It’s a busy day, here in the CatBox.  WWWendy and I will be de-stinking the TomCat and doing chores, so this is today’s only article.  Also, tomorrow is semi-annual eye-torture, so please expect no more than a Personal Update.  Ellipsoid Orb Hugs to all!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:02 (average 4:23).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoons:

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: When last we checked in on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, operatives there were starting to panic over the “nightmare scenario” of losing the Republican Senate and White House. The results of elections in Virginia and Kentucky, along with big early spending from Democratic groups in key Senate states, have them in palpitations.

“We expected it to be bad. Nobody expected it to be this bad,” Scott Reed, the chief political strategist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said of the onslaught of Democratic ads against Republicans in Arizona, Colorado, Maine, and Iowa. “The right-of-center groups have got to get moving. Elections have consequences, and the Senate is the backstop against all-out craziness.”

This might be the problem for the Chamber—calling itself “right-of-center” when it’s propping up the most far-out extremist Republican party the nation’s been saddled with in decades.

People like the Chamber of Commerce don’t care who they screw or what miseries Republicans inflict on the American people, as long as they get their welfare and evade paying their fair share. They are the reason we need a President like Liz Warren and a Democratic Senate and House.  RESIST!!

From NY Times: “Yes, billionaires will have to pay a little more,” Senator Elizabeth Warren said of the revised tax package she introduced recently, “six cents on each dollar.”

This modest-sounding proposal, though, would have a far-reaching impact on the wealthiest Americans when combined with her other tax plans — shrinking colossal fortunes over time and making it much more difficult to hand down multibillion-dollar legacies.

The tax bite for any individual would not equal the $100 billion that Bill Gates jokingly cited, but over time it would still sting, according to estimates by two economists who advised Ms. Warren. If her wealth tax had been in effect since 1982, for example, Mr. Gates, who had made his first billion dollars by 1987, would have had $13.9 billion in 2018 instead of $97 billion.

Poor Bill! Only $13.9 billion? How could he possibly survive! Even if Liz gets every penny she has requested, it will take five or more decades to claw back half the welfare Republicans have forced the poor and middle classes to pay to billionaires since 1980. We’ve waited far too long to start!  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): Kansas – Dust in the Wind (Official Video)

Ah… the memories!  RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

I hope it’s a restful day here in the CatBox.  I have busy times ahead.  Today is a Holy Day in the Church of the Ellipsoid Orb.  My Broncos have their Bye week, so may the  Divine Orb shine it’s Blessed light on your team.  Please expect no more than a Personal Update from me for the next two days.  Tomorrow is a WWWendy day with an extra stinky TomCat to scrub and lots of chores to do.  Monday is half a day of routine semi-annual eye torture with Allison, my Ocular Oncologist to make sure my eye cancer has not returned.  Weekend hugs to all!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 4:31 (average 5:53).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From The Nation: …The question of “control” explains the fundamental division between philanthropy and social democracy. Billionaires like Bloomberg, Cooperman, and Gates can be quite generous in giving away money—so long as they continue to control the purse strings. That type of charity, even for the best of causes, only reinforces their power in society. But social democracy isn’t about charity but rather bringing wealth, which is socially created, under democratic control. Taxing wealth and reallocating it as a democratic government sees fit is crucial to creating a society where power is more evenly distributed. Charity is commendable in many ways, but it doesn’t alter power relations.

Sanders and Warren are pursuing a hard path. To democratize the American economy, they’ll need to not just fight traditional Republican foes but also alienate some erstwhile allies. Among the former friends that need to be shunted aside are the good billionaires.

Click through for the rest.  Bloomberg may be a philanthropist and left-center socially, but fiscally, he’s a Republican. Dump the DINO! He needs to be flushed in advance.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Witness Paints Trump Scheme, Russian Threat In Vivid Detail

If Fiona Hill testifies next week, she will have the Republican Reich for Lunch, especially the idiot, who enables perverts, that Trump planted to enable him.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): Donovan – Wear your love like heaven.

Ah… the memories!  RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

I’m still tired, here at the CatBox.  I just haven’t recovered from gruesome days Monday and Wednesday, but I should be in the saddle today and tomorrow, followed by two short days.  TGIF Hugs to all!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:36 (average 5:42).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: Sen. Lindsey Graham, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has shifted his bootlicking skills into high gear. After demanding that Democrats release transcripts of the impeachment inquiry he told reporters, “I’m not going to read these transcripts. The whole process is a joke.” He says he will not even consider the evidence. Lindsey feels that “the whole process to be a sham” and therefore, he will not “legitimize it.” Forget about the fact that he’s spent the past three years legitimizing a man he  said would destroy the Republican Party. Forget about the fact that Graham is now espousing a standard of impeachment that is so tortured, 1999 Lindsey might convict 2019 Lindsey of treason.

But the Republican Party is trying as hard as they can to completely obliterate the legal foundations of checks and balances in our democracy, and so throwing out any and every crazy gaslighting idea to defend their powerful orange-haired cow is the order of the day. During Sen. Graham’s mini press report in the Senate hallways, possibly shaken by the sheer enormity of his liar’s task, he decided to try out a new tact: Donald Trump et al are so goddamn stupid, they can’t be involved in a quid pro quo conspiracy. Because they’re dumb dumbs.

If Lindsey Poo says his beloved Fuhrer is too stupid to be guilty, what does that say about Lindsey Poo?  RESIST!!

From YouTube and YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Exclusive: Anonymous Author Depicts Deep Trump Admin Dysfunction AND Author’s ‘Warning’ Raises Question Of Trump Staff Responsibility

I was about to say that the so-called adults in the room are doing a piss poor job of restraining the Fuhrer’s worst impulses. Especially since that is “no longer true”, the author should not be lining hus own pocket by writing a book. Instead, he should resign and present himself to the House Impeachment inquiry. RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): Simon and Garfunkel – Bridge Over Troubled Water

Ah… the memories!  RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

It’s another day, here in the CatBox.  I’d like to finish early enough to get a partial nap before Store to Door delivers groceries this afternoon.  I also have a delivery of O₂ tanks coming.  I’m very tired, so instead of a third article today, I’ll post Samantha Bee’s clips tomorrow.  Way pooped Hugs!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:41 (average 5:27).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From The New Yorker: Surprisingly high turnout among smart voters in Kentucky on Tuesday has left Senator Rand Paul “terrified and shattered,” one of Paul’s aides has revealed.

As the election returns came in Tuesday night, it became clear that intelligent voters, who had never played a prominent role in any of Senator Paul’s electoral contests, were making their feelings known in unprecedented numbers.

“What we were seeing was huge participation by voters who apparently both consume and comprehend verifiable facts,” the senator’s aide said. “As far as Rand Paul is concerned, this is the doomsday scenario.”

As the night wore on, the aide said, Paul stared at the Kentucky election returns on TV in a near-catatonic state, finally moaning, “Where are all of these smart people coming from, damn it?”

Andy, this must be straight news! I can imagine Idiot (Rand Paul), Son of Idiot (Ron Paul), Named after Idiot (Ayn Rand) doing exactly that.  RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Dems Announce Public Hearings For Impeachment Probe As GOP Searches For Defense For Trump

Even Barrf is starting to read the wall. It says to Trump and the Republican Reich, “Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin.”  RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): The Moody Blues – Nights In White Satin

Ah… the memories!  RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!