Joanne Dixon

Open Thread December 9, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:20 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 092022

Yesterday, I was glad to see that we finally found someone acceptable to swap for Britney Griner, who is now on her way home. About time, too. Of course Republicans are screaming bloody murder. But there are a few other good news items which got me through the day. and I got to see my BFF, who ca me by to bring me a prescription so I don’t have to go into a store and get exposed to heaven knows what. The three items which I think really command attention concern Lizzo, Biden, and Kamala Harris.

Cartoon

Short Takes –

Wonkette – Germany Arrests 25 In QAnon-Fueled Coup Plot, Proving America Does Too Still Export Stuff
Quote – The plot included a plan to attack Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag, to kill members or take them hostage. By golly, we have seen that movie…. In addition to the plan to storm the Bundestag, the group allegedly planned to attack Germany’s electric grid and use the resulting chaos to foment a civil war. All told, while only 25 people were arrested, a total of 50 have been accused of involvement in the terrorist organization.
Click through for story. This appears to be a bit of a scoop – there was a short clip on MSNBC and that was all I found (it’s in the video thread.)

Crooks & Liars – ‘Religious Freedom’ Bites Forced-Birthers Where The ‘Son’ Don’t Shine
Quote – Jewish people, for instance, don’t believe the fetus has a soul until it draws its first independent breath. We prioritize the life of the pregnant person above the life of the fetus for the entirety of the pregnancy, including in situations that put the pregnant person’s emotional health at risk. With the imposition of the GOP’s fetus-fetish laws all over the nation, however, Jews and others whose religions don’t subscribe to the ideology of these nutters are fighting fire with fire.
Click through for details. I applaud this work. I’m so tired of people claiming to be Christians saying abortion is murder when the Bible does not say so, but implies it is not. What clearly IS murder is failing to treat pregnancy issues and thereby causing death. If you’re going to outlaw abortion, you might as well also outlaw the Heimlich maneuver.

Food For Thought – OMG, this is beautiful!

Video Thread 12/8/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:47 am Open Thread, Politics

Dec 082022

Glenn Kirschner – Trump Org GUILTY! Will Donald Trump be next? Plus, J6 committee to make criminal referrals to DOJ

The Lincoln Project – Trump Against The Constitution

MSNBC – Harry Dunn: ‘I’m Not Letting Anyone Steal The Joy I Feel’

Liberal Redneck – Liberal Redneck – Kanye, Nazis, Etc

Bird Loves To Annoy His Dog Brother

Beau – Let’s talk about Sweden, Finland, and cold weather gear….

Open Thread December 8, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:42 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 082022

Yesterday, after Senator Warnock’s victory, I was at least able to breathe again. Sadly, that was a real nail biter. But it ended well. So I decided it was time to move on to the Supreme Court. Both of today’s short takes are – not eacttly hopeful. But we need to know about them. If you need some comic relief, you can check out this BuzzFeed article on misconceptions (no pun intended) that men have about women’s anatomy and bodily functions. They reach never-before-published levels of absurdity.

Cartoon

Short Takes –

Mother Jones – Con Law: How a Fake Document Could Help the Supreme Court Diminish Our Democracy
Quote – So this August, historians of the Constitution were alarmed to see Pinckney’s fraud credulously cited in a brief submitted to the Supreme Court in Moore v. Harper, a high-stakes case that will be heard on Wednesday and whose outcome could usher in new state-level voter suppression and gerrymandering schemes. If the decision rests on Pickney’s alleged plan or similar shaky foundations, it may also prove to be the most dramatic example of a troubling new trend at the court: the flaunting [sic] of inconvenient facts and the adoption of alternative ones in their place.
Click through for article. Of course the author means “flouting” – flaunting is something quite different – almost the opposite actually. But that doesn’t change the fact that this is a horrible danger. It is impossible to trust Thmas, Alito, and the MAGA three not to fall for it. I would love to be proved wrong.

Colorado Public Radio News – Supreme Court seems poised to side with Colorado web designer in 303 Creative case
Quote – The case, 303 Creative v. Elenis, pits a Colorado website designer named Lorie Smith against state officials trying to enforce Colorado’s Anti Discrimination Act. Smith wants to start creating custom wedding websites. Specifically, she wants to post a message on her company’s site that she would not create websites for same-sex marriage “or any other marriage that is not between one man and one woman,” according to a brief in the case. But state officials would consider that discriminatory behavior based on the state’s laws, so Smith sued the state.
Click through for details. If I tried to express my deepest opinion on this, I would become incoherent, so I’ll fall back on my favorite bumper sticker: “Jesus called. He wants his church back.”

Food For Thought

Video Thread 12/7/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:46 am Open Thread, Politics

Dec 072022

Glenn Kirschner – In Trump Org criminal trial, NY prosecutors argue to jury that Donald Trump HIMSELF committed crimes

Ojeda LIVE – Top 5: MAGA Symbols

Armageddon Update – Elmer Is Stuck

Real Subtitles? – The truth about aggressive politicians.

This Stray Cat Ask To Be Let Inside To Keep Her Kittens Safe

Beau – Let’s talk about San Francisco and robots….

Open Thread December 7, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:17 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 072022

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Yesterday, of course, was the runoff election in Georgia. I followed the New Yorker’s live election results for a while … but every time I looked, Warnock’s lead, though still commanding, was a little smaller. In fact, at 88% counted, it was donw to less than a point. But DeKalb County, apparently the last to come in, went blue enough to confirm Warnock’s win. I wish the margin had been wider … but I’ll take it.
In other news, a report from Colorado Public Radio says the Q-Club shootr was arraigned and charhed with 305 counts, which included muder and hate crimes. That’s a lot of counts. And, in New York, the Trump** Organization was found guilty on all charges. Oral arguments in Moore v. Harper begin today. And – do we have any Neil DIamnd fans here?

Cartoon (You were expecting maybe Pearl Harbor?)

Short Takes –

The Daily Beast – Why SCOTUS Could Be About to Unleash Frankenstein’s Monster
Quote – Proponents of the “ISLT”–Independent State Legislature Theory–believe that the U.S. Constitution bestows unreviewable power upon state legislatures to determine how congressional elections–and by extension Presidential elections–are conducted. The case is so controversial that more than 70 amicus briefs–“friends of the court”–have been submitted, including everyone from former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the ACLU, with 48 of them being opposed to the legitimacy of the ISLT.
Click through for pretty much all we know right now. This is no ordinary case. And this is no ordinary court. And the decision is going to be a long time coming – although probably not quite as long as it’s going to seem.

Colorado Public Radio – Colorado Springs LGBTQ chorus Out Loud unifies community with song
Quote – That mixture of pride and rage, laughter and tears, is what Out Loud aims for in their upcoming holiday concerts…. The small audience sensed that magic at rehearsal as the chorus progressed through “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” a carol based on a Civil War-era poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow about his wounded son. Their despair lifted as the music pulled toward resolution: “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: God is not dead, nor doth he sleep. The wrong shall fail … the right prevail with peace on earth.”
Click through for full article, which covers far more than jist one concert. This is a wonderful group. I used to go to their concerts and unjoy them immensely – though of course I haven’t been out to any concerts since the pandemic started, and won’t be going now. I was introduced to the group by a co-worker who was a member

Food For Thought

Added late by request:

Video Thread 12/6/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:17 pm Open Thread, Politics

Dec 062022

Glenn Kirschner – Donald Trump advocates “terminating the Constitution” and restoring him to the presidency.

Meidas Touch – Test REVEALS True Nature of DISTURBING MAGA Psychology

CBS News – Herschel Walker, Raphael Warnock make last pitches to voters in Georgia Senate runoff election

Mother Jones – Souls and Polls: Christianity Is on the Georgia Ballot

What It’s Like Living With Two Parrots (has a commercial in the middle – it’s thankfully short)

Beau – Let’s talk about Biden wanting to change the primaries….

Open Thread December 6, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:08 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 062022

~~Yesterday~~ Today is the runoff election for the Senator from Georgia. I’m devoting as much time and space to that as I reasonably can. I am not expecting final results today, although it certainly could happen.

Cartoon

Short Takes –

Civil Discourse – Are The Frogs Boiled?
Quote – All too often, elected officials get away with ducking. They avoid the cameras, they say it was a joke or that Trump didn’t mean it. They refuse to hold public meetings with constituents to avoid being asked point blank questions. Sometimes they condemn Trump, as on January 6, but then return to the fold. They know they can do that, because the media moves on with the news cycle. And they get away with it. So this, what’s happened now, has to be a job for all of us. It’s civil discourse. Let’s ask our elected officials where they stand and stay on them until they answer. Or not. Because sometimes a repeated, documented, failure to respond tells us what we need to know.
Click through for full column – it’s short. Out of four officials (Governor, two Senators, and Representative), I only need to write to one. Poor Joyce has a quadrifecta. I most certainly am referencing my own oath as a veteran (particularly since my rep spends so much time and effort BSing veterans.)

Politico – Warnock focuses on turnout as early voting ends in Georgia runoff
Quote – “If you have already voted, spend all weekend calling the folks who haven’t voted, or you don’t know if they voted,” Warnock told the crowd. “Call them — that’s your job. Your job is not over.” The event was part of what is often called “Souls to the Polls” events, where faith leaders like Warnock, who is also a senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, host events that end with attendees voting. These events, often held at predominantly Black churches, are also key to engaging Black voters, a core constituency of the Democratic Party.
Click through for article. Like every other article on this race, is devotes attention to how much money has been spent in this campaign. Money alone wll not determine the winner. Turnout is what does that.

Food For Thought