Politics Plus

I’m writing for tomorrow, the summer solstice, or Litha to our Wiccan friends.  I guess the universe is waiting for me to make the days shorter.  ;-)  Actually, I need a few longer ones, because my helper friend stood me up again, and I have to do all the back housework I was going to pay her to do.  ARGH! :-(  Day 61.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:19 (average 5:27).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Upworthy: First impressions are lasting, and that certainly applies to scientific topics. I think if more sciencey things were introduced with this much pizzazz and humor, we would have more kids shooting for the stars — literally.

Ellen got it wrong. A black hole is infinitely dense, because it’s the space between a Republican’s ears. But they wouldn’t listen to her anyway, for another reason.

From The New Yorker: Congressional leaders left the White House on Wednesday “deeply frustrated” that President Obama had not found a swift resolution to the conflict between Sunnis and Shiites that began in the seventh century A.D.

After meeting for more than an hour with the President in the Oval Office, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell expressed disappointment that Mr. Obama “came up empty” when asked for a plan to heal the rift between the two religious groups, which began in the year 632.

“All we ask of this President is that he do one thing: settle a religious conflict that has been going on for a millennium and a half,” McConnell said. “What did he offer today? Nothing.”

LOL, Andy! If Obama actually did it, they’d call it a Muslim, Kenyan conspiracy to take away their rahts and freedumbs.

From NY Times: When he was the leader of Republicans in the California State Assembly — an ideologically diverse group of lawmakers often choleric toward both Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Democrats who controlled the Legislature — Kevin Owen McCarthy [the New House Majority Leader] was known as the guy who could help bring a bill across the finish line. Gently, almost as if no one could see it.

“We negotiated a pretty difficult budget in 2004,” said Fabian Núñez, the California Democrat who was the Assembly speaker at the time. “Kevin said to me, ‘I have six votes for you,’ and then he went back and delivered the six votes. It was not so much that he would step out of the Republican ideological box, in fact he would rarely do that, but he was a man of his word. If he said, ‘I can’t go there,’ he could not go there. He was always trying to negotiate for something better.”

Cantor has been one of House’s chief obstructionists, responsible for torpedoing many deals there. Because he is a Republican, I have my doubts about McCarthy, but I’ll hold my peace, until I see what he does when August comes.

Cartoon:

I’m writing for tomorrow, and while I’m not back to 100%, I am well enough to put away my groceries from Store to Door and write articles for tomorrow.  Nevertheless, I shall be brief.  Day 59.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:02 (average 5:15).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Upworthy: There are plenty of folks in this country who still aren’t comfortable with marriage equality or even the fact that gay people exist. I don’t think that necessarily makes them bad human beings. However, I do think that makes them fair game for public shaming, especially when they’re being hypocrites about it. Thankfully, Anderson Cooper is on the task.

Isn’t it nice that CNN wasn’t acting like the Republican Reichsministry of Propaganda, Faux Noise, for a change. When two men kiss in a celebratory manner, it doesn’t bother me at all, but as much as I hate to admit it, when two guys start getting hot and heavy, I do feel a little queasy. However, I recognize that it’s the aftermath from years of gay-hate programmed into me from before I can remember. I did not see the light until my late 40s.  I can’t help that, but I can and do choose to respond, instead, based on what I know, that their feelings are just as authentic as any I have ever had toward a woman.

From The New Yorker: Citing the deteriorating situation in the war-torn nation, Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) on Saturday called for Congress to convene an emergency blame game on Iraq.

“This is a dire crisis,” McCain said. “It’s time to roll up our sleeves and do some serious finger-pointing.”

McCain said that he hoped Congress would act swiftly to assign blame to a long list of culprits he identified, including President Obama, the Joint Chiefs, the media, and everyone who did not vote for him in the 2008 election.

Did Andy peg McConJob, or what?

From Daily Kos:

Here’s another example to point to when opponents of a higher minimum wage claim that it would cost jobs. The minimum in San Jose, California, has gone from $8.00 an hour to $10.00 and then $10.15, and University of California-Berkeley economist Michael Reich has been studying the results:

[The minimum wage increase] directly and indirectly affected 70,000 of the city’s 370,000 workers, Reich says.

San Jose restaurants, which Reich says were most affected by the pay increase, raised menu prices by an average 1.75%, according to his study. He says there has been no discernible impact on employment.

The unemployment rate in the San Jose metro area, in fact, has fallen to 5.4% from 7.4% in March 2013. The San Jose Downtown Association says the number of restaurants in the district has increased by 20% the past 18 months.

That’s good ammo, but if the Republican is also an Ammosexual (likely), don’t bother. They have lost the capacity for thought.

Cartoon:

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I’m afraid I’m still down.  Add a fever and Republicitis to yesterday’s list of woes.  ARGH!  🙁 Day 57.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 5:03 (average 5:01).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?