Weekend Open Thread
[guest post by Dana]
Happy Friday! Here are a few news items that might interest you. Be sure to share anything that you might think would interest readers. Also, I’m asking for book recommendations. I’ve been re-reading old stuff but would like to have some new recommendations to check out. Pre-emptive strike: There isn’t a news item on this thread regarding Putin’s war because there was an open thread on the matter put up earlier today. Thanks. Now let’s get started!
First news item
Whoa Nelly, via JVW: “the Metropolitan London Police report that their horses are having trouble crossing streets painted with brightly-colored stripes in honor of LGBTQ people. I guess sometimes there are unintended consequences to flagrant virtue signaling. A reply to their Tweet also suggests that guide dogs for blind people also struggle to navigate through those streets”:
Can you please ask for them to be changed? It isn't just horses which find the crossing a problem & it needs a voice like yours to help them.
Guide dogs have been confused by them & this could lead to a terrible accident.
Please, think of those left suffering.
— Ali L 96.5% (@Alichat66) March 31, 2022
I sat through a City Council meeting where 2.5 hours were spent discussing whether the city was going to permit a similar crosswalk to be painted with a Pride design. Everything from the size and style of lettering to the shade and tones of the paint, what the design would look like, and the liability issue (would it distract drivers and possibly cause an accident) was discussed. The only thing that I saw as a real consideration (aside from liability) was the slippery slope: Would they be opening the door to any political group or cause to be captured in a public crosswalk? Pick your poison: MAGA crossing, pro-abortion or pro-gun crossing, open borders or closed borders crossing, etc. A smart official said the city should stick with neutral and innocuous symbols that reflect our town’s unique history, thus avoiding any political/religious/divisive causes. That made sense. So naturally, we now have a Pride crosswalk. Well, sort of. The nimwits executing the project couldn’t just stick with a simple Pride flag crosswalk, they decided to get pretty artsy the design, and now it is nearly impossible to discern what exactly it is. Unintended consequences.
Second news item
More optionsmight be the remedy:
None of what’s being discussed is censorship in the remotest sense of the word, since even the “banned” books remain readily available in libraries and bookstores. (In fact, Maus, originally published in collected form in 1991, vaulted to the top of Amazon’s bestsellers lists immediately after being challenged.)
But here’s the thing: Unless we want to live in a country where every curricular decision—even ones about what’s served in the cafeteria—is subject to scorched-earth scrutiny not simply by the relevant parents and (maybe relevant) taxpayers but by every cable news host, Instagram mom, Bean Dad, elected official, and citizen at large, we need to give the people most directly affected more options so they can find a school that works for them.
The problem isn’t that To Kill a Mockingbird is being pulled from—or made mandatory in—10th-grade English, it’s that the overwhelming majority of kids (and parents) who are being told to suck it have no options. About 91 percent of K-12 students attend public schools, and while there has been a significant increase in various forms of school choice such as charters, online programs, and homeschooling, the overwhelming majority of kids still go to traditional, residential-assignment grammar and high schools.
…
The heart of the matter isn’t about who is making what specific decisions (however moronic you or I might think they are) but who is bound by them. Until we give parents not just more input into what their kids are learning but more actual options for where to send their kids, today’s book battles are only going to get worse. Gone for good are the days when an easy consensus on just about anything but especially education can be reached. For a lot of mostly good reasons (we’re wealthier, more educated, and more skeptical of experts and authorities), all of us feel empowered to insist on our preferences, especially when it comes to education.
Embarrassing California, but related:
Reading some banned books to figure out what these states are so afraid of. pic.twitter.com/z6eJ01NZJe
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) March 31, 2022
Third news item
It’s funny how a large number of powerful men in government curse Cheney and her damn unyielding backbone:
Our nation needs elected leaders like Cheney who care more about fundamental governing principles that have strengthened and saved America through challenging times, such as preserving democracy, adherence to the rule of law and smooth transition of power. Cheney embodies these founding principles and shows a willingness to lose power to defend and save America — unlike some colleagues whose highest priority is keeping their seats or pursuing a more powerful title.
Fourth news item
Oh:
The State Department on Thursday announced that it will make an “X” gender marker available on U.S. passports beginning April 11, and the option to select the marker for other forms of documentation will become available next year.
On State Department public forms, the “X” gender marker will be defined as “Unspecified or another gender identity.” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the definition “is respectful of individuals’ privacy while advancing inclusion.”
Fifth news item
U.S. intelligence officials are privately bracing for a massive influx of more than 170,000 migrants at the Mexico border if COVID-era policies that allow instant expulsions during the public health emergency are ended, sources with direct knowledge of the discussions tell Axios.
The response under way includes a newly created — and previously unreported — Southwest Border Coordination Center (SBCC), essentially a war room to coordinate an interagency response….Border officials have used Title 42 more than 1 million times to rapidly expel migrants at the southern border without hearing asylum claims. But the Trump-era order wasn’t set up to be permanent, and senior Biden officials are preparing for its end as the virus is brought under control.
Department of Homeland Security intelligence estimates that perhaps 25,000 migrants already are waiting in Mexican shelters just south of the border for Title 42 to end.
Now:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will order an end to the Title 42 policy this week… A draft of the new order reviewed by the [Wall Street] Journal states that “there is no longer a serious danger” that migrants could spread Covid in border detention facilities.
The implementation of the new order will be delayed until late May, to give the administration time to prepare for a potential rise in migrants seeking to cross the southern border illegally.
…
Officials within the Department of Homeland Security have reportedly warned that rescinding the order could result in an influx of illegal border crossings.
Over 2 million migrants were detained at the southern border by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in 2021, the first year of President Biden’s term in office. That was more than double the 921,812 migrants detained in a 2019 surge in illegal crossings.
Meanwhile, border agents encountered 164,973 migrants in February, up over 60 percent from February 2021.
Sixth news item
As President Donald J. Trump’s tenure came to an end, the chief White House photographer, who had traveled the world with him and spent countless hours inside the White House snapping pictures, notified Mr. Trump’s aides that she intended to publish a book collecting some of her most memorable images.
This was hardly a radical idea: Official photographers from every White House since President Ronald Reagan’s have published their own books. Barack Obama and George W. Bush were so supportive that they wrote forewords for them.
But like so much else involving Mr. Trump, the plan by his chief photographer, Shealah Craighead, did not follow this bipartisan norm.
First, aides to Mr. Trump asked her for a cut of her book advance payment, in exchange for his writing a foreword and helping promote the book, according to former associates of Mr. Trump.
Then Mr. Trump’s team asked Ms. Craighead to hold off on her book project to allow the former president to take Ms. Craighead’s photos and those of other White House staff photographers and publish his own book, which is now selling for as much as $230 a copy.
That the profits from Ms. Craighead’s labor are now going into Mr. Trump’s pocket has left several of Mr. Trump’s former aides upset — but not exactly surprised.
I feel bad for Craighead because these photos and her role as an historic documentarian
is not just her job, but it is her art, her vision, her labor, and her labor of love. While what he has done isn’t illegal, it is certainly typical of his greed, selfishness, and money-grubbing way of life.
Seventh news item
Fewer people are hospitalized with Covid-19 in the United States now than at any other point in the pandemic, but hospitals and staff continue to feel the strain.
As of Friday, there are 16,138 people in the hospital with Covid-19 — fewer than there have ever been since the US Department of Health and Human Services first started tracking in July 2020. Just 2% of hospital beds are currently in use for Covid-19 patients.
Previously, the lowest point was in late June 2021, just before Delta became the dominant variant in the country. Covid-19 hospitalizations reached a peak in January 2022 amid the Omicron surge, when more than 160,000 people were hospitalized with Covid-19 at one time.
While the strain on the US hospital system directly related to treating Covid-19 patients has been significantly reduced, experts say that many hospitals are still burdened by staffing shortages and other patients who are coming in sicker after postponing care during the height of the pandemic
Oh, for cripes sake, get a grip:
At CNN, Peniel E. Joseph complains about Ben Sasse’s “jaw-dropping” use of the word “winsome” to describe Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson:
“This lack of grace and empathy was evident in some of the jaw-dropping language used by members of the committee to describe Jackson — for instance, Sasse told Jackson she was “incredibly likable and winsome.” It seems impossible to imagine the Senator – or others of his colleagues, who praised Jackson’s performance in a similarly gendered terms – speaking these words to a White, male nominee. It sounded for all the world like she was being congratulated for not being an Angry Black Woman.”
As Charles C.W. Cooke wryly notes:
…in 2018, Sasse used exactly that “gendered” term to describe “White, male nominee” Brett Kavanaugh…
win·some | \ ˈwin(t)-səm \
Definition of winsome
1: generally pleasing and engaging often because of a childlike charm and innocence
a winsome smile
2: CHEERFUL, LIGHTHEARTED
Other Words from winHave a great weekend!
–Dana
Hello.
Dana (5395f9) — 4/1/2022 @ 3:26 pmWell, Judge Jackson is going to winsome and lose some, but all she needs is 51.
Hi, Dana!
nk (1d9030) — 4/1/2022 @ 3:40 pmLol, nk!
Dana (5395f9) — 4/1/2022 @ 3:49 pmThe 1950 Census was released today.
Missing (not preserved) are the separate cards for babies born between January 1 and April 1 1950, and the back side of the Census forms, which were not microfilmed.
The scanning of the handwritten records is imperfect – people will correct it over the next few months.
Sammy Finkelman (c04aa1) — 4/1/2022 @ 3:50 pmUh-huh.
Related:
Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 4/1/2022 @ 3:53 pmLizzie likes soldiers dying for her caustic cause, such a disgraceful hag. And her father is a spineless dolt. Who shoots fellow hunters. Another family that needs a oak branch.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:01 pmAnd her father is a spineless dolt. Who shoots fellow hunters.
The guy he shot was a lawyer. A pretty cynical way for Cheney to try to raise his popularity if you ask me.
nk (1d9030) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:09 pm‘Our nation needs elected leaders like Cheney…’
Except it doesn’t.
“She is a warmonger whose family stupidly pushed us into the never-ending Middle East Disaster, draining our wealth and depleting our Great Military, the worst decision in our Country’s history.” – DJT
“So?” – Daddy Darth
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:15 pmBreaking News- Will Smith Resigns his membership from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:16 pm“Heartbroken” Will Smith Resigns From Academy Ahead Of Decision On His Future After Oscar Slap Of Chris Rock
“I have directly responded to the Academy’s disciplinary hearing notice, and I will fully accept any and all consequences for my conduct. My actions at the 94th Academy Awards presentation were shocking, painful, and inexcusable. The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and global audiences at home. I betrayed the trust of the Academy. I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken. I want to put the focus back on those who deserve attention for their achievements and allow the Academy to get back to the incredible work it does to support creativity and artistry in film. So, I am resigning from membership in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and will accept any further consequences the Board deems appropriate. Change takes time and I am committed to doing the work to ensure that I never again allow violence to overtake reason.” – Will Smith
https://deadline.com/2022/04/will-smith-resigns-oscars-slap-chris-rock-1234992840/
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:20 pmRock should have made a funny about her boy toy.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:25 pmEven lawyers deserve a chance to shoot back, nk.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:27 pmI predict everyone in the country will have a copy of Hunters laptop before the fbi.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:38 pm@11. He’s a classic April Fool. Give him a standing-O for destroying 30 years of career brand building and image making with the wave of a hand. As another Academy Award winning film put it: “One little dogface… one measly slap… that’s what done it.”…
“Ah, George… I wish I’d kissed the son-of-a bitch.” – George Patton [Geoege C. Scott] “Patton” 1970
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:38 pmAre those Stooges still wasting copy space? Will, Chris, and Jada. Has Jada chortled “Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk!” yet?
nk (1d9030) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:43 pmBetter to jump than get pushed, eh, Will?
Ask Pete Rose.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:48 pmLeave the Academy. Take the Oscar, eh Will.
What about the cannoli?
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:52 pmBorder Patrol Agents Accused Of ‘Whipping’ Cleared Of Criminal Misconduct, Union Chief Says
the investigation was supposed to take days, but instead took more than six months
another trophy for biden voters
JF (e1156d) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:57 pmI’m waiting for public displays honoring Christians or conservatives or even just the law-abiding. As far as honoring LGBTQ folks, I think someone is overcompensating.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:11 pmBut here’s the thing: Unless we want to live in a country where every curricular decision—even ones about what’s served in the cafeteria—is subject to scorched-earth scrutiny
I think we can all agree that canned green beans should never ever be served to any child again.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:17 pmOn State Department public forms, the “X” gender marker will be defined as “Unspecified or another gender identity.”
I actually applaud this, as it makes far more sense than some list of options. I recently had the sad duty to read a manuscript for publication approval, and the authors thought that listing all conceivable (to them) possibilities of something was the way to be inclusive. Of course, someone always gets left out when you do that. A generic category like, say “everyone” works better.
What a tiresome chore that was.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:22 pmSounds pretty typical of him:
Trump is the guy who hires the kind of lawyer that no one else likes to work with. You know, the lawyer who cannot conceive of anything not being on his side of the plate.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:25 pmThe scanning of the handwritten records is imperfect
For values of “imperfect” that border on terrible. Also terrible is the “search” engine, which would embarrass HotBot. Not only can you not combine search terms (like insisting of both first and last names) but it also returns potential scanning errors, like Floyd for Lloyd or Bob for Rob, multiplying the false positives by a factor of 10.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:31 pmHigher praise that being dissed by Trump is not possible.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:33 pmWell, Judge Jackson is going to winsome and lose some, but all she needs is 51.
Hey…is Brandon Tatum or Byron Donalda going to slap you for putting Winsome Sears’ name in your mouth?
urbanleftbehind (c073c9) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:41 pmAt first I thought this was in the Land of Cornpop, but realized it was in Massachusetts. But didn’t the Seinfeld gang end up on in the hokey for by standing?
https://whdh.com/news/officials-launch-investigation-into-disturbing-altercation-in-wilmington-high-school-bathroom/
urbanleftbehind (c073c9) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:47 pm@26: “Whirling” was a standard corrective action for grossly obnoxious behavior when I was a student.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:54 pm@26 It’s probably the recording that will get them. It’s illegal to record in a school bathroom or locker room, at least in CA.
Nic (896fdf) — 4/1/2022 @ 5:55 pmon the table next to moron newsom is one of many books banned in california schools
‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ Other Books Banned From California Schools Over Racism Concerns
Newsom mocks other states for banning books—but California has banned them too
JF (e1156d) — 4/1/2022 @ 7:33 pmAnd the perennial favorite to ban: “Huckleberry Finn” for use of the N-word in a book that has Huck helping Jim escape slavery.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 7:50 pmNo one should listen to Newsom about anything.
steveg (e81d76) — 4/1/2022 @ 7:55 pmNewsom took his family to Mexico over Thanksgiving which is fine, but here we are 5 months later and he tells us his family is taking two weeks off in Costa Rica because they have not had a vacation in 2 years.
As you all know, math is not my strong point, but the timeline seems a bit off.
Newsom is a liar who believes he was destined to be President.
Maybe we could have the Newsom/Beto ticket in 2024. It’d be like a sad remake of Zoolander
They painted a bike lane here bright green with a white bicycle just like the picture.
Too bad it got really slippery when wet. It kinda looked like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaZBebMvE8E
steveg (e81d76) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:14 pmSAG-AFTRA Constitution Spells Out Steps To Be Taken If Union Disciplines Will Smith For Oscars Slap
‘If Will Smith is to be disciplined by SAG-AFTRA for slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars, the union’s constitution spells out in great detail how that disciplinary process will play out. SAG-AFTRA covers performers at the Academy Awards, where Rock was a presenter Sunday night and, as such, deems it a workplace incident subject to disciplinary review.
Earlier today, Smith resigned his membership in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences after its Board of Governors had initiated disciplinary proceedings against him. “I have directly responded to the Academy’s disciplinary hearing notice, and I will fully accept any and all consequences for my conduct,” he said. “My actions at the 94th Academy Awards presentation were shocking, painful, and inexcusable,” adding that he “will accept any further consequences the Board (of Governors) deems appropriate.”
On Monday, SAG-AFTRA said in a statement: “As the union representing presenters and other performers working on the Oscars, SAG-AFTRA is focused on ensuring our members always work in a safe environment. Violence or physical abuse in the workplace is never appropriate and the union condemns any such conduct. The incident involving Will Smith and Chris Rock at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable. We have been in contact with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and ABC about this incident and will work to ensure this behavior is appropriately addressed.” The union’s statement concluded by noting that “SAG-AFTRA does not comment on any pending member disciplinary process” – suggesting that the incident is being reviewed for disciplinary action there, as well.
Expulsion is the most serious penalty SAG-AFTRA can impose, but other options include suspension, fines, reprimands and censure. The union has a standing delegation to both its Probable Cause Committee — to determine whether there’s a “probable cause” that the union’s Constitution has been violated — and to its Disciplinary Committee, but only a Disciplinary Committee decision to expel a member would automatically go to the national board, whose next regularly scheduled meeting is April 30.
Article XIV of the SAG-AFTRA Constitution, which deals with the “Discipline of Members,” states:
A. A member may be reprimanded, censured, fined, suspended or expelled from membership in the Union for any of the following offenses:
1. Violation of any of the provisions of this Constitution, or the policies, rules or regulations adopted by the Union or any of its Locals.
2. Engaging in actions antagonistic to the interests or integrity of the Union, any of its affiliated Locals or its membership, including providing services covered by the Union’s jurisdiction for any employer declared unfair by the National Board.
B. Procedure for Discipline
1. Any member in good standing, any affiliated Local, the National Executive Director or their designee, may file with the Secretary-Treasurer, or their designee, written charges against any member alleging facts describing any of the offenses set forth in this Article.
2. Charges must be filed within six (6) months of knowledge of the action or event that gave rise to the charges. Charges must set forth with reasonable specificity the nature of the offense and the facts underlying it.
3. The National Board, or its designee, shall review the charges and dismiss them if they have not been timely filed, if the act complained of does not constitute a violation subject to discipline under this Constitution or in the absence of sufficient evidence to establish probable cause for proceeding.
4. Unless the charges are dismissed pursuant to subparagraph B(3) of this Article, the Secretary-Treasurer, or their designee, or the National Executive Director, or their designee, shall give written notice to the member or members charged, attaching a copy of the charges and setting a hearing date at least fourteen (14) days in advance.
5. Prior to a hearing before the disciplinary committee, the National Board may designate a representative(s) to meet with a member who has been charged with any of the offenses set forth in this Article. The National Board’s representative(s) may offer a resolution to the charges that, if the member accepts, would be final and binding. If the member does not accept the offer, a disciplinary committee will be convened to hear and determine the charges, as described in this Article.
6. The National Board, or a disciplinary committee appointed pursuant to policies and procedures approved by the National Board, shall hear and decide the charges. At the hearing, a charged party shall have the opportunity to present evidence and testimony, and may have a representative assist them. The charged member shall be given written notice of the decision and penalty, if any. The National Board, or a disciplinary appeals committee designated by it, has authority to review the disciplinary committee’s decision and penalty, if any, on its own motion or on the member’s written appeal filed with the Secretary-Treasurer, or their designee, or the National Executive Director, or their designee, within twenty-one (21) calendar days of sending of notice of the disciplinary committee’s decision. On any appeal, the charges may be upheld, dismissed, the decision modified, or the charges referred to the disciplinary committee for further proceedings.
7. A member may be expelled from membership only by two-thirds (2/3) of the votes of the National Board members voting on the issue.
8. The National Board may adopt rules governing the investigation of charges and the conduct of any hearings or appeals under this Article.
The last time SAG-AFTRA publicly took steps to discipline a member came in early January 2021 when the union’s national board met in special session to consider disciplinary action against former President Donald Trump, a longtime member and former star of The Apprentice. He resigned from the union before he could be kicked out.
As first reported by Deadline, the board found “probable cause” that Trump had “violated the union’s Constitution,” and ordered the matter to be heard by SAG-AFTRA’s Disciplinary Committee. The charges cited Trump’s role in inciting the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, and his “sustaining a reckless campaign of misinformation aimed at discrediting and ultimately threatening the safety of journalists, many of whom are SAG-AFTRA members.” Facing possible expulsion, Trump resigned in a huff, making a disciplinary hearing unnecessary.’ – source, deadline.com
“It ain’t over ’til it’s over.” – Yogi Berra
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:18 pmI’m guessing the photograper is now going to print only her most flattering photos of the President…?
I kind of understand Trump here. He knows that for the book to sell big to the left, it needs to contain photos of him at his worst, so at least he gets paid for the mockery
steveg (e81d76) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:19 pmAnyway, back to worrying about Trump from A to Z,
Who is going to be todays Hiroo Onoda
steveg (e81d76) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:20 pmDCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 4:20 pm
So it would seem that Will Smith’s publicity team has figured that this is so awful that he would have been given more than a two year ban? No, that can’t be it. It must be that they knew a two-year ban is possible so they figured that they would preemptively accept that and then apply to be reinstated one year from now.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:33 pmAre those Stooges still wasting copy space? Will, Chris, and Jada. Has Jada chortled “Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk!” yet?
How many of us saw the subtle genius in this comment? (Hint: It helps if you are a devoted Three Stooges fan. And, nk, as I am sure you are insinuating, Will Smith is Moe and poor Chris Rock is Larry. Lucky there wasn’t an eye-gouge in there too.)
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:37 pmReaganomics:
Will Smith’s production company, Westbrook Inc, is valued at $600 million dollars
‘Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith have reportedly sold a minority stake in their media company, Westbrook, to former Disney executives Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer.
Westbrook — which produces Netflix’s hit series “Cobra Kai” and which backed “King Richard,” the biopic starring Will Smith as Richard Williams, the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams — had been in talks with Staggs and Mayer until the deal fell apart in October. Sources told Variety that Staggs and Mayer’s venture paid $60 million for a roughly 10% ownership stake. The deal values the company at just under $600 million.
Mayer and Staggs are being financed by private-equity giant Blackstone Group. Their media venture made headlines last year when it purchased Reese Witherspoon’s production company Hello Sunshine in a deal valued at $900 million and followed that up with a $3 billion deal for Moonbug Entertainment, the children’s TV company behind Westbrook Inc. is comprised of a production studio, Westbrook Studios, and a digital arm, Westbrook Media. Upcoming projects for the company include the action film “Emancipation,” which will appear on Apple TV+ and star Will Smith, as well as the “Fresh Prince” reboot “Bel-Air’ that will premiere next month on Peacock.” -source, NYP.com, 1/4/22
Translation: $600 million is thumb-in-the-eye ‘FY’ money to AMPAS and their goofy statue, rules and regs.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 8:39 pm@36. They’ll go ahead w/t disciplinary hearings internally, but it’s more or less moot now to the public; talked w/an old colleague earlier and they suspect the plan would have been to suspend his AMPAS membership and the voting rights that go along w/it, etc., indefinitely, subject to a semi-annual or annual review– which doesn’t set a precedence for them by establishing a specific time frame if/when a similar incident occurs in the future. In time AMPAS can always invite him to join again, too, as he resigned and they didn’t expel him. Resigning just avoids generating more bad publicity for him– and gthe biz.
There are other facets in this, too- the guilds are involved and he and his wife have that production company, Westbrook Media, w/investors to deal with– and they produced the film he wpond the Oscar for. The ripple effect in the industry is going to be wide– but for most folks it’s real ‘inside baseball’ stuff. But in the biz, he’s damaged ahis brand now, carefully cultivated as a black guy over 30 years and was considered the model for how to do it in the biz in this era. Look Mel Gibson’s ostracization for years… he’s still dealing with it– but Smith has enough $ now to tell AMPAS where to go, Godfather style: you know, “Leave the Academy; take the Oscar.” But he’d never get another Oscar nomination- -even if he played ‘Black Patton.’ We’ll see what the guilds do and where he’s at in 18 months or so. But it was an incredibly stupid thing for him to do and indicative of how insulated that group of people are.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:02 pmI again point out that they gave Roman Polanski an Oscar for a movie he made while a fugitive from justice for the brutal rape of a child. MUCH later they kicked him out of the Academy after the hypocrisy became too blatant. But he kept his Oscar.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:11 pmThey gave Polanski a standing ovation
steveg (e81d76) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:15 pmA year from now there’ll be a shooting at the Grammys and everyone will forget about this.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:15 pm@42. Why wait a year? The Grammys are this Sunday. 😉
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:23 pm@40/41. The Oscar is awarded by voting Academy members for work in film, not an awardees lifestyle, politics, personality or peccadillos. Recipients have refused it [George C. Scott; Brando] but controversial figures like Kazan, Trumbo, Jane Fonda, John Wayne, Polanski… Weinstein have kept theirs. And only one Academy Award has ever been rescinded- due to a bureaucratic error around a film release date, in 1969.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:33 pm@40/41. Postscript- the way AMPAS members can register disapproval is simply denying a nomination.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 9:50 pmLook Mel Gibson’s ostracization for years… he’s still dealing with it–
[. . .]
But he’d never get another Oscar nomination- -even if he played ‘Black Patton.’
But hang on, there, amigo. Mel Gibson’s Hacksaw Ridge got lots of nominations. I don’t know that Will Smith has the talent (especially as a director) that Mel Gibson has, so I won’t put hard money that Will Smith will be back, but what if he reinvents himself as an auteur director?
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/1/2022 @ 10:05 pmIf the vast majority (there are always exceptions) of parents did such a great job educating their children especially in socialization ;but in the 3 r’s also, we wouldn’t need schools. Schools are a quick way to educate children that otherwise would take much longer if at all. I went to christian schools and only later in higher grades of high school and collage did I realize there was a lot more to know then what christian schools/church wanted me to know.
asset (3506ad) — 4/1/2022 @ 10:30 pmHey, I thought of that too! But I’m not surprised that nk got it in already.
Radegunda (374ed3) — 4/1/2022 @ 10:53 pmThe Oscar is awarded by voting Academy members for work in film, not an awardees … politics ….
Tell that to Al Gore and Michael Moore.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 11:02 pm@49. Don’t have to: the Oscar is awarded by voting Academy members for work in film.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 11:39 pm@49. Don’t have to: the Oscar is awarded by voting Academy members for work in film.
And they never ever get influenced by politics or other bias because their hearts are pure.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/1/2022 @ 11:42 pm@46. That’s valid- but generally the stigma lingers w/many decisionmakers and greenlighters in the biz over Mel’s rant- it’s not just forgotten and he lost a lot of time and good will over it. Still, he could afford to finance many of his successes, too, w/some good properties- HR being one. e’s certainly not talentless. OTOH Weinstein’s Shakespeare in Love beat out Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan– and folks in the biz were very much away of Harvey’s peccadillos- but more aware of the $ his studio generated, the multiple projects they greenlit and the work they created for members. That’s why Cameron won 14 for Titanic– my boss told me flatly, ‘he put a lot of guild people to work and they rewarded him w/voting nominations and wins. Such is the Academy.’ Look at Smith’s age– took him 30 years to cultivate his ‘good will’ image across multiple mediums and just a week to crater it. It’ll take a long time, a lot of humble pie and some very, very good projects to dig out of that hole. He’s is known for volatility- not humility; this may change him– you’d like to hope so; but it will take some time. Will be interesting to see how the guilds deal with him– they do the work.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/1/2022 @ 11:58 pm@51. The bias is in the guilds themselves which start the nominating process, Kevin. It’s all about the work–especially if your project ends up employing a large number of guild members. That’s how they play the game. ‘For your consideration’ ads run in the trade for months before the nomination votes. No nomination, no chance for a vote.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 12:08 amJVW, remember, too, Mel merely hurt himself in the biz revealing an ugly streak of booze-driven antisemitism- unlike Smith, who assaulted the Academy Awards themselves as well as Rock, live on global TV by smacking an award presenter stone cold sober, hurting not only his own brand, but injuring the AMPAS brand as well. He’s dug himself quite a professional hole to climb out of w/his peers. Every time an audience sees Smith now in ID4, the Men In Black films, Enemy Of The State– even Prince Of Bel Air reruns, all very successful projects, viewers ‘will’ see him in a different light now- and look for flecks or flashes of rage. There’s likely something else going on with him personally. It’s just sad and very bad form all around- especially w/t 20 year downward trend of TV ratings for the Oscars.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 12:31 amThe destruction that Democrats have unleashed on America is mind-boggling. Who would possibly imagine that doubling gas prices would gain votes? Sanctioning Russia while at the same time sanctioning our domestic energy industry is beyond stupid. And it has been done with such rapidity that even voters with short memory can see it. Inflation around ten percent according to the Everyday Price Index is hitting poor Americans in the wallet. President Pelosi is on call.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:01 amCaptain Ross Reynolds may you rest in Peace.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:05 amEnough with our soldiers doing Nato dirty work.
Will is the star in” Men in a dress”.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:25 amThe Clown Caucus of the House GOP could grow by at least one this November. Sigh.
Paul Montagu (5de684) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:26 amPutin’s war crimes in Bucha, northwest of Kyiv.
Paul Montagu (5de684) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:45 amThis is back in the day when people could handle a little roast. I miss Rickles.
Paul Montagu (5de684) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:00 am59. It’s what Russians do. Alongside the Holocaust memorials, Germany has memorials of Russian atrocities. (Which the Russians have tried, with some success, to fob off on stragglers and rear echelon units.) Which may be one reason that the Sitzpinkler are all in against Putin’s ethno-affirming therapy in Ukraine.
BTW, there’s no need for war criminals to be tried at the Hague. Ukraine can try them by properly-constituted courts martial, under the same due process that it would try its own soldiers.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:28 amTrue. Nowadays people type “Personal Attack” as fast as they can and grouse to blog hosts for rule enforcement.
BuDuh (4a7846) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:34 amWill Smith was fighting for his wife’s honor. Which is more than she ever did.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:38 amBTW, anyone who has Netflix and hasn’t seen Servant of the People, I highly recommend it.
Paul Montagu (5de684) — 4/2/2022 @ 7:05 amIt’s pretty funny, and informative about Ukraine. My only complaint is they only have Season 1.
How much has Washington state’s junior senator, Maria Cantwell profited from her time in the Washington state legislature?
Some background:
Simplifying considerably, the Growth Management Act restricts new homes and apartments in the greater Seattle area, to Seattle, and to the older suburbs. When the Amazon boom came along, that restriction of supply meant — Economics 101 — enormous increases in the cost of housing.
And it meant enormous increases in the wealth of those who already owned homes, including, as far as I know, Cantwell. (Many other Democratic politicians in this area would have seen similar gains.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 8:09 amRegarding book suggestions, Dana, I’m not much for mainstream and bestsellers, I mostly read genre. If you have not already read Dashiell Hammett’s The Dain Curse, that’s probably his best novel. But I warn you, and my fellow commenters, if you do read it, the next time you hear somebody talk about Agatha Christie, you’ll guffaw out loud and likely hurt somebody’s feelings.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 8:11 amnk – I’ll add to that by mentioning that the New American Library has all five of Hammett’s novels in a single volume. (My favorite is “The Thin Man”.)
The New American Library is a nonprofit publisher that “. . . fosters appreciation and pride in American’s literary heritage by publishing, and keeping in print, authoritative editions of its best and most significant writing.” It’s a good place to find American classics that will “last for generations”. Their prices are quite reasonable, considering what you get. I have found its web site a little odd.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 8:56 am“For Jamaica, one of the issues that has been presented as an issue that is economic in the way its impact has been the pandemic…we will assist Jamaica in Covid recovery by assisting in terms of the recovery efforts in Jamaica that have been essential.”
Obudman (929f6c) — 4/2/2022 @ 9:05 amKamala Harris this week
So the trans agenda is so important to the left that Biden’s administration is threatening to go after any state that doesn’t let you do permanent, harmful experimentation on children.
Aren’t so many of you glad you voted for this hell?
NJRob (80c481) — 4/2/2022 @ 9:15 amBaby steps, Obudman, baby steps. In his heyday, her boss could give a half-hour speech and say nothing.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 9:16 amKamala Harris this week
I almost wrote a blog post about her Jamaica quote earlier this week, but I got to figuring that if I cover every single one of her word salads I will never have time off from this blog.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/2/2022 @ 9:34 amWhen the GMA was passed, Jim, my prediction was that the law could create a two-tiered society in the region, where the wealthy would live just outside the urban growth areas (UGAs) in their McMansions on acreage, while everyone else would get stuffed into UGA boundaries and stuck with high-density housing. It didn’t quite turn out that way, yet, but Seattle is serious about canceling single-family zoning.
The solution to the housing shortage, IMO, is to dramatically expand the sizes of UGAs to allow more high-intensity residential development. The problem is that politicians such as Cantwell and city/county council members live in the area and are self-interested homeowners. Passing laws that would open up new supply would cut into their equity.
Paul Montagu (5de684) — 4/2/2022 @ 9:46 amChris Alexander envisions a world with a defeated and defanged and (hopefully) deposed Putin, and I kind of like it. Is this sans Putin universe a tad optimistic? Yes, because we don’t know how his replacement would behave, but I’m an optimist.
Paul Montagu (5de684) — 4/2/2022 @ 9:54 amLincoln’s first vote, as described by Carl Sandburg:
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:15 am60 – Paul Montagu, Indeed. I had tears in my eyes after watching that. I sAw the last show in the Palace Room at the Golden Nugget, it was Rickles, my sides hurt for days. He ripped Steve Wynn and Dr. J who were sitting together. Best comedy ever.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:30 amThanks for the clip.🍻
$30 Lobster Rolls this year on the Cape. And it will rise.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:31 am#72 Paul – I believe there have been a few cases of McMansions outside the UGA. (I recall reading, years ago, for example, about a “wood lot” exception. If you were harvesting wood from a large area, you could live there. So, a few people bought sections, or half sections, hired a man to cut a few trees once a year, and built very large houses.)
In my Kirkland neighborhood, something worse has happened. Small houses, on medium-sized lots, are being torn down, and replaced by much larger and more expensive homes. Since these new homes have few children, there has been, so far as I can tell, if anything, a decrease in density.
Overall, it has gotten very tough here on young families, with children and moderate incomes. And I think that our homeless problem is partly caused by the spectacular increases in rents in this area.
(For those not familiar with the Seattle area: In my opinion, there is no shortage of land where homes could be built. Much of the land around here is second and third growth forest, fit for growing trees but not much else.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:32 amBy the way, Barnes and Noble will sell you Lincoln’s “Prairie Years”, which I was quoting from, for $2.99. (In Nook form, of course.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:38 amAmerica First natcons held an “emergency meeting” in D.C. to discuss Ukraine and Russia. Ostensibly, they’re worried about the U.S. getting sucked into foreign wars (after many of them insisted that Trump would never have abandoned Afghanistan to the Taliban), but I think the real emergency for some is that their praise of Putin as a stalwart defender of national sovereignty and Christian piety (and a deeper understanding of human life vis-a-vis “liberalism”) is looking even more ridiculous than it already did.
Bizarrely, there’s a claim that “neocons” are “buoyed by the crisis” — when in fact most normal people are horrified and appalled and depressed by it. If some people say “this is why NATO is important,” that’s hardly the same as saying “isn’t it great that Russia is brutalizing Ukrainians, so we can say we were right all along.”
I think the people ascribing that sort of cruel cynicism to others are actually revealing their own cynicism. Instead of feeling normal human sympathy and compassion for the people whose lives have been devastated by cruel imperialistic aggression, they’re searching for the angle that makes their domestic political opponents look bad. Or for the angle that makes it all be America’s fault.
One of the most bizarre and ugly takes is by Pedro Gonzalez, who asserts that “Ukrainian nationalists are fighting for the side that will ultimately destroy their movement, their identity, their people, and their sovereignty.” So: it isn’t the Russians who are aiming to do that, and forcibly turn them all into Russians. No, apparently it’s NATO or “the West.” Because once you join NATO, then you can’t be a sovereign country with an identity anymore….. which I guess is why no one recognizes France and Germany and Italy and Norway and Greece and Estonia as distinct countries with different cultures. Oh, and Pedro is very offended by “oligarchs” in D.C., as all the Trumpy natcons are. But they can’t summon up much distaste for the Russian oligarchs — unless they believe that Vlad the Great, in subduing the other oligarchs, became a selfless servant of the people.
What it comes down to is a bunch of people who deeply hate many of their fellow Americans, and hate international cooperation, and who thought they found the way of salvation — a model for authentic nationalism — embodied in someone who’s waging a sadistic war of conquest upon another sovereign nation, besides becoming more repressive at home. And the people that the Trumpy natcons hate know that Putin is the villain — and know that Trump still harbors a disturbing admiration for him. So the America Firsters are trying their best to come up with a story in which Putin is not the villain, and in which America is guilty, or Ukraine somehow brought its own suffering upon itself.
Radegunda (c9771b) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:41 amAmerica is a dumpster away from disposal.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 11:30 amSo the trans agenda is so important to the left that Biden’s administration is threatening to go after any state that doesn’t let you do permanent, harmful experimentation on children.
Let them. It will end up losing 6-3.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 11:36 amPBS puts out a shot of the teleprompter Biden uses.
Its big
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FPMjPgMXoAAUho_?format=png&name=small
steveg (e81d76) — 4/2/2022 @ 12:30 pmSome people on the internet see this as a red flag. What do you guys think?
Cruz question to Judge Brown-Jackson:
15. Please explain, in your own words, the theory prevalent among members of the Founding
steveg (e81d76) — 4/2/2022 @ 12:40 pmFathers’ generation that humans possess natural rights that are inherent or inalienable.
RESPONSE: The theory that humans possess inherent or inalienable rights is reflected in the
Declaration of Independence, which states: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that
among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”
16. Do you hold a position on whether individuals possess natural rights, yes or no?
RESPONSE: I do not hold a position on whether individuals possess natural rights.
@60/@75: Sorry fellas: Rickles was a crass and classless bum. Caught his show in Vegas some years back. It spoke volumes that at the end of the set, he’d voice an apology to the audience as part of his closing for any content that offended. Insult comedy is lazy-azzed; void of any creativity. It was jerks like Rickles who fueled the spiral down in stand-up comedy.
Johnny Carson put Rickles in his place in 1969:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKRyNbCsGhs
…but then, that was as much an assault as what Smith did to Rock. Carson wasn’t arrested then, either.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 12:42 pmDCSCA — Capable of several contradictory — but equally wrong — thoughts before breakfast.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 1:32 pm@85. Breakfast? It’s afternoon in NM. From your POV, outside looking in, it may appear so; would wholly agree w/your POV, Kevin, before having worked in the biz. Kerep in mind the Academy Awards aren’t the People’s Choice Awards. My boss attended the Oscars- just one of many annual AMPAS gatherings- for over 20 years and knew well how their system and the guilds operate. It was quite an education. We’re still chattering about it but the day after it is over, the film industry routinely puts it to bed and imediately focuses on Cannes and the campaigning there- just 6-8 weeks away- as the awards cycle begins again.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 1:42 pmGood for the Post:
And kudos to the journalists who are risking their lives, and sometimes losing them:
The Post’s map shows multiple successful Ukrainian offensives. The horrors they are uncovering may motivate even more.
(I don’t know how much of the Post’s coverage will reach Russians, but it is still the right thing to do.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 2:49 pmBook suggestions? What sort of thing do you read? Genres? Mainstream? Non-fiction? It would help to know. I try to suggest books the other person would like, not just ones I liked most.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:03 pmRussia is withdrawing from support of the ISS.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:17 pmHere’s a small good-news story for Dana:
This year’s team isn’t tall, but the players worked hard, and smart. And they said the Lord’s Prayer before every game.
Impressively, they recovered from the loss of their father-and-son coaches to COVID during the season, to place the highest ever in the state tournament, making the “Elite Eight” for the first time.
Maybe Kevin can tell us something about that area of New Mexico.
(Mesa Vista Consolidated School District)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:21 pmNo word on when their 3 cosmonauts will leave the station, presumably on the Soyuz that’s docked.
Russia is also refusing to launch satellites for western companies, unless their non-military nature is clear.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:21 pmJust spoke w/an old colleague on the phone; AMPAS has 3 seconds of unreleased video w/Pinkett-Smith prodding hubby Will. Said the ramifications through the various guilds and members down to catering firms will likely be harsh. Projects not offered to his production company, etc., ‘Nobody will want to work with him now’ is the immediate buzz. This may seem insignificant to the general public but keep in mind the media and entertainment industry produce product among the highest exports of the United States and project American values, norms and culture worldwide.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:24 pmThey better check that space station with a fine tooth comb for booby traps and sabotage when the Russians are taken off.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:25 pmThe media and entertainment industry are to American values, norms, and culture what a beer fart is to a steak dinner.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:27 pmMaybe Kevin can tell us something about that area of New Mexico.
It’s in a mountain valley along US 285, maybe 90 miles NNE of ABQ. All the habitation is along the highway (perhaps a 20-mile span), plus some agriculture.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:31 pm@94. Something stinks for sure; case in point: during our first meeting w/British school kids in London back in the day, one of the first questions asked was, ‘where do you keep your guns?’ Our response: ‘what are you talking about -we don’t have any guns.’ Their answer: ‘ALL Americans have guns.’ We thought they were joking. They weren’t. Their awareness of values, lifestyles and American culture- and gunplay- came from movies and television.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:34 pmNobody will want to work with him now’ is the immediate buzz.
And when he takes his projects to Georgia, they’ll all complain about him not hiring the locals. Franky, the way the stood and applauded the child-rapist’s Oscar, this is just what happens when it’s a black guy who transgresses. Never mind Whoopie covering for them (and she’s OK with rape anyway).
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:34 pm‘where do you keep your guns?’
Some Brits were attending a conference near LAX, and I was showing them around a bit. I made a point to stop at Retting’s in Culver City to show them a real American gun store.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:38 pmhttps://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/leaked-documents-show-how-teachers-recruit-students-form-gay-and-transgender-clubs-in-schools
The cult-like behavior is happening fast and furious thanks to California Teachers Unions
NJRob (f3168c) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:54 pmSome people on the internet see this as a red flag. What do you guys think?
I wouldn’t mind if the Supreme Court struck down a couple or three natural laws. The law of gravity, the law of conservation of energy, it would be … magic!
Cruz’s question was Pharisaic, and Jackson answered him according to his folly lest he think himself wise in his eyes. She quoted him the Declaration of Independence. Correctly. No “natural” in there. And then told him to bug off. In a nice way. She is being appointed to judge according to the laws of the United States of America. Not the laws of God or Nature.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 3:59 pmJune 7, 2021: Russia’s space chief threatens to leave International Space Station program unless U.S. lifts sanctions – https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/07/russia-threatens-to-leave-international-space-station-program.html?msclkid=b899ccedb2d711ec9932053fb14b69c7
Fervent Putin backer Rogozin’s been venting hot gas out the aft end of his service module for ages. Besides, earlier this year Russia announced that it would be withdrawing from the ISS by 2025 anyway; [the first quarter of 2022 is already over as is] and build and manage their own floating laboratory that will be launched into orbit by 2030.
As to Rogozin’s most recent outgassing: ‘NASA responded with its own letter, which appeared to be signed by NASA chief Bill Nelson, according to a photo shared by Rogozin. Business Insider has not been able to independently verify the authenticity of the letter, which said: “The US continues to support international government space cooperation, especially those activities associated with operating the ISS with Russia, Canada, Europe, and Japan.” It added: “New and existing US export control measures continue to allow cooperation between the US and Russia to ensure continued safe operations of the ISS.”‘
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:03 pm@73
What an extremely disturbing read, linking almost every event in the past decade at least to this ever-pervasive “Putin Myth” as if Trump and Brexit couldn’t have possibly been the will of the people.
“putting the US, UK & many others through relentless cycles of polarization.” Yes, I’m sure it’s not a relentless march leftwards that’s doing that, caused by home-grown far-left activists. Blame Putin!
It’s clear that when people like this talk about “democracy” they really mean their version of it, absent of anything that goes against their view of the world.
I had to laugh at his take on The Northern Caucasus as well, those poor innocent Chechens. LOL.
Tom Jones (9e6acb) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:05 pmnk, thanks for the Dashiell Hammett recommendation. I’ve read a few of his books. However, I don’t think I’ve read The Dain Curse. My favorite characters he created were the delightful Nick and Nora Charles.
Jim Miller, with the exception of horror and the hard sciences, I enjoy most genres. I particularly enjoy history/biographies/and autobiographies. Thanks.
Dana (5395f9) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:09 pmnk, love you @ 100.
Dana (5395f9) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:10 pmOne has nothing to do with the other at #100, but a punchable face triggers all stripes:
https://www.insider.com/washington-man-arrested-threatened-to-shoot-sen-ted-cruz-2022-4
urbanleftbehind (c073c9) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:21 pmGenres: SF, the late Iain M Banks particularly “Surface Detail.” If it is possible to create an electronic afterlife “heaven”, what do you do with the people who really deserve something else?
Mild Fantasy: Charles Stross, “The Atrocity Archives” — magic, you see, is just computing. There are agencies that protect the world from the effects of poor computing choices (e.g. nameless horrors that eat brains) and this is the story of the British one and the poor sod who seems especially good at dealing with them.
Mystery: I’m going to assume you’ve read some Chandler, Robert B Parker and Agatha Christie. But how about Sue Grafton’s “Kinsey Millhone” detective books or Philip Kerr’s “Bernie Gunther” (police procedurals by non-Nazi in Nazi Germany). Or Dennis Lehane’s Kenzie/Gennaro books, starting with “A Drink Before the War”
Historical: I must recommend Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Martin books on the off chance you haven’t read them. Starting with “Master and Commander”
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:29 pmYou’re very welcome, Dana. If you like The Dain Curse, the protagonist stars in another novel, Red Harvest, and in 36 short stories under the sobriquet “The Continental Op”, collected variously.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:36 pmIn my Kirkland neighborhood, something worse has happened. Small houses, on medium-sized lots, are being torn down, and replaced by much larger and more expensive homes. Since these new homes have few children, there has been, so far as I can tell, if anything, a decrease in density.
How much are those small lots selling for. There is a point past which it is uneconomic to have a small house on a lot, and certainly no one will BUY the damn thing if they cannot rebuild.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:36 pmAnd thank you for 104.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:37 pmDana – I am currently reading a one-volume compilation of Carl Sandburg’s biography of Lincoln — and love it. (It was originally published in 6 volumes, 2 for the prairie years, and 4 for the war years. The first two may now be in the public domain. As you would expect from a great poet, the writing is wonderful. There is, for example, a single sentence on the causes of the Civil War that stretches more than a page — and makes complete sense.
Even if you don’t ordinarily read science fiction, you might like some of Heinlein’s short stories, such as “Delilah and the Space Rigger”, or the “Green Hills of Earth”. (I once told the first to a hair stylist, who liked it, since it is about, broadly speaking, a man learning to get along with a woman.)
Somewhat to my surprise many years ago, my mother loved Garrett Mattingly’s The Armada, about the defeat of the Spanish Armada. One of her brothers loved it too, and took his boat out into English Channel to better visualize the running battle.
And then there is this recommendation from my mother’s youngest sister, my Aunt Ruthie: She came up to me at a family gathering and said: “I have a bone to pick with you.” Not having any idea I had done anything wrong, I asked her what I had done.
It turned out she had borrowed Evelyn Waugh’s Scoop, which I had given to my mother, who then loaned it my aunt. My aunt was reading it in bed, and would laugh — and wake up my Uncle Johnny. Obviously my fault.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:40 pmHere, for example, is a 1600 sf house on a 7500 sf lot. Asking price is $1.33 million, and it’s mostly for the land. A buyer may decide to live in the existing house, but they can build a 3000 sf house there if they want. Many would.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/8131-Loyola-Blvd-Los-Angeles-CA-90045/20384488_zpid/
There were a lot of 1100 sf houses on similar lots from the 1940s, but they’re all gone now.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:43 pmThe Library of America is very similar. I have several of their volumes, including their two-volume sets of WW II and Vietnam War reporting.
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/2/2022 @ 4:45 pm#108 Kevin – Perhaps I was not clear: My point is that current policies encourage the destruction of once moderately-priced homes, which the area desperately needs. It won’t surprise you that those small lots are often (usually?) worth more after demolition than before it.
These small homes usually have, from what I can tell, decades of potential use left in them, perhaps as “starter” homes, when they are torn down. That is terribly wasteful.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:00 pmThese small homes usually have, from what I can tell, decades of potential use left in them, perhaps as “starter” homes, when they are torn down. That is terribly wasteful.
If one use of land is worth less than another use of the same land, which is the waste?
You would mandate that the owner of the land must sell for less than market, in order to satisfy a public need (as perceived by those who would like to pay the reduced price)?
I think there are rules about that (that are sadly ignored in situations like this).
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:03 pmAmerican Putin-admirers have claimed that the Maidan revolution was a U.S.-engineered “regime change” operation — as if the people of Ukraine could not themselves have chosen to rise up against Putin’s puppet. Now some Putin-apologists are trying to blame the U.S. and NATO for Russia’s decision to invade and brutalize Ukraine, and for the Ukrainians’ unwillingness to be subjugated by Putin’s regime.
Russia’s financial and strategic support of the European far right is documented. Konstantin Malofeev also courted religious conservative groups in the U.S., persuading them that Russian autocracy with a state-controlled church was a better guardian of religion and morality than Western democracy. Some natcons swallowed it whole.
Then there’s Trump, who has yet to say a critical word about Putin. Likewise, a reflex to defend Putin can be found among the people who reflexively defend Trump.
A former KGB against says that the KGB started cultivating Trump as an asset in the 1980s. Shortly after a visit to Russia in 1987, he took out a full-page add in multiple newspapers expressing skepticism about NATO, inter alia. It was celebrated in Moscow as an extraordinarily successful “active measure.” Trump’s election in 2016 was also celebrated in Moscow. Recently, people on Russian state TV spoke about trying to reinstall Russia’s “partner,” Donald Trump, in the White House.
While leftists have often run to court to challenge laws they don’t like, today the most openly anti-democratic voices are on the far right — the people who say that the portion of the electorate who voted for Biden are “not Americans in any meaningful sense,” or who speak about civil war as a likely necessity in the future, or who claim that most American institutions are corrupt and need to be crashed and replaced with new ones built by likeminded people.
It’s people on the far right who have spoken contemptuously of “liberal democracy” and have suggested that the autocratic governments of Russian and China might be superior models for civilization.
Radegunda (24075f) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:09 pmJim, the neighborhood that I showed that listing from was, once upon a time a sea of little houses. The area around it (being coastal Los Angeles) was in high demand and the prices of homes started rising. All of a sudden those little houses, built at a time when 1 bathroom could serve a family, and the kids shared a room, were increasingly unwanted by the people who could afford to buy the land.
Families need more space — no one wants to share a bathroom, or even a bedroom anymore, and even smaller families need more space as both parents work and may well work from home, needing offices. Plus an entertainment area, or two, and a working kitchen and all of a sudden you’re at 2800 sf (the average new house in America).
When neighboring areas were selling from $2 million and up, telling the owners of these properties that they had to sell for $250K — so that less affluent folks could afford them — would have been a gross infringement on their rights. Not to mention economic waste.
As it stands, there are size limitations that prevent the worst of the McMansions, but when a rebuild sells for $3 million those little houses are doomed.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:14 pmAnd in Seattle, they have intentionally made land more expensive, making the little houses uneconomic.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:18 pm#100
nk
thanks for the break down
steveg (e81d76) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:39 pmIn the Russian version of “Scared Straight” they threaten Male Russian dissidents with a mouthful of Chechen and Dagestanis.
steveg (e81d76) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:42 pm#112 Rip – Thanks for correcting my mistake. (I don’t know why I wrote “New American Library”, when I meant “Library of America”.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:42 pmFrom wikiAMPAS:
“In 2016, the Academy became the target of criticism for its failure to recognize the achievements of minority professionals. For the second year in a row, all 20 nominees in the major acting categories were white. The president of the Academy Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the first African American and third woman to lead the Academy, denied in 2015 that there was a problem. When asked if the Academy had difficulty with recognizing diversity, she replied “Not at all. Not at all.” When the nominations for acting were all white for a second year in a row Gil Robertson IV, president of the African American Film Critics Association called it “offensive.” The actors’ branch is “overwhelmingly white” and the question is raised whether conscious or unconscious racial biases played a role.
Spike Lee, interviewed shortly after the all-white nominee list was published, pointed to Hollywood leadership as the root problem, “We may win an Oscar now and then, but an Oscar is not going to fundamentally change how Hollywood does business. I’m not talking about Hollywood stars. I’m talking about executives. We’re not in the room.” Boone Isaacs also released a statement, in which she said “I am both heartbroken and frustrated about the lack of inclusion. This is a difficult but important conversation, and it’s time for big changes.” After Boone Isaac’s statement, prominent African-Americans such as director Spike Lee, actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, and activist Rev. Al Sharpton called for a boycott of the 2016 Oscars for failing to recognize minority achievements, the board voted to make “historic” changes to its membership. The Academy stated that by 2020 it would double its number of women and minority members. While the Academy has addressed a higher profile for African-Americans, it has yet to raise the profile of other people of color artists, in front of and behind the camera… In 2018, the Academy invited a record 928 new members… As of April 2020, the organization was estimated to consist of around 9,921 motion picture professionals.’
The following members have voluntarily resigned from the organization:
-Sound engineer Tom Fleischman resigned from the Academy on March 5, 2022, citing changes to the broadcast of the 94th Academy Awards ceremony, during which eight award categories – including Best Sound – were not presented live, but rather during the commercial breaks.
-Production sound mixer Peter Kurland resigned his membership of the Academy on March 23, 2022, citing changes to the broadcast of the 94th Academy Awards ceremony, during which eight award categories – including Best Sound – were not presented live, but rather during the commercial breaks.
-Actor Will Smith announced his resignation from the Academy on April 1, 2022, five days after his onstage slap of Chris Rock, one of the show’s presenters, during the 94th Academy Awards ceremony.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:50 pm100 – She will be nominated under laws by perverts.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/2/2022 @ 5:59 pm@121. Postscript: ‘Five people are known to have been expelled from the Academy. Academy officials acknowledge that other members have been expelled in the past, most for selling their Oscar tickets, but no numbers are available.
-Actor Carmine Caridi was expelled on February 3, 2004, for copyright infringement. He was accused of leaking screeners that had been sent to him.
-Producer Harvey Weinstein was expelled for “sexually predatory behavior and workplace harassment” after an emergency meeting held on October 13, 2017.
-Actor Bill Cosby and director Roman Polanski were expelled “in accordance with the organization’s Standards of Conduct” on May 1, 2018. Cosby had been convicted of sexual assault one week earlier, while Polanski had been convicted in 1977 of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.
-Cinematographer Adam Kimmel was expelled in 2021 after a Variety story exposed the fact that he is a registered sex offender.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:02 pm#90
Great Elk hunting north up state 111 in the Tres Piedras district from Ojo Caliente.
steveg (e81d76) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:12 pmTierra Amarilla to the NW has some good ranchland for sale (but not on sale( if you are flush
Every herd, from the soundest breeding stock, will have its culls, runts, and bigjaws, mg. There’s worse yearlings than boys who think they’re girls and girls who think they’re boys, and even those we keep in the pens and hay them, rather than turn them into hides and tallow right off. We’re not a nation of perverts. We are a nation of kind people.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:15 pm#124 steveg – Thanks for the info.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:17 pmDo you suppose they’ll let Cosby back in, now that his sentence was vacated.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:41 pm“New American Library”‘s Signet imprint published “The Green Hills of Earth” among other titles.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:43 pmBTW, April 1 was the day that recreational pot became legal in New Mexico. I cannot tell you how appropriate that is.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:48 pmAlso, the 34th anniversary of my last drink. Also appropriate.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 6:49 pm@115
“Konstantin Malofeev also courted religious conservative groups in the U.S., persuading them that Russian autocracy with a state-controlled church was a better guardian of religion and morality than Western democracy.”
And time seems to be proving this line of thinking correct. Liberal Democracy has shown nothing but contempt for traditional morality yet whenever there is pushback, people like you place all the blame on some outside force (ie.Putin).
The fact that there seems to be an utterly incapability on the left to recognize its own share in provocation is evident in your argument that its just the right being influenced by Russians etc.
“While leftists have often run to court to challenge laws they don’t like, today the most openly anti-democratic voices are on the far right — the people who say that the portion of the electorate who voted for Biden are “not Americans in any meaningful sense,” or who speak about civil war as a likely necessity in the future, or who claim that most American institutions are corrupt and need to be crashed and replaced with new ones built by likeminded people.”
I saw the leftist violence in 2020, (though no doubt you pretend it was caused by rightest infiltrators). The left openy talks of abandoning the electoral college, in direct violation of everything America was founded on. Riots, leniency with criminals, mass illegal immigration being tacitly supported, all these come from the left.
All I’m saying is maybe the Right is feeling backed into a corner for very good reasons!
Tom Jones (3d418c) — 4/2/2022 @ 7:21 pm@127. Doubt it. See if Temple U., ever reinstates any honors.
‘The standards said the organization is no place for ‘people who abuse their status, power or influence in a manner that violates standards of decency.’ The code allowed the Academy’s board to suspend or expel those who violate the Code of Conduct or who ‘compromise the integrity’ of the Academy… Bill Cosby admitted in sworn deposition to giving women he wanted to have sex with date rape drugs… His sentence was vacated because of an “agreement not to prosecute” not because he was innocent and not guilty.’
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6941155/Polanski-asks-court-restore-film-academy-membership.html?msclkid=7fcbb298b2f311ec8f090873f9f700a7
https://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/social-media-in-shock-over-bill-cosbys-sentence-vacated/6SEF46LWG5GPND2G7ZFL45PXYA/?msclkid=fc9bba55b2f311ec8634937a07be5a42
Supreme Court rejects petition to reinstate Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction – March 7, 2022
https://wxhc.com/supreme-court-rejects-petition-to-reinstate-bill-cosbys-sex-assault-conviction-2/?msclkid=16fb57c8b2f511ec8f41f2250b0fd28b
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 7:26 pm@115
What exactly is the difference between a violent uprising against an alleged Putin puppet in Ukraine and the alleged violent uprising against a percieved Chinese puppet in the US on January 6th?
Both were also alleged to be elected fairly, even international groups stated Yanukovych was elected fairly.
So again, why condemn one and not the other? That goes for both sides of politics.
Bill Watson (93c2f1) — 4/2/2022 @ 7:37 pm@Kevin@130 Congrats! Happy sobriety day!
Nic (896fdf) — 4/2/2022 @ 7:58 pmWhat exactly is the difference between a violent uprising against an alleged Putin puppet in Ukraine and the alleged violent uprising against a percieved Chinese puppet in the US on January 6th?
Oh, I dunno. That maybe the “alleged Putin puppet” was a former Soviet citizen in a former Soviet subject state which had declared its independence in 1991; and the “perceived Chinese puppet” was a former United States Senator, former two-term Vice President, natural born American citizen, duly elected under a Constitution adopted in 1789, and “perceived” to be a Chinese puppet only by wacko birds who believed a Putin puppet’s lies?
We’ve heard the line that there’s nothing exceptional about America before. Directly from Putin himself. We don’t need its subtexts.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 8:38 pmWhat we’ve also heard from Putin’s own lips is that Russian prostitutes are the best in the world. And what we’re hearing now is that the withdrawing Russian troops in Ukraine have booby-trapped the corpses they left behind them. Some morality, eh, comrades?
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 8:45 pmAnd one more thing: It’s “i” before “e” except after “c”.
nk (1d9030) — 4/2/2022 @ 8:52 pmAnd one more thing: It’s “i” before “e” except after “c”.
Or when sounded like “a” as in “neighbor” or “weigh.” How come everyone always forgets that part?
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/2/2022 @ 10:03 pmWORDLE in 2.
And my starting word has E before I and none of those rules apply.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/2/2022 @ 11:14 pm@135
“ That maybe the “alleged Putin puppet” was a former Soviet citizen in a former Soviet subject state which had declared its independence in 1991”
Yeah, it’s unfinished business. You think of Texas delcared its independnce, like they’ve hinted at a few times since Biden took over, it would all just go smoothly?
Do you believe Ukraine is any of our business? If so, why?
Bill Watson (93c2f1) — 4/2/2022 @ 11:50 pm@130. Tip of the cap to you, Kevin.
One day at a time.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/2/2022 @ 11:56 pmYou think of Texas delcared its independnce, like they’ve hinted at a few times since Biden took over, it would all just go smoothly?
Except it didn’t happen like that. The Soviet Union was, in theory, a confederation of “Socialist Republics.” When the Union broke down, ALL the member states became separate countries. They have been that since 1991. Now, Putin wants to reform the old Union even thought it’s been dead for 30 years, so he launches a war of conquest.
And besides, Biden would probably let Texas go.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 1:31 am130- Kevin M.- With mountains of respect – congrats.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/3/2022 @ 3:17 amhttps://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2022/04/trumps_greatest_gambit.html
mg (8cbc69) — 4/3/2022 @ 3:25 amYou know who you are.
Do you believe Ukraine is any of our business? If so, why?
Because if Russia takes Ukraine it will then get Hungary and fry Turkey in Greece.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:59 amYou really want another 70 years of Soviet Union, comrade? Another 40 years of Cold War? Reagan’s legacy down the drain? Because that’s Putin’s aim. To reform the Soviet Union. And then to dominate the European Union which, as an unintended consequence, has already “collectivized” itself economically, and put all its member nations under one central control, and vulnerable to a conqueror which takes over that central control.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 6:21 amWORDLE in 2.
It took me four instead of three because I first (wrongly) chose a word associated with an Italian governor for my one remaining letter. I blame the media.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 6:40 amjust another day in portlandistan
Man accused of cornering girl, exposing himself released from jail later same day; neighbors express outrage
JF (862eba) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:02 amThat was yesterday’s Wordle that I was talking about. Time zones! Bah, humbug!
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:20 am148. It could be worse, JF. The neighbors could be the ones in jail and facing prosecution for a racial hate crime. “Don’t say gay?” I hope they were woke enough not to say “black” at any point in their calls to 911.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:26 amChurch attendance is Russia is 5% on a good week, and they range from unfriendly to hostile to denominations that aren’t Orthodox. It’s a crock to suggest that Putin is the Defender of Christianity. Putin’s “morality” is exemplified by Bucha.
Paul Montagu (1ea580) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:26 amYou lost me at “alleged” on both counts. Unserious comment.
Paul Montagu (1ea580) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:30 amPoll details.
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:28 amOrtagus recently demonstrated a lack of knowledge of the district she wants to serve. In addition, MAGAWorld finds her too establishment, with her wedding performed by RGB.
Related:
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:56 am“Less than one week after Joe Biden claimed his “unprecedented sanctions” had reduced the ruble “to rubble,” Russia’s currency has recovered all its losses and is now trading higher than before the war began.”
Obudman (2d52ed) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:01 amDana, Norbert Davis is another very enjoyable writer whom I consider on a par with Hammett and Chandler. The most complete and well-organized collection of his work is free online, in HTML or EPUB, here.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:02 amWe do need tougher sanctions. On Russia itself, and not on billionaires who will have to live like mere millionaires for a short while. Have needed them from the beginning. Trump was right about that.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:16 amA candidate endorsed by Mitch McConnell: 10 percent more likely, 48 percent less likely (-38).
This is because Democrats would say no, because they are Democrats, and Trumpies would say no, because he opposes Trump. Me, I would be in the “more likely” camp. Every time Mitch has something to say, it’s worth listening to.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:05 amHours after Tennessee General Assembly leadership signed legislation to enact new residency requirements for congressional primary candidates, three Tennesseans filed a federal lawsuit alleging the requirements are unconstitutional.
Utterly on point: US Term Limits, Inc v. Thornton
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:09 amIt is so “on point” that I doubt qualified immunity would apply.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:10 amIt has begun:
Netflix and Sony pause upcoming projects starring Will Smith after he slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars
‘Entertainment giants Netflix and Sony have put upcoming projects with Will Smith on hold after he slapped comedian Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars. Smith was due to star in an upcoming Netflix movie, “Fast and Loose,” but sources told the outlet that the streaming giant set the project aside. Sony also halted work on “Bad Boys 4,” in which Smith had a role.’ source, – businessinsider.com
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:11 amWe do need tougher sanctions.
At some point it will become clear that we are in a war.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:17 amSmith and Rock should make up, then sign on to a buddy movie.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:18 amRIP Estelle Harris (93).
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:28 amSuch as?
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:35 amWell, here’s one clue,
so I can’t honestly say that I don’t have any. And I’m sure that there are people more savvy than me who have more.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:54 amSuch as?
Declaring Russian passports invalid would be one. Invalidating any contract with a Russian entity. Making any Russian-made product (other than art objects) contraband, including rubles. Recalling our ambassador and expelling theirs. Get the UN to declare the Russian seat vacant, due to the illegitimacy of its government.
Perhaps harsh, but there are things still to be done.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:59 amUnderstand that we may not want war, but Putin wants one, or at least the spoils of one. He wants Ukraine and the Baltic states, plus dominion over Eastern Europe and the ‘stans, the end of NATO and withdrawal of the United States to its shores. (China wants this, too, as a disemboweled US would let them do what they want in Asia.)
Putin had hoped that Trump would just give it to him, but now he’s got to fight.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:04 amGeorge Will’s latest column is entertaining:
But, there is no reason to assume that she is under his control, or he, under hers.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:10 amOne more book recommendation for Dana: The Tony Hillerman detective stories. I like them as much for their anthropology, as for the detection. For instance, after the older detective, Joe Leaphorn, loses his wife, he is nervous around her sister — because in the past he would have been expected to replace his late wife with her unmarried sister.
My favorite, though, is still the non-Navajo story, The Fly on the Wall, as much for its picture of reporters, decades ago, as for the detective story.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:18 amYou want to know what I think, comrades? Okay, I’ll tell you what I think.
I think a great part of the West’s decision to sanction the Russian oligarchs is based on projection. That the Western governments believe that the Russian oligarchs wield the same influence on Putin and his policies that the Western Mammon-worshippers wield on the Western governments and their policies.
That’s what I think.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:19 amJim at 170. That was the law in America, too, well into the late 19th century. If a man’s wife killed somebody in his presence, he would be hanged.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:22 amSuch as?
I was on record as suggesting we cancel all Russian student visas to study in the U.S. and send them home. And the same should go for Russian athletes training and competing here. Maybe if all of these folks are sent home they will start telling their fellow citizens about all of the horrific war crimes their military is committing, news of which is being censored at home.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:29 amWe could give everyone in Russia a free VPN account.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:39 amI don’t think these ideas are harsh, but they don’t impose any real costs on the Russian government ( them same with sending Russian students back). Relative to the sanctions already imposed, these are small beer.
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:08 pmIt’s believed that much of Putin’s personal wealth is held in the West through his oligarch network, so sanctioning the oligarchs will also restrict Putin’s access to his funds.
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:14 pmWhat will it take for the West to give Ukraine a no-fly zone? After this weekend’s horrific video/photos/reports of Russian torture, rape, using children as human shields, etc., what will it take to give Ukraine what they want and frankly, need to end Putin’s war?
Dana (5395f9) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:35 pmThanks all for book recommendations. Will be checking them out.
Dana (5395f9) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:36 pmDevastating:
Dana (5395f9) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:38 pm154. It is unconstitutional. A state cannot impose residency requirements (longer than that required to vote, which is 30 days) or term limits on eligibility for Congress. Only state (whch includes local) offices. It could make any rule it wants concerning presidential electors.
Sammy Finkelman (bfe3de) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:50 pmWhat will it take for the West to give Ukraine a no-fly zone? After this weekend’s horrific video/photos/reports of Russian torture, rape, using children as human shields, etc., what will it take to give Ukraine what they want and frankly, need to end Putin’s war?
NATO entering the war. We would need to be clear on our goals, however.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 1:20 pm@179: What is he referring to? I don’t speak Twitter.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 1:23 pm@180, see 159
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 1:24 pm65. , Maria Cantwell used to be very rich, and in fact self-financed her campaign one time (for re-election to the Senate I think)
Sammy Finkelman (bfe3de) — 4/3/2022 @ 1:34 pmFormer Alaska Governor Sarah Palin announces run for Congress
Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska and vice presidential candidate under Senator John McCain, is running for Congress, shaking up an already unpredictable race for Alaska’s lone U.S. House seat. Palin, who shared the news on her Twitter account Friday, now joins a field of at least 40 candidates seeking to fill the seat that had been held for 49 years by the late-U.S. Rep. Don Young. -source CBS/AP 4/2/22
In this era, she’ll win.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 2:16 pmDan Young wasn’t a bomb-thrower. He was the epitome of constituent service, bringing home every scrap of bacon that he possibly could. Need a bridge to your 100,000 acres near Anchorage? Not a problem. I don’t see Palin as filling that same role — she’s not MTG, but she’s not Dan Young, either.
Still, before she became nationally prominent, she did win the governorship, so she isn’t an utter fool politically. She could win, but not as a Trumpist loudmouth.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 2:22 pmPutin using nuclear or chemical weapons (which looks less likely at this point). The West has tolerated much worse mass killings (Cambodia, Rwanda) and done nothing.
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 3:04 pmRUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, APRIL 3
……….
Key Takeaways:
Ukraine has won the Battle of Kyiv, and Russian forces are completing their withdrawals from both the east and the west banks of the Dnipro in disorder.
Russian forces retreating from around Kyiv will likely need considerable time before they can return to combat.
Incidents of refusals of orders to engage in combat operations among Russian units continue and may lead to the redeployment of two BTGs that had arrived near Donbas within the last few days to their home stations in South Ossetia.
The continued existence of an independent Ukrainian state with its capital in Kyiv is no longer in question at this time, although much fighting remains and the war could still turn Russia’s way.
Rip Murdock (2f4209) — 4/3/2022 @ 3:15 pm………..
The West has tolerated much worse mass killings (Cambodia, Rwanda) and done nothing.
And the reaction in the aftermath has been worse every time. At some point we will stop.
We tolerated Cambodia because no one wanted to go back to Indochina (and some refused to see the dominoes falling). We stayed out of Rwanda because, well, Africa. We eventually got involved in Bosnia, from the air.
I don’t see why Putin seems intent on provoking our involvement, but he is. Maybe he’s in a box and this looks like the best plan. I don’t know if it will end badly for everyone, but it will end badly for him.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:01 pmUkraine has won the Battle of Kyiv, and Russian forces are completing their withdrawals from both the east and the west banks of the Dnipro in disorder.
Or, maybe they’re just withdrawing from the blast radius.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:03 pmI will never stop saying “Tartar raid”. But the Cossacks will not have won until they have driven the Tartars out of all Ukraine and avenged Mariupol.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:18 pmWill Smith’s career may take a ‘Hollywood timeout’ after Oscars slap controversy
Smith’s films have grossed more than $9 billion globally
‘In PR terms, actor Will Smith’s slap across the face of comedian Chris Rock at the Academy Awards ceremony wasn’t just bad, or really bad, it was “really really bad.” At least, according to veteran Hollywood publicist Michael Levine, who says Smith’s actions, in the immediate future, have “deeply damaged” his career. “If you’re buying Will Smith stock right now. let’s agree. Short term run, not good,” said Levine, whose client list has included pop star Michael Jackson, former president Bill Clinton, musician David Bowie, and comedian Dave Chappelle. Smith, 53, has starred in blockbuster hits including film franchises Bad Boys and Men in Black. His films, both live-action and animated, have grossed more than $9 billion globally, according to box office researcher Comscore… “This is not a bullet that grazed his tiny left toe. I mean, this is close to the heart,” Levine said. “Who the hell’s going to raise their hand right at this moment in time to say, ‘I know I want to make a Will Smith movie.'”
“Will Smith, who had been Tom Hanks steady, had a Kanye moment at the Academy Awards that has raised all sorts of questions about his judgment and his career and will cause him to be dissected like a frog in a high school science project over the next days and weeks,” Bragman told Rolling Stone magazine. In a podcast with The Ankler, a Hollywood industry newsletter, Bragman added that Smith’s career may now be defined as “‘pre’ this moment and ‘after’ this moment.” Jeff Bock, senior media analyst at Exhibitor Relations Co., a Los Angeles firm which analyzes box office trends, agreed that Smith will have to take a “Hollywood timeout.” “It could really change things for him,” he said.
That timeout could be similar to the career ramifications both Mel Gibson and Tom Cruise suffered after their controversial actions. Gibson was blacklisted for a period following his anti-Semitic comments to a police officer in 2006 and, a few years later, for the racist comments he made on his then-girlfriend’s answering machine that were subsequently released to the public.
In 2006, Paramount Pictures ended its relationship with Cruise after what was perceived to be some questionable behavior, including his infamous Oprah Winfrey couch-jumping incident. Cruise also drew negative attention for his condemnation of psychiatry and criticism of actress Brooke Shields for taking medication to deal with her postpartum depression. He was later involved in a tense interview with then-Today Show host Matt Lauer over the issue.
“It will be up to [Smith’s] PR team to rebuild the Will Smith brand. And there’s no doubt that that’s going to take place over the next several months and the next couple of years,” Bock said. “I doubt any big studio or streamer is going to take a chance in signing Will Smith until those things happen, until that process is under way,” he said. Bock said he believes studios will steer clear of Smith, concerned about dealing with someone with potential anger issues, as well as wanting to avoid the onslaught of media focused specifically on the Oscars controversy. “It’s going to take time for this to blow over. There’s no doubt.” Still, Bock said, some producer or studio will eventually take another chance on Smith. “You don’t become a box office star and just disappear,” he said.
However Scott Mendelson, a box office analyst with Forbes magazine, said the incident may have done real damage in terms of Smith’s worth in non-franchise films by shattering “a carefully crafted 30-year image of approachable, harmless and always-on movie star charisma.” As Mendelson notes in his piece, ‘How Will Smith’s Assault On Chris Rock Could Hurt His Career,’ Smith from around 2002 to 2008 was the biggest box office star on the planet… “Will ‘the slap’ cost Will Smith his prestige to the point where he won’t be all that useful in studio programmers and year-end awards flicks,” Mendelson asks. “Smith may have trouble justifying his casting in anything other than surefire IP and sequels to prior glories.” As for comparisons to Gibson and Cruise, Mendelson suggested that while both have continued to work, their careers were permanently stained. Gibson has mostly been relegated to video on demand films. Cruise, meanwhile, is mostly only bankable for his Mission Impossible sequels, he wrote.
The new normal for Smith could be where he “gets to make movies, even big movies, but nothing akin to King Richard … ever again,” Mendelson wrote. But, Bock noted, Smith has now won his Oscar. “He doesn’t have anything more to prove.” -source, https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/will-smith-career-oscars-chris-rock-1.6404938
Godfathering it, eh Will: ‘Leave the Academy. Take the Oscar.’ 😉
Try the ‘Will Smith Special’ at Denny’s: Toast. With a side order of toast. Black coffee.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:19 pmDana #177:
How do we avoid a shooting war in Ukraine if we establish a no fly zone?
Appalled (1a17de) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:39 pmWill Smith will get a lot of roles in the next few years. Assuming he drops his price enough.
Maybe he can be a minor Marvel villain, like Mole Man or Paste Pot Pete.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:58 pmHow do we avoid a shooting war in Ukraine if we establish a no fly zone?
Literally. At some point we transition to “just a conventional war.”
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 4:59 pmHow Will Smith’s Assault On Chris Rock Could Hurt His Movie Career
https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2022/04/01/will-smith-assualt-of-chris-rock-at-the-oscars-could-hurt-his-career-like-tom-cruise-johnny-depp/?sh=43076dc966bb
Badda-bing: BOOM.
“It’s not personal Sonny. It’s strictly business.” – Michael Corleone [Al Pacino] ‘The Godfather’ 1972
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:00 pm@DCSCA@185 How long before she figures out it’s work and quits this too?
Nic (896fdf) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:06 pm@197. LOL! Thing is, in this political climate, the Trump run w/the name recognition and media face time she’s generated for a decade- plus the nat’l ticket VP run, she’s likely got a real chance. She’s still easy on the eyes, too. And “seeing Russia” from her house aside– it’s certain to goose Tina Fey’s career. 😉
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:30 pm@166. Meh.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uggPwJHAp78
Reaganomics: “Money makes the world go ’round.”
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:41 pmWhat will it take for the West to give Ukraine a no-fly zone? After this weekend’s horrific video/photos/reports of Russian torture, rape, using children as human shields, etc., what will it take to give Ukraine what they want and frankly, need to end Putin’s war?
Dana (5395f9) — 4/3/2022 @ 12:35 pm
Russia’s a different animal than an emasculated Iraq, a newly-revived Balkan state that hadn’t had a significant military force in place since World War I (and still managed to shoot down an F-117), or a collapsing Libyan government whose “human rights abuses” we were preventing with top cover all the way to Tripoli.
That’s why we didn’t play that game in Syria, either, when we were helping to push ISIS out of the MERV. In fact, we did constant de-confliction with the Russians in the CAOC to avoid such incidents.
Factory Working Orphan (2775f0) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:50 pm@194. Don’t bet on it. His brand is badly burned in the biz. But the fella who’ll be dining out on this for a long, long time is Rock. It’s elevated both his public awareness and industry status. He’s flying at a higher altitude now; folks be actually ‘respecting’ an insult comic. That’s rare air.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 5:54 pmHow long before she figures out it’s work and quits this too?
Maybe. Her quitting as Alaska’s governor had more to do with partisan lawfare than anything.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 6:23 pmHis brand is badly burned in the biz.
A week is an eternity in politics and the airheads that inhabit Hollywood are no better. Give it a year and half of them will think that Chris slapped Will.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 6:27 pmHmm! People laughed at Columbus. They said he would fall off the edge of the world. People laughed at the Wright bothers. They said their plane would crash. People have always loved slapstick and always will.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 6:43 pm@203. ‘Airheads’ is ‘Tinseltown’ typecasting. The decisionmakers; the greenlighters; they are executives, financiers and banking institutions- mostly far from Hollywood. It’s a global numbers game now. The industry is bigger than any one person- just as golf is bigger than Tiger Wood. The next ‘Will Smith’ is ready to tee-off some place.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 6:45 pmNow, I’ll tell you which black actor will never make a movie again: OJ Simpson. He’s as dead as .. um .. Caesar.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:01 pmWill Smith will probably host SNL in a couple of weeks. Ratings, baby!
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:05 pm@206. Now, I’ll tell you which black actor will never make a movie again: OJ Simpson.
Here’s another one: Sidney Poitier. 😉
But check out OJ’s filmography. He’s actually done a few TV gigs. Very few.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:12 pm@207. No. But Chris Rock likely will. Probably season finale or the season opener this autumn.
‘Chris Rock became a “SNL” cast member in 1990 and remained on the show for three seasons. In 1993, he was let go from the show because he wanted to join a different sketch series called “In Living Color.” In 2019, Rock returned to “SNL” to joke about his firing in a song with Adam Sandler. “I was fired by NBC,” Rock sang. “I went on ‘In Living Color,’ three weeks later they took it off TV.”
But that wasn’t the end of Rock’s career. The comedian went on to be a successful stand-up and later created his popular sitcom “Everybody Hates Chris.” He has also starred in movies like “Grown Ups,” the “Madagascar” franchise, and “I Think I Love My Wife.” -source,
https://www.insider.com/celebrities-fired-from-snl-saturday-night-live-2019-8
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:25 pmGoogle OJ’s reaction to the slap. Apparently, compared to what they’d have done to OJ, Smith got away with murder (not his actual words, but close enough).
As dead as irony is, people will not stop killing it.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 4/3/2022 @ 7:59 pm@Kevin and DCSCA I have no doubt she’s got the name recognition, but I wouldn’t trust her to stick around. She went to 6! 6! colleges for undergrad, only worked for 2 yrs before she quit her first job, worked part time for most of the next 2 decades (including several positions she quit less than 2 yrs into), quit being governor after 2 years and change and hasn’t held down a full time position since. At this point she’s a political socialite who’s mostly famous for being famous.
Nic (896fdf) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:10 pmThe more common saying is “Scratch every Russian, you will find a Tartar.” It is said in Russia. It is not a slur, it is a genealogical description. I do not read Russian, but I found a Greek translation at a Russian site. Click at your own risk.
Among names you will recognize, one of the first on record as saying it was Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Another was Nikolai Gogol, the author of Taras Bulba. The latest on record is … President Vladimir Putin.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:16 pmI don’t know the years but I suspect she worked part time when she had children. That would seem to make sense. Also, I can’t remember for sure but didn’t she work on the family’s fishing boat/business?
Dana (5395f9) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:16 pmShe is a strong, independent, venturesome woman who does not fit in the Feminist Theory mold, and does not try to atone for it by being at least a liberal. That makes her a walking poke in the eye for a lot of people.
nk (1d9030) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:35 pmNic @211: worked part time for most of the next 2 decades (including several positions she quit less than 2 yrs into)
during this time, she served two full terms as mayor of wasilla
only someone who just doesn’t like palin would leave that out
JF (d93e1f) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:44 pmViktor Orban and Fidesz have won big again in tonight’s election. At this point, it looks like they will continue to control a 2/3 supermajority in the Hungarian Parliament. The Euro-left (and their allies here in the U.S.) and, naturally, fans of the EU are besides themselves with grief and anguish. They are kvetching that Orban and Fidesz have changed election laws to be more favorable to their party, that the Hungarian media is overwhelmingly supportive of their agenda, and that they have corrupted business to ensure that it supports all Orban/Fidesz initiatives. One popular refrain coming from them is the question of whether Hungary can still be considered a democracy.
Funny, you never hear them ask the same about California, do you?
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/3/2022 @ 8:55 pm@Dana@213 Partly when she had kids, yes. She seems to have helped with the business at some point, but it doesn’t place highly on her resume.
@JF@215 Mayor of Wasilla is a part time position. They only had 7,000 people at the time and have less than 10,000 even now. And you are right, I don’t like Palin, she’s a dilettante.
Nic (896fdf) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:10 pmI always think it’s unfortunate that raising children doesn’t place highly on any resume. That particular job requires a myriad of skill sets like no other, strength, intelligence, endurance, and boundless love and determination.
Dana (5395f9) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:14 pm@211.
Donald Trump endorses Sarah Palin for Alaska’s lone congressional seat
Former president Donald Trump on Sunday endorsed Sarah Palin for Alaska’s lone congressional seat, throwing his weight behind the ex-governor who embraced Trump before he came to dominate the GOP.
Palin announced Friday that she is running for the seat vacated by Republican Rep. Don Young, who died last month after representing Alaska for nearly a half-century. Trump’s approval could boost the former vice-presidential candidate’s standing in a field of more than 50 candidates. “Sarah shocked many when she endorsed me very early in 2016, and we won big,” Trump said in a statement Sunday. “Now, it’s my turn! Sarah has been a champion for Alaska values, Alaska energy, Alaska jobs, and the great people of Alaska.” Like Trump, Palin portrays herself as a brash voice against the establishment and the media, and the former president went on to praise Palin for standing up to “corruption” in government and the “Fake News.” – WAPO.com
She may be dumb but she’s not stupid. And unlike Mitt Romney, she wasn’t afraid to do ‘Saturday Night Live.’ And the camera is kind to her; she’s still easy on the eyes. Image over substance rules in the 21st century.
“C’mon, man!” – Squinty McStumblebum
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:22 pmNic @217 yeah, part time, if you say so
part time, while raising a family
she made a name for herself, by herself, during the era of hillary
and for that she’ll never be forgiven
JF (d93e1f) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:30 pmWhen it comes to entertaining, AMPAS needs a new songbook: this year’s Grammys put the Oscars to shame.
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:33 pm@Dana@218 I think it’s great that she raised a family, but she hasn’t shown persistence in her education or professional life and the last 13 years have just been her being famous for being famous.
@JF@217 I mean, you can look it up.
Palin seems to have gone into her job as governor with good intentions and practicality, and she seems to have started off well, but she quit when things got too hard, which is her history.
Nic (896fdf) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:38 pmI meant JF@220
Nic (896fdf) — 4/3/2022 @ 9:39 pmPalin seems to have gone into her job as governor with good intentions and practicality, and she seems to have started off well, but she quit when things got too hard, which is her history.
You understand that she quit when national Democrats lit upon the strategy of having their party members in Alaska file specious ethics charges against her time and time again, once it looked like she could be a threat to the Chosen One, Barack Obama. There was no relief in Alaska law for Governor Palin to have state-appointed legal representation or be reimbursed for hiring her own, so essentially deep-pocked lefties could endlessly harass her and force her to hire legal representation each and every time to defend herself, and at the same time her staff and state investigators were distracted from their duties by these investigations. She underwent 17 different investigations from the moment she became John McCain’s running mate to the moment she left Juneau, with most of them having been dismissed by the time she stepped down.
How would you like it if in your professional life you found yourself having to play defense against a dozen or so HR investigations based upon accusations people have made against you? Don’t you think that might interfere with what you are trying to accomplish in your job?
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:11 pmAnd you are right, I don’t like Palin, she’s a dilettante.
Perhaps, but she’s hardly alone. John Kerry comes to mind.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:17 pmDonald Trump endorses Sarah Palin for Alaska’s lone congressional seat
He’ll find a winner soon.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:17 pmI always think it’s unfortunate that raising children doesn’t place highly on any resume.
I’d think that “2nd grade teacher” would need this skill.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:18 pmAnd you are right, I don’t like Palin, she’s a dilettante.
Lest we forget, ‘Caribou Barbie’?!?!
OTOH, back in 2008, Palin aroused then National Review conservative Rich Lowry’s lavish attention– and clearly not merely w/a ‘Chris Matthews tingle up his leg’:
“I’m sure I’m not the only male in America who, when Palin dropped her first wink, sat up a little straighter on the couch and said, “Hey, I think she just winked at me.” And her smile. By the end, when she clearly knew she was doing well, it was so sparkling it was almost mesmerizing. It sent little starbursts through the screen and ricocheting around the living rooms of America. This is a quality that can’t be learned; it’s either something you have or you don’t, and man, she’s got it.” -Rich Lowry
Image over substance rules in 21st Century USA; ask Tina Fey:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0vVKZL-Z7I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4Jk7K_DnTk
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:37 pmBiden vs. Palin…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iyIbbxVzrU
Thank you RNC and DNC…
If Germany ain’t planning to invade France again– they outta be. ;-).
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:45 pmBTW, if anyone is thinking about subscribing to the WaPo, at least to see what “they” are thinking, it’s $40 for 13 months (digital) right now.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/3/2022 @ 10:56 pm@JVW@224 By the time she quit, Obama had been elected and the investigations had mostly been dismissed. And generally speaking those of us with public facing jobs spend time dealing with accusations. Unreasonable people exist. I know a teacher that had to go to court because a parent accused them of racism (the teacher was black, the student was black, the parent was black) because they didn’t do a thing the parent had refused to let them do. Fortunately we keep records.
Palin has quit thing after thing after thing. What has she done in politics over a long term consistent basis that makes you think she’d be any good at being a Senator? Or even that she would stick it out.
@DCSCA@228 I’ve never used the Caribou Barbie thing. I find it an unnecessary insult based in appearance. However, as a straight woman, her appearance doesn’t overly impress me either.
Nic (896fdf) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:16 pmOn right wing sites I have seen articles before the war in ukraine on how superior the dictators military are because they don’t have gays and women in their military and how they would make short work of our military fighting with gays and pregnant women in the military. In the ukraine I see pregnant women knocking out russian tanks. Running up to them and throwing molotove cocktails at them as they try and dodge machine gun fire.
asset (e856a6) — 4/3/2022 @ 11:45 pmThe hate for some hacks goes both ways. Mittens is a douche.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/4/2022 @ 2:52 amZelensky on the tv last night – These are the same people who created “#BringBackOurGirls” and “#KonySurrender” as strategic narratives intended to sway popular public opinion. This performance was made for a gullible television audience. There is nothing wrong with seeing through the scheme.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/4/2022 @ 3:26 amlgb
fjb
I have some empathy for Palin, as she was dragged into the spotlight with too little grooming and not much experience. She pretty much peaked with her VP nomination acceptance speech and then seemed to hold on for dear life. She brought a raw feistiness and appeal that unfortunately did not have much depth. In a virtually unwinnable campaign, the bit of excitement she did bring was wiped out by her inability to change her own narrative and demonstrate that she could be President and lead the world and nation on any number of issues. Of course Obama had little experience and Trump showed us how personality could overcome a plethora of deficiencies in knowledge and character. But that shouldn’t be the test.
Still Palin feels more like a reality TV personality and not a serious politician fighting for principle and policy. Though I admire that she did largely step aside to raise family, in the end, that generated its own drama….and sadly ended with a failed marriage and some other high-profile public dysfunction. Life isn’t easy or clean, and you only control so much. Conservatives were enamored by the packaging and feistiness…and to a degree that was Trump too…but different packaging and even less inhibition.
Can she create a 2nd act? Does she have more substance to bring? Is there a point? Or is this an effort to milk public attention and fascination? I’m kind of pulling for her because she was (and her family) used and abused and didn’t deserve it. My expectations would be modest given her gravitation to the Trump-side of the party and all that that brings. But let’s see what an older wiser momma bear can bring to the national stage. People grow and evolve. Let’s see what she has to say….does it take a step to elevating our politics or is it more distraction theater.
AJ_Liberty (3cb02f) — 4/4/2022 @ 3:56 am@ JVW, #216:
1. “What about California?” is NOT a legitimate response to concerns about the people in charge of Hungary.
2. As bad as Gavin Newsom is, I don’t think he considers Zelenskyy to be an “opponent” of his.
Demosthenes (3fd56e) — 4/4/2022 @ 3:58 amOrban meant election opponent. Even CNN’s hallmark elisions, abridging, and mistranslations did not manage to conceal that:
nk (1d9030) — 4/4/2022 @ 5:53 amIt’s all about teh ghey.
nk (1d9030) — 4/4/2022 @ 5:58 amJVW,
It’s the same verse we hear time and time again from the left, “elections are only legitimate when they win.”
The left controls all institutions here to propagate their message and you don’t hrar them raise a squeak in complaint. But because Orban is a nationalist that believes in his culture and borders, he’s verboten to them.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:14 am@173
That’s a mistake imo.
Those Russian nationals probably have nothing to do with this war, and they shouldn’t be punished for something they have zero control over. In fact, I’d argue It’d be counter-productive.
They can send the news to their country-men NOW. So, it’d behoove us to get them to do that.
whembly (3b5b58) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:18 am@177
If we’re willing to risk a nuclear war and full-scale land war with Russia, then yeah, we can establish a no-fly zone.
This won’t be like the Bosian War.
This will be effectively World War 3.
Are you ready for that?
whembly (3b5b58) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:21 amThe EU’s idea of democracy is electing a government which obeys the diktats and whims of the EU Commission’s departments and executive agencies even when they are contrary to the member country’s constitution and laws. And that’s no hyperbole. Most recently, Poland had to deal with that.
nk (1d9030) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:23 am@222
I think you’re being VERY unfair to Palin in this regard.
When governor at the time, she had to use her own personal finances to hire lawyers to defend her against the full might of the liberal-left lawfare. She left office because there was no way she could pay her attorneys.
https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/06/us/06palin.html
Shortly after that, the Alaskan government passed a law that would allow future governors to use state funds, instead of personal funds, in this regard.
whembly (3b5b58) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:30 amEdit: JVW answered it better had I read the full thread.
whembly (3b5b58) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:31 am@JVW@224 By the time she quit, Obama had been elected and the investigations had mostly been dismissed.
Yet more were being filed out of spite, something the netroots are good at. They went nowhere after she resigned.
Palin has quit thing after thing after thing.
Except for those she didn’t. More charitable people would call this “varied experience.”
What has she done in politics over a long term consistent basis that makes you think she’d be any good at being a Senator? Or even that she would stick it out.
She’s actually running for the House seat, where she only needs to serve for two years.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:34 am@236
This is being misconstrued a bit.
The people of Hungry and Ukraine, traditionally, has been near arch enemies.
I’ll need to find the article/book that I read a while ago, but to Hungry, there’s not a lot of daylight separating Ukraine and Russia.
whembly (3b5b58) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:35 amOn right wing sites
1. There’s “the Right” and there’s the crazy right. Just as there is the Left and the crazy left. I won’t judge the Left by the Maoist and Trokyite sites that want to put people in re-education camps of up against the wall, and maybe you won’t judge the Right by the KKK and Nazi sites, ok?
2. The actual divide is between the Statists and the Individualists. I see no difference between those that want to put all gays in camps and those who want to do the same to landlords; they both want the State to have unbridled power. Sadly, both major parties are fond of state power, and Trump has turned the GOP even more towards the state.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:40 amShorter: People who want the state to crush other people are NOT on the Right. Just different forms of Left.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:42 amIf we’re willing to risk a nuclear war and full-scale land war with Russia, then yeah, we can establish a no-fly zone.
That’s overwrought. I could just as truthfully say that if we are prepared to risk nothing, the world will turn to those that will risk. Like Putin or Xi. Is there nothing we will fight for? Are we so smug and satisfied that we will let everything else go to hell, so long as we are still comfortable, and seemingly safe?
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:51 am@246: All those countries in that part of the world have ethnic minorities from neighboring countries. It’s a constant source of strife. See the Sudetenland thing.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:54 amI can detect a difference between those who would put gays in concentration camps, and those who think physically normal 8-year-olds shouldn’t have sexual reassignment surgery. It appears that not everyone can.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 6:58 am@249
I’m not saying, “no we shouldn’t”.
I’m saying, “do you know what you’re really asking for?”.
Establishing a no-fly zone necessitates an armed aerial conflict against, not only Russian airforce. But, also any Russian anti-air ground forces.
All I’m saying is to consider the responses to a no-fly zone.
whembly (7e0293) — 4/4/2022 @ 7:10 amDid you hear about Ukraine’s new gun law? You can have anything you want as long as it points at Moscow.
nk (1d9030) — 4/4/2022 @ 7:15 amwhembly,
I would prefer that Ukraine manages to kick Russia totally out of Ukraine without anything more than weapons from us. They have millions of men who will fight, so it’s possible. I’m not actually in favor of no-fly zones as that would make it our fight, not Ukraine’s.
But we need to be prepared should Russia resort to mass murder using weapons of mass destrruction denied to Ukraine. That won’t mean that we are starting WW3, it will mean that Russia already did.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 7:33 amKevin M,
I have no problem with that statement.
I just wanted Dana (and others) to really think about what establishing a no-fly zone means. I find that most folks really don’t know what that means because it’s more than just patrolling the skies. Its also patrolling the grounds for anti-air defenses. In order to establish the no-fly, any anti-air units on the ground HAS to be a legit target. By that point, you’re literally engaging ground forces and Russia won’t take it without escalating even further.
whembly (7e0293) — 4/4/2022 @ 7:45 amWhen Palin was nominated for vice president, Noemie Emery, who is not just smart but wise, said that neither Palin nor Obama were ready for the positions they were running for. The years since have shown how right Emery was, about both.
And we can see that she was right just from these two facts: Obama sought the support of Al Sharpton; Palin is accepting the support of Donald Trump.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/4/2022 @ 8:05 am1. “What about California?” is NOT a legitimate response to concerns about the people in charge of Hungary.
The hell it isn’t. My point is that every single thing that Orban is accused of — using cultural issues as wedge politics, enriching supporters while maintaining a bureaucracy of questionable effectiveness, using the legislative and judicial processes to harass political opponents, purging institutions of his opponents to make room for his cronies, modifying voting procedures so that they benefit his party, and so on — is absolutely something quite familiar to Jerry Brown, Gavin Newsom, and so many other American politicians. I’m not going to let you blithely dismiss my claims just because they seem to rankle your sensibilities.
And the answer for this sort of behavior in California, New York, Texas, Florida, or Hungary is to win elections by figuring out a good way to appeal to the needs and aspirations of your own people, not by grousing that it is so unfair that you face so many institutional disadvantages, even if that is entirely true.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/4/2022 @ 9:19 amLatest in stupid Russian propaganda. Notice the videographer is walking backwards in the “minefield”
Or maybe it really is a minefield and the video is cut off before the foot bone disconnects to the leg bone etc.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1511009843250929664
steveg (e81d76) — 4/4/2022 @ 9:20 am@ JVW can you fish my comments out of moderation?
whembly (867f2f) — 4/4/2022 @ 9:41 amIs there a moderation flag set on the Constitutional Vanguard thread?
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/4/2022 @ 9:48 amElon Musk buys $2.9bn stake in Twitter to become biggest shareholder
Platform’s shares jump after news that Tesla and SpaceX boss holds 9.2% stake.
The world’s richest man, who has a penchant for eccentric behaviour frequently involving tweets, has built a 9.2% stake in Twitter, according to filings made to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday. The boss of Tesla and SpaceX, who with more than 80 million followers ranks in the global top 10 of the most popular users on the microblogging site, paid $2.89bn for the stake at Twitter’s closing share price on Friday. – https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/apr/04/
DCSCA (f4c5e5) — 4/4/2022 @ 10:02 amI’m puzzled by the virulent reactions to Palin as running as a member of the house. She had good reason to quit the governorship (the Democrat strategy of bankrupting her through legal fees as the result of bogus ethics charges was cruel and classist). She was not a bad governor. The thing she was bad at was running for Vice President — and she was unsuited to the role she would have had in a McCain administration. That said — I can’t imagine any other VP having to put up with the “she’s pretending to be the mother of her daughter’s child” line of garbage.
I think she is a Trumper more by circumstance than by inclination. She’ll probably do a decent job in representing her state. The one problem she may have is that she may not really want to spend most of her time in Washington.
Appalled (1a17de) — 4/4/2022 @ 10:21 amYes you guys are right, there does appear to be something amiss with the comments section that is forcing perfectly fine comments into moderation. I am fishing as many out as I can, but I do have to leave in a few minutes and won’t be able to return until later this afternoon.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/4/2022 @ 10:24 amI’m not exactly sure what happened, except for the fact that the site seemed to be hit with a whole bunch of spam comments at roughly the same time, so perhaps WordPress shut down most everything in defense. Hopefully that is no longer going on.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/4/2022 @ 10:28 amUDPATE: Patience, friends, I think we’ve located the problem and are working to get it fixed. Sorry for the inconvenience.
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/4/2022 @ 2:31 pmWonder if the two tennis playing sons of Hannity will join the army to fight in Russia?
mg (8cbc69) — 4/6/2022 @ 3:43 amI had so much to say yesterday, but I’ve forgot it all and the world is poorer for it.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/6/2022 @ 5:42 amWhat’s happening with Trump’s Truth Social? According to Dana Milbank, it’s headed the way of most Trump ventures:
As you would expect, the site is filled with Putin propaganda, and nonsense. What is mildly surprising is how bad the technical problems are.
(Yes, the obvious should be said: The name chosen for the site, by the biggest liar in American politics, is a joke, and, worse, a sneer at those who still believe him.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/6/2022 @ 6:40 amIf it made Trump et al some bucks from “investors” and “partners”, it succeeded. Fill in these blanks: A ____ and his _____ are ____ ______.
nk (1d9030) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:12 amToo many Americans see the economy through partisan lenses:
Philip Bump begins with some silly mistakes by (Republican) congresswoman Lisa C. McClain, but then extends his argument:
That pattern is understandable, but irrational.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:27 am#269 nk – There’s truth in what you say — but apparently Trump wanted a Twitter rival he could use as a megaphone, and he doesn’t have that, yet, or perhaps ever. (Devin Nunes would not be my first choice to head a tech project.)
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:31 amThe problem may be that Truth Social is only available on iPhones and everybody knows that anything that goes into an iPhone goes directly to the Chinese government.
nk (1d9030) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:52 amNow it won’t save anything at all, even in moderation
Sammy Finkelman (bfe3de) — 4/6/2022 @ 9:52 amI’ve been trying to leave that short message off and on – last time yesterday, Obviously it now works – maybe. But my prefilled in name disappeared and it’s not showing up among the last ten. Now let’s see if this ewts posted.
Sammy Finkelman (bfe3de) — 4/6/2022 @ 9:55 amJim Miller @268: What’s happening with Trump’s Truth Social?
nk@272. The problem may be that Truth Social is only available on iPhones and everybody knows that anything that goes into an iPhone goes directly to the Chinese government.
Believe it or not, there’s awaiting list to join! (it was not ready for prime time)
https://piunikaweb.com/2022/04/06/truth-social-sign-up-not-working-for-many-others-get-moved-to-waiting-list/
“Here” is:
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-60922717
The author is number 1,419,631 on the waiting list. They might jump the line by sending an email to the Truth Social team.
Sammy Finkelman (02a146) — 4/6/2022 @ 1:18 pm24 1/2 minute interview by Sean Hannity of Sean Penn, who was making a documentary about Ukraine and Zelinsky when the war broke out.
https://althouse.blogspot.com/2022/04/sean-penn-whos-making-documentary-about.html
You can click on the embedded link to play. (from althouse)
Sean Penn says that everybody predicted the war. (I recall Zelinsky not liking these predictions of war and telling people to carry on – Sean Penn says something like he was hoping)
Sammy Finkelman (02a146) — 4/6/2022 @ 2:19 pmSean Davis
@seanmdav
This acknowledgement of reality — that it’s not a crime to walk through a door held open for you by police — is fatal to the corrupt government’s entire J6 narrative. It’s also why DOJ has criminally abused defendants to force plea deals: DOJ knows its cases are garbage.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/6/2022 @ 3:02 pmIt seems The Truth is now posting okay…
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/6/2022 @ 3:04 pmWe’re divided on the news sources we trust. Here’s a good analysis of poll findings from Allahpundit.
Most striking findings: Among individuals, only one man, Anderson Cooper, is trusted by more than 70 percent of partisans of either party (75 percent). No media organization reaches the 70 percent level, even among partisans.
We don’t like anybody very much.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/6/2022 @ 3:23 pmGood. Maybe I can post this now…
JVW (ee64e4) — 4/4/2022 @ 9:19 am
I think the only proper response to this is “The hell?! It isn’t.” Tu quoques are very tempting rebuttals to reach for. That doesn’t make them less fallacious.
Editor’s note: cross out “accused”; substitute “guilty.”
There is certainly more than a kernel of truth to this. However, even setting aside the tu quoque, there is also a considerable difference in degree for which you are not accounting. I know you aren’t, because if you were, you could never say something as silly as this:
But California, New York, Texas, and Florida are not like Hungary in some very important ways. Gavin Newsom, Kathy Hochul, Greg Abbott, and Ron DeSantis are very powerful figures in American politics and American society. But they do not have power, even over their own states, comparable to that which Viktor Orban has over Hungary — because they are leaders of regional governments in a federal system, rather than the head of the national government in a unitary system. Their “[use of] cultural issues as wedge politics” can be openly challenged by dissenters in a relatively free press, and by the people of a relatively free society; Hungary has one of the least free presses and some of the least free people in Europe. When they try to “enrich [their] supporters” or “us[e] the legislative and judicial processes to harass political opponents” or alter “voting procedures so that they benefit [their parties],” they are at least in theory liable to both state and federal lawsuits, with a realistic chance of losing somewhere along the line; Orban’s vast control over his country’s judiciary is part of why Hungary is now considered one of the most corrupt countries in Europe. The situations are not comparable, in short, because Newsom et al. do not have nearly as much power to make their institutions disadvantageous to opponents as does Orban, and they can be more effectively challenged on what they can do.
In short, to compare Gavin Newsom and California to Viktor Orban and Hungary is to demonstrate a breathtaking lack of proportion.
You really don’t have any control over what I dismiss. And by now, I think it should be very clear that there was nothing blithe about what I said.
Demosthenes (3fd56e) — 4/6/2022 @ 3:55 pmYour best comment ever. Should be evergreen for everyone.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 4/6/2022 @ 4:17 pmthat it’s not a crime to walk through a door held open for you by police
In that case, the police disputed that the office was doing that. However, there was clearly enough evidence that he *might* have been doing so to make the prosecution fail.
There clearly is a tilt towards prosecution here, as a similar action in a less charged setting with the same exculpatory video would never have reached court. Perhaps they would have tried to rush a plea. I’m not a lawyer, but I suspect that the video was something they did not disclose until late in the game.
Conceivably there is a malicious prosecution case here, given the recent Thompson v. Clark decision, although that would depend on various details I don’t have.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/6/2022 @ 5:15 pm@280:
Having lived for quite some time in California, I must dispute part of what you say. The degree that Democrat politicians control California, and their insulation from contrary opinion, is vastly more than it was 30 years ago. There is little of a free press in operation, in the sense that the traditional media all seem to be on the same page, all the time. That there are Samizdat publications does not change that. There are blogs in Hungary. There is no mass media outlet for right-of-center thought, and the GOP in California walks on eggs (or throws bombs, to be heard).
Large geographic sections of the state have little meaningful input into the laws that are passed and their consent is not asked for. A politician in California’s legislature can go their entire career without speaking to a Republican. Witness Kamela Harris. Was not that way before, and it is the hallmark of a one-party state. The GOP seems more a bought-off facade than a meaningful party.
Part of what you say is correct, but federal intervention in many things is limited to the federal courts, and only recently has there been even a notion of balance in the 9th Circuit. For the most part California courts defer to the political powers.
And then we come to the pandemic, and everything you hate about Orban, Newsom has done. As a trustee of a non-profit, and the one responsible for the operation of a California office, I was ordered by the state to lay off all my employees and shutter the office, without regard to those depending on its services. To me, that is the act of a power-mad autocrat.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/6/2022 @ 5:38 pm#277 – The argument made by Sean Davis reminds me of an old joke, which I will embellish a little:
Given the number of people involved in the January 6th riot, and attempt to overthrow our presidential election, it is possible, perhaps even likely, that a few of them are being treated unfairly — and also possible that some of those who were violent will not be caught, much less charged and convicted.
But neither the possibly unfair treatment, nor the possible escape of a few miscreants tells us much about the overall fairness of the prosecutors.
But we can conclude this: Sean Davis, whoever he is, did not make a logical argument in what was quoted.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:02 pmThe charges have a number of problems, starting with the “restricted area” thing. It turns out that part of the “restricted area” was that way because of the Vice-President’s presence. But, other than being told that it was a restricted area, it is not possible to know where the VP was, or if he was still there at all.
In another bench trial before the same judge (and if you are a Trump supporter in DC, you really should ask for a bench trial), the presence of the VP was determined through (conflicting) testimony. Maybe just being told is enough, but then you have to prove they were told.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:12 pmSean Davis Retweeted
Catherine Herridge
@CBS_Herridge
CBS News has learned that +150 transactions involving either Hunter or James Biden’s global business affairs were flagged as concerning by U.S. banks for further review.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:50 pm@ChuckGrassley spoke exclusively @CBS_Herridge about newly public bank records.
“that it’s not a crime to walk through a door held open for you by police”
Like this?
Davethulhu (9bf01b) — 4/6/2022 @ 7:58 pmhttps://twitter.com/MacFarlaneNews/status/1462918564969697286
The Republican Party is Trump Steaks. Trump Steaks is the Republican Party.
What follows is a dizzying litany of Establishment GOP hard-sell shilling for the Truth Social grift. I challenge anyone to read it and then claim with a straight face the Republican Party isn’t the party of Trump.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 4/6/2022 @ 11:20 pmGood link with a good article at the end of it, lurker. I’ll be checking out The Bulwark more often.
nk (1d9030) — 4/7/2022 @ 4:59 am#284… yeah, Miller, turns out he actually proved the D.C. police opened the barricades and let them all in.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/7/2022 @ 6:49 amCalifornians will like this Non Sequitur comic.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/7/2022 @ 7:41 amThe German president has admitted he was wrong about Putin:
We need more such admissions.
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/7/2022 @ 9:13 am“What’s notable in this trial isn’t so much that Martin convinced McFadden he was waved into the building but that a USCP official CONFIRMED under oath that police let people inside.”
—- Julie Kelly
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/7/2022 @ 9:20 amAn Engineer Bill-assisted suicide for former Patterico nemesis (pre-political affiliation switch) Eric Boehlert?
RIP.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 4/7/2022 @ 9:26 amCalifornians will like this Non Sequitur comic.
I would propose that “Doing Nothing” require an EIR every so often. Not only would it put things in perspective, but, done right, it would employ all those parasites usefully.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/7/2022 @ 10:13 amI wonder when the Germans will consider restarting those nuclear plants.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/7/2022 @ 10:16 amLike this?
No, not like that. Obviously, that was NOT the video of this particular defendant. I know that some are sad that we insist on proof of individual guilt, but that’s the way we are.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/7/2022 @ 10:21 amSo, there’s a Covid outbreak in DC. I wonder if Russia has weaponized Covid by now.
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/7/2022 @ 10:26 am“I know that some are sad that we insist on proof of individual guilt, but that’s the way we are.”
yeah, but
“turns out he actually proved the D.C. police opened the barricades and let them all in.”
Haiku and Sean Davis are gaslighting.
Davethulhu (9bf01b) — 4/7/2022 @ 10:57 amCONFIRMED: Justice Jackson, 53-47
Kevin M (38e250) — 4/7/2022 @ 11:34 am@300: “Jackson, 51, becomes only the sixth woman and third Black justice to ascend to the high court”
a woman? really???
is everyone a biologist?
JF (d93e1f) — 4/7/2022 @ 12:52 pmYeah, nk, they’re not perfect (who is?), but pretty good. For my money, always worth a check-in.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 4/7/2022 @ 4:07 pmIs the Trump organization borrowing from a loan shark?
And, if so, why?
Jim Miller (406a93) — 4/7/2022 @ 4:14 pmJust in – The National Review writers are groomers.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/7/2022 @ 5:34 pmI’m not unsympathetic to what you are saying. I live in a state where I imagine a lot of Democrats and progressives have a complete list of analogous complaints. (And, as I have become less fond of some of the stunts our elected “leaders” pull in lieu of actually doing their d@mn jobs, I can see some of their points. Oh yes, Senator, I would much rather have you spend your time drafting an embarrassing DOA censorship bill instead of keeping our schools funded and roads paved. Thanks so much!)
Doesn’t change the fact, though, that both our states are exposed to a national media environment — and national influences from corporations, organizations, and powerful individuals. Fox News still reaches where you live. MSNBC still can be found here. And those mainstream organs can and do magnify content and personalities from local blogs and “Samizdat publicaions” (nice one, by the way, always loved that word) to the national debate, which can and does trickle down to the local level. See also: the San Francisco USD school board.
There just really is no reasonable comparison to Hungary. Can’t be made.
Demosthenes (3fd56e) — 4/7/2022 @ 9:07 pmJust in – The National Review writers are groomers.
mg (8cbc69) — 4/7/2022 @ 5:34 pm
How do you survive when Haiku and so many others are banished?
Not that I’m complaining, just axing.
Matador (0284e8) — 4/7/2022 @ 10:22 pmThe testosterone supplements seem to be clouding your vision. Haiku left several comments in this thread.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 4/8/2022 @ 12:58 amI have a way with words, Matador.😎
mg (8cbc69) — 4/8/2022 @ 3:13 amhttps://redstate.com/mike_miller/2022/04/07/watch-iconic-rockers-pay-tribute-to-gov-ron-desantis-in-new-hit-song-sweet-florida-n547132
mg (8cbc69) — 4/8/2022 @ 3:54 amHope this makes you rinos sick.
This is last week’s Weekend open thread. This week’s is not on the toolbar.
Sammy Finkelman (02a146) — 4/8/2022 @ 12:10 pmBBC has a good story on a woman who was raped by a Russian soldier as her husband tried to save her. She buried him in her backyard after he died from his gunshot (two days later). Russia will be putting more than 100,000 children it ‘liberated’ from Ukraine up for adoption on the argument their parents are dead.
I’m basically OK with war at this point. I’d be willing to go over there. The nukes definitely make this a terrible proposition, but Russia shouldn’t have internet, an energy industry, or a weapons industry.
I think it’s something to do with the humorous impact, versus the general nastiness and pettiness and earnestness of the real trolls? It’s definitely both interesting and something I don’t mind.
I miss happyfeet (pre 2016).
Dustin (75d8ff) — 4/11/2022 @ 5:31 pmR.I.P. Gilbert Gottfried
Icy (98b9a2) — 4/12/2022 @ 12:58 pm