I have come down with the flu, but I still have to go out. This is one meeting I cannot miss. I will post this when I return, so you will know I made it OK. I may or may not be writing tomorrow, depending on how I feel. Hugs!!
I’m back safe. Please pardon me while I go bury myself in my kitty box.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 3:38 (average 4:46). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Cartoon:
As we have seen in recent articles here part of Trump’s standard modus operandi has been to engage in deals in which he profits from helping corrupt Russian billionaires launder money. In this crime du jour, Trump appears to be helping to launder money for the Corleones of the Caspian, and helping them launder money for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
President Donald Trump and his eldest daughter developed a hotel in Azerbaijan that appears to be a corrupt operation run by a family known as “the Corleones of the Caspian” with links to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
The Trump International Hotel & Tower Baku — conceived in 2008 as a luxury apartment building but converted in 2014 into a hotel — has never opened, and both local observers and international experts are baffled by the building’s existence, reported The New Yorker.
The project was intended as an “ultra-luxury property” with both hotel and residential space, but both its location and timing are odd, according to the report.
Trump Tower Baku is located in an underdeveloped part of the city’s downtown, across the street from a discount shopping center and miles away from the main business district.
“Why would someone put a luxury hotel there?” said former top official in Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Tourism. “Nobody who can afford to stay there would want to be in that neighborhood.”…
From <Raw Story>
I encourage you to click through and read both this article and the New Yorker story it references.
Raxhel Maddow covered the story in two segments. In the first. she clarifies the issue after setting it up with one of her magnificent wandering A blocks.
In the second, she interviews Adam Davidson, author of the New Yorker article.
There is just too much smoke here for there not to be a fire, and not just a fire. This is a conflagration of corruption of epic proportions.
I'm having a very difficult day. Last night was so muggy and noisy that I ably slept for about ninety minutes. Safeway.com will be delivering groceries in the next hour and forty minutes. When they do, I have to unpack and put them away, without the help I normally get from Store to Door. I already feel exhausted. Please expect no more than a personal update from me tomorrow. I have a meeting.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today's took me 4:52 (average 4:54). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From The New Yorker: Donald J. Trump’s claim that Barack Obama wiretapped him received a strong denial on Monday from the former President, who said to reporters, “Like I’d want to hear more from that fool?”
Obama said that, when he first saw Trump’s allegations on Twitter, “My first thought was, Only a narcissist on the scale of Donald Trump would think people want to hear more from him than they currently do. If anything, I think we’d all like to hear way, way less.”
He said that his wife, Michelle, agreed that the idea of his wanting to hear more from Donald Trump “was one of the funniest things she’s ever heard.”
LOL Andy! Is that an exact quote? It could be! RESIST!!
From NY Times: President Trump’s executive order barring immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries experienced nearly universal defeat in the federal courts. On Monday, he issued a revised version of that order, but it still suffers from a fundamental, and fatal, flaw: It constitutes unlawful religious discrimination.
On the surface, this revised order looks different from the first version. It explicitly exempts Iraq from the travel ban, thus reducing the number of affected countries to six, as well as lawful permanent residents (that is, green card holders) and people who have visas. It no longer categorically bars Syrian refugees or includes a religious test to determine which refugees may enter the country. And in a marked departure from the earlier order, it goes into effect in 10 days, so that the chaos that unfolded in airports around the world when the January order became effective presumably won’t happen again.
These changes are, no doubt, intended to address the due process concerns that led the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to affirm a lower-court ruling that put a hold on part of the original order. But while these changes are important, they do not fix the core problem with the executive order: The administration is waging an all-out assault on Islam and Muslims.
That’s because anti-Muslim bias and bigotry that characterized the original travel ban remain in this revised version. The order is still limited to only Muslim-majority countries: namely, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Residents of those countries — and only those countries — will be severely restricted in their ability to travel into the United States for 90 days. Left off are the predominately Christian countries that the State Department lists as “Terrorist Safe Havens” like Colombia, the Philippines and Venezuela.
The Fuhrer's underlying motives for this are still hatred and bigotry. RESIST!!
From YouTube (GQ Channel): The Russian Developments That Matter Most | The Resistance with Keith Olbermann
Flushing Trump is not enough. Every Republican must be removed from office. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
The Koch Brothers are pleased that the Trump Reich is following their father’s lead in dealing closely with a Russian autocrat, but just as disappointed that their long-term efforts to repeal the ACA have not borne fruit. Now they’re even more worried that the pressure constituents have been exerting has legislators fearful for their jobs, so the evil twins are turning up the heat.
Saying their patience is at an end, conservative activist groups backed by the billionaire Koch brothers and other powerful interests on the right are mobilizing to pressure Republicans to fulfill their promise to swiftly repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Their message is blunt and unforgiving, with the goal of reawakening some of the most extensive conservative grass-roots networks in the country. It is a reminder that even as Republicans control both the White House and Congress for the first time in a decade, the party’s activist wing remains restless and will not go along passively for the sake of party unity.
With angry constituents storming town hall-style meetings across the country and demanding that Congress not repeal the law, these new campaigns are a sign of a growing concern on the right that lawmakers might buckle to the pressure…
From <NY Times>
Fortunately, there is also a push from the other side.
Republican plans to repeal the Affordable Care Act have encountered a new obstacle: adamant opposition from many older Americans whose health insurance premiums would increase.
AARP and its allies are bombarding congressional offices with objections as two House committees plan to vote on the Republicans’ bill this week.
If the law is repealed, the groups say, people in their 50s and 60s could see premiums rise by $2,000 to $3,000 a year or more: increases of 20 percent to 25 percent or higher.
Under current rules, insurers cannot charge older adults more than three times what they charge young adults for the same coverage. House Republican leaders would allow a ratio of five to one — or more, if states choose… [emphasis added]
From <NY Times>
Although I an glad that AARP has mounted this campaign, I so wish they had not been so positive to Republicans before the election. It’s a shame that so many seniors who voted for Trump and his Republican fascists are going to get screwed because they did so. I feel sorry for them , but I feel far sorrier for those among us who did the right thing and are getting screwed anyway.
I recommend reading the rest of both articles. Then
For the next week I may be a bit scarce. I have a grocery delivery tomorrow from Safeway.com, because on Wednesday, I have to go out for an annual meeting, so expect only a Personal Update that day. Next Monday I shall be 39 for the 31st consecutive time, but Wendy works and I have a Urologist appointment, so on Sunday Wendy wants to celebrate with a surprise. In any case, please expect only Personal Updates both days.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 5:26 (average 8:31). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (LWT Channel): Dalai Lama: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
I have to admire the Dalai Lama’s positivity toward the enemies of his people. I can’t imagine being that positive to the Fuhrer. RESIST!!
From CNN: About two-thirds of Americans say a special prosecutor should investigate contacts between Russians and Trump campaign associates, according to a new CNN/ORC poll, and 55% say they are at least somewhat concerned by reports that some connected to the Trump campaign had contact with suspected Russian operatives.
However, the steady stream of news about investigations into those contacts doesn’t appear to have affected President Donald Trump’s approval rating, which ticked up only one percentage point — 44% to 45% — from January.
Concerns about the reported contacts are closely tied to partisanship, with 71% of Democrats saying they are "very concerned" about it while 54% of Republicans say they have no concerns "at all" about the reports.
It boggles my mind that 29% of Democrats and 54% of Republicans are not concerned that Republican campaign officials were in contact with Russian intelligence operatives at the same time Russian intelligence were conspiring and interfering to influence our election on Trump’s behalf. It means that 29% of Democrats are idiots and 54% of Republicans are idiots, traitors or both. RESIST!!
From Daily Kos: With reports that unpopular orange-tinted President Donald Trump and Republicans plan on obliterating the EPA’s budget this coming year, many of the people who voted for him might be getting a rude awakening. States like Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin enjoy the waters of the Great Lakes, and the EPA is one of those agencies that tries to ensure that those lakes can be enjoyable for generations to come.
The National Association of Clean Air Agencies confirmed for the Free Press late Thursday that an initial proposal from the White House Office of Management and Budget calls for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to be cut from $300 million a year to about $10 million.
[…]
If the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is targeted for such a drastic reduction — and it is by far the largest dollar cut on Davis’ partial list from the association’s data — it would decimate a program that has helped pay to restore wetlands and improve water quality across the Upper Midwest.
Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and Pennsylvania — Great Lakes states that backed Trump in the election last year — have all received funding under the initiative, which many lawmakers of both parties in the region have steadfastly supported even when other Republicans have moved to reduce it.
Once again, it’s time for people, who voted for Trump to take the position to receive his thanks to you. Drop your pants, bend over, and grab your ankles. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
When Fuhrer Drumphenfarten, liar extraordinaire, promised to green-light Keystone XL, his primary justification was the jobs he falsely claimed it would bring. He emphasized steel manufacturing jobs and obtained the votes of thousands steel workers with the promise that only US Steel would be used. However, Trump is now colluding with Transamerica to guarantee that the steel money goes to who he really represents.
After green lighting the continuation of the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline in an executive order January 24th, President Trump declared as recently as last week that the pipeline had to use American made steel “or we’re not building one.”
But on Friday, Trump spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced that the directive would apply only to new pipelines or those currently undergoing repair.
That sharp reversal now paves the way for the use of a stockpile of steel manufactured in Canada by a subsidiary of Evraz, a company in which Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich owns nearly a one/third stake… [emphasis added]
From <Huffington Post>
There it is, steel workers. Your jobs are going into the pockets of a Russian billionaire, who is a close ally of Putin and a Trump family friend.
I’ve had a change in schedule. Wendy will be coming an hour and a half later than before, because she quit her part time job tending bar. I guess she was tired from exhausting all the hot younger men she was meeting there. Dang!! If only I were 20 years younger, I’d be a hot younger man!! 
In any case, I’m doing as much as I can before she gets here.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 4:17 (average 5:13). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From YouTube (SNL Channel): Girl at a Bar
Cool! Now we have some pervs of our own to take on the pussy grabber. RESIST!!
From CNN: President Donald Trump made a stunning claim Saturday, alleging without offering evidence that his predecessor, Barack Obama, wiretapped his phones at Trump Tower ahead of the 2016 election.
"Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!" Trump tweeted early Saturday morning
If true, however doubtful, Obama would have gotten a court order from FISA. I see that as fully justified by Trump’s involvement with Putin (R-RU). RESIST!!
From The New Yorker: In a frenzy of early-morning activity on Saturday, President Donald J. Trump ordered aides to immediately cover every phone in the White House with tin foil, White House sources confirmed.
According to the sources, Trump contacted staffers Kellyanne Conway and Sean Spicer at approximately 6 A.M. and instructed them to purchase enough tin foil to cover every phone in the building.
The President, still wearing his bathrobe after what was reportedly a sleepless night, personally supervised the tin-foil installation, sources said.
LOL Andy!! This is like the standard tin foil hats I’ve been putting on Republicans for years. RESIST!!
Cartoon:
It’s Saturday, and Bill Maher is still funny, so here are three clips from last night’s show.
Great Point! Putin overpaid!
Bill McKibben: Fighting Back on Climate Change
What Pruitt is doing to the EPA boggles the mind! Democratic politicians DO need to get feistier. Republicans are saying rising ocean temperatures cause global warming. That’s like saying smell causes shit!! Republicans are not conservative, They are fascist!
"When a hooker blows a politician, it puts a lobbyist out of work." I have to remember that one! This is a simple case of IOKIYAR.
When you finish laughing, it’s time to
