Open Thread – Page 493 – Politics Plus

Open Thread – 6/29/2018

Posted by TomCat at 1:01 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

Jun 292018

I slept pretty well last night, but it left me feeling groggy, because I was overtired. It’s not overly hot, but the sun hit the wall early. It just passed 71° outside, but it was 85° inside when I buttoned up the CatBox and powered up the AC. WWWendy is on her way to Texas. Crying face TGIF!!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:58 (average 4:55). To do it click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (Late Show Channel): Michael Moore Believes America Is A Liberal Country

I look forward to seeing Fahrenheit 11/9. Moore’s take on civility is spot-on! I also like his push for mass demonstrations of unprecedented size. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From YouTube (NY Times Channel): How Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Wants to Change Politics

Amen!! I love her expression the moment she learned she won. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From Alternet: ‘Get Out of My Vagina’: The View Explodes As Meghan McCain Cheers Kennedy’s Retirement And Declares ‘Abortion is Murder’

BARF BAG ALERT!!

Kudos to Whoopie! Freedom of religion demands that Megan McConJob does not get to force her pseudo-Christian piety codes on you. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Open Thread – 6/28/2018

Posted by TomCat at 12:35 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 282018

I’m feeling very tired. WWWendy was picking up her son at the airport in Seattle. His flight from Spain was late, so she pulled in here over 90 minutes late. We had extra work in preparation for her vacation, and I had bought beef ribs as a going away present, so I got to bed way late. Then I had to miss my morning rest to get the grocery order from Store to Door. My fingers are fighting me to find the right keys.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 2:56 (average 4:53). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (Late Show Channel): Mitch McConnell’s Supreme About Face

It’s our last chance to laugh about it. Crying Time starts in 5 minutes. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From USA Today: North Korea is upgrading a major nuclear research facility despite President Donald Trump’s claim that leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to disarm, according to new satellite images and a research paper published by a North Korea monitoring group.

Experts at 38 North, a website affiliated with the Stimson Center in Washington D.C. devoted to analysis of North Korea, concluded the images show that "improvements to the infrastructure at North Korea’s Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center are continuing at a rapid pace."

The satellite images are from June 21.

That’s OK with the Fuhrer, as long as KIM keeps stroking his ego. Republicans are treating friends like enemies, and enemies like friends. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From NY Times: President Trump plans to meet President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia next month in a one-on-one summit meeting, a politically sensitive encounter that could exacerbate strains with NATO allies even if it eases tensions between the United States and Russia.

It would be the first formal summit meeting specifically for Mr. Trump and Mr. Putin, who have met twice at annual gatherings of world leaders. And it comes at a particularly delicate moment, with midterm elections looming in the United States and the special counsel’s investigation of Mr. Trump’s ties to Russia grinding on.

Putin needs to give Trump his orders, possibly including whom to nominate for SCROTUS (Republican Constitutional VD). RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Open Thread – 6/27/2018

Posted by TomCat at 12:51 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 272018

It’s temperate outside,but the sun hit the wall early, so I’m buttoned up with the AC for the day. Store to Door did not deliver the last 1/3 of my grocery order. They are bringing it tomorrow, but it screwed up my day. It’s my last evening with WWWendy, before her Texas vacation. I’m feeding her ribs. I’m in a rush.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:10 (average 4:34). To do it. click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Beats Democrat Rep. Joe Crowley In Primary

Woooo Hoooo!! RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From YouTube (Inequality Media Channel): Robert Reich: Is Trump the Worst President in History?

Dang! For the first time in my memory, the Reich on the left, Robert Reich, is wrong. The Fuhrer never has been, is not, and never will be a President. Correcting the terminology, he is the worst Resident in history, and Robert’s conclusion is spot-on. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From The New Yorker: Shortly after the United States Supreme Court upheld Donald J. Trump’s controversial travel ban, millions of people from other countries expressed puzzlement that anyone would want to travel to the United States at this juncture.

In interviews with people from around the world, respondents said that the travel ban struck them as unnecessary, because the United States was not currently on the list of the top hundred countries to which they would consider travelling.

When asked to name the reasons they felt that a travel ban was superfluous, many of those interviewed cited the United States’s gun violence and crumbling infrastructure, as well as its broken educational and health-care systems, while others singled out its President’s startling disrespect for democratic norms and human rights.

Andy, this isn’t satire, is it? RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Now Kennedy is resigning! Gloom!

Open Thread – 6/26/2018

Posted by TomCat at 12:53 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 262018

Today’s high is only high 70°s, but the sun hit the wall early, so I had to button up the CatBox and fire-up the AC. WWWendy will be visiting San Antonio this weekend, only about 100 miles from Pat B.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 2:58 (average 4:44). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Harley-Davidson Is Losing Jobs In President Donald Trump’s Trade War

Thousands of jobs will be lost and we will pay much more for lots of things, because of the Fuhrer’s Republican incompetence on trade. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From Alternet: Ahead of a closely watched New York primary on Tuesday, progressive gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon and congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezendorsed each other on Monday, and announced they are coming together at a Get Out the Vote event in Queens to “speak of their shared progressive, people-powered campaigns taking on centrist, corporate Democrats.”

As the New York primary on Tuesday only applies to federal races, Nixon—like everyone else running for state or local offices—will have until September 13 to continue campaigning. However, voters in the state’s 14th District will head to ballot boxes in less than 24 hours to choose between Ocasio-Cortez and Democratic Rep. Joe Crowley, who hasn’t faced a primary challenger in 14 years.

I certainly support Ocasio-Cortez, with the caveat that, if she loses the primary, even corporate Democrat Joe Crowley is infinitely better than a Republican. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From NY Times: In more than 20 of the most competitive House races of 2018, the share of Democrats voting in primaries notably increased, compared with 2014, the last midterm election cycle…

…Democrats have appeared to be more enthusiastic than Republicans about the 2018 elections, showing up in massive numbers to protest President Trump and volunteer for campaigns.

But to win the midterms, Democrats still have to translate that energy into votes. The still-unfolding season of primary elections has been encouraging to Democrats on that front.

Democratic turnout has risen more sharply than Republican turnout in at least 123 congressional districts, including districts where Republican incumbents are most vulnerable, in states like California and New Jersey.

This kind of activism is far more productive than self-defeating talk of a wave. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Open Thread – 6/25/2018

Posted by TomCat at 12:42 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 252018

Yesterday Wendy and I worked so hard, and it was so damn hot, that I was unable to wind down and get to sleep until well after midnight, so I spent the morning napping instead of researching. Therefore this is my only article today, and I will not be sending links messages at Care2.

Jig Zone Puzzles:

Today’s took me 7:01 (average 7:41). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Washington Post: President Trump on Sunday explicitly advocated for depriving undocumented immigrants of their due-process rights, arguing that people who cross the border into the United States illegally are invaders and must immediately be deported without trial or an appearance before a judge.

In the Republican Reich, let the Constitution be damned. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From NY Times: 2. Driver’s license offices are closed in black areas.

The year after the photo identification law took effect, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency announced that it would close 31 driver’s license offices, one of the primary places where Alabamians could obtain photo identification. The closings were in response to budget cuts, but there was a clear racial pattern.

This is the second of seven ways Alabama Republicans have made it harder to vote. Click through for the other six. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From Washington Post: Rep. John Carter (R-Tex.) hasn’t won a race by fewer than 20 points in a decade. Veteran MJ Hegar (D) is trying to change that, and she made a big splash over the last few days with an ad that includes a subtle but brutal jab at Carter.

Hegar served three tours in Afghanistan and later successfully lobbied the Obama administration to lift the ban on women serving in combat.

In a new ad “Doors” — which you can watch above [below] — Hegar shows viewers how she opened “doors” throughout her career, facing many that slammed in her face. Behind one closed door was Carter, who she says in the ad she tried to lobby to lift the combat ban.

Great Ad! MJ Hegar for Congress! RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Kudos to the winners!

Open Thread – 6/24/2018

Posted by TomCat at 1:23 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

Jun 242018

The heat has returned. I’m trying to finish writing before WWWendy arrives in about an hour. We have a very busy day.

We finished all the work and it’s hot as hell.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:15 (average 4:42). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (RWW Channel): RWW News: Leigh Valentine Says Undocumented Immigrants Are Treacherous Murderous God-Haters

Barf Bag Alert!!

These are NOT Christians. They are Republican Supply-side pseudo-Christians, the opposite of authentic Christians. You can tell by their gospel of cruelty, hatred and racism. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From Daily Kos: This is the price of voter apathy. This is what happens when good people sit on their hands and think they have no voice — that their vote just doesn’t matter:

Kids are snatched away from their parents and thrown in cages.

If we don’t get out in droves upon droves this November to kneecap this shart-slurping, retrograde prick who minces about like King Fuckwit in the West Wing, listening to nauseating encomiums from his fawning shit brigade while kids languish in concentration camps, we deserve to lose our democracy.

How much quasi-Nazi B.S. do we have to bear witness to in order to make the upcoming midterms a historic repudiation of our dictator-in-waiting?

My fear is that when November comes around, too many of us will forget what’s happening now.

But we can’t. We just can’t. Whatever happens, we need to be just as angry on November 6 as we are today. It’s the most important day of the year, by far. Fuck you, Christmas. Our holiday comes early this year.

We have to remember every outrage of the past two years. Every. One

I fully agree. Click through for a partial list of outrages. However, for every outrage, we also need to explain exactly how we would do it differently. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From Crooks and Liars: Journalist Masha Gessen joined Joy Reid this morning to help us figure out what stage of fascism the United States has achieved. There’s a sentence I still cannot believe I had to write in seriousness.

On the scale from Democracy to Fascism:

Fascist Ruler? Check.

Fascist attitude towards Immigrants? Check.

Fascist Rule? Not yet. Not completely.

Whether or not we become a Fascist nation is up to you. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Open Thread – 6/23/2018

Posted by TomCat at 11:51 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 232018

It’s a cool morning here in the CatBox with a hot afternoon forecast, and a very hot day tomorrow, so I’m skipping my morning rest to do most of my work in the cool of the day. I’m still feeling tired out.

Jig Zone Puzzles:

Today’s took me 3:31 (average 5:06). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (Late Show Channel): Reefer Madness Reaches Canada

No wonder the Squatch has been particularly frisky lately! RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From YouTube (Parody Project Channel): MR FORTY-FIVE Parody of Mrs Robinson by Simon & Garfunkel

That one could go on for hundreds of stanzas. To support Don Caron, click here. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From YouTube (Daily Kos Channel): Rep. Ted Lieu forces the House to hear the cries of immigrant children

Kudos to Rep. Ted Lieu! Republicans are too cowardly to listen to the effects of their evil ways. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From The New Yorker: A group of scholars who have been monitoring the descent of the bar over the past few decades have concluded that the bar can no longer be lowered, the scholars announced on Friday.

The academics, led by Professor Davis Logsdon, of the University of Minnesota, published their conclusion after their research definitively found that the bar had finally dropped to its lowest possible position.

“For those who thought the bar still had room to be lowered, our findings resoundingly contradict that assumption,” Logsdon said. “The bar is now essentially flush with the ground.”

Dang Andy! I disagree. The bar is subterranean. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

Cats know how to deal with Republican mice!

Open Thread – 6/22/2018

Posted by TomCat at 1:00 pm Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 222018

It’s a little cooler today, but the sun is due to hit the window, and I’ll have to button-up when it does. I have not yet recovered from the heat wave, and I still feel quite tired.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 4:44 (average 5:42). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From YouTube (Media Matters Channel): MSNBC’s Mariana Atencio speaks with families who were separated at the border

These are the people Republicans call enemies, criminals, drug gangs, and scum. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From YouTube (Inequality Media Channel): Trump’s Takeover of the Courts

The Reich on the left is right. The Reich on the Right is Fascist. We need BOTH the House and Senate just to mitigate the damage. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

From NY Times: The European Union fought back on Friday against the Trump administration’s tariffs, slapping penalties on an array of American products that target the president’s political base, like bourbon, motorcycles and orange juice.

The European counterattack on $3.2 billion of goods, a response to the administration’s measures on steel and aluminum imports, adds another front to a trade war that has engulfed allies and adversaries around the world. China and Mexico have already retaliated with their own tariffs, and Canada, Japan and Turkey are readying similar offensives.

The risk of escalation is high since Mr. Trump has promised even more tariffs. Taking aim at German car manufacturers, the president has started an investigation into automobile imports to determine whether they pose a national security concern, the same justification used for his metal tariffs.

Frankly, I’m amazed that the civilized world has not imposed major sanctions against the US, because Republican policies are have made the US an International pariah. RESIST!! VOTE BLUE!!

Cartoon:

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