I’m writing for tomorrow, day 160. After sleeping from 2 PM until 7 AM with three short breaks for food, posting and equestrian events, I’m feeling almost feline again. Tomorrow is a Holy Day in the Church of the Ellipsoid Orb, but my Broncos will not have a service. In solidarity with the LFBT community, they are observing their bi week.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:54 (average 5:15). To do it, click here. How did you do?
My Prison Volunteer Trip:
All things considered, it was a highly productive trip. I took the bus down to Salem on Wednesday. We had a Board Meeting, and inducted two new members to our Board. On Thursday I made two trips to the prison. In the first we had an Executive Body meeting. That consists of the Officers if the club (the inside group) and the foundation (the outside group, of which I am the Treasurer). We discussed plans for meetings for my guys in 2015, including a Community Impact Meeting between my guys and a group of university students in criminology and sociology, an Essay Presentation meeting featuring writers from inside and outside, a Victim Impact meeting between my guys and crime victim, two months of banquet where my guys’ families come in, several charity events that my guys are organizing to help others, and more. We also discussed improving the communications between my guys and their outside supporters, which had fallen off, because our former President had some personal issues, and needed to be replaced, and because my guys have not been feeding me the information I need to maintain a website. The second meeting was a general meeting with about seventy of my guys. DOC informed us that they have a new staff advisor. She seem personable. I particularly enjoyed introducing her to the newest member of our Board. She knew who he was, but had never met him. Until a few months ago he used to be her boss’ boss’ boss. He was in charge of Inmate Activities for all of DOC, not just the one prison where we volunteer. The meeting was primarily housekeeping, informing my guys of the plans we made, and planning a charity event, but we did hear a presentation from a college teacher seeking help to continue a limited opportunity for higher education inside. I also learned that a good friend of mine was just elected President of the Lakota Club, the prison’s Native American group.
Now a couple commented about how non-intimidating the prison entrance seems. As prisons go, these folks do a better job than most in that respect, but so you don’t get the wrong impression, here are a couple more pics. The first is the same entrance from a different angle.
The second is a view od the wall from inside.
Is that more prison-like?
Short Takes:
From The New Yorker: In a Thursday appearance on the Fox News Channel, former Vice-President Dick Cheney said that it was “no fair” that President Obama gets to bomb Syria.
“I’m envious as hell,” he told Fox’s Sean Hannity. “That was on my bucket list.”
Asked if he had any advice for the President on bombing Syria, Cheney said, “Just enjoy it. It doesn’t get any better than this.”
Andy has captured ChickenHawk Cheney, aka Five Deferment Dick, perfectly!
From Upworthy: Actor, advocate, and creative dreamboat Joseph Gordon-Levitt ponders aloud how his views on gender equality went viral not once, but twice. He has some interesting thoughts to share. Take a look — at 3:45, he asks something of all of us, especially if you have a webcam on your computer!
I consider myself a feminist and have been since the 1960’s for the reasons he mentioned. To my surprise, the movement had a lot of financial support from high end corporations back then. In my youthful naiveté, I thought they were practicing good community relations. In fact, they had figured out that, once women were established as workers, they could stop paying men a living wage. So now it takes two workers to support most families. Some blame the women’s movement for this, but that is absurd. Republicans want you to blame the victims of corporate greed, not the perpetrators.
From NY Times: With a competitive election for governor of Wisconsin less than six weeks away, a federal appeals court on Friday narrowly decided against hearing arguments on a recently instituted photo identification requirement for the state’s voters.
In an order that evenly split the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit here, the judges turned down pleas for a hearing by the full court from people who argue that the requirement has created confusion and chaos. The decision came about a month before in-person early voting begins and after some in Wisconsin may have mailed in absentee ballots.
The matter could ultimately wind up before the United States Supreme Court, and the Wisconsin case is seen as noteworthy among the numerous legal fights playing out around the country over voting regulations. Many of the regulations have been introduced in the last four years in states with Republican-dominated governments, like Wisconsin.
Voting officials and clerks in Wisconsin have been racing to prepare voters and poll-watchers for the identification requirement since a three-member panel of the Seventh Circuit court decided on Sept. 12 that the law, delayed for more than two years, could take effect immediately.
This is s tragic loss for the oppressed people of Fitzwalkerstan, living under the criminal tyranny of Fartfuhrer Walker.
Cartoon:
I originally published this cartoon on this date in 2011. Sadly little has changed.
21 Responses to “Open Thread–9/28/2014”
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TC, I'm sure you have seen this elsewhere – sorry if you have posted it, I'm feeling really awful and not able to check properly, but this is worth lookin uphttp://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/09/26/1332558/-Kochs-try-to-register-a-cat-to-vote-in-North-Carolina?detail=email
– The GOP have sent election info to someone's cat! (No, I don't think it would vote Far Right – it sounds far too sensible a cat!).
I had not, but It's too good not to steal. See tomorrow's lead. Thanks!
3:41 I was busy fanning myself.
3:39 How did that randy ol' puddy tat get so far ahead?
Wooo? Just Purrrfect, I guess! 😉
Prison Volunteer Trip ~ It looks like almost all the other prisons I've seen including the Maximum Security Prison for the Criminally Insane not far from here.
New Yorker ~ Perfect!
Upworthy ~ I had an argument about equal pay for equal work and how RepublicanTs voted it down more than once and of course the two men I had this "discussion" with closed their ears to everything I said. My Mom and her Mom as farmers taught me that we are all equal. My Grandfather died shortly after buying a dairy farm. That left a woman with a 21 year old daughter and a 15 year old son to woork it alone. They were milking 58 cows at the time. Am I a feminist? Of course I am.
NY Times ~ Voter suppression!
Cartoon ~ We need change!
Good for you!
Prison Entrance — they make it look easy to get in and hard to get out.
So accuirate!
5:34 average 5:14 (down a second}
Volunteer Trip – Wow. Now that's accomplishment. Nice that at least one of your new Board members is very knowledgeable. Yes, the building looks more prison-like now LOL. So what's in the facade? Offices?
New Yorker – Yup. Nailed him.
Upworthy – Had some difficulty with the video, but finally saw it through. While waiting for it I read a few comments on YouTube. My, there are a lot of @$$holes out theere, aren't there? I could sum up by simply saying that the same people who deny white privilege also deny straight privilege and male privilege. They look at, for instance, VAWA and say, "well, that's not equality." Well, no it's not, exactly, but it is compensatory. Recently the Young Turks did a segment on a male vidtim of marital rape, in which they pulled out every rape joke ever told and nearly soiled their pants laughing. But it is feminists (no doubt of both sexes) who are taking them to task for that. (http://www.thepetitionsite.com/159/484/087/tell-the-young-turks-rape-is-not-a-joke/) I have neither a WebCam nor any plans to get one but anyone who does and wants to quote me, feel free.
NY Times – A tragic loss for the oppressed people of Fitzwalkerstan indeed. But also for all Americans. The people that one State sends to Congress affect all states. What can I say except VOTE.
Cartoon – Some things don't change, they just get more so.
Pat A – Someone in the comments suggested the brothers must have read the quote "Cats are little furry Republicans who resist change." The expansion on the circumstances of the quote was priceless.
The ground floor of the facase is the visitors entrance and waiting room and a couple staff offices. The upper floors are staff offices and meeting room.
Two things:
[1] I like the "non-intimidating" entrance to tre prison – it's quite handsome
[2] Being gone quite frequently working to get my (97 y/o) Mom into her Assisted Living facility, I might well have missed it – but is that earlier picture of the cat in the suitcase YOUR CAT? Not surprising, but I don't remember your saying that you actually have a cat … just that you ARE a cat.
I do not have a cat. Although I have had cats most of my life, I lack the space to give one the kind of environment they need and the resources to provide vertenary care, which now is often pricier than human care.
TomCat was a sports nickname that became first mt CB handle and them my Internet handle in the early days when everyone used one. It has become part of my online persona.
Puzzle — 3:39 How did that randy ol' puddy tat get so far ahead?
The New Yorker — I cracked up when I read this in my inbox. Five Deferment Chickenhawk Cheney has his usual evil sneer plastered on his face. He, and others like him, are walking advertisements for abortion. Has anyone had more deferments than Cheney? He is so good at getting other people's sons and daughters killed . . . not something to be proud of!
Upworthy — Am I a feminist? Damn right I am! I learned it from my mother who was left with 2 kids to support when my father walked out with another woman. My father was a chauvinist who would not allow his wife to work or drive a car. So when he left, my mother got a job to pay the bills and learned to drive. She started in the secretarial field, moved into teaching high school, and by retirement was a Justice of the Peace and County Registrar. I was told to never appear in her court or I was toast!! She had such strength and suffered at the hands of inequality for years when it came to pay. My mother has been my hero. Too often though, I have heard men (not all men of course!) refer to feminism as "bra burning women" who were lazy and selfish. Each generation sets the stage for the next. I hope that I can be a good example to my grand nieces (yes that is plural as one is expected in 2 weeks and a third in December), showing them that women are only limited by the size of their dreams.
NY Times — If the case goes to SCOTUS, we all know how that will end given the SCROTUS. It appears that the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has a case of conservatism since it would not allow a hearing before the full court. Can you say voter suppression?!
Cartoon — Ah, I remember this photo from OWS in 2011. And the beat goes on . . . SSDD!
BTW, Monday is my mother's 86th birthday. I saw her last night and reminded her . . . she was surprised. Then she started laughing when I told her that the Fire Department had to provide us with a burning license for 86 candles on her cake!
Happy #86 to Lynn's Mama. That's an awful lot of spanks!! 😉
Wish her a "Happy Birthday!" fom me, too!
Your Prison Volunteer trip: You got a lot done in a short period of time!
The New Yorker:: Andy always gets it right. I can see Cheney thinking this, just think how much money he could have made!
UPworthy: Yes I am a feminist. I worked in the sixties when there were no laws to protect a woman from sexual harassment, when an interviewer could ask you what type birth control you used. things are better now, but we still have a way to go since women still don't make as much as men for the same job.
NY Times: All these states who are pushing the voter id laws should be investigated since we all know this is only a ploy to prevent those from voting who might vote against the current administrations.
Cartoon: We were taught they were to serve and protect, but that was before they got war weapons and tasers.
Thanks Edie. It's worth it.
Quick one!
http://action.forestethicsadvocacy.org/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1818&ea.campaign.id=32011&ea.tracking.id=email&ea.url.id=289800&forwarded=true
Beautiful wilderness, wildlife habitat, and recreation – forget it. For Kinder Morgan, British Columbia's parks are nothing more than a cheap route for ramming its new pipeline through our province.
Right now, the pipeline-giant is scheming to redraw the boundaries of four pristine provincial parks to cut a path for its Trans Mountain pipeline. If Kinder Morgan wins these beloved places could be destroyed, jeopardizing the wildlife and local communities that rely on them.
Hope you'll help us by signing the petition. We have to hog tie Kinder Morgan! Thanks
Done!