Joanne Dixon

Open Thread April 30 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 302025

Yesterday, the Contrarian posted a “Words and Phrases We Could Do Without,” as it sometimes does. The phrase was “Golden Age.” Of course what the Rockmelon Regime actually wants to duplicate is actually the “Gilded Age” – and I have a personal story about how different that is. I have never cared for turkey, but my aunt always made it for Thanksgiving and we always went to them for Thanksgiving = they came to us for Christmas. The part of the turkey I could basically stand was the part no one else wanted – the tail (you have probably heard some bigoted nicknames for it – I certainly have.) The first Thanksgiving I was not there because I was in the USMC, my uncle decided that a cute was to say “we missed you” would be to “gild” the tail of the turkey, mount it on a little block of wood, and send it to me, so he did just that. Of course he didn’t use actual gold, but gold paint – however, I suspect the results would be the same had he used actual gold – you can gild a turkey’s ass, but you can’t prevent it from rotting. And that’s why the term “Gilded Age” is so appropriate. However, if “Gilded” bothers Republican snowflakes, may UI suggest “Fools’ Golden Age” as a possible alternative? Also, this Borowitz is from Sunday but I haven’t completely trained tutamail yet on what is and isn’t spam, so I just found it – and can’t resist sharing.

I just found this Heather Cox Richardson also. You may have seen the information, but I don’t know who is better than a great historian to analyze it.

The ACLU put this up and out on Monday. But since today, Wednesday, is the actual Day 100, I don’t consider it terribly late. there’s a donate screen, but you can just scroll down past it. I suspect everyone who has the means is already giving.

Robert Reich mentioned Al Gore as one of the past Presidents and Vice Presidents he had not heard speaking publicly about the Rockmenlon Regime. Then he found this. I figure if he missed it, we probably all missed it – know I did – so here it is.

Open Thread April 29 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 292025

Yesterday, as usual, I signed a bunch of petitions in my email. Lately, at least one of the groups sponsoring them has added an item in the personal information – “Do you want a response?” Frankly, as any as I sign I’d just as doon not have a response to every pne especially if it goes to multiple senders. This particular one also allows signers to edit (personalize) their individual letters. I decided to check “No” on a response and add this in a separate paragraph at the bottom of the letter: “Your vote will be my response.” I like that. It says “You are being watched and your votes are being noted. No amount of boilerplate language by a staffer is going to blind me to your record.” I am going to start doing that in every case where I am able to edit the message.

Digby quotes Josh Marshall at length to good effect. Most of us are aware that ships, railroad, trucks, all are part of the Supply Chain. But that’s not the same as understanding the timelines (and even that is incomplete unless one knows what cones from where.) There is still a little time for stocking up, but very little. This link from Fortune also has good information. If it looks like there’s nothing there, scroll down a bit.

Colorado Public Radio reprinted this from Chalkbeat (and has a link to it.) I guess how you look at this depends on how you define “legal system.” The laws themselves, though not perfect are what I would call broken. The enforcement, on the other hand, is catastrophic. It seems like every LEO involved in immigration in any way has the mindset of a small town sheriff in the deep South during the Civil Rights movement. Who wouldn’t be confused and anxious, for heaven’s sake? I’m very glad Denver University has this clinic, but I’m certainly not expecting it to solve everything.

Open Thread April 28 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 282025

Yesterday, Steve Schmidt wrote about the point to which bothsiderism has brought Bill Maher. I only point to it because TomCat would be so disappointed. It is easier that ever, knowing that Bill Maher and Bill O’Reilly are DNA cousins, to see the relationship. Also yesterday, I almost forgot to post this. My credit union has changed a bunch of stuff, and it involved issuing a new card with a new number and expiration date, and yesterday was the day I had to process the change. Also Virgil needed coffee, and the only place I can order it from that he will get it was apparently put (I hope they haven’t stopped carrying it), so I had to put money in his canteen account instead, and include a note explaining why. And Trinette was over also, which is always a delight, but not conducive to remembering whether I have or have not completed routine tasks. Fortunately. the Sundays I don’t see Virgil I often stay up past midnight to email for a reservation for the following week, because it can’t be timestamped before midnight and still be within the right time frame. As a result of all of that, I finished posting it around 2 am my time.

This article from Axios is obvious to anyone who has been paying attention. Sadly, far too few Americans have. It is concise and clear and , for those not paying attention, adds three separate articles at the end which provide examples. Well, that’s not a bad way to say “I am not making this up.” Now if we can only figure out how to get it into the hands of those who need to read and understand it.

Sadly, just because someone is a Democrat, even an elected Democrat, does not necessarily mean that they are vary smart, or that they are not grandstanding. This article from The F* News is a case in point.

Open Thread April 27 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 272025

Yesterday, the radio opera was Mozart’s “Le Nozze de Figaro,” usually translated “The Marriage of Figaro,” but more accurately “Figaro’s Wedding.” I didn’t know a soul in it – usually I know someone. I went to school with a Liz Bishop, but it can’t be the same. Yes, the character has to be old enough to be Figaro’s mother, because the is Figaro’s mother, but the Liz Bishop I knew would be 80, old enough to be his grandmother or maybe even great grandmother. Plus, this Elizabeth Bishop was raised in North Carolina, not California. In any case, it doesn’t matter. The opera, like the play on which it was based was scandalously revolutionary at the time, and Mozart needed special permission from the Emperor to stage it. Servants objecting to the wishes of a nobleman? And outwitting him in the end? Horrors! One of the plot points is the jus primae noctis, which was an actual thing in European history (one could apparently pay to get out of it. But it’s also a plot point that Figaro didn’t have money.) I don’t know exactly when it was abolished so it could have still been customary at the time the story is set. In any case, it’s tough to go wrong with Mozart. One aria from this opera became the Macarena of its day – so overplayed that even Mozart joked about it. His sense of humor may not have been very sophisticated, but he certainly had one and it was robust. Then, later in the day, Theater of War streamed a live event (and recorded audio available any time,) and then after that there was the “NOT the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” And I took in a grocery order which was over an hour late. It’s a wonder I managed to get this posted.

I would like to have “biglier” good news than the revocation of previous bad news to share. But this is a pretty consequential revocation, and I’m very relieved to see it.

In regard to the new contract for the Chicago Teachers Union, you may have to take my word for it that this is a huge (yooge?) win for teachers – and therefore for everyone. I was alerted to this by an email from “The Labor Force” which said (among other glowing praise) “This victory proves that even in times like these, we can fight, and we can win.” It also pointed out that CTU is spearheading a “May Day Strong” day of national action which you can learn about at this link, and find events near you. May Day, of course is Labor Day everywhere in the world except here. For a city that so much of what you hear about it is “violent crime,” I continue to be impressed by how progressive Chicago can be.

Open Thread April 26 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 5:50 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 262025

Yesterday, an FBI agent arrested a judge in Wisconsin for allegedly “trying to help an undocumented immigrant avoid arrest.” Axios has the story. I have seen sources refer to her as a Federal judge, which she is not. She is a state district judge (at the County level.) And Steve Schmidt is pissed.

I am doubling up on Robert Reich today, partly because he’s interesting, and partly to take the taste of the FBI action away. This post leads to a documentary, and I’ll stop now to avoid spoilers. If you don’t want to watch “NOT the White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” maybe you’d prefer this. (On the other hand, if you do want to watch NOT the White House etc., and you reserves a spot of the pay per view, you’ll be able to re-watch it through June 30.)

Does it sound silly to say that we need to know what a national civic uprising would look like so that, armed with that knowledges, we won’t miss or dismiss it when it happens? It does sound so to me. But since so many people so disastrously did not see the Rockmelon Regime coming, maybe it isn’t silly at all.

Open Thread April 25 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 252025

Yesterday, Andy Borowitz was “reporting straight news” again. I won’t say it made me smile, because it didn’t, but maybe it will someone. (And I can’t respond to his question. Free subscribers cannot comment at Substack unless the owner opens the comments to us, and the only one I’ve found so far that foes consistently is Wonkette. But, if I could answer, I’d say Kash Patel. Those eyes – he really looks the part.) Also yesterday, apparently DHS has posted Kilmar Abrego Garcia‘s home address in Maryland, forcing his wife and kids to go into hiding.

It took me a couple of days to get this posted. If anyone knows someone, or knows someone who knows someone else who is an illegally fired Federal Civil Servant, There is a nonprofit called “Work For America” which has set up a program to help them find new jobs. Since this program is new, it’s difficult to check its bona fides. I would start by checking out the list of partners on their home page, none of which I recognize – but then I haven’t been looking for work since I retired either. I grant it sounds too good to be real, and I certainly wouldn’t send them any money without knowing more, but if it is legit it could be a needed lifeline for some very deserving people.

https://19thnews.org/2025/04/supreme-court-children-books-lgbtq-censorship/
This article from the 19th is a few days old – but the issue is not going away any time soon.0

This article at Joyce Vance’s Civil Discourse contains a video which was originally on the other guy’s site – which is why it sounds like Joyce is the guest – because she is. It’s not quite 40 minutes. I found it very listenable. There is stuff in it about their respective religious traditions, and it occurred to me I don’t think I have done this rant here before because I never thought it was needed, and it may not be needed here. So I’ll make it as brief as I can. At many liberal sites, especially those which encourage commenting, I see people all the time pontificating that “religion is the problem.” But, just as alcohol is not the problem in alcoholism, it is not religion which is the problem. It is the abuse and/or misuse of religion which is the problem. (For some specialists in allergy and intolerance, alcoholism has been described as an “addictive allergy,” but I won’t push that metaphor now.) If you can tolerate them discussing what is good in their respective religious traditions, there’s a lot of good advice in the discussion. If not, there’s a short article to read.

And this, also from Joyce Vance, is bad news which we cannot afford to ignore. I’m not saying thet the Civil Rights Division eliminated the stacking of the deck against the most vulnerable, because that would have been impossible. But over the years it has done a great deal to alleviate that deck-stacking, and without it we will be in big trouble.

Open Thread April 24 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 242025

Yesterday, The Mango Moron accused Volodymyr Zelensky of “sabotaging [the] U.S. peace plan for Ukraine” because of course he did. And a disagreement between Elon Musk and Scott Bessent “erupted into [a] West Wing shouting match.”

There’s a reason why Dan Froomkin calls his Substack “Press Watch” – because it’s all about, not just truth, but how truth should be presented. In other words – it should be read by journalists so that we don’t have to read it. Unfortunately, that isn’t happening. This article is a case in point.

I’ve never been a “first let’s kill all the lawyers” person. I do appreciate the jokes, and I may just tell one (with a slight twist) – but the lawyers we see on YouTube such as Glenn Kirschner, Michael Popok, and Harry Litman are honest and dedicated defenders of how the rule of law is needed to – and needs to – define and maintain democracy. This from Harry Litman I’m going to call a full disclosure post. (And may I suggest that the signers are in general also lawyers who can be trusted.) OK, joke. A man goes into a curio shop (in a place like Galveston, Atlantic City, or San Francisco – you’ll see why) and is fascinated by a brass rat. The owner advises him the rat has mysterious properties and warns him the price is non-refundable. He buys it anyway and leaves and continues walking around the city. Soon he notices he is being followed by rats, and that the number is increasing. As he continues walking the number of rats continues to grow, and he starts to run. The rats also start running, and there continue to be more and more of them. He speeds up and runs to the beach. When he gets there, he throws the brass rat as far out into the ocean as he can. All the rates follow it and drown. He then returns tot he curio shop, where the owner says, “I told you no refunds.” The man says, “I don’t want a refund. I want to know if you have any brass Trump** voters.”

Open Thread April 23 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 232025

Yesterday, Representatives Maxwell Frost (D-FL), Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ), Robert Garcia (D-CA), and Maxine Dexter (D – OR leads the way) went to El Salvador to demand the return of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia. Bold Progressives (dot org), through the PCCC and ActBlue. On a different angle, does anyone besides me think that the Supreme Court might need a mechanism maybe something like Congress’s Sergeant at Arms (or maybe like a Bailiff), to add physical force to moral force when needed? I realize there are negatives to that. But just now there is nothing, no way, to compel a rogue President to obey court orders.

https://www.npr.org/2025/04/21/nx-s1-5371312/trump-white-house-pete-hegseth-defense-department
This from NPR sounds promising, so I need to remind us to remember to be careful what we wish for. It would be difficult to find someone less qualified and more dangerous than Pete Hegseth – but that doesn’t mean it would be impossible. Furthermore, the goal of the Rockmelon Regime is to dismantle the government entirely. Who is better qualified to dismantle something than someone who knows how it is built? I have told my Senators that I expect them to vote “no” on all regime nominees, qualified or not, or else expect a primary. It may be working – the one whose term ends in 2026 has decided to run for Governor ( I don’t think he can win the primary against out AG but anything I can do to make sure he doesn’t I shall do.)

Well, THIS is what happens when people don’t pay attention. And I’m equally guilty. I missed it too. There is a good deal of catch-up here though, so we can get up to speed.

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