Video Thread 6/14/22

 Posted by at 11:46 am  Open Thread, Politics
Jun 142022
 

Glenn Kirschner -Jarod Kushner’s pardon palooza will be damaging to both Donald Trump and to Kushner himself

Meidas Touch – Furious Texas Paul Reveals TERROR CELL Inside the GOP – Such a sweet, kind offer in such NSFW languague!

Robert Reich – This is How We Help People Fight Inflation at the Gas Pump

VoteVets – ‘The AR-15 Is A Weapon Of War’ – Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Paul Eaton

Liberal Redneck – First January 6 Committee Hearing Takeaways

Beau – Let’s talk about if medical training is worth it…. (and you know this appies to a lot more than medical training.)

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Open Thread May 19, 2022

 Posted by at 7:05 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 192022
 

Yesterday, I watched a Sixty Minutes segment (during that hour I avoid the radio -its only about 27 minutes, so I also watched something else – a documentary about the WWII British equivalent of Tucker Carlson – mildly interesting.) If you watch 60 mnutes you have probably seen the segment. If not, you may want to bookmark this for when you have a spare half hour. It’s the story of a black family who purchase a large home which turns out to have been, not just a plantation, but the plantation on which their ancestors were enslaved. Simply amazing. Here’s the link. I also managed to get trash ans recyclables out to the curb (It only took me about a half hour and a few extra CBD gummies to recover from that.)

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Short Takes –

CPR News – ‘I’m not giving up’: Sen. Michael Bennet’s drive to make the expanded Child Tax Credit permanent
Quote – The pandemic-relief package, known as the American Rescue Plan, expanded the Child Tax Credit for one year, made it fully refundable, so the poorest families could benefit, and for the last half of 2021, sent it in the form of monthly checks to families, turning it into a reliable income supplement…. Bennet’s frustration that the expanded benefit was not made permanent, or even just extended, is palpable…. “I’m not giving up. And I don’t think we should give up. And I, frankly, I’m not giving up until we have an economy that when it grows, it grows for everybody, not just the people at the very top. And I think we can do that too,”
Click through for story. Colorado would have to be crazy not to re-elect Senator Bennet. (And it’s because part of Colorado IS crazy that I became a – small- monthly donor to the campaign.)

HuffPost – Living With The Far-Right Insurgency In Idaho
Quote – [White nationalist Vincent James Foxx] is one of many far-right activists who have flocked to Idaho in recent years, where a large and growing radical MAGA faction in the state’s Republican Party has openly allied itself with extremists to a shocking extent, even for the Trump era. This faction is accruing more and more power in Boise, the state capital: Imagine a statehouse full of Marjorie Taylor Greenes and Steve Kings. At the local level, they have seized seats on school boards and county commissions at a fast clip.
Click through for details. Idaho is pretty much every bit as LDS as Utah – just not as publicly. I don’t know what the position, or the participation of the LDS Church is in this – but I’ll bet there is some. The church just possibly could surprise us.

The Hill – House passes domestic terrorism bill in mostly party-line vote
Quote – The bill calls for establishing a Domestic Terrorism Unit in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis at the DHS, which would be tasked with observing and examining domestic terrorism activity, in addition to a Domestic Terrorism Office in the Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division of the DOJ, which would look into and prosecute domestic terrorism incidents and communicate with the Civil Right Division about occurrences that may be considered hate crimes.
Click through for discussion and details. This could work, if only the government (federal and atate) would stop assuming that it’s only terrorism if a non-white person does it – when the reverse is closer to the truth.

Food For Thought

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Video Thread 5/16/22

 Posted by at 12:02 pm  Open Thread, Politics
May 162022
 

Glenn Kirschner – Federal prosecutors open grand jury probe into Trump’s removal of top secret docs to Mar-a-Lago

The Lincoln Project – Thank you, Jen.

MSNBC – America ‘Needs To Prepare For’ Insider Threats To Elections

Twitter – CNN – White supremacist terrorism

Politics Girl – Quick Civics

Food-Obsessed Cat Has Taught Himself To Open Containers With His Teeth

Beau – Let’s talk about a cliff analogy….

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Video Thread 5/10/22

 Posted by at 12:18 pm  Open Thread, Politics
May 102022
 

Glenn Kirschner – With Supreme Court misconduct from Thomas to Alito, Congress must hold hearings/impeachment inquiry

Meidas Touch – Texas Paul REACTS to Texas Governor Costing State Billions

MSNBC – Attorney Reacts To Judge Approving Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Re-Election Bid

Robert Reich – Why Republicans are NOT the Party of Freedom

VoteVets – Pete Buttigieg Perfectly Articulates Republican Behavior In 2 Minutes

SNL – Roe v Wade Cold Open

Beau – Let’s talk about why the democrats didn’t codify….

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Open Thread March 29, 2022

 Posted by at 6:54 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 292022
 

Yesterday, I made it to the DMV on time and didn’t have to wait more than a couple of minutes for my appointment.  However, they were not satisfied with my documents and gave me an additional one. I don’t, thank God, have o wait another four weeks to come back – I can return today. So, another day I will need patience from you on my comment replies. Sigh.

Cartoon

Short Takes –

Crooks & Liars – Wheels Of Justice Turning In Two Prominent Portland Proud Boy Cases
Quote – On Wednesday, notorious Proud Boys brawler Tusitala “Tiny” Toese was arraigned on multiple felonies related to the violence he led at a Portland rally on Aug. 22, 2021, and order detained without bail. Then on Thursday, the man who opened fire on a group of protesters in a park on Feb. 19 near his residence, killing one person and wounding four others before he was himself shot, was also arraigned in Multnomah County Circuit Court on multiple counts after he was released from his subsequent hospitalization.
Click through for a lttle good news. It contains two of the most beautiful words in the English language – “without bail.” (and if that unusual first name sounds familiar, it was the name given to Robert Louis Stevenson by the Samoan people after he moved there. It means “teller of tales.”)  TC would have been glad for this development.

Denverite – DPD verdict: Protesters awarded $14 million in lawsuit over police response to George Floyd rallies
Quote – “This was, as far as I know, the first case of George Floyd protestors injured by police to go to trial around the country,” said Tim Macdonald, an attorney for the plaintiffs. “So hopefully what police departments will take from this is that a jury of regular citizens took these rights very seriously. And they’re prepared to tell the police what they did to peaceful protestors is not acceptable.” … The verdict is likely to carry weight in future civil rights cases stemming from the protests, including others in Denver, said Jason Williamson, executive director of NYU’s Center on Race, Inequality, and the Law, which tracks cases like the one in Denver.
Click through for full story. More good news. Our Declaration of independence states that governmentsmust draw their authority from “the consent of the governed.” Does this not also imply that police should get their authority from “the consent of the policed”?

Wonen’s History – Wikipedia – Mary Anning
Quote – Mary Anning (21 May 1799 – 9 March 1847) was an English fossil collector, dealer, and palaeontologist who became known around the world for the discoveries she made in Jurassic marine fossil beds in the cliffs along the English Channel at Lyme Regis in the county of Dorset in Southwest England. Anning’s findings contributed to changes in scientific thinking about prehistoric life and the history of the Earth…. Her discoveries included the first correctly identified ichthyosaur skeleton when she was twelve years old.
Click through for bio. Another unsing scientist among women. There’s really nothing that we can’t do.

Food For Thought:

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Video Thread 3/17/22

 Posted by at 11:57 am  Open Thread, Politics
Mar 172022
 

Glenn Kirschner – Prosecutor’s Brief in Enrique Tarrio/Proud Boys Case Provides More Evidence of Trump’s Conspiracy

The Lincoln Project – Brent Renaud

Meidas Touch – Corporate America: Pull Out Of Russia

MSNBC – It’s Happening Again’: Lessons From Russian Targeting Of Syrian Civilians

Rebel HQ –  Southerner Racist Logic Will Make You Lose All Hope  (It ain’t just the South – JD)

Brent Terhune – Do your job, Brandon!

Beau – Let’s talk about an injunction in Texas….

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Open Thread for January 16, 2022

 Posted by at 6:48 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Jan 162022
 

Yesterday, The Opera was “The Marriage of Figaro” by Mozart. It’s based on the second of three plays by Pierre Beaumarchais, kown as the Figaro plays. All three have been made into operas – The first play, The Barber of Seville, by Rossini in 1816. The second, The Marriage of Figaro, by Mozart in 1786. The third, The Guilty Mother, by many composers, including John Corigliano, completed in 1991, and very different in that the source play is treated as a play within a play, and there is not a living person in the whole thing. These days it’s not obvious why all three were so controversial when new, particularly the plays, but they were. Beaumarchais was an American sympathizer who raised money for the Revolution before France sent actual military aid with LaFayette, and there are hints of that in the plays (fewer in the operas). But things have changed enough so that is not obvious to us today. Human nature, however, has not changed much if at all, and there’s plenty of that in all of them.

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Short Takes –

Huff Post – Major Student Loan Processor Cancels $1.7 Billion In Debt
Quote – Most of the loans being canceled are “subprime loans” that were given to students attending for-profit colleges, which often had graduation rates below 50%. That made it unlikely students would ever be able to pay the loans back.
Click through for background. This does not apply to all student loans, but it does apply to the most vulnerable. And there is another suit still going forward.

Reuters – DirecTV to drop far-right channel OAN from its service
Quote – OAN, which rose to prominence amid the triumph and tumult of the administration of then-President Donald Trump, has been criticized for spreading conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 election. “We informed Herring Networks that, following a routine internal review, we do not plan to enter into a new contract when our current agreement expires,” a DirecTV spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
Click through for more. In a related article, Reuters estimates OAN’s revenue from DirecTV to be in the neighborhood of 90% of its total revenue.

The Guardian – Police and FBI respond to synagogue hostage situation in Texas
Quote – The incident took place during an online livestream of the Shabbat service at the synagogue in Colleyville, in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. The livestream cut off at about 2pm local time…. “Colleyville Police Sgt Dara Nelson said negotiators have made contact with somebody inside the synagogue who they believe is a suspect,” the Dallas Morning News said.
Click through – They had better respond! This is clear domestic terrorism.  UPDATE:  All hostages safe, hostage taker dead.

Food For Thought:

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Open Thread for November 14, 2021

 Posted by at 7:23 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Nov 142021
 

Yesterday, On the morning trip, there was enough cloud cover I didn’t have to use the visor much, though it was very helpful when I did. Coming home – well, let me back up a little. First, the visit was good and Virgil returns all greetings.OK. I already said the package with the visor contained some other things. What they were was clear-plastic-lined fabric screens, each about 16″x 20″, stretched with a wire frame flexible enough to fold them into about a 9″ circle if you’re smart enough – I’m not, but they came that way. I opened two and didn’t touch the second two. They came with little suction cups but there’s not an obvious place to put them. I clipped a couple of binder clips to one and took it and a second one to the car. As much as we talk about the sun moving from East to West, we often ignore in our speech the effect of the earth’s axis on that. Here in Colorado, the axis is so skewed at this time of year that the sun sets virtually due South – to the left of the car from Las Animas to Pueblo, and left and behind me when I’m heading north to Springs. As I got to Pueblo and the dangerous-due-to glare turns, I stopped, and clipped one of the scrrens to the driver’s window, far enough back not to interfere with the left rear view mirror. When I started going north, that screen was far enough back to slow down the sun – not strong enough to stop it, which itself coul have been dangerous, just effectively enough for it not to hurt my eyes and drive me nuts. So I guess now I know what they are for. Between them and the visor extender, driving is now a lot easier and feels much safer. Mission accomplished.

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Short Takes –

Common Dreams – ‘Arrogant Insensitivity’: Defense Lawyer in Arbery Murder Trial Ripped for Bid to Bar Black Pastors
Quote – Gough, referring to the founder and marketing mascot of the fast-food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken, curiously added that “if a bunch of folks came in here dressed like Colonel Sanders with white masks sitting in the back,” before trailing off.
Click through for story, which is all over but this is a good take on it. Personally, I think the prosecution should give Sojourners a call (and possible also ask the black pastors) to look for white pastors to put on the stand who will really shame the defendants with both barrels.

DHS Sounds Alarm On RW Terror Against School, Health Officials And Congress
Quote – DHS issued a bulletin Wednesday warning that the holiday season ushers in a “diverse and challenging threat environment” with threats “posed by individuals and small groups engaged in violence, including domestic violent extremists (DVEs) and those inspired or motivated by foreign terrorists and other malign foreign influences.” You can substitute the term “right-wing extremists” for “domestic violent extremists.” Probably not all DVEs are right-wing but it’s clear from the DHS bulletin that the ones it’s most worried about are:
Click through for more. My, it’s nice to have a DHS that actually cares about our secuity,not just bashing people of color and other minorities.

Wonkette – What’s In The Infrastructure Bill? What’s In Build Back Better? Which Is Which? Wonkette Gets Servicey!
Quote – On the off chance you may have missed it, the House passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework (BIF) late Friday [11/5], with the second, much larger part of Joe Biden’s first term agenda, the Build Back Better reconciliation bill, likely to be passed the week prior to Thanksgiving, as long as Joe Manchin doesn’t decide it needs to include tax credits for diesel pickup trucks that “roll coal” on bicyclists and drivers of Prii. In Monday’s White House presser, Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden would sign the infrastructure bill into law sometime next week…. Obviously, Biden wants to use the passage of the BIF as leverage to move Build Back Better to completion, which seems like a pretty sound strategy, and if your House or Senate critter is doing town halls this week, let ’em know you want Build Back Better to pass, yes, even if they’re Republicans.
Click through for what we got. There is also a companion article, What’s In The Build Back Better Bill? Your Servicey Wonkette SUPER MEGA-LISTICLE!, which details what we hope to get. Wonkette may have a frivolous attitude, but it also has facts.

Food for Thought –

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