick-thinking teacher crammed 15 students into a tiny bathroom off the classroom, saving all of their lives and her own….

    They are not yet in their teens. They are 12 (the ones most in danger)

    I don’t think thwy’ll find any who likes guns, especially multi-bullet guns.

    Sammy Finkelman (1e81da)

  78. “The NRA’s next spokesperson should be a teenager”

    Would a teenager be more or less likely to be catfished by a Russian spy?

    Davethulhu (fe4242)

  79. Make sure to read that Spectator article to the end.

    Nobody who calls an M-60 machine gun an AR-15 rifle has any credibility with me.
    Nobody who approves of the orange dinduffin’s attacks on a teenage girl has any credibility with me.
    There was, in fact, a self-appointed teenage proponent of RKBA from Parkland. He turned out to be as wise as any other teenager, and Harvard rescinded his admission for the brilliantly sagacious comments he had posted on the internet. There was a post here about it.

    nk (dbc370)


  80. AFP news agency
    @AFP
    ·
    Greta Thunberg has defended herself in a Twitter spat with German railway service Deutsche Bahn. She said her trains through Germany were ‘overcrowded’. The rail firm said she should have mentioned the friendly staff who treated her well in first-class.

    Telling people to forego automobiles and then complaining about crowded trains is good.
    __ _

    CBS News
    @CBSNews
    Greta Thunberg apologizes for “against the wall” comment https://cbsn.ws/2RNWv2i
    __ _

    Stephen Miller
    @redsteeze
    ·
    The only thing more cynical and exploitative than adult handlers handing a teenager words to speak is making that teenager apologize for those words.

    __

    harkin (15bd84)

  81. Telling people to forego automobiles and then complaining about crowded trains is good.
    __ _

    It;s the same thing they say about building roads. If you build more roads, at a time when use is expanding) more people will use them and they will get crowded again.

    Same thing with passenger trains.

    Sammy Finkelman (1e81da)

  82. 84. All true. I’d only like to expound on that by pointing out that human behavior is a variable. It’s predictable when dealing with larger populations, but only to an extent. The problem of determining how people make choices going forward is exactly what makes economics such a miserable science.

    Gryph (08c844)

  83. To any of you who personally know a billionaire. ( I know one but not good enough.) Anyway…. here is the idea. He or she could offer $100,000 (after taxes of course) to every Republican Senator, personally, who will sit for a polygraph and answer the following questions. (Responses guaranteed to remain anonymous.)

    1. Is Donald Trump fit for office?
    2. Does Donald Trump deserve to be impeached?
    3. Should he be convicted and removed for the sake of the country?

    Now there is a good use of 5 million dollars.

    noel (f22371)

  84. 100,000 would not be enough. I don’t know that 100,000 would be enough for ME to risk my job publicly telling the President of the United State to GFO, and I am Not Rich. A couple million at least.

    Nic (896fdf)

  85. Tom Steyer is burning sacks of $100 bills like they lawn clippings, $50M isn’t outside of his current spending concerns.

    Colonel Klink (Ret) (6e7a1c)

  86. This Swedish synonym website indeed indicates that “stalla mot vaggen” (literally set against the wall) means “utfraga” (question or interrogate).

    Well, “question” meant torture at one point, so words are slippery.

    Kevin M (19357e)

  87. 89. I’m going to be charitable here and assume that Greta Thunberg was not, in fact, attempting to incite violence with her words. With that out of the way…

    …where does that bratty little puke get off issuing anyone an ultimatum? Go home, Greta.

    Gryph (08c844)

  88. Sigh. Where are her parents?

    Nic (896fdf)

  89. 91. Nic (896fdf) — 12/15/2019 @ 3:16 pm

    . Where are her parents?

    You think her parents are not all for this?

    Although she may have ebcountered the climate activists first.

    . Her mom Malena Ernman is a well-respected international opera singer before Greta convinced her to give up the traveling aspect of her career because of the environmental impact, according to Classical MPR. Now her mother works from Sweden, according to the CBC, and when she and her family need to travel they tend to drive or sail, which is how 16-year-old Thunberg recently arrived in New York to speak at the United Nations assembly last month….

    Svante Thunberg, who is an author, actor, and producer, previously admitted to The Guardian that it was his daughter who taught him to truly care about climate change, not the other way around. “Greta forced us to change our lives. I didn’t have a clue about the climate,” he told the publication. “We started looking into it, reading all the books — she has read them too.”

    In 2018, Greta’s parents co-authored a book called Scenes From The Heart, describing what it was like when their daughter stopped eating and speaking in the fifth grade, becoming deeply depressed over the climate crisis….

    The fifth grade would be about six years ago, when she was ten.

    https://heavy.com/news/2019/09/greta-thunbergs-family-parents

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    Greta Thunberg’s Family: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
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    By Caroline Burke
    Updated Sep 24, 2019 at 10:10am

    Greta Thunberg instagram
    Greta Thunberg’s family includes her parents, Malena Ernman and Svante Thunberg, her sister Beata Thunberg, and grandfather Olof Thunberg. Thunberg is also distantly related to Nobel Prize winner Svante Arrhenius.

    Thunberg’s family has a long lineage of theatric pursuits. Her father, mother, and sister are all involved in theatre in some way or another. Even her grandfather, Olof, was a famous director and actor.

    Though the Thunberg family has a noted emphasis on theatre, they’re all as environmentally minded as Thunberg herself is. Svante, Beata, Malena and Greta co-wrote a book, titled Our House Is On Fire: Scenes of a Family and a Planet in Crisis. The book’s expected release date is March, 2020. The summary for the book on GoodReads reads in part,

    This is the story of a family led to confront a crisis they had never foreseen. Aged eleven, their eldest daughter has stopped eating and speaking. Alongside diagnoses of autism and selective mutism, her parents slowly become aware of another source for her distress: her imperiled future on a rapidly heating planet.

    Steered by her determination to understand the truth, the family begins to see the deep connections between their own and the planet’s suffering. Against forces that try to silence them, disparaging them for being different, they discover ways to strengthen, heal, and act in the world. And then one day, fifteen-year-old Greta decides to go on strike.

    Sammy Finkelman (54930a)

  90. @91. If they can’t kill the message, slay the messenger.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  91. @81. The NRA would know- without knowing it.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  92. You can run as many cars on a train as you need to accommodate all the paying passengers at any particular time. Why waste fuel and add to wear and tear by pulling half-empty cars? It is an option available to trains that is not available to planes, ships or buses.

    nk (dbc370)

  93. @92 and 93 I just don’t think it’s a great idea for parents to let their kids be unnecessarily exposed to public scrutiny. They are kids, it’s not super safe and they are bound to screw something up on top of that.

    Also, there is an ongoing problem with anxiety in kids caused by stuff they are exposed to on the internet.

    Nic (896fdf)

  94. @68 Not only is Trump lying about the trade deal, the White House is circulating a memo from a fictional character! No, really.

    https://reason.com/2019/12/13/u-s-china-agree-to-phase-one-trade-deal-but-most-tariffs-will-remain-in-effect/

    Gawain's Ghost (b25cd1)

  95. Well Nic, maybe $100,000 isn’t enough. A million for each Republican Senator isn’t out of reach for a billionaire’s budget but who wants to reward the scoundrels that much.

    But I would love to see how the Senators refuse the offer. Let em BS their way out of that one.

    noel (f22371)

  96. Teenagers are very seldom (and reluctantly) diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. Care to guess why? Go ahead, you’ll be right.

    nk (dbc370)

  97. 99. I’ll bite: Cause they all have it. 😉

    Gryph (08c844)

  98. Yes, pretty much, Gryph. You can’t tell the difference.

    nk (dbc370)

  99. Not only is Trump lying about the trade deal, the White House is circulating a memo from a fictional character! No, really.

    He has pretty much done what Allahpundit predicted a couple months ago: gotten the Chinese agree to something named “The Yuuuge Trump Win Trade Deal” that in reality does nothing but bail him out by allowing him to back down and restoring the status quo.

    All Allahpundit missed was the additional wrinkle that the terms will be kept secret and the Chinese won’t even admit to agreeing to them…

    Dave (1bb933)

  100. On deck: next winning-go-ahead-and-impeach-me-reelection card to play: withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  101. withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan.

    That wouldn’t be a bad thing and our tatted up tranny military establishment might then have a couple of extra bucks to upgrade its golf courses. It’s not like they’re doing much of anything over there, in the first place. The only ones doing any “fighting” are the special forces and the drone operators, and that mostly consists of sneaking up on some goat herder and potting him with Barrett or a Hellfire from a mile away and then claiming he was a Taliban.

    nk (dbc370)

  102. Pakistani intelligence is world class, and better than the USA – that’s why the war in Afghanistan s still going on.

    The Taliban, Pakistanis, by the way, make a priority out of killing anyone good on the Afghan government side, provided it won;t draw in more U.S. government involvement.

    Sammy Finkelman (54930a)

  103. If Trump draws down US forces in Afghanistan it will be harder for the CIA to control its heroin supply chain. That would certainly trigger another impeachment level event.

    frosty (f27e97)

  104. That the CIA profits from heroin or other drug dealing is one of the older slanders going on (abetted by real members of organized crime claiming to be affiliated with the CIA.

    Sammy Finkelman (54930a)

  105. The New Yorker has a long piece on Lutsenko and why Americans close to the situation lost confidence in the guy. And now he and Shokin, both laced with corruption, are represented by Toensing-DiGenova, who are buddy-buddy with Trump.

    Paul Montagu (af70d6)

  106. How a Russian disinformation operation took John Solomon’s disinformation and ran with it. Mr. Solomon still stands by his “reporting”. He left The Hill under unexplained circumstances and they’re in the process of investigation his “journalism”. This wouldn’t be an issue, but Trump has fallen for Solomon’s schtick and it will lead to his impeachment tomorrow.

    Paul Montagu (af70d6)


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