I’m feeling quite tired after yesterday’s trip to the doctor, so I’ll be brief. Expect me to be scarce for the next few days, because something has been sitting on the back burner for too long, due to illness, and I need to get it done this weekend. I’m referring to my annual battle with the Infernal Revenue Service.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:58 (average 5:30). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From NY Times: The prolonged prologue to Hillary Rodham Clinton’s second run for the White House will reach its suspenseless [sic] conclusion on Sunday: The former secretary of state, senator and first lady is to announce that she will indeed seek the Democratic nomination for president.
She’s running? Oh MY! I’m sooooooo surprised!! 😉
From Crooks and Liars: Real Time’s Bill Maher took on religious fundamentalists of all stripes during his New Rules segment this Friday night, and has this to say about the recent dust up in Indiana and their so-called "religious freedom" law.
While I can’t say I agree with everything Bill said, when he got evangelical about his atheist faith, he is still hilarious.
From Daily Kos: If anyone was curious if Rick Santorum would pull back a wee bit on publicly hating teh gays in his perennial run for president, his remarks during a meeting with Iowa state legislators yesterday should put any question to rest.
Noting his opposition to the 2003 Supreme Court decision striking down laws against sodomy, Rick thinks that all that frothing he did back in the day provides him all the gravitas needed to be handed the keys to the Oval Office.
The video first posted to the conservative blog Caffinated Thoughts [froth lovers delinked] and later picked up by Right Wing Watch, shows Santorum at his whiny, victimized best. He gnashes his teeth and rends his garments over the press reporting his bigoted and extremist views in practically every race he has ever entered.
Froth Bag Alert!!
Rick "Google Me" Santorum will assure that there is no shortage of GOP hate. Google has cleaned up a lot of the froth, so Google “Santorum definition”.
Cartoon:
23 Responses to “Open Thread–4/11/2015”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
On this day in 1968 was an historic day. Too bad that SCROTUS deemed it necessary to make the day unimportant! By their accounts, there was never any problems with voting at all!
Santorum doesn’t even rate me putting his name in for a sewrch!
Don't forget about the new health insurance reporting element.
Hilary running? Yawn.
Why are hate and religion so closely linked these days when the foundational religious element is love?
LBJ could garner passage of the Civil Rights Act in large part due to being a Southerner.
4:42 average still 5:30. Cuties. Think they are tasty?
I'm listening to the Saturday Metropolitan Opera broadcast. It's "Don Carlo," an opera full of tyranny (specifically religious tyranny), democratic spirit, sympathy for the downtrodden (and some downtreading while we are at it). In other words, business as usual. The primo Bass, a favorite of mine, plays a pretty cold character, but does have one humanizing aria to sing. He mentioned in an interview between acts that his mother passed away late last night or early this morning, too late for him to be able to drop out of this performance, but that he felt she was with him, and he felt he was drawing strength from her. I believe it. Pardon me if I have to watch the videos later.
NY Times – There are advantages to not announcing, a biggie being that any money given to you is less subject to accountability. I'm sure that's why Jeb is not announcing and I expect him to draw it out as long as possible. I'm glad Hillary is announcing since it will help keep her honest. (I know, I know, but I'm sure she's closer to honest than any of the Republicans.)
Cartoon – Mitchell D of Care2 points out it is also the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Buchenwald. All in all the 11th is a better day than the 12th, when FDR died.
OK, back to watch the videos. Bill is indeed very funny. I've said before and still say we need blunt messengers. If you presnet the message in too rational, too comfortable a way, no one will hear it. I would point out, however, that from where I sit, the first one who took a Sharpie to the Bible was Jesus.
On Rick – please, guys, if you do not know the "other" meaning of Santorum, and the history of how that "other" meaning came about, you really need to do what TC suggests – Google (or Bing or whatever) "Santorum defined." Otherwise you won't get any of the numerous jokes here.
Down with the Frothmeister!!
4:12 TomCat left me in the dust.
2:54 The "Owl and the Pussy Cat", a remake starring Puddy Tat that will not be made today!
Could have sworn I hit reply the first time but I guess I didn't!
3:16 They are safe thanks to Lynn.
Poor Hungry cat!! 🙁
Well, this is interesting:
Breadking News: Obama, Castro hold historic face-to-face meeting
So interesting, in fact that the LA Times was distracted from proofreading its subject line above. Link:
http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-obama-castro-20150411-story.html
At first glance it looks strange. But if you click on "Mexico and the Americas" it takes you to the Castro/Obama article and then scrolling down, there is an article on Mexican children working in the fields. I think that it isn`t a proofreading error but rather a section of the paper which makes sense to me given the number of Hispanic Americans leaving in California.
Lynn, I meant the "Breadking" news was a typo. Maybe someone had just heard about the guy named Burger who just married a girl named King – and Burger King found out and ended up paying for the wedding. Or maybe they just think bread is king.
A cartoon that I think is spot on. A nuclear codpiece for Netanyahu right above what appears to be the "Big Dick" Cheney and Boner Boehner. http://mondoweiss.net/2015/02/emperors-nuke-clothes
Talk about "Cruel & Unusual Punishment" – that cartoon fits the bill.
I probably won't sleep well for MONTHS! (Only wish it could impact my appetite, rather than my ZZZZZs)
Bottom line choice: [1] BLECCCHHH … or [2] EWWWWWWW
That cartoon is hilarious, but I can't share it on FAcebook as I would like, I would get unfriended by too many people.
Note thet the cat had it right!
2:54 The "Owl and the Pussy Cat", a remake starring Puddy Tat that will not be made today!
I will be dealing with the Infernal Revenue Service tomorrow, too, for myself and my mother. Woohoo.
NY Times: No one is surprised that she is running.
Crooks and Liars: Bill is always funny, and hopefully, he makes some people think. I am concerned with all the laws being passed by fundamentalists, who don't seem to realize they are no better than the Sharia, whom they claim to despise. Our country was founded on freedom of religion, not a specific religion, and somewhere it says there will be no state religion. That is exactly what the fundamentalists are after. Believe me, I know how hard it is to be a member of a non traditional religion in a fundamentalist area. We lived an area that was predominantly Baptist, several different types. My parents converted to Mormonism when I was 13. In some places we were treated badly, we didnt fit in, and this made me appreciate what the true meaning of freedom of religion is. The fundamentalists just don't get it.
Daily Kos: Poor,poor, pitiful Rick Santorum. Barf bag alert, indeed.
Cartoon: A great day in history that has not fulfilled its promise.
I hope your deaiings with them leaver your sphincter less pained than mine.
I doubt that it will be.
Puzzle — 2:54 The "Owl and the Pussy Cat", a remake starring Puddy Tat that will not be made today!
NY Times — This so not news. The Republicanus/Teabaggerum have been waging a campaign against her for how long . . . a year? Wouldn't it have been amusing if she had not run , , , all that Republicanus/Teabaggerum money spent campaigning against the phantom. Mind, had she decided not to run, the GOP twits would turn everything around saying she was chicken.
Crooks and Liars — I do so get tired of all these bills like the Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act which are nothing about religious freedom, but rather about pseudo Christian.Sharia law. Bill certainly has a way with words though . . . very funny.
Daily Kos — Let Santorum "whine, gnash his teeth and rend his garments over the press reporting his bigoted and extremist views". He wants pseudo Christian.Sharia law, not freedom of and from religion. I did google Rick Santorum and found an article from earlier this year. http://www.forwardprogressives.com/rick-santorums-plan-save-america-christian-theocracy/
Such a prize bull . . . who is full of shit and who should be castrated of his idea to force extremist Christianity on the country.
Cartoon — An important day indeed but there are still too many people trying to walk back the law, including the 5 Injustices of SCROTUS.
Bill Maher was very funny – but I don't agree with him about religion either – if moderates did not form most of the believers/theists then things would have gone very wrong very fast many centuries ago [[mind you, they do seem to be doing so now, but if someone threatened our families, who knows what we would say (temporarily) to keep them alive – just because extremists are in power in one or two areas of the world, it doesn't mean the whole population supports them, just that they are afraid]].
Dandelion G has a very good item on 'How Liberals and Conservatives Think Differently' – Right Wingers use their right amygdala (lots of fear and emotions there – hence their permanently doom laden speeches) and centre-left thinkers use the anterior cingulate cortex – which makes us capable of rationally looking at a problem – and of seeing our own mistakes too. The question is, can the use of the right amygdala be converted to the use of the anterior cingulate cortex in the right wingers – and thus save the world? I pray so.
http://www.care2.com/news/member/901507364/3871711
Thanks all. Hugs!