Weekend Open Thread
[guest post by Dana]
Let’s go!
First news item
Tuesday was International Women’s Day. While previous posts written about the day have usually been a tad snarky or straight-up sarcastic, this year I am pleased to simply share about two uniquely brave women who are working tirelessly toward the goal of enabling women and girls to live their lives free of fear and abuse while providing them with hope and opportunity.
Activist Masih Alinejad fueled the Women, Life, Liberty movement after the suspicious death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in Iran, who had been detained by authorities for not wearing her hijab correctly. Alinejad regularly meets with journalists, reporters, and fellow activists. She also meets with government representatives and even presidents in order to bring greater attention to the revolution happening in her home country and to urge/challenge world leaders to lend their support to the Iranian people in their push for freedom and regime change. Another goal is for the legal definition of apartheid expanded to include gender apartheid.
It’s been 13 years since Masih Alinejad hugged her mother. That realization hits her during a TIME interview in early February, followed by another one: “Oh my God, I forgot my mom’s face,” she says, wide-eyed and shaking her head in disbelief. She stops and composes herself. “Look, I don’t want to cry on camera.”
Alinejad, 46, understands the power of her platform. Exiled from Iran since 2009, the journalist and activist has long spoken out against Iran’s restrictions on women, calling the compulsory hijab “the Berlin Wall” of the regime. Her campaign alarmed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who not only rails against her in speeches but even sent his minions to kidnap her in July 2021. One year later, a similar plot was to end in assassination, according to a U.S. Justice Department indictment. “Women of Iran are his biggest enemy,” Alinejad says. “He’s scared of us more than anything.”
In Kenya, Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya has made it her mission to protect girls from child marriage, abuse, and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by providing them with an education as a way to avoid the too-frequent fate of many girls in the region. Her story is devastatingly compelling and I simply can’t imagine overcoming the devastating events in her early years to be able to do what she does:
When she was just 5 years old, she was engaged to be married…she desperately sought a way out and knew that education was her best solution. So she made an impossible decision. At 12 years old, she agreed to undergo female genital mutilation (FGM) if her father allowed her to complete her education. He agreed.
As such, many years later when little Miriam pleaded for help from Dr. Ntaiya, she couldn’t refuse:
It was the middle of the night in Kenya, and 11-year-old Miriam was hiding outside a stranger’s house, waiting to talk to the woman who lived inside. Miriam hadn’t met her before, but she knew her name: Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya, who ran a school for girls at risk of child marriage.
When Dr. Ntaiya emerged, Miriam told her everything—how she’d just finished fourth grade, how her father had died in an accident, how her family was running low on money, and how, to help pay the bills, they were planning to marry her off for a dowry. Miriam had already seen her friends marry and quit school. She was desperate to avoid that—and Dr. Ntaiya was her only hope.
…When she met a panicked Miriam outside her house, it was an easy decision for her—yes, of course Miriam had a place at Kakenya’s Dream. Yes, of course she could get her education.
Second news item
Per JVW: The degree to which this poor man is being used by political operatives at a cost to his physical and emotional health is absolutely sickening:
When Mr. Fetterman checked himself into the hospital on Feb. 15, the lead doctor told him that his case was treatable and guaranteed he would get back to his old self. Post-stroke depression, doctors said, affects one in three people and can be very serious, but is also highly treatable.
What? Tell us the name of the doctor.
What kind of doctor would issue a guarantee that his patient, after admission into the mental hospital, will “get back to his old self”?
Let me remind you of what the New York Times reported last month, just days before Fetterman checked himself in:
It has been less than a year since the stroke transformed him from someone with a large stature that suggested machismo — a central part of his political identity — into a physically altered version of himself, and he is frustrated at times that he is not yet back to the man he once was. He has had to come to terms with the fact that he may have set himself back permanently by not taking the recommended amount of rest during the campaign.
“Permanently.”
That is — in February — readers were being prepared for the idea that Fetterman’s lack of proper rest after his stroke had permanently impaired his recovery. But, now, a doctor is confident enough to guarantee the opposite? We do not know if Fetterman’s stroke will leave him permanently afflicted, or how he will cope with the sudden midlife loss of some of his abilities. We don’t know how he will cope with the suspicion that he could have recovered more of his faculties had he suspended his campaign.
Third news item
New York Grand Jury wants to hear from Donald Trump:
Former President Donald Trump has been invited to testify before a New York grand jury that has been investigating hush money payments made on his behalf during his 2016 presidential campaign, according to one of his lawyers.
Trump attorney Joseph Tacopina confirmed Thursday that the Manhattan district attorney’s office has invited the former president to testify next week as prosecutors near a decision on whether to proceed with what could be the first criminal case ever brought against a former U.S. president.
“To me, it’s much ado about nothing,” Tacopina told the Associated Press, adding he didn’t think prosecutors had committed “one way or another” on a decision on whether to charge Trump. He said there was no legal basis for a case.
“It’s just another example of them weaponizing the justice system against him. And it’s sort of unfair,” he said.
The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, declined to comment. Such an invitation to testify before a grand jury often indicates a decision on indictments is near.
Fourth news item
Russia launches a barrages of missiles at Ukraine:
Russia launched a total of 95 missiles of various types over the past day – and 34 of them were intercepted, the Ukrainian military said on Friday.
“The enemy also carried out 31 air strikes, in particular, using eight Shahed-136 UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles or drones), half of which were shot down,” the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in a morning update.
It added that Russia had “fired 65 times from multiple launch rocket systems.”
A change in Kremlin strategy?:
When Russia launched a total of 95 missiles…it included six Kinzhal ballistic missiles that eluded Kyiv’s air defenses, the Ukrainian military said.
“The attack is really large-scale and for the first time using such different types of missiles. We see that this time as many as six Kinzhal were used. This is an attack like I don’t remember seeing before,” Yurii Ihnat, spokesperson for the Air Force Command of Ukraine, said on Ukrainian television Thursday.
“So far, we have no capabilities to counter these weapons,” he added, referring to the Kinzhals, plus six X-22 air-launched cruise missiles that were also launched by Russian forces.
From the report: Hypersonic missiles travel 5x times the speed of sound. They are hard to detect when launched from MiG-31 fighter jets, “giving it a longer range and the ability to attack from multiple directions.” While the U.S. has not yet confirmed the use of hypersonic missiles, if they their use is confirmed, NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby stated that it could indicate that Russia is running low on other munitions and is having to dip into its inventory, or possibly that they were sending a strong message to the West by reminding them of their capabilities. Also, as Putin continues to target Ukrainian civilian infrastructure throughout the country, this latest attack reached Lviv, which is a mere 40 miles from the Polish border.
Fifth news item
Xi Jinping officially clinched his third term as Chinese president on Friday, following a largely ceremonial vote by the country’s rubber-stamp legislature.
The nearly 3,000-member National People’s Congress voted unanimously for Xi, the only candidate, to serve another five-year term as president, according to Xinhua, China’s state news agency. Xi’s unprecedented third term comes after the Chinese legislature voted to abolish a two-term limit on the presidency in 2018.
In October, Xi secured another term as general secretary of the Chinese Community Party. The general secretary holds the most power in Chinese politics, with the presidency tacked on as a primarily ceremonial post.
Sixth news item
Biden administration given seven days to file appeal before judge’s decision on “catch and release” goes into effect:
A federal judge in Florida…agreed with the state’s Republican attorney general that the policy of President Joe Biden’s administration to release many people who illegally cross the U.S.-Mexican border rather than detaining them violates U.S. immigration law.
U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell in Pensacola blocked the administration from continuing to implement a 2021 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) memo that had authorized “alternatives to detention” to ease overcrowding in detention facilities. These alternatives included ankle bracelets, phone monitoring or check-ins by immigration officers. Republican critics have called the policy “catch and release.”…
“Defendants have effectively turned the Southwest Border into a meaningless line in the sand and little more than a speedbump for aliens flooding into the country,” Wetherell wrote, referring to non-U.S. citizens who cross the border illegally.
Seventh news item
A Norfolk Southern train derailed Thursday in Calhoun County, Alabama, hours before company CEO Alan Shaw faced lawmakers to answer questions about a Feb. 3 derailment that led to a toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio.
The train..derailed at around 6:45 a.m. in the Quad Cities area of White Plains, officials said.
There were no reports of injuries and no reports of a hazardous leak after approximately 30 cars derailed, the Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency said in a news release.
Oh:
This is the third derailment of the company’s trains since last month. When asked about the frequency of the accidents, Spielmaker told reporters that Norfolk Southern is looking into what happened and is “figuring out how we can become even safer.”
“Derailments are a very loose term,” he said. “Derailment could mean as little as one wheel off the track. So as far as an increase, decrease, I can’t really get into that.”
Eighth news item
Yes, of course stabilizing the debt should be a top priority for President Biden and Congress:
An unfortunate mind-set has grown among our nation’s leaders. It is that the United States can overspend by more than $1 trillion a year indefinitely. Lawmakers assured the country that spending increases — for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and then for economic support during the Great Recession and the pandemic — would be temporary. But, with few exceptions, the fatter budget items stuck around. President Biden released his budget proposal Thursday with a nearly $2 trillion deficit for 2024.
This willful blindness to reality on the part of policymakers has allowed the national debt to rise to more than $31 trillion. The nation has reached a hazardous moment where what it owes, as a percentage of the total size of the economy, is the highest since World War II. If nothing changes, the United States will soon be in an uncharted scenario that weakens its national security, imperils its ability to invest in the future, unfairly burdens generations to come, and will require cuts to critical programs such as Social Security and Medicare. It is not a future anyone wants.
Ninth news item
The Stop Trump campaign among Republican elites is off to a quick start. Most every weekend since the start of this year there’s been some sort of gathering of donors, strategists and lawmakers in a warm weather state. And while the hotel ballrooms, lobby bars and presidential libraries may change, the overarching goal is consistent: how not to be saddled with perhaps the one candidate who may lose to Bide
Tenth news item
Looks like Gov. Ron DeSantis will be running:
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has privately confirmed that he intends to run for president in 2024, according to a report from the Washington Post.
…DeSantis allies said they expect the governor will announce his intentions to run after the Florida Legislative Session concludes in May… Trump administration official Ken Cuccinelli launched a political committee called “Never Back Down,” asking DeSantis to join the 2024 race… Gov. DeSantis will appear at an event in Iowa on Friday, further fueling speculation of a presidential run.
P.S. Gov. DeSantis is in Iowa today meeting with Gov.Reynolds at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, where he will be promoting his new book…
P.P.S. Donald Trump will be visiting Iowa next week…
MISCELLANEOUS
This real-life moment remains an absolute delight to watch:
Happy 6th anniversary to the greatest moment in the history of the internet pic.twitter.com/QYAunxfrUR
— Declan Cashin (@Tweet_Dec) March 10, 2023
Have a great weekend!
–Dana
Good morning and happy Friday!
Dana (1225fc) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:36 amI will point out that several US states, including mine, are passing laws to not only permit the mutilation of children’s genitals, but to offer government funding for that purpose. It’s just not Islamic FGM, but Humanist FGM.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:47 amFetterman: Do elder abuse laws apply?
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:48 amHere’s a good discussion on the effectiveness of masks, but it’s only three years too late.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:51 amThe law that Trump is accused of violating — paying a campaign expense with private money — has problems since one can also be charged with paying private expenses with campaign money and their seems to be no bright line separating the two situations. Laws that fluid are often unconstitutional.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:51 amXi’s two terms have seen massive setbacks for China and alienated their foreign customers. The Chinese economy’s upcoming steep contraction is worrisome as the opportunity for military adventurism is high.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:57 amMichael Cohen paid off Stormy Daniels with his own money.
nk (57a8aa) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:57 amTrump paid Cohen back (in installments?!!!) with his own mpney.
Then Trump deducted the payments to Cohen from his taxes as a campaign expense.
Is how I understand it.
It was money laundering with Trump being extra greedy. With the tax deduction.
But that’s Trump.
I’ve had a cat do that while I was doing a Zoom presentation. It’s quite distracting.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:00 amTrump paid Cohen back (in installments?!!!) with his own money.
Were the installments under $10,000?
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:02 amnk,
So, the problem is that Trump turned a normal, very legal, blackmail payment into an illegal campaign expenditure, plus tax fraud?
My bad. I did not realize that Trump could be that stupid.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:05 amhow not to be saddled with perhaps the one candidate who may lose to Biden
DeSantis is mean enough to lose to Biden.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:06 amΚαθου γυρευε, like the Greeks say.
nk (57a8aa) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:12 amSilicon Valley Bank is shut down by regulators in biggest bank failure since global financial crisis
-The FDIC said in the announcement that insured depositors will have access to their deposits no later than Monday morning.
-SVB’s branch offices will also reopen at that time, under the control of the regulator.
-The FDIC’s standard insurance covers up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank, for each account ownership category.
Financial regulators have closed Silicon Valley Bank and taken control of its deposits, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced Friday, in what is the largest U.S. bank failure since the global financial crisis more than a decade ago.
The collapse of SVB, a key player in the tech and venture capital community, leaves companies and wealthy individuals largely unsure of what will happen to their money. According to press releases from regulators, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation closed SVB and named the FDIC as the receiver. The FDIC in turn has created the Deposit Insurance National Bank of Santa Clara, which now holds the insured deposits from SVB.
The FDIC said in the announcement that insured depositors will have access to their deposits no later than Monday morning. SVB’s branch offices will also reopen at that time, under the control of the regulator. According to the press release, SVB’s official checks will continue to clear.
The FDIC’s standard insurance covers up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank, for each account ownership category. It is unclear exactly how larger accounts or credit lines for companies will be impacted by the closure. The FDIC said it will pay uninsured depositors an advanced dividend within the next week.
As of the end of December, SVB had roughly $209 billion in total assets and $175.4 billion in total deposits, according to the press release. The FDIC said it was unclear what portion of those deposits were above the insurance limit.
The last U.S. bank failure of this size was Washington Mutual in 2008, which had $307 billion in assets. SVB was a major bank for venture-backed companies, which were already under pressure due to higher interest rates and a slowdown for initial public offerings that made it more difficult to raise additional cash.
The closure of SVB would impact not only the deposits, but also credit facilities and other forms of financing. The FDIC said loan customers of SVB should continue to make their payments as normal. The move represents a rapid downfall for SVB. On Wednesday, the bank announced that it was looking to raise more than $2 billion in additional capital after suffering a $1.8 billion loss on asset sales.
The shares of parent company SVB Financial Group fell 60% on Thursday, and dropped another 60% in premarket trading on Friday before being halted. CNBC’s David Faber reported Friday morning that the efforts to raise capital had failed and that SVB had pivoted toward a potential sale. However, a rapid outflow of deposits was complicating the sales process.
While many Wall Street analysts have argued that the struggles for SVB are unlikely to spread to the broader banking system, shares of other mid-sized and regional banks were under pressure on Friday.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee on Friday morning that she was “monitoring very carefully” developments at a few banks. Yellen made her comments before the FDIC announcement.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/10/silicon-valley-bank-is-shut-down-by-regulators-fdic-to-protect-insured-deposits.html
Bank failures are ‘transitory,’ eh, Janet.
DCSCA (55fd53) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:43 amPutin’s imperialist inclinations are definitely inclined toward Moldova. The guy just isn’t satisfied with a country that’s already the size of the US and Australia combined, he continues to grasp for more, and he can’t use NATO as an excuse for trying to put the small country under his thumb.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:51 amFrom the report: Hypersonic missiles travel 5x times the speed of sound.
For perspective, a piloted X-15 ‘had been flown to a blistering speed of Mach 6.7 (4,520 mph), [nearly 7 times the speed of sound] a record that still stands for winged aircraft…’ while the SR-71, designed in the early 1960s, was able to cruise faster than three times the speed of sound. – https://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/about/Organizations/Technology/Facts/TF-2004-16-DFRC.html
DCSCA (55fd53) — 3/10/2023 @ 10:57 amThe only place she could do this.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 12:07 pmReminiscent of referendums involving Saddam for president and the Crimean annexation to Russia, Chairman Xi nails the politburo vote, 2,952 “for” and 0 “against”.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/10/2023 @ 12:31 pmnot as important as Stormy Daniels news, but anyway…
Trump’s CDC director says Fauci deliberately IGNORED him to cover up lab leak claims in bombshell hearing: Ex-Biden staffer says COVID likely DID come from Wuhan and Republicans say taxpayer-funded gain-of-function research caused pandemic
has Fox News apologized yet?
JF (d16d84) — 3/10/2023 @ 12:38 pmMore on Fetterman: the NYT reports that everything is OK in his absence, because his staff and lobbyists are doing his work for him. NRO quotes the NYT piece (so you don’t have mess with the paywall):
Leave it to a former Hairy Reed staffer to be sleazy enough to justify allowing a lobbyist and chief of staff to do work which will be attributed to the Senator. I’m sure Professor Ross Baker fits right in at Rutgers with the likes of Brittney Cooper and James Livingston.
JVW (15d80d) — 3/10/2023 @ 12:47 pmSidney Powell and Ms. Bartiromo actually put forth this crazy lady’s theories about Dominion. Oy.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/10/2023 @ 12:49 pmAlso, this year, Purim.
I have a beautiful proof that Achashverosh was Artaxerxes I (and consequently that the decree of Haman took place in 453 BCE, give or take a year, but I won’t go into it too much.
Suffice to say I assumed that whenever a different name was used in Greek derived sources it was a different king and whenever the same one was used it was the same king, and
1) The book of Esther starts (I assume that a few words were changed from time to time up to the time of Alexander the Great, where the genealogies given in the book of Chronicles stop) it starts it was the days of Achashverosh -he was the Achashverosh who ruled from Hodu to Kush. Often translated as India to Ethiopia.
Hodu is correct for India (his empire extended more just to what is now Pakistan) but Kush is more properly Sudan.
Sometime in the past 2,000 years the geographic area covered by the term Kush moved.. It was not originally mainly what is now called Ethiopia.
The thing is, there was another king of the same name who didn’t. Persia lost control of Egypt right at the beginning of the reign of Artaxerxes II -and recovered it late in the reign of Artaxerxes III. He ruled it for about three years. His son Artaxerxes IV did not rule all, and was Darius III who again reconquered all of Egypt.
Because Alexander the Great resumed the war with Persia and started off with Asia Minor and Egypt many people assume that Persia controlled Egypt all that time, but it didn’t. Persia ruled Egypt again for a total of nine years.
2) Esther is mentioned in Nehemiah 2:6 – Nehemiah specifically
backtracks because he left out a important fact. This would only be
important to mention if the woman was Esther. (The Malbim (commentator from 1800s) says she was Esther but has a different opinion as to who she was, thinking it was the king’s mother.
The reason Nehemiah does not call her queen but a word in Hebrew meaning something like consort (could mean royal family) is because according to Persian law she was NOT queen since Darius I had made his colleagues swear that they would only marry women within certain families. The Jews (and others, presumably) called her the queen. but Nehemiah was a an official sensitive to legal distinctions.
3) Believe it, or not there is a translation of Achashverosh in the Bible! Ezra 4:7 is virtually a translation of Ezra 4:6.`The book of Ezra, I say, has come down to us exactly the way it was originally
written complete with false starts. `A copy of the original manuscript.
You can’t see this in a translation. But here it is, with a translation:
https://mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt35a04.htm
` (02a146) — 3/10/2023 @ 12:59 pmThey won’t get at the truth until they realize there were two lab leaks (not two labs from which a single leak might have happened)
The second leak was most likely from the Wuhan enters forDisease Control and Prevention which moved its location to within 300 yards of the seafood market (there was no wet market nearby and despite there being a few stalls in 2017 that contained some animals that breathed air that ws not a wet market) on December 2, 2019.
The second strain of the virus was worse but the first spread more widely and one of the things the Chinese government has contrived to do is confuse people about which strain came first.This wouldbe clear if we had early samples.
` (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:06 pmSeems like this should be considered a defeat for the CDC and everyone who sniffled in contempt when Tom Cotton and others proposed the lab leak theory nearly two years ago:
It’s conceivable that President Biden will veto the bill and that enough Democrats will vote to uphold his veto so as not to embarrass him, but maybe they are so steamed by his flip-flop on the DC crime bill that they will enjoy exacting payback by putting the federal bureaucracy in a delicate position. But I’m betting that the Biden Administration cuts a deal to declassify some — but certainly not all — of the information and that will be enough for Jeffries, Waters, Schiff, the Adorably Ornery Clueless niece, and the rest of ’em.
JVW (cfaad9) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:09 pmAlso, this year, Purim.
I have a beautiful proof that Achashverosh was Artaxerxes I (and consequently that the decree of Haman took place in 453 BCE, give or take a year) but I messed up my name and it’s in moderation
Suffice to say it’s the name, (there was an Achashverosh who ruled from Hodu to Kush – meaning others who didn’t)
2) Esther 2:6 and
3) Ezra 4:6 and 7 where you see the name translated.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:21 pmThey won’t get at the truth until they realize there were two lab leaks (not two labs from which a single leak might have happened)
The second leak was most likely from the Wuhan enters forDisease Control and Prevention which moved its location to within 300 yards of the seafood market (there was no wet market nearby and despite there being a few stalls in 2017 that contained some animals that breathed air that ws not a wet market) on December 2, 2019.
The second strain of the virus was worse but the first spread more widely and one of the things the Chinese government has contrived to do is confuse people about which strain came first. This would be clear if we had early samples.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:22 pmThey wouldn’t have picked the seafood market unless the sourceofspread was near there.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:23 pmWomen’s day I follow women race car drivers who have problems getting rides and when they do they get wrecked a lot. In a race the male driver who was racing hailie deegan was told on the radio you better not let a girl pass you so the driver wrecked her at toledo race. Drivers try to put katie hettinger in the wall because she wins a lot of races (most late model wins for a woman) because she is only 15 years old. Women can’t get rides in formula one and rarely indy car. Simona de silvestro was in second place in indy car standings and couldn’t get a ride for the rest of the season. Danica patrick was wrecked all the time in nascar. They are trying to wreck hailie deegan out of nascar.
asset (53393a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:29 pmThey’re talking abut different things. The doctor is talking about his depression. He never saw him before the stroke)s)
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:37 pm* 2) Esther 2:6
I mean Nehemiah 2:6
Nehemiah specifically backtracks because he left out a important fact. This would only be important to mention if the woman was Esther.
The reason Nehemiah does not call her queen but a word in Hebrew meaning something like consort (could mean royal family) is because according to Persian law she was NOT queen since Darius I had made his colleagues swear that they would only marry women within certain families. The Jews (and others, presumably) called her the queen. but Nehemiah was a an official sensitive to legal distinctions.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:38 pmTrump Litigation Watch:
Rip Murdock (80f192) — 3/10/2023 @ 1:58 pmRIP Jerry “Napoleon XIV” Samuels, who has died at 84. Wrote and recorded one of pop music’s most unusual hit singles, 1966’s “They’re Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!.”
Rip Murdock (c5fd42) — 3/10/2023 @ 3:47 pmDr. Demento!!!
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/10/2023 @ 4:27 pmYou date yourself, Colonel.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 5:28 pmToo bad they won’t be staying overnight at the Graybar Hotel:
Prison sucks.
Rip Murdock (66c03d) — 3/10/2023 @ 5:28 pmSo, the SVB thing.
Apparently, between 2020 and now, deposits at SVB went from $60 billion to over $200 billion. They parked these funds in treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, which is all well and good since those things will always perform.
But then interest rates started climbing and the sale value of their securities stared declining. Meanwhile the startups that they specialized in serving found new money hard to come by and started drawing down on their deposits. THis meant the bank had to start selling securities. This was OK for a while, as they has some short-term securities they could sell without huge losses.
But eventually they came to need money from their longer-term bonds, and the tried to sell a bunch of them ($21 billion) at a book loss of about 8%. Their larger depositors panicked. On Thursday, firms tried to withdraw $45 billion from the bank and they, well, ran out of money.
That’s a banking faux pas, and the FDIC stepped in. Luckily, the damage is mostly confined to the tech world, unlike something like Lehman, which had tentacles everywhere.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 5:36 pmNot much older than you, Kevin.
Here’s one from ‘68 covered much later. I miss this guy!
https://youtu.be/suDCCpGc3-w
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/10/2023 @ 5:46 pm35… what’s the complaint, their focus is on diversity and equity.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/10/2023 @ 5:47 pm“But then interest rates started climbing and the sale value of their securities stared declining. Meanwhile the startups that they specialized in serving found new money hard to come by and started drawing down on their deposits.”
They were basically keeping all their eggs in one basket. Their customers and their investments were both heavily reliant on low interest rates. On the upside, their investments aren’t worthless (like mortgage backed securities or crypto), and their business model isn’t typical.
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/10/2023 @ 6:02 pmMe, too. I listened to his show, Sunday nights.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/10/2023 @ 6:59 pm👍
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/10/2023 @ 7:18 pmFbi caught infiltrating black lives matter under trump. In one case hiring a violent felon as agent provocateur like the one who shot at the nat. guard at kent state and the one who helped murder fred hampton. I have said I didn’t like government agent provocateurs provoking violent acts on jan.6 and getting ashlee babbitt killed. The government including state and local has a bad history of infiltrating opposition groups make them look bad. Both the left and the right should oppose governments sending in agent provocateurs to stir things up otherwise we are just retaliating against agent provocateur violence done to us.
asset (9e5922) — 3/10/2023 @ 7:36 pmThis year’s Oscar slap:
Oscars Reject Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Bid to Appear on Telecast
For the past year, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been greeted with open arms by awards shows, film festivals and even the New York Stock Exchange. But when it comes to landing airtime on the most coveted telecast of all — the Oscars — the Ukrainian leader is being met with a cold shoulder.
For the second year in a row, the Academy has snubbed Zelenskyy, who was hoping to follow up his Berlin Film Festival (remote) appearance last month with a virtual spot on Sunday’s Oscar telecast on ABC.
Sources say WME power agent Mike Simpson made a plea to the Academy to include the comedic actor-turned-politician but was shut down. The Academy declined comment. [Your freely given, suckered tax dollars at work: Zelinskyy is paying a Hollywood AGENT!? Does Biden have one?? Maybe Vlad, Kim and Xi as well?!]
Zelenskyy’s overtures to the Oscars comes as polls show Americans’ support for providing assistance to Ukraine has weakened…
Last year, Oscars producer Will Packer nixed a Zelenskyy appearance. Sources say Packer expressed concerns that Hollywood was only showering Ukraine with attention because those affected by the conflict are white. By contrast, Hollywood has ignored wars around the globe that impact people of color, he argued. Packer did not respond to a request for comment. It is unclear what the rationale is for this year’s Oscars rejection, however, the Academy traditionally prefers to focus on the contributions of the filmmaking community and steer clear of anything political.
Meanwhile, the Academy isn’t the only group to refuse Zelenskyy. In September, Zelenskyy’s team reached out to the Toronto Film Festival about the leader appearing via satellite, but they were denied…
https://variety.com/2023/film/news/volodymyr-zelensky-ukraine-oscars-appearance-russia-1235547499/
DCSCA (3564b1) — 3/10/2023 @ 8:03 pm^Postscript …the Academy traditionally prefers to focus on the contributions of the filmmaking community and steer clear of anything political.
Huh? Who are they kidding?? Not in my lifetime nor this Universe. AMPAS outta review the archived kinescopes, tapes and all those ‘traditionally’ long, long thank you speeches.
DCSCA (3564b1) — 3/10/2023 @ 8:10 pmOn the upside, their investments aren’t worthless (like mortgage backed securities or crypto)
Mortgage-backed securities are usually quite solid. But in 2006 or 7, they started packing crap loans in with the good ones. Like adding lead to gold for coins. At the end, Fannie Mae was shoveling sh1t out to investors.
They say they aren’t doing that any more. You got me on crypto though.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:37 pmasset: “I have said I didn’t like government agent provocateurs provoking violent acts on jan.6 and getting ashlee babbitt killed.”
I thought you said you were non-ignorant. That sounds pretty ignorant to me.
https://abc7chicago.com/lt-michael-byrd-ashli-babbitt-shotting-capitol-police-officer-who-shot-interview/10980230/
AJ_Liberty (38cc13) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:38 pmMe, too. I listened to his show, Sunday nights.
Maybe me too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-104x-t85G4
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:40 pm@41: It took you two whole sentences to get to Fred Hampton this time.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:42 pmI thought you said you were non-ignorant.
By that he means that the lies he believes are reserved for really smart people.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/10/2023 @ 9:43 pm@45 FBI had agent provocateurs who they call “informants” One was a witness at proud boys trial. They even had defendent lie for plea bargain like ryan samsel to protect agent provocateur ray epps. Because I didn’t think ashlee babbitt should have been killed because of actions of so called govt. informants. My post was about govt. misconduct in infiltrating black lives matter with agent provocateurs. Read the church commission on govt. agent provocateurs. Like most here I am not a fan of trump or jan6 rioters. :but the riot shouldn’t have been helped along by govt. so called informants acting as agent provocateurs.
asset (9e5922) — 3/10/2023 @ 11:42 pmEpps was none of the sort. He’s a loudmouth who was smeared as an FBI CI to shift blame away from MAGA Nation rioters and absolve Trump and Trumpists from responsibility for the Capitol Building invasion.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/11/2023 @ 6:55 am‘Opposed To Any Accountability’: Ted Cruz Says FBI Won’t Answer Questions About Role In Capitol Riot
What do they have to hide???????
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:19 amI can’t be sure if asset is a parody or rehearsing a catfishing persona he uses at teen woke sites. The barely literate style and blatant disinformation, also used by Trump and Nigerian princes, hint at the later.
nk (903b67) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:19 amDeSantis went from winning a nailbiter 4 years ago to a blowout 20 point with even winninh leftist Miami-Dade. You just don’t like that he’s willing to stand up for socially conservative and family values.
NJRob (7e81d0) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:41 amCongratulations:
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:43 amCoward:
The Freedom Caucus aren’t the only people that can push McCarthy around.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:57 amRip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:57 am
Calling the Taiwan president a “coward” is pretty much par for the course for leftist Rip.
Taiwan’s president Tsai Ing-wen has convinced US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to meet in California rather than Taipei to avoid an aggressive Chinese military response, as tensions run high between Beijing and Washington.
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 8:08 amThere’s no reason for McCarthy to ape Pelosi. What does the House have to do with foreign relations, anyway? Sure, they have to approve aid to Taiwan, but that’s what lobbyists are for. Actually, it gives the appearance of impropriety for foreign officials to be schmoozing with House members.
nk (903b67) — 3/11/2023 @ 8:41 amPeople familiar with Tsai’s upcoming travel plans also told the Financial Times she has accepted an invitation to speak at the Reagan Library in southern California.
Another event scheduled for our host, no doubt.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:27 amApparently everything is a conspiracy. Facts don’t matter, because everyone lies and the deep state just hides the truth. They hate Trump, hate Tucker Carlson, hate MAGA, and hate populist Republicans who are just being railroaded and skapegoated by all the coopted institutions of our society, from the liberal media to the pointy-headed academics to the sleazy entertainers to our rule-bending law enforcement agencies to the compromised state and justice departments. The grievances are long; the victimology strident; and the angst existential.
Ray Epps MUST be an FBI provocateur. The sworn statement by Ryan Stamsel that he was NOT encouraged to storm the barrier by Epps is ignored or deemed unreliable. The fact that Stamsel claimed Proud Boy Joseph Biggs did encourage him to violence is waved away as saying what “the man” wants him to say. Epps’ text message to his nephew containing the word “orchestrated” is treated as sacred writ even though the facts show he did not commit violence J6 or attempt to even enter the Capitol. Some orchestration! A sitting senator then slimes the FBI, after sliming the 2020 election officials with equally discredited “facts”.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/05/us/jan-6-ray-epps-evidence.html
JF and NJRob appear to LOVE this stuff. They marinate and luxuriate in it. And they have a captive audience whose intelligence they can insult or assault with impunity. It is comical that asset’s monologue conveniently intersects their’s at Epps. Neither edge trusts the FBI now. Ignore them? I guess it depends on how much time you have and interest in correcting facts. Nothing changes….nothing ever resonates…what exactly is the point? It’s a battle to exhaustion. mg and FWO in essence tapped out. Who will fold next?
AJ_Liberty (38cc13) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:28 amI can’t be sure if asset is a parody or rehearsing a catfishing persona
No, he’s just the kind of “America Last!” fella who serves as such a good foil for the Trumpists.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:29 amMcCarthy is the coward for kowtowing to China’s demands not to visit Taiwan. As far as “aping” Pelosi, it was McCarthy himself who promised to go to Taiwan during the Speaker fight.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:31 am@59 Everything is a right wing conspiracy, until years later when you were on top of it all along. See campaign surveillance, pee dossier, Carter Page, covid origins, twittergate, hunter laptop, loudoun county school rape, russian bounties, yada yada
Cruz’s questions are pretty direct and simple, and the what-do-they-have-to-hide?? brigade here is suddenly disinterested LOL
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:42 amRip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:31 am
Rip, be more choosy with your leftist agitprop spam
conserve your strength, the weekend is young
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:46 amNice to know which China you support, and it isn’t an island.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:50 amJF,
Do you think that we’ll find someday that the 2020 election was really fraudulent?
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:50 amJF,
Do you think that we’ll find someday that the “pee dossier” was really the only piece of raw evidence used to target Trump?
AJ_Liberty (38cc13) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:54 amDo you think that we’ll find someday that the 2020 election was really fraudulent?
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:50 am
highly unlikely
that has nothing to do with Cruz’s questions and the stonewalling
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 10:01 amNice to know which China you support, and it isn’t an island.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:50 am
you post leftist crap all day every day, which is fine, and it’s there for all to see
also there for all to see are multiple posts supporting our military intervention if China attacks Taiwan, and none supporting the chicoms
which you are well aware of, which makes you a certain kind of commenter that has a safe space here
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 10:08 ammultiple posts of mine supporting our military intervention if China attacks Taiwan
JF (aa688f) — 3/11/2023 @ 10:09 amPelosi was going to be in the neighborhood anyway — as I recall, it was a tour of half a dozen countries — and the PRC made the mistake of telling her not to go to Taiwan. Have you ever told a woman not to do something?
nk (903b67) — 3/11/2023 @ 10:17 amIf you mean “leftist crap” like criticizing Trump and the “riot” (I know you’re sensitive about the word “insurrection” and I don’t want to trigger you-oh wait, sorry) to overturn the 2020 election, election denialism, the corrosive impact MAGA followers are having on American politics, as well as supporting Ukraine, then I’m in good company.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 10:36 am“I can’t be sure if asset is a parody or rehearsing a catfishing persona
No, he’s just the kind of “America Last!” fella who serves as such a good foil for the Trumpists.
No, he exhibits the thinking of many here when it’s more honest and taken a to a bit more extreme lengths.
Colonel Haiku (ba1ac2) — 3/11/2023 @ 11:12 amYou’re kidding:
TrumpWorld not amused:
Stipulated Facts.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 11:18 amMs. Tambourine Woman :
Statement of Facts.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 11:58 amAJ,
you’re jumping through hoops to muddy the waters. That’s the FBI that went armed with a dozen agents after a Catholic deacon and other Christians, right?
Same FBI that thought the Trump docs search was nothing, but still went armed and set up a photo shoot with “classified docs.”
Keep playing your role. You’re good at it.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:01 pmJF,
anyone standing up to big government is suddenly a threat. At least if it hinders the left.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:02 pm“They had to take the top of my head off a couple times, see if I had a brain.” – Joe Biden, 3/6/23
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2023/03/06/biden_describes_aneurysm_they_had_to_take_the_top_of_my_head_off_a_couple_times_see_if_i_had_a_brain.html
Took off the top of his head?!?! Didn’t our other Irish-Catholic POTUS suffer a similar experience, Joe?
DCSCA (b74ebf) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:08 pmThis week Politico’s collection had too many cartoons for me to link them all in one comment, so I’ll just link two, Wes Powell’s Fox, and Tim Campbell’s Tucker Carlson. (Campbell’s cartoon is crude, nasty — and it made me laugh out loud.)
Ohman’s cartoon makes an important point; DCCCP will love the Matt Davies cartoon; and, I have to admit that, as annoying as he can be at times, Matt Wuerker scored with the one of his he included in the collection.
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:11 pmSorry for the mistake. Here’s the Tim Campbell cartoon.
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:13 pmNo, he exhibits the thinking of many here when it’s more honest and taken a to a bit more extreme lengths.
OK, name one.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:17 pmCongratulations (I Think):
TrumpWorld split.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:38 pmLink to Bobert article.
Rip Murdock (cfb3be) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:40 pmA New Career for Trump?
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 12:56 pmAny bets on what “carrying charges” might be imposed by Trump?
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 1:07 pm@51 stating facts @52 name calling why I don’t call you names. @59 stamsel was forced to lie for ray epps for better deal to protect him. @72 thank you.
asset (ea6d92) — 3/11/2023 @ 1:31 pmhttps://freebeacon.com/campus/dogshit-federal-judge-decries-disruption-of-his-remarks-by-stanford-law-students-and-calls-for-termination-of-the-stanford-dean-who-joined-the-protesters/
While many prefer to “tone police” those on the right, these are the cultists being raised up on the left. Perhaps realizing what is taking place within your own country will open your eyes.
Perhaps not.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/11/2023 @ 1:32 pm“@59 stamsel was forced to lie for ray epps for better deal to protect him.”
Evidence??? Or wishful thinking?
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/11/2023 @ 1:42 pmIt’s disappointing but unsurprising to see that the Academy has refused Ukraine’s President Zelensky’s request to appear at the Oscars via telecast. This is the second year in a row they have said no. Zelensky takes every opportunity he can to frequently appear via video at cultural events (Grammy Awards, Golden Globes, Berlin Film Festival, etc.) that reach large audiences to remind people of what is at stake if Putin wins this war and erases Ukraine. Because we all know that he will not stop there. While it is certainly the Academy’s prerogative to say no, it’s unfortunate because the awards show has a massive audience that could be reached. Last year’s show pulled in 15.36 million viewers and has been known to draw around 40 million viewers in previous years. It appears that the Academy powers-that-be do not understand the threat to Western nations if Putin is victorious. And most certainly, people of every color, not just white, will be adversely impacted if this happens. I say this because last year’s reason for the refusal was laughable on its face:
The Academy also claimed that they “wanted to remain apolitical.” Of course, that is a ridiculous joke. All one has to do is watch virtually any modern awards show to know that being apolitical is not even a thing at the shows. To the contrary… Also bear in mind that this is a group that applauded on-air the rapist of a 13-year-old girl…
No reason was given for this year’s refusal, and the Academy has declined to respond to inquiries.
Dana (1225fc) — 3/11/2023 @ 2:07 pmTexas man sues women he says helped
his ex-wife obtain abortion pills
…………
The plaintiff, Marcus Silva, is represented by Jonathan Mitchell, a conservative lawyer who was the architect of a novel 2021 Texas abortion ban, and Briscoe Cain, a Republican member of the Texas House. The lawsuit states that helping someone obtain an abortion qualifies as murder under the state’s pre-Roe abortion ban that took effect this summer, allowing Silva to sue under the wrongful-death statute.
Silva’s civil case could result in the women being forced to pay over $1 million in damages. The district attorney in Galveston, Tex., will decide separately whether to charge the women in criminal court.
Silva alleged that in July 2022, when the couple were still married, his wife became pregnant but concealed it from him.
Two of the defendants allegedly exchanged text messages with Silva’s wife, discussing how and where she could obtain the medication to cause an abortion. A third defendant arranged for the delivery of the medication, the complaint alleged.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 2:24 pm…………..
That’s a ridiculous and false assertion, asset. I really don’t know why a so-called liberal is carrying water for this MAGA rioter punk.
Epps’ calming Samsel down was caught on video.
The sad thing about the Epps episode is that he’s been a victim of Trumpist bullies–based on a lie–that he was some sort FBI informant, and it turned his life upside down, and it’s akin to right-wing political bullying that Ruby Freeman went through, which was also based on the lie that she did something nefarious during the vote counting in Fulton County.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/11/2023 @ 2:51 pm“based on a lie–that he was some sort FBI informant, and it turned his life upside down”
This is the part of it that the conspiracists don’t appreciate. They will burn down people’s lives to rationalize the notion of a nefarious state plot. It’s quite sad.
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/11/2023 @ 2:58 pmThe big news in Britain today is that media BS isn’t just a US thing
BBC’s flagship soccer show boycotted over Gary Lineker impartiality row
The BBC, funded by a mandatory license fee, has long been accused of left wing bias. Lineker is their highest paid presenter, and has made his left wing views known both on and off air. The other presenters walking out in support of him know full well the BBC handles free speech of right wing presenters by just never hiring them in the first place.
JF (81914c) — 3/11/2023 @ 2:59 pmThe current chairman of the BBC is conservative, which donations to the conservative party of more than 400,000 pounds. Right before he was appointed as chairman, he helped Boris Johnson (Prime minister at the time) secure an 800,000 pound loan.
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/11/2023 @ 3:51 pmShould Epps life at least get burned down for his insurrectionist actions?
I could not find this is an approved NY Times link.
BuDuh (b2fc6e) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:15 pm85. I did not call you any names, asset. The assertion that I did matches the others you make.
nk (0611dd) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:23 pmNo reason was given for this year’s refusal, and the Academy has declined to respond to inquiries.
Ukraine should make a short documentary about a family or community trying to survive the Russian Blitz. If they do it right, it will make the Oscar short list and Zelensky can be one of the producers. Worked for Al gore.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:31 pmThey will burn down people’s lives to rationalize the notion of a nefarious state plot. It’s quite sad.
Trumpists did this to precinct workers.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:33 pm“Hurling”? To throw an object with great force? I did see him on video holding up the sign for a few moments.
Yournews is a site with a “Mixed” record on factual reporting and rated “Low Credibility”, so I won’t be taking their assertions as gospel.
Anyway, this is emblematic of the Trumpist right-wing, trying to find a scapegoat for all the MAGA Nation rioters and their riotous lawbreaking behavior. They all sound like f*cking liberals in their efforts to dodge responsibility.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:49 pmUkraine (co-produced) does have an Oscar entry for Best Documentary this year: A House Made of Splinters, which tells the story of an orphanage in the eastern Ukrainian city of Lysychansk. A city, I might add, that is now in shambles and under Russian control.
It is up against Best Documentary contender: Navalny.
Dana (1225fc) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:55 pmWhy thank him? Do you think “almost as extreme left as asset, just less honest about it” (paraphrasing) was meant to flatter you?
lurker (cd7cd4) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:57 pmI remember Dr. Demento from around like 1978 – there was some radio show. They had other songs.
“Governor Briscoe promised us..and let em all freeze and boil!,
Best selling record in Dallas June 1978,”by the way Gov Briscoe lost the primary.’
Sammy Finkelman (561961) — 3/11/2023 @ 5:02 pmMaybe different writers?
Here’s a brief round-up on Putin’s War Against Ukraine…
I’m glad the western cognoscenti have finally come around to my idea that Ukraine should reclaim the Crimean peninsula that was illegally taken from them, and it would be a strategic plum if Zelenskyy can pull it off.
Here’s a brief historical perspective of the peninsula, which contrasts quite a bit from Putin’s myths about the area.
General Keane has an assessment of Ukraine’s chances, and I hope he’s right. Bottom line, the Ukrainians have the will, they just need the hardware.
Philips O’Brien has a piece on Bakhmut and the Ukrainian strategy of not giving it up. I’ll say this, the Legion of Boom had a philosophy of not giving up a square inch of yardage, and it worked out well for them, so I’m supportive of that concept against rashist invaders.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/11/2023 @ 5:24 pmAlso, if the ratio of five to seven Russian casualties for every Ukrainian casualty is accurate, that’s a serious to blow to Russian manpower. That they would continue to throw bodies and sacrifice thousands–maybe tens of thousands–for a town whose main importance is a highway crossroads, then it’s probably worth defending.
Anna Porphyrogenita. If you ever wondered where the expression “born to the purple” came from:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Porphyrogenita
nk (0611dd) — 3/11/2023 @ 5:35 pmAnyone who regularly goes to teriyaki joints knows that South Koreans work like Trojans, and now the current government is codifying that work ethic.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/11/2023 @ 5:40 pmFor anyone who thinks that Ukraine should negotiate with Russia.
Dana (1225fc) — 3/11/2023 @ 5:42 pmFor a more complete and balanced report of the Stanford Federalist Society event, see David Lat’s substack. The post-incident apology to Judge Duncan by the dean (the real dean, not the shameful DEI functionary) and the President of Stanford, was appropriate and welcome.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 3/11/2023 @ 5:43 pmCongrats to NASA/SpaceX on the successful splashdown of Dragon Endurance and Crew 5 returning from the ISS after 157 days in orbit…
https://www.nasa.gov/content/live-coverage-of-nasas-spacex-crew-5-mission
It never grows old.
Well done, kids.
DCSCA (fdca8e) — 3/11/2023 @ 6:29 pmRussian Media Watch:
……….
Only can only hope that current Russian leadership is removed by any means necessary.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:37 pm“Lauren Boebert, along with Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Trump himself: Yeah, a little bit nuts. Self-aggrandizing. Hypocritical. Narcisstic. Lacking virtue. Etc.
But a thousand times better than our regular elite in DC. God bless them.”
—- Andrew
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:39 pmInteresting post on baseball’s rule changes at TD. Personally I wish that baseball tries to lower the mound first instead of getting rid of the shift. I think batting should re-emphasize contact and being able to take a pitch to the opposite field. Guys like Pete Rose, Rod Carew, and Tony Gwynn mastered the art. We’re just excusing the outsized focus on launch angles and pulling the ball. Sure we love the HR but I’m tired of all of the 0.210 hitters who would never stay in the major league years ago.
The pitch clock I’m completely on the fence about. On one hand, a lot of drama comes with a cat and mouse contest between hitter and pitcher (or pitcher and base runner). On the other hand, keep the action moving. Baseball has never been about finishing quick but with all of the specialty relief pitchers there does ssem to be too much switching, but I’m not sure that I want to do away with the strategy of that. Unlike free trade, I’m persuadable on this.
Bigger bases I’m not too moved about. There are a lot of collisions on the first base line so I understand it there. Yes, it helps the SB too but it seems like we’re throwing a big * in the record book then. One of the glorious things about baseball is the ability to look across time and make fair comparisons. That was the big sacrilege of the steroid era — mocking the excellence of Maris and the Babe. But still SB’s seem way down from 40 years ago…if this encourages it a bit more, maybe it makes the game a little more exciting (Lou Brock and Maury Wills will spin in their graves).
Finally, starting the runner on 2nd base in extra innings (regular season) seems like an abomination to me which again befouls the stats. It’s like awarding each team a walk and stolen base to start the inning. It devalues the pitcher trying extra hard to keep that leadoff hitter off the bases. Now a team just needs to execute a sacrifice bunt and sacrifice fly to get a run home. Sure it ain’t automatic, but it’s unnecessarily putting the thumb on the scale. I love seeing the stragey of an extra inning game. Here it’s rushing it along. Like, hurry up we got to get home to watch Cobert or something. Baseball is about strategy and matchups. I would vote to get rid of the free 2nd base.
AJ_Liberty (65e436) — 3/11/2023 @ 7:52 pm?
BuDuh (8a46d4) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:03 pmThe pitch clock is probably necessary, given the way some pitchers will spend a couple of minutes waving off signs then throwing to first, waving off signs then throwing to first. It’s tedious.
I think it would be better if the umpire could just award a ball for too much delay, given the situation at hand since not all situations require the same behavior. But that would probably get umpires hated more.
They should be allowed to shift as they want. IF the want to put everyone out in left field, fine. I’ve seen situations where having three outfielders isn’t useful (bottom 9th, man on third, tie game, less than 2 outs).
Then again, I’m still coming to grips with the DH.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 9:48 pm@110 “singles hitters drive chevys. Home run hitters drive cadillacs. Ralph Kiner and he would know. Purists want to see 1-0 pitchers duel. Casual fans want to see hitting. 1968 great pitchers and low attendance. Babe ruth saved baseball not walter johnson. After strike steriod era filled the ball parks with home run hitting contests. Base ball knows if it gets in trouble aluminum bats will bring hitting and the fans back and my sport is automobile racing who desperately need female drivers stop being wrecked by rich punks.
asset (a34508) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:33 am@112 A major problem is huge newer ball parks. People don’t want to see 400 feet outs. Fenway park less comfortable ;but more fun then places like the stadium the diamond backs play in. People like hitter friendly parks like cincinnati, houston and wrigley field. Not being much of a fan anymore their may be more hitters park.
asset (a34508) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:41 amhttps://legalinsurrection.com/2023/03/sen-tom-cotton-introduces-bill-to-stop-teaching-crt-in-the-military/
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:10 amsingles hitters drive chevys. Home run hitters drive cadillacs.
The minimum MLB salary is $720,000 for 2023. Nobody drive a Chevy.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:16 amvery rare honesty from the AP in bold
but give it a few weeks to reorient themselves, and they’ll be back to blaming parents
Oregon eyes mandate for climate change lessons in schools
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon lawmakers are aiming to make the state the second in the nation to mandate climate change lessons for K-12 public school students, further fueling U.S. culture wars in education.
Dozens of Oregon high schoolers submitted support of the bill, saying they care about climate change deeply. Some teachers and parents say teaching climate change could help the next generation better confront it, but others want schools to focus on reading, writing and math after test scores plummeted post-pandemic.
Schools across the U.S. have found themselves at the center of a politically charged battle over curriculum and how matters such as gender, sex education and race should be taught — or whether they should be taught at all.
One of the bill’s chief sponsors, Democratic Sen. James Manning, said even elementary students have told him climate change is important to them.
“We’re talking about third and fourth graders having a vision to understand how this world is changing rapidly,” he said at a Thursday state Capitol hearing in Salem.
JF (81914c) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:52 amClimate change is not a culture war issue, but a scientific debate, a lot like evolution was 100 years ago (note: evolution turns out to be factual and 100 years from now we will know the facts about climate change)..
CRT and sexual identity are more in line with the culture war.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:24 amIs climate change important to young kids? Probably more than it is to this 60-something.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:25 amKevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:25 am
this isn’t about whether climate change is taught in school. It is, everywhere
the mandatory standards are being pushed cuz the instruction is scientific, and of course it needs to be improved by being political
JF (81914c) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:35 amKevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:25 am
climate change is taught in schools, everywhere
the problem is that it’s being taught scientifically, not politically
the mandate will fix that
JF (81914c) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:38 am@114, actually the playing area for parks is essentially the same as it was 70 years ago. That wasn’t what I was expecting
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/ballpark-playing-surfaces-are-shrinking-in-a-surprising-way/
I actually thought it would be noticeably smaller but it’s just slightly smaller. However, foul play has dramatically got smaller to bring fans closer to the action.
AJ_Liberty (65e436) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:43 amWho is Andrew?
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 9:04 am“which would prohibit DOD from teaching racist CRT ideology “in any Department of Defense institution, including service academies.””
Well, the service academies are universities. The students are bright and mature. I think they can handle examining ideas that people perceive things differently because of their race and life experiences. If you are going to lead a racially diverse army, navy, air force, and marine corps, then uderstanding potentials for bias, stereotyping, and callousness seems to be relevant.
Now there will always be questions about how it should be done and how much should be done, but that is an academic question that academics and military leadership can sort through, not politicians grandstanding. Cotton would argue that there are plenty of other topics that should be explored to make better officers, but I doubt that he’s immersed himself in the curricula to make that judgment or that he’s closely examined racism in the military and could, without qualification, say that racism is not a problem and that we’ve attained our color-blind goal. However we rate its effect, white nationalism is a thing and military leaders should have some understanding on how to address it.
Now outside of the university, such discussions become training: what is acceptable conduct and what is not. I doubt that it would tell white servicemen that they should think less of themselves or their race. Everyone can agree on that. Be open about what is said and why. Do not allow training to be politicized. Expect professionalism. Punish those that do not exercise it.
AJ_Liberty (65e436) — 3/12/2023 @ 9:29 am@124 it’s the old “CRT is not taught in schools that’s crazy” and “don’t pass laws prohibiting CRT in schools” game again
JF (81914c) — 3/12/2023 @ 9:38 am@125, sorry but I’ve given up unproductive exchanges for Lent
AJ_Liberty (65e436) — 3/12/2023 @ 9:52 amNo, JF, it’s the old “don’t tell schools what they may teach” thing again. Keep it up and they’ll ban teaching about capitalism, which the Left thinks is just slave-training.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 11:32 amAJ, good comment about cottons bill. Thank you for sharing it.
Time123 (7273e9) — 3/12/2023 @ 11:33 amI doubt that he’s immersed himself in the curricula to make that judgment or that he’s closely examined racism in the military and could, without qualification, say that racism is not a problem and that we’ve attained our color-blind goal. However we rate its effect, white nationalism is a thing and military leaders should have some understanding on how to address it.
Cotton was an Army officer and served in Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s unlikely, if white nationalism exists in any quantity in the military, that he would not have been exposed to it. He may have some ability to judge this where I (and possibly you) do not.
That being said, it is one thing to ask that young children are not exposed to this kind of controversy (before they have the life experience to put it into context) and adults training to become military officers (who may have to deal with things far more uncomfortable).
It also depends on how racial issues are discussed. If this is some kind of “all white people are racist” polemic, then sure, Cotton should be outraged. Even if the guy at the top is “woke” it’s not something I’d expect among the rank-and-file.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 11:53 amYou support the myths of the 1619 project and that white supremacy is institutionalized in the United States.
Got it.
Would’ve been easier to speak clearly instead of ramble on.
NJRob (90ba55) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:05 pmRelated:
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:09 pmLink to Florida bill supported by DeSantis.
Rip Murdock (cfb3be) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:15 pmKevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 11:32 am
it’s a service academy
for fighting wars at taxpayer expense and at our political direction, and I really hope we can tell them what to teach
JF (15af99) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:17 pmIt will never get out of committee, let alone onto the Senate floor.
Rip Murdock (cfb3be) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:19 pmreally interesting that we can mandate elementary schools teach a politicized version of climate change but we can’t tell service academies to not teach CRT
JF (15af99) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:30 pm@131, sorry but I’ve given up unproductive exchanges for Lent
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:31 pm“Would’ve been easier to speak clearly instead of ramble on.”
Less sanctimony, less posturing… where’s the fun in that!?!?
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:35 pm@137 no one asked you a question, padre
JF (15af99) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:38 pmWould’ve been easier to speak clearly instead of ramble on.
Would have been better to read what he wrote rather than misstate his position.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:51 pmfor fighting wars at taxpayer expense and at our political direction, and I really hope we can tell them what to teach
I hope to God that “we” don’t. The only people who should be making those decisions are those with experience in fighting wars. And that’s not just strategy and tactics, but leadership, logistics, morale, teamwork and a few other things. Which your average politician has any fracking clue about.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:54 pmreally interesting that we can mandate elementary schools teach a politicized version of climate change but we can’t tell service academies to not teach CRT
I’m having trouble separating your strawmen from your figments.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 12:55 pm“really interesting that we can mandate elementary schools teach a politicized version of climate change but we can’t tell service academies to not teach CRT”
Maybe there’s a slight difference between what goes on at a university and what goes on in K-12, especially the lower grades. Second, what’s your definition of CRT and how does it comport to how West Point is teaching CRT? I’m guessing your understanding of both is somewhat sketchy. You just seem to know it’s bad and that any discussion of race must be scuttled. Grown ups can have those discussions without there being indoctrination. Congress certainly has the power to tell the service academies anything they want…or shut them down completely. The question is whether there’s wisdom in banning one topic to be taught in any form or fashion at an institution of higher learning? It just sounds dumb to me for the reasons I articulated above. Cotton knows better.
K-12 education is a state function. States can set their own curricula. If it emphasizes critical reasoning and fact-based inquiry, then that’s good. I don’t live in Oregon. Why should I pretend that I know what’s best for them? Suddenly Republicans are confused about federalism and afraid of everything. Different breed I guess.
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:09 pm” if white nationalism exists in any quantity in the military”
One week ago.
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:20 pm
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:22 pmGraphic details
““I mean, this bank, they’re so concerned with DEI and politics and all kinds of stuff. I think that really diverted from them focusing on their core mission,” DeSantis contended.”
As usual, DeSantis is being disingenuous, but if it helps prevent a bailout, by all means punish the “woke” bank.
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:24 pm@130 (Kevin): “It’s unlikely, if white nationalism exists in any quantity in the military, that he would not have been exposed to it”
We can debate the extent and gravity of the problem, but probably not its existence or that it has some effect. Again, this is not the only reason to discuss race in the military. I’m not convinced as to why we need to be afraid of this.
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/02/06/signs-of-white-supremacy-extremism-up-again-in-poll-of-active-duty-troops/
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:25 pmhttps://www.nbcnews.com/news/military/pentagon-report-warns-threat-white-supremacists-inside-military-n1258871
https://newrepublic.com/article/162400/us-military-white-supremacy-problem
One week ago.
There are probably a few Black Separatists, too. But it’s not a problem unless there are significant numbers of Black Separatists.
And for every plot like Meltzer’s, there are a dozen Jihadists actually shooting up their unit.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:25 pmI’m not convinced as to why we need to be afraid of this.
White Nationalists or CRT?
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:27 pmThe thing is that the military is probably the most integrated segment of the American economy, with many senior officers from racial minority groups.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:28 pmKevin M (1ea396) — 3/11/2023 @ 4:31 pm
If the war is over by then, as Zelensky said it would be.
Sammy Finkelman (320fbe) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:33 pmIt is absolutely true that SVB’ s problem came from assuming long term rates would stay low (plus the fact that it had nmany depositers who ran into financial trouble at the same time)
This could lead to a run on other banks of deposits over $250,000 and a bad recession – 2008 all over again. Or worse since Powell won’t do what Bernanke did, in making sure almost no depositors take a loss.
The Fed doesn’t know what it’s doing,
Sammy Finkelman (320fbe) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:41 pmThe Dominion lawsuit also has the issue: Was Fox, or any part of Fox, endorsing or was it just reporting thins that Trump’s partisans were saying, and if some shows went off the rails (like Maria B?) is Fox as a whole responsible?
And was Dminion actually harmed, and how much?
Sammy Finkelman (320fbe) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:44 pm#154
What Republican jurisdiction will retain Dominion in the next few years? It’s pretty easy to demonstrate harm to the organization from all the lying going on. I’m sure Fox will argue that its lies didn’t cause the economic harm. Do you really see a court accepting that argument? Fox’s lying made Trump’s lying far easier to sustain.
Appalled (92130f) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:51 pmKevin,
I read it clearly. He said the status quo at the academies is fine and politicians should butt out. He only said that because he supports the ideology being forced upon those recruits.
Thanks for playing.
NJRob (26f86e) — 3/12/2023 @ 2:11 pm……….
The plan would be among the potential policy responses if the government is unable to find a buyer for the failed bank. The FDIC began an auction process for SVB on Saturday and hoped to identify a winning bidder Sunday afternoon, with final bids expected by 2 p.m. Eastern time, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Selling SVB to a healthy institution remains the preferred solution, officials have told members of Congress. ………
………
Although the FDIC insures bank deposits up to $250,000, a provision in federal banking law may give them the authority to protect the uninsured deposits as well if they conclude that failing to do so would pose a systemic risk to the broader financial system, the people said. In that event, uninsured deposits could be backstopped by an insurance fund, paid into regularly by U.S. banks.
Before that happens, the systemic risk verdict must be endorsed by a two-thirds vote of the Fed’s Board of Governors and the FDIC board along with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. ………..
“I think it’s going to be hard to say that this is systemic in any way,” Sheila Bair, former head of the FDIC, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
…………
“This isn’t a systemic event. This is a midsize bank that was badly managed,” said (Anil Kashyap, a professor at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business). “It may be a little messy. But that’s different than if you have somebody at the core of the financial system stop making payments to somebody else at the core of the system and then the core implodes.”
…………
Free link.
Whether or not their is actual “systemic risk” is a political question, not an economic one.
There are also proposals for Congress to pass legislation to temporarily raise the $250,000 insured deposits cap to protect companies with multi-million dollar deposits.
However, any legislative fix will no doubt be opposed by the Freedom Caucus no matter what the economic consequences are.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 2:42 pmMore from Vivek Ramaswamy:
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 2:59 pmHe only said that because he supports the ideology being forced upon those recruits.
You know, if you were to misrepresent my comments that badly, I’d be pissed. I guess AJ is a more temperate person — he just calls you an idiot an moves on.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 3:37 pmFirst Republic Bank had a run on it Friday… it’s getting caught up in this as well.
“We’re not going to do that again,” (Janet Yellen said on Face the Nation) referring to bailouts. “But we are concerned about depositors, and we’re focused on trying to meet their needs.”
Bailouts?? Yet inflation-is-transitory–76-year-old-Yellen, who was in Ukraine two weeks ago guaranteeing free tax $ ‘bailing out’ Ukraine today says no to American banks that finance U.S. start-ups etc.,etc…
Janet Yellen visits Ukraine and pledges even more U.S. economic aid
https://www.npr.org/2023/02/27/1159719607/janet-yellen-ukraine-us-aid
Z needs the $; paying Hollywood power agents like WME’s Mike Simpson is expensive.
DCSCA (f012ac) — 3/12/2023 @ 3:42 pm“I guess AJ is a more temperate person — he just calls you an idiot an moves on.”
In the spirit of Lent, I choose to look forward to the better NJRob.
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 3:44 pmI hesitate to speculate….but I think Rob is having a little problem with….Satan
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 3:47 pmIt’s Britain, so who cares, but the ongoing Gary Lineker/BBC battle is emblematic and so very familiar.
JF (5b9e19) — 3/12/2023 @ 4:09 pmBreaking-
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 4:53 pmU.S. says ‘all’ deposits at failed bank will be available Monday
Same administration that said inflation was ‘transitory’… and Kabul would not be Saigon.
DCSCA (058101) — 3/12/2023 @ 5:10 pmBefore you tell other people what they should know, ask yourself what the hell do you know that you can tell other people what they should know.
nk (d277a9) — 3/12/2023 @ 5:11 pmNot my religion, so I may be way off, but isn’t Lenten sacrifice supposed to be of something you enjoy? Seems to me what you’re doing is akin to giving up syphilis or unanesthetized root canals.
lurker (cd7cd4) — 3/12/2023 @ 5:35 pmAJ,
I appreciate your trolling. It fits in with the other social leftists.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 5:37 pmSignature Bank shut down by regulatorsThe crypto-friendly Signature Bank was shut down by regulators on Sunday.
In a joint statement, the Federal Reserve, the US Treasury and the FDIC said the bank’s depositors would be made whole. Signature Bank’s closure comes on the heels of Silicon Valley Bank being shuttered on Friday. In an attempt to prevent a spreading financial crisis, regulators shut down the crypto-friendly Signature Bank, New York, on Sunday, promising to make its depositors whole. – businessinsider.com
Anotrher ‘transitory’… eh, Janet?!
DCSCA (058101) — 3/12/2023 @ 5:47 pmMore:
“I once invited President Trump to Bible study,” Pence said early in his speech. “He really liked the passages about the smiting and perishing of thine enemies. As he put it, ‘Ya know, Mike, there’s some really good stuff in here.’”
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 5:48 pmTrumpWorld not enamored with Pence’s remarks:
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 6:18 pmSo, a modern SF movie picks up Oscars. Maybe spaceships and blasters aren’t everything.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/12/2023 @ 6:29 pmI’m never sure about bailouts. I don’t think you should socialize all losses and privatize all gains. I also think it leads to poor management and risky behaviors by certain companies (banks in this case). However, I’m also not sure about the loss to the economy if we don’t bail out depositors. At least we could be pretty sure that GM could probably pay the gov back at some point, I don’t know that same about a failing bank.
@Lurker@167 In the modern day you are supposed to be doing something that makes you a better person in some way, not necessarily just deprivation. If you struggle with certain kinds of gluttony, frex, you can give up a food item you find particularly enjoyable. If you struggle with sloth, you might vow to make your bed or exercise every day. If you struggle with wrath, you might give up unproductive debates on the internet. 😛
Nic (896fdf) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:23 pm“but isn’t Lenten sacrifice supposed to be of something you enjoy? Seems to me what you’re doing is akin to giving up syphilis or unanesthetized root canals.”
OK, now THAT’S funny.
AJ_Liberty (85f1de) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:25 pm“I appreciate your trolling. It fits in with the other social leftists.”
And the Holy Spirit is going to wear you out. He eats your hate and craps your intolerance. Or is it the other way around? Either way, Jesus is coming….and he’s pissed.
AJ_Liberty (85f1de) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:34 pm““I mean, this bank, they’re so concerned with DEI and politics and all kinds of stuff. I think that really diverted from them focusing on their core mission,” DeSantis contended.”
As usual, DeSantis is being disingenuous, but if it helps prevent a bailout, by all means punish the “woke” bank.
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:24 pm
Do you think the head of “Financial Risk Management” was laser focused on his/her/their job?
JF (8e1b77) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:36 pmLink to what he/she/they was laser focused on.
JF (8e1b77) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:38 pm@175 looks like Lent is over
JF (8e1b77) — 3/12/2023 @ 7:40 pmCafeteria Catholic.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:14 pmRIP Canadian actor Gordon Pinsent
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:18 pm(92). Played the President of the United States in one of my all-time favorite films, Colossus: The Forbin Project.
“Navalny” wins the Oscar for Best Documentary.
Dana (1225fc) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:36 pmEverything Everywhere All at Once wins Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actress (Michelle Yeoh), Best Supporting Actress (Jamie Lee Curtis),and Best Supporting Actor (Ke Huy Quan),
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:40 pmIt almost makes up for rejecting Zelensky’s request to appear. And it is just as political.
Rip Murdock (4074ee) — 3/12/2023 @ 8:43 pm@183. Wrong venue. Z was TeeVee, his high-priced William Morris agent, Mike Simpson, can push to have him crash the Emmys instead:
‘Before becoming the actual president of Ukraine, Zelenskyy played the role in a popular Ukrainian TV show, “Servant of the People.” In the show, which aired from 2015 to 2019, Zelenskyy played an idealistic school teacher who goes on a viral tirade about government corruption and ends up becoming president.’ – wikibio
DCSCA (e2a1dc) — 3/12/2023 @ 11:33 pmOne reason fed is backing up all deposits not just insured back in 2008/2009 when bill was passed to stop bailing out banks. The banksters snuck in a provision where they can seize deposits even savings account, trust funds even safety deposits if the fed doesn’t bail them out. Some of you who are into this might look it up and give us the gory details.
asset (8e7792) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:17 amdobbs frank replaces bail outs with bail ins and fed will have to bail out bank customers in stead of banks.
asset (8e7792) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:30 amI’m never sure about bailouts
What’s happening with these banks are not bailouts. In a bailout, the bank’s owners and management escape unharmed. Here the owners (the stockholders) are going to be zeroed out and the management has to take their chances with the new owners.
The other employees and the depositors are blameless and are made whole. This policy decision also demonstrates that “bank runs” and other forms of panic are not necessary — and THAT is so very important because a bank run can wipe out a bank at computer speed; much faster than any possible assurance (or rumor control) can dampen the demand.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:34 amOne reason fed is backing up all deposits not just insured back in 2008/2009 when bill was passed to stop bailing out banks.
The real reason is that computer-based bank runs are fatal and can be caused simply by a well-placed rumor. If you KNOW that the feds will make you whole, the panic factor is small.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:37 am@188 look at dobbs frank bill the banksters sunk in a bail in where they can take depositors to the cleaners so the fed can say they are bailing out depositors whos savings were seized by bank not the bank slight of hand.
asset (8e7792) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:42 amNote that this is quite different that 2008, where the banks’ mortgage-backed securities assets were shown to be garbage and the repurchase agreements were not honored.
Here the assets were golden as far as capital was concerned. It was just that they had bought too much long-term debt with short-term money and interest rates were rising.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:45 amI tell you punchline, you make up setup:
“Lent? To whom and for how long?”
nk (d277a9) — 3/13/2023 @ 4:26 amThe paradox of book burners:
Q. Why shouldn’t people read CRT?
A. Because it’s a false doctrine that warps minds.
Q. How do you know?
A. I’ve read it.
And several variants of same.
nk (d277a9) — 3/13/2023 @ 4:40 amnk (d277a9) — 3/13/2023 @ 4:26 am
ok, I’ll play this reverse-comedy of yours.
Oscar: “…”
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:00 amLevant: “…..?”
Oscar: “Well, it is Lent.”
Levant: “Lent? To whom and for how long?”
Oscar: “…”
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:24 amLevant: “And how is that?”
Oscar: “Well, it is Lent.”
Levant: “Lent? To whom and for how long?”
Oscar: “Almsgiving, especially now, is most profitable.”
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:27 amLevant: “And how is that?”
Oscar: “Well, it is Lent.” [or better: “Because it’s Lent”]
Levant: “Lent? To whom and for how long?”
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:24 am
You may find it sad that this is my day job.
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:28 amIn most American rural areas, matchmaking is a popular pastime.
And it’s fun to see when it works out well, as it did for these two geese. Who had some help from humans, including a personal ad.
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:33 amThe almsgiving one is good, felipe.
But not the one I had in mind.
nk (d277a9) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:38 amFinal form:
Father George: Almsgiving is highly profitable – especially now.
RCIA student: Why?
Father George: Because it’s Lent!
RCIA student: Lent? To whom, and for how long?
Thanks, for the punchline, nk. See you in Heaven someday.
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:38 amHere’s a punchline for all of you: “A U-Haul.”
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/13/2023 @ 6:47 amMy joke could be a sequel to yours, Jim.
nk (81dc45) — 3/13/2023 @ 7:25 amThe mention of RCIA in Felipe’s joke brings to mind a question….RCIA is often populated by fiancees seeking to become Catholic for their soon to be spouses. How often do 2 RCIAs in a given class grouping, male and female, end up accepting the RC faith and ditching the fiancees to be with one another instead?
urbanleftbehind (376535) — 3/13/2023 @ 7:30 amurbanleftbehind (376535) — 3/13/2023 @ 7:30 am
Good question! Spousal conversion really is a “thing.”
In your scenario, none, to my certain knowledge. Such a story would be so scandalous that it would spread quickly and be shared widely.
My experience is that the majority, but not all, of attendees that are in RCIA to become Catholic, is in connection to marriage, have already been married for quite a while after experiencing a miraculous conversion. Conversions that came only after years of struggle and much reconciling of deeply held convictions with a deeply-rooted misunderstanding of Truth. A Famous, double-conversion example follows.
–Warning! This is heavy stuff, not Unicorns and rainbow fluff. This is the speech of adults, after the children have gone to bed. Also, I am not trying to convert anyone!–
When a spouse converts.
felipe (77b190) — 3/13/2023 @ 8:22 amWell, the SVB mess hit home this AM as I got SEC 8K forms from start up biotechs who have been looking at curing this, therapeutics for that. Generally speaking these types of companies are squeezed for cash. I have to admit I can’t figure out exactly how this “bank will be open Monday and funds will be accessible” is going to work. Checks that were sent and are in clearing process will be honored or can I write a check for $10M and empty the account? I’m guessing some version of scenario one. This will shatter some dreams, particularly for the folks that are participants in the clinical trials and their families.
steveg (4d1319) — 3/13/2023 @ 8:32 amYou brought it up, so you should provide the details.
Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 3/13/2023 @ 8:51 am“Do you think the head of “Financial Risk Management” was laser focused on his/her/their job?”
Well, good news. The SVB UK subsidiary that this person worked for has been acquired by HSBC bank.
https://www.about.hsbc.co.uk/hsbc-uk/inclusion-and-diversity
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:17 amLost among the weekend’s bank failures was this news:
Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:21 amFor just one pound ($1.22).
Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:25 amDEI is the scraps that fall off the rich man’s table. See Luke 16-91-31. And there are two packs of dogs. One pack is by the table fighting each other for them. The other pack is outside howling because they cannot get at them at all.
I’ll excuse the pack by the table. Because maybe that’s the only way they get enough to eat. I don’t excuse the pack outside. They should go find their own table.
nk (fe1421) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:29 amLuke 16:19-31
nk (fe1421) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:31 amYou brought it up, so you should provide the details.
Indeed. Demanding that others jump through hoops basically gets you ignored, or at least countered with equally unsourced assertions.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 11:59 amThe Texas judge who could undo government approval of a key abortion drug
This is why we have appeals courts.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:01 pm@209: So I guess we are supposed to bring the homeless into our houses and feed them, for their poverty is blameless.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:04 pm@209: So I guess we are supposed to bring the homeless into our houses and feed them, for their poverty is blameless.
If that’s what I wrote, that’s probably what I meant. I will go back and reread it to make sure that I did not write it in Greek, though.
nk (fe1421) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:26 pmEverything Everywhere was certainly an unusual movie but I didn’t see much of the competition for comparison. It definitely held my attention and had some pretty humorous parts. They didn’t take themselves too seriously which had to come across for the plotline to “work”. I probably need to go to the theater and watch more movies….I think I’ve gotten too comfortable with NetFlix et al.
I’m always a little surprised that for all the mystery and sci-fi books, more aren’t adapted for the big screen. I’m bored with Marvel/DC…some are better than others….but there’s not a lot of grist there. I want more like the Expanse or the revived Dune. There’re good stories out there, why do we languish?
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:31 pmI don’t subscribe to the NYT. Has anyone been reading David French over there and have his pieces been worthwhile? Has he taken on the Left yet? Goldberg has him lasting 18mos. It will be interesting to see.
AJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:33 pmDavethulhu (607d18) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:17 am
looks like you’re just now discovering that every company on the planet must make sacrifices to the DEI gods, whether that sacrifice is lip service or other people’s life savings
my guess is that the head of risk management at HSBC is actually laser focused on risk management, which no doubt disappoints you
JF (36c03d) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:43 pmIf that’s what I wrote, that’s probably what I meant
I think that was Abraham’s point. Not sure if you co-sign.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:54 pmAJ,
SF (as opposed to “sci-fi” (think “stereo” and “hi-fi”)) has rarely made it to the screen. Dune. sure. But for every “Dune” there’s a dozen spaceship/monster/alien invasion movies.
EEAaO is really pure modern SF, dealing with the nature of reality and experience. Phil Dick would have liked it.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:58 pmMarvel peaked with Endgame, and maybe 10 of the 22 movies in that arc were excellent. Since then? I liked the second Dr Strange movie, and the Loki and Hawkeye series, but most of it has been “Meh?” Then again, DC starts off at “Meh?” and goes down from there. I didn’t finish “The Batman.”
Why do we languish? There’s a stoppage in the Hollywood executive suite. Even when they get good properties, they ruin them by treating them like exploitable property. See “Foundation” or “Rings of Power” or any movie made from a Heinlein book.
“Tales of Known Space” would be a great basis for a set of limited series.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 1:06 pmlooks like you’re just now discovering that every company on the planet must make sacrifices to the DEI gods, whether that sacrifice is lip service or other people’s life savings
PR. And it’s mostly lip service. The real problem is academe where it is toxic.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 1:07 pmTHere’s an Asimov science fiction novel that would make a great movie: The Caves of Steel:
(Links omitted.)
Oh, and it’s a pretty good detective story, too.
Almost all of you know more than I about what modern technology can do in the making of movies now, but I suspect that Hollywood could do this story pretty well. (Correct me, if I am wrong about taht.)
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/13/2023 @ 1:28 pmStar Trek actually did a cartoon version of a Larry Niven story, “The Soft Weapon”.
I recall watching it with astonishment, since the backgrounds of “Known Space” and the Star Trek galaxy are so different.
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/13/2023 @ 1:36 pm“looks like you’re just now discovering that every company on the planet must make sacrifices to the DEI gods, whether that sacrifice is lip service or other people’s life savings”
Someone is just discovering something, but it’s not me.
“my guess is that the head of risk management at HSBC is actually laser focused on risk management, which no doubt disappoints you”
The risk management head from the article you linked was at the UK branch, which was brought down because the US branch failed, not due to poor risk management on their part.
Davethulhu (607d18) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:01 pmFunny how all the milton friedman economic libertarians republicans are blaming diversity and not greed. I thought the republicans were against bank bail outs.
asset (7babe9) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:02 pmAn unexplored question:
Who altered the intelligence assessment? The Senate Committee did not get a good explanation, except that somebody else was in charge of writing it.
https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/HSGAC&RulesFullReport_ExaminingU.S.CapitolAttack.pdf
Page 45:
[!!! Even this widely advertised event (among Trump supporters) was assessed as very unlikely to take place.
The thought occurs there could have been a mole in the Capitol Police. But this is not the kind of theory that interests Tucker Carlson and the like.
Who supplied him or her with background information? You just leave it at that?
I think there were about 9 separate permits for demonstrations of 50 people – limited to 50 because of Covid rstrictions. There were no tourists as some members of Congress seem to say now. . Tourism was not allowed because of Covid. You could argue that some of the people who broke in acted like tourists but they were not tourists.
Interestingly, none of the people who broke in seem to have carried a gun.
The planners seemed to know they were going to loseor were hedging their bets..
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:06 pmFed bails out depositers says its not a bank bail out because its a bail in thanks to dobbs frank bank lobbyists.
asset (7babe9) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:07 pm* except that somebody else was in charge of writing it.
No, that nobody supervised him or her. I don’t think they are saying a different person wrote the Jan 3 and the Jan 4-6 assessments.
How did anyone come to write that none of this was going to happen?
http://web.archive.org/web/20210106005050/https://wildprotest.com
from the intelligence assessment:
And the Senate Committee never found out. The Jan 6 committee, of course, wasn’t interested. Somebody on the staff had to know about the altered assessment.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:14 pmWhere Tucker Carlson’s “mostly peaceful” phrase comes from:
https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000007173530/protests-new-york-washington-los-angeles.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/28/magazine/louisville-police-department.html
https://reason.com/2023/03/08/tucker-carlson-describes-the-capitol-riot-as-mostly-peaceful-chaos-is-he-wrong
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:37 pmAbout how a treatment for strokes (surgical removal of the clot) is spreading very slowly
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/01/magazine/evt-stroke-treatment.html`
They think maybe Fetterman got it. If so, maybe too late, or he wouldhave died altogether without it.
` (1d215a) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:41 pmThe bank made several mistakes. Its deposits expanded – it did abut half of the IPOS sin the United States – and they had no place to put the money. There were several things about in the Wall Street Journal – a column, an editorial and an Op-ed/
` (1d215a) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:43 pmI read you can make onemistake but not several
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:44 pm‘Here’s a punchline for all of you: “A U-Haul.” ‘
Q: what do lesbians get for their third date?
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/13/2023 @ 2:56 pm#233 That’s very close to the most common version, Colonel.
(I am mildly surprised, but pleased, to see that in Wikipedia.)
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/13/2023 @ 3:06 pmI read this U-Haul joke as told by Althouse.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 3/13/2023 @ 3:09 pmSome in DC are pushing for permanent daylight saving. (It has passed the Senate.)
In spite of our experience in 1974.
It was popular when the legislation was passed, but lost popularity in all those dark mornings.
And it is opposed by many (most?) sleep scientists:
(Because of these concerns, I have favored permanent standard time, for some years, now.)
Jim Miller (f29931) — 3/13/2023 @ 3:29 pmDavid French has taken the ultimate quisling argument to support abusing little kids and cutting off their genitalia. May he rot forever.
NJRob (eb56c3) — 3/13/2023 @ 5:59 pm@236:
They typical government solution to permanent daylight time sun-synch problems would be to order everyone to move their schedules around to match the clock change.
Kevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:11 pmI see I didn’t make as bad a mistake as I thought.
International Women’s Day was March 8 (Wednesday) It was invented in the Soviet Union by the Communist government, but survived it in Russia and other places as a sort of Valentine’s Day. I heard of it here some years ago (sometime after 2000)
Purim was last week March 6 and 7 Monday night and Tuesday.
I had earlier also had an idea for a short time that Women’s Day came out oin the same day as Purim this year.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/14/2023 @ 2:42 pmKevin M (1ea396) — 3/13/2023 @ 10:11 pm
Adjusting schedules without changing the clock doesn’t work so well. The thing is no clock time is good forall the seasons of the year.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/14/2023 @ 2:43 pmThe one thing the Federal Reserve Board fears most is that anyone who is an established depositor will have trouble getting money out of bank on any business day.
The truth is that many banks are now incapable – or less capable than a year ago because they are never capable of returning all cash – of meeting demands to withdraw money. And that’s because the Federal Reserve Board raised interest rates. If anyone so much as encountered a delay in withdrawing cash there should logically be runs on very many banks.
SVB was just simply the most extreme case. They ignored what they could read in the newspapers etc about how the Fed intended to raise interest rates; they didn’t hedge risk; they didn’t sweep excess deposits into short term notes, they had a tremendous percentage of deposits in over $250,000 accounts, and their depositors were largely the proceeds of initial public offerings, whose companies were running down their balances faster than originally anticipated.
Banks always had the option of the discount window -90 days.
Now the Fed will value Treasuries and maybe other things at par even though the sales price has gone down because interest rates went up.
I’ll try to study this more.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/14/2023 @ 2:55 pmAJ_Liberty (5f05c3) — 3/13/2023 @ 12:33 pm
I read most opinion articles and have at least some disagreement with any of them. I evaluate each article on its own, although some columnists I put in general category of bad.
I learn something from most articles. Opinion articles can tell you more even though each statement is more likely to be wrong..
Here is from David French’s latest. I don’t agree with his general point – that things are equally bad on both sides, or can be.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/12/opinion/newsom-desantis-walgreens-constitution.html
Look at that!
Now their argument is that it’s now or never. But so is giving Human Growth Hormone to affect adult height, and schools and governments and doctors don’t do that on their own without consulting or against the wishes of the parents..
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/14/2023 @ 3:04 pmYear round Daylight Savings time (actually started in late Jan 1974) was repealed and in 1975 DST began Feb 28.
Then (after another law was passed) it went back to the old way – starting last Sunday in April. In 1986 or 1987 it became the first Sunday in April and in 2007 or 2008 the second Sunday in March while the end of DST was pushed past Halloween.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 3/14/2023 @ 3:34 pmAppalled (92130f) — 3/12/2023 @ 1:51 pm
Most will, because it’s difficult to change and most are not in the hands of the MAGA people.. The problem will be getting new business, and that will affect purple areas, too.
It may have mostly stopped – because of this lawsuit, The question woukld be how much harm did the lying do? It hasn’t been corrected in front of the same audience,
The question there is the amount. Dominion might show negotiations stopped or slowed down. Because this is all long term, there may not be a big dropoff in business.
Sammy Finkelman (572186) — 3/16/2023 @ 5:31 amThis doesn’t rule out that an infected animal was picked up by the Wuhan biolab, and then shoddy safekeeping practices caused a leak, but it should rule in that the virus was naturally occurring, given that it was sourced to a raccoon dog.
Like I may have mentioned before, Chairman Xi could settle the question with a little honesty and transparency.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 3/17/2023 @ 7:19 amThank you for the link and quote, paul. The problem with the article is that that there exists no chain of custody for the DNA evidence because no animal carcass can be produced from the market on that day. If this were a crime scene, the “cleaning” process would allow the defense to say that spoilage and tampering occurred.
Yeah, I am no a lawyer, but to this layman there are too many undoted eyes and teas.
I welcome the criminal lawyers and any forensic experts to correct the defects in my comment.
felipe (77b190) — 3/17/2023 @ 7:50 amThat’s better.
felipe (77b190) — 3/17/2023 @ 7:52 am“un-dotted” Gah, just put me out of my misery already….”better” I sez.
felipe (77b190) — 3/17/2023 @ 7:54 amDotage, felipe?
nk (bb1548) — 3/17/2023 @ 8:03 amnk (bb1548) — 3/17/2023 @ 8:03 am
Ha! Bingo, my friend!
felipe (77b190) — 3/17/2023 @ 2:12 pm