Open Thread – Page 282 – Politics Plus

Open Thread for December 18, 2021

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:53 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 182021

Yesterday, I got my electronic Christmas cards selected, the rough drafts edited, all the addresses in a row like my ducks, and scheduled to be sent. Whew. Is that ever a relief!

Cartoon –

Short Takes

Wonkette – Manhattan DA Meeting All Donald Trump’s Favorite Accountants And Bankers!
Quote – And then there’s Rosemary Vrablic. Remember her? She was the banker who handled allllllll Trump’s shit at Deutsche Bank, which has reportedly been cooperating with the investigation since last year, when it was basically the only large bank in the entire world that was strangely willing to touch Trump with a ten-foot pole. (She’s since left the company.) The Post says Vrablic didn’t talk to the grand jury, but rather to prosecutors. They add that folks like these who weren’t employees — you know, like the indicted Allen Weisselberg — but rather who were, like, the point person for Trump in companies he dealt with, were people who “knew more about his company’s inner workings than many employees did.”
Click through to an article filled with suggestive tidbits. I don’t want to get hopes too high too fast … but this is good.

Robert Reich – Why I don’t trust the mainstream media
Quote – I’m often asked how I keep up with the news. Obviously, I avoid the unhinged rightwing outlets pushing misinformation, disinformation, and poisonous lies. But I’ve also grown a bit wary of the mainstream media –- the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, and other dominant outlets — not because they peddle “fake news” (their reporting is usually first-rate) but because of three more subtle biases.
Click through to see how a pro does it. It’s not as hard as you might think.

AP News – Forbes editor says he testified before Trump grand jury
Quote – Lane said he was questioned for about 20 minutes by Mark Pomerantz, a former mafia prosecutor assisting in the probe, and was asked to confirm various things, including the methodology of the magazine’s list of richest Americans and Trump’s statements in the article that “I look better if I’m worth $10 billion than if I’m worth $4 billion” and that a higher net worth “was good for financing.”
Click through for more. This article didn’t mention it, but, as Wonkette pointed out, those who testify before Grand Juries in New York are granted immunity.

Food For Thought:

Video Thread 12/17/2021

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

Dec 172021

Glenn Kirschner – House Committee Votes Meadows in Contempt; Says Insurrection “Runs Right Through Mark Meadows”

Meidas Touch – Fox vs. Fox: Private Messages | #FoxRuse

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party

MSNBC – Warnock To Senate Democrats: Bipartisanship At Whose Expense? (May I say Warnock rocks?)

Don Winslow Films – #NameTheTraitors (Yeah But. Even traitors deserve due process. And these particular ones are so placed as to avoid acountability if they don’t get it.)

Really American – Fox Hosts and Don Jr. EXPOSED re Jan. 6th Lies (I sure could use that emoji.)

Beau – Let’s talk about coup by PowerPoint…..

Open Thread for December 17, 2021

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:52 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 172021

Yesterday, I found the missing item from yesterday’s package, and contacted the supplier to ask about paying for the extra one. They said just keep it with their compliments. Virgil called (as he generally does several times a week – I usually don’t mention it) and asked whether I’m coming this weekend, and I told him no, I’m coming on Christmas, and he was all twitterpated. Bless his heart, his short term memory is virtually zero. And the TBI was 57 years aho.

Cartoon – (Theme song by Danny Elfman)

Short Takes

Mother Jones – Congress Agreed on Drastic Military Sexual Assault Reform. Then “Four Men Behind Closed Doors” Got Their Hands On It
Quote – With the exception of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Democratic women lawmakers and survivor advocacy groups have widely praised the final bill, which will pass as part of this year’s National Defense Authorization Act, as a significant step toward making the military court system fairer. In a statement, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), called the reforms “the most significant since the creation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice in 1950.” The reforms amount to a “sea change” in how the military approaches sexual assault cases…. “This is huge,” says retired Col. Don Christensen, the former chief prosecutor for the U.S. Air Force and the president of Protect Our Defenders, a nonprofit advocating for military justice system reform. “But,” he adds, “it’s also a missed opportunity.”
Click through for story. I know, I’m upset with Senator Gillibrand too over Al Franken. But she – and, more to the point, all the women in the military – didn’t deserve this.

ProPublica – What’s Polluting the Air? Not Even the EPA Can Say.
Quote – The only reason I’d heard about the issue at the Portland plant was because my colleagues Lylla Younes and Al Shaw, who have been reporting on toxic air since 2019, spent the past year calculating the cancer risks posed by industrial air polluters across the entire country. Their first-of-its-kind analysis of the EPA’s modeled data initially found that Portland — despite its reputation as an eco-friendly, farm-to-table mecca — was home to one of the worst hot spots of cancer-causing air in the country, all because of a single plant’s emissions.
Click through for details. Pro Publica is on fire this last month or so. Please also check this map (enter your Zip Code) – unless, of course you don’t want to know whether you are endangered by your air.

The 19th – Soledad O’Brien and Natalie Wilson show how quickly missing Black women are discounted
Quote – A simple classification really changes the narrative. I mean, think about if you see a missing person’s flyer: If you see “missing” or if you see “runaway,” which one would act on or pay attention to? Definitely not the one that says “runaway,” because you’re under the impression that the person left voluntarily. So, we really need to look at policies and procedures and training of law enforcement officials regarding sensitivity and cultural [understanding].
Click through for more. There’s a fair amount of repeating the same points in different words here, which I think is an effort to do whatever it takes to beat the reality into peopl’s brains. So sad that this is needed … but it is.

Food For Thought:

Video Thread 12/16/2021

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:51 am Open Thread, Politics

Dec 162021

Glenn Kirschner – Rep. Swalwell Announces New Federal Bill: Help for Families Who Lost a Loved One to Homicide

MSNBC – Mary Trump: Donald Trump Had The Power To Stop Jan. 6 Riot

Thom Hartmann – Trump Overruling Michigan Governor (w/ Judd Legum)

Rebel HQ – Mark Meadows Is SCREWED As Text Messages Surface (Ordinarily I don’t use material that jumps to conclusions – such as Mark Meadows being screwed – but there is good factual stuff in here.)

Robert Reich – Can Congress Really Use Insider Information to Trade Stocks?

Liberal Redneck – War on Christmas

Beau – Let’s talk about semantics, Shepherd’s Pie, liberals, and leftists….

Open Thread for December 16, 2021

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:35 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 162021

Yesterday, nothing was predictable or went as expected. Butterfingers here dropped some things … and then picked up some other things, some probably dropped months ago (like 4mm beads, and earring backs.) Mislaid some things, found one that I’d been looking for. Got a package and found one item was missing but one was included I hadn’t ordered (and it wasn’t on the packing slip – and this is unheard of with this supplier.) Loaded some pictures for FFT to the library, and two just disappeared (they were still on my computer, but I had to find them in the trash to re-load them.) All just little things, but a bit disorienting. Nothing I can’t survive LOL!

Cartoon – 16 Voyager loaded

Short Takes

Mother Jones – What if Media Covered the War on Democracy Like an Actual War?
Quote – As we wind down a year that began with a televised insurrection and ends with detailed reporting on what a 2024 coup could look like, it’s more important than ever to stay grounded in that story. Call it the Big Story, in contrast to the Big Lie…. The Big Story did not begin on November 3, 2020, but it did enter a new chapter that day. Remember those surreal weeks, just barely a year ago? Protesters banging on doors at ballot-counting centers, Rudy Giuliani holding forth outside a landscaping shop, election officials reporting vile threats to their families?
Click through for more reality. Yes, Monika wants to raise funds, but who can blame her. It’s not like this isn’t important.

Crooks and Liars – Seems Like People Are Missing The Real Mark Meadows Story
Quote – The plan all along was to create a clash between “patriots” and antifa/BLM that would allow Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act and stay in office. Leftists threw a major monkey wrench into the plot by not showing up. (Thank you, leftists. Major props!)
Click through. It’s not long, and not a word is wasted. And she’s right. And I missed it too.

HuffPost – Final Child Tax Credit Payments Go Out Amid Doubt Over Program’s Future
Quote – As a main Democratic holdout in the Senate, Manchin has faced relentless questioning from reporters about his position on various elements of Build Back Better, and he lost his temper on Wednesday when HuffPost followed up with a question about whether he supported continuing the child tax credit in its current form. “This is bullshit,” he said. “You’re bullshit.”
Click through for backstory, and consequences. I find this situation painful, and I don’t even have kids.

Food For Thought:

Video Thread 12/15/2021

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:04 pm Open Thread, Politics

Dec 152021

Glenn Kirschner – Mark Meadows’ Treason-Dream PowerPoint and His Upcoming Contempt of Congress Charge

Meidas Touch – Treason Texts

Thom Hartmann – What Should Liberals Do About Rural America?

Taylor Mali – What Teachers Make (a classic)
Transcript: He says, “The problem with teachers is what’s a kid gonna learn from someone who decided his best option in life is to become a teacher?” [Laughs] He reminds the other dinner guests that “It’s true what they say about teachers – that those who can, do, and those who can’t, teach.” [Laughs] I decide to bite my tongue instead of his and resist the urge to remind the other dinner guests that it’s also true what they say about lawyers, because we’re eating after all, and this is polite conversation. “I mean, you’re a teacher, Taylor. Be honest – what do you make?” and I wish he hadn’t done that – asked me to nebe honest – because, you see, I have a policy about honesty and ass-kicking, which is if you ask for it, then I have to let you have it.
I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could. I can make an C+ feel like a Congressional Medal of Honor, and I can make an A- feel like a slap in the face – “How dare you waste my time with anything less than your very best.”
You want to know what I make? I make kids sit through 40 minutes of study hall in absolute silence. “No, you cannot work in groups…. Why won’t I let you go to the bathroom? Because you’re bored and you don’t really have to go.”
You want to know what I make? I make parents tremble in fear when I call home at around dinnertime. “I just want to talk to you about something that your son did. He said, ‘Leave the kid alone. I still cry sometimes. Don’t you?’ and it was the noblest act of courage that I have ever seen.” I make parents see their children for who they are, and who they can be. can be
You want to know what I make? I make kids question. I make them criticize and make them apologize. I make them read, I make them write write write, I make them spell “definitely beautiful” over and over and over until they can never misspell either one of those words again. I make them show all their work in math, and then hide it on their final drafts in English. I make them realize that if you’ve got this [points to head] then you follow this [points to heart] and if somebody tries to judge you based on what you think you give them this [shows middle finger].
Let me break it down for you so you know what I say is true: I make a goddamn difference now what about you

Really American – Misinformation leads to GOP Deaths

Parody Project – RUDOLPH THE FORMER MAYOR

Beau – Let’s talk about nosy neighbors….

Open Thread for December 15, 2021

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:50 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 152021

Yesterday, I got email confirmation of my next visit to Virgil, which will be on Christmas Day. We have never had that happen before. I hope the weather will be kind. I also got a paper check from a class action suit into the mail to my credit union. I hate paper checks. But I do have envelopes and postage and deposit slips, and now I have the address on my hard drive where I won’t lose it, so, oh, well. Usually I send paper checks to my USAA account – they provide postage-paid envelopes – but in this suit, USAA was the defendant, and I thought that would be tacky. So the Credit Union it had to be.

Cartoon –

Short Takes

The 19th – ‘Dash for Cash’ showcases lack of pay and resources for South Dakota teachers
Quote – Teachers spent an average of $750 out of their own pocket on school supplies during the 2020-2021 school year, according to a survey of 5,400 teachers administered by AdoptAClassroom, a nonprofit that raises funds for school supplies
Click through. This just makes me want to cry. There is no rational reason why we don’t fund out public schools properly and pay teachers appropriately for what they do. It’s just pure meanness. BTW I promised I’d look up the slam poem on what teachers make – you’ll find it and the transcript in today’s video thread.

Crooks and Liars – What Wingers Are Really Saying When They Say ‘Missing Children’
Quote – That’s what right-wingers mean when they talk about missing children: It’s QAnon Lite, the belief that all their enemies are pedophiles and all their heroes are anti-pedophile warriors. Much of the discussion and activity of these beliefs now takes place with no overt reference to QAnon.
Click thought for full story. I knew exactly what the headline was referring to before reading the full story. Did you? Of course, there exist a number we can’t ever know of people whose brains are wired to want sex with children We can’t know it because most will never act on it, and most of those who do will never be exposed. But, since this kind of sex has a built-in imbalance of power, I don’t think it’s a stretch to suggest that most of them are Republicans (using the term for people who think like Republicans, regardless of party registration, if any.)

Daily Beast – The Green Lantern Theory Destroyed Jimmy Carter’s Presidency. Now It’s Hitting Joe Biden.
Quote – The problem with being a president who promises to clean things up after a villainous predecessor is that the press corps treats you like a superhero—which sounds like a good thing until you realize that just means you get blamed for things you can’t control. That’s what happened to Jimmy Carter, and it’s what’s happening to Joe Biden now thanks to what Dartmouth political scientist Brendan Nyhan has called “the Green Lantern Theory” in which voters believe a president can do anything through sheer willpower, like the DC superhero.
Click through for details. Ms. Clift used to be in the McLaughlin Group, so she’s some kind of conservative, but she was never a nutcase, and this is pretty reasonable – if I can use that term for a solid explanatin of unreason.

Food For Thought:
I can’t put the whole presentation here because it’s six panels, each a different “Truth-in-Advertising” re-named Kelloggs product. It starts with “Kelloggs Corp Flacks” and only gets better. I think you’ll want to share it too.