Open Thread May 24 2026

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 242026
 

Yesterday, the radio opera was Puccini’s “Turandot.” It was his last opera – and it’s not a pretty story. It has a happy ebding, in that the tenor and the lead soprano end up in love against all odds. But the road to that ending is covered with blood, and I have trouble with that. The big aria, which all tenors love, and which is often associated with Pavarotti (although every tenor who has ever recorded anything has recorded it – even Sarah Brightman recorded it, replacing “la principessa” with “il principe”) is “Nessun dorma” – None shall sleep – which makes sense in context, though out of context, not so much. Also – I can answer Randy’s quesiion. Congress is completely dominated by Republicans who are so terrified of the Saffron Sauron that they wouldn’t vote their conscience (those who have one) even if the sky fell. Let’s put a Democratic majority into the House and Senate and see what happens. We have a lot of people running who are real fighters, not DINOs, but many still need to win their primaries.

This from ABC news (ours) is on loop, but you will likely  need to unmute it. It’s still a work in progress, but, even so far, it’s pretty amazing.

From the Associated Press – This is good news for two states. Now we need the same for 48 more, two territories, and one district.

I assume Lona is well aware of this (from Good News Network), but thought the rest of us might also like to hear about it.

Also from our ABC News, Malcolm Nance often says “Coincidence takes a lot of planning.” (He calls that “Nance’s Law.”) And so do surprises.

Share

Open Thread May 23 2026

 Posted by at 12:27 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 232026
 

Yesterday, Malcolm was in Greenland – He went a couple of days ago for the opening of a “new” (meaning newly purchased or leased) building for the American Consulate. Jeff Landry was there (the governor of Louisiana, who is a “Special Envoy” to Greenland), making not just a fool of himself – not that that is unusual -but also acting creepy, offering children chocolate chip cookies) but left early after Greenlanders tactfully asked him not to act like a pedophile. There was a protest on site – including baseball caps reading “Make America Go Away,” “Already Great” [with the Greenland flag] and “Nu det NUUK” [Danish for “That’s enough” but punning on the name of Greenland’s capital – “Nuuk”]. One of the Protest signs read “Yes NATO, No Pedo.” I could go on a lot longer about how much Greenland wants nothing to do with the US under the Canteloupe Catastrophe, but I’ll spare you. Also, Tulsi Gabbard quit. Good riddance – but likely to be replaced by someone even worse. (Flynn? Lindell?) One good thing – Abrego Garcia’s federal case was dismissed with prejudice. Also yesterday – everybody was slush fund talking.

From The Root. I’m old enough to have memories of what it looked like, even though I didn’t grow up in the South. And good enough vision to know it when I see it – which is pretty much all over the place now, and also to see how it jumped back into broad daylight when Barack Obama was electrd President (and yet – misogyny is even stronger.) There are still many glass ceilings above which it is difficult – if not impossible – to rise if you are not a white male. And there is no such thing as modern humans belonging to different races. Neanderthals and Denisovans may be races different from homo sapiens (or not – many of us today carry bits of DNA from one or the other.)

From Pro Publica. Maricopa County – it figures. Joe Arpaio’s county. Did someone day “fraud, waste, and abuse”?

Harry Litman on the slush fund scandal. Of course I thought of Teapot Dome (no, I’m not old enough to have lived through it, but I am old enough to have heard of it in history classes.) But, as Harry points out, the government at least got some oil through it, whereas this criminal enterprise is all take, no give to taxpayers. And those to whom it is giving are the worst of the worst.

Share

Open Thread May 22 2026

 Posted by at 6:03 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 222026
 

Yesterday, for the third day in a row, I had to go to the clinic – this time because something I should have dropped off yesterday. No one to blame but myself for that. Still, it’s frustrating.

This is a video post, but there is a transcript. Scroll down below the screen, and about the middle between left and right, directly above the orange block labeled “Get the app,” click on “Transcript.” Besides the three topics mentioned in the title, including the Arc de Trompe, the San Diego Mosque shooting and its back story, and a prosecution of a prosecutor who has displeased the regime’s DOJ. And I may even be forgetting one or two.

Colorado Public Radio IMO has done an excellent job of reporting on this. Some of the quotes will give you a good sense of why I didn’t know Colorado’s elected Democrats had it in them (but I’m sure glad they did.)

It’s no surpeise, I’m sure, that trolling can be used for good as well as for evil ourposes. Here is a sample from Allison Gill (who identifies herself thoroughly so I don’t have to.

Share

Open Thread May 21 2026

 Posted by at 6:10 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 212026
 

Does anyone else find it ironic that a Broadway musical did a better job of encapsulating our Fouders’ intentions (the good ones and also the not-so-good ones) than our current regime can provide? I hope it gets a lot of air time on multiple channels during July – and maybe the last week of June too. I might have it – if so, probably on VCR.

No, I didn’t choose this from POGO to match the next one. Though similar, they involve different agencies but the same principle: let peons die – it’s cheaper than getting medical care for them.

It shouldn’t be surpriing that Kegsbreath killed at least one military member by omission. But it can still be, and should be, appalling.

Common Dreams also had an article featuring Jeff Bezos as a Bond Villain, which was tempting. But I think this is more consequential.What was it again that Zuckerberg called people who trust him? Oh, yes. “Dumb fucks.” If I may digress (or as HCR calls it, “go down a rabbit hole”), “Zucker” is the German word for sugar, and “berg” – with an e – means “mountain” (with a “u”, it means “city”). Rock candy is made with white sugar and water, but the water is removed in the process of crystalization, so what’s left is just sugar. With a little stretch, you could say Zuckerberg” means “Rock Candy Mountain.”

This video is a “short.” The speaker, Morris Pearl, is himself a millionaire, and a member of Patriotic Millionaires.

Cat

Share

Open Thread May 20 2026

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 202026
 

Some people are talking (writing) about the Canteloupe Catastrophe’s proposed slush fund for seditionists being #1.8 billion, while others are saying $1.7 billion. Both are wrong. It’s not just grand theft, it’s also a slap in the face. The actual figure is $1.776 billion. Adding insult to injury.

The PCCC is collecting signatures for a thank you “card” to Stephen Colbert. Eben if you don’t want to sign it, you might like to look at the page to see what others are saying and doing.

The Brennan Center referred me to this. There is no direct link to the content of their email, but this was a main source. It doesn’t go into his market manipulation, but I think that’s because it is not he personally who is making the profits from that, but instead, his family and friends

Y’all can probably answer the question in the title before reading it in full. But it’s also nice to have good, solid evidence.

Share

Open Thread May 18 2026

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 182026
 

Yesterday, I wore for the first time my third experiment in knitting pants. Myfirst try was a disastr – but not such a disaster that I can’t rip out one leg, knit it back to match the other. and wear it. On my second try I adjusted the pattern to correct everything that went wrong on the first try, and it was a pretty good fit, just a bit loose and long. For the third try, I decided not to change anything about the stitch or row counts, but instead to use smaller needles. and it’s anout as close to perfect as an imperfect human can do. I could wear them to go see Virgil. And comfortable – as comfortable as the yarn, which for this pair is all cotton, except the cuffs, which are bamboo. In including contrast cuffs, I was thinking of sweat pants, but with more fitted legs.

Robert Reich has some suggestions for non-constitutional words to describe unconstitutional things about our current elected officials. I’m ahead of him on “regime” – I’ve not used any other word for it since day one – but all of his suggestions are appropriate

From ProPublica. Yes. this happens all the time. But if we don’t get reminded of it from time to time, we may forget.

From Common Dreams. One of Axios’s reporters is named “Barak Ravid.” Malcolm Nance calls him “The Mouth of Trump**.” I get “Alerts” from Axios, and yes, his often begin with “Trump** says” or the like. But it made me think – y’all know I often refer to our regime leader as “the Saffron Sauron,” and there is a character in The Lord of the Rings” who introduces himself as “The Mouth of Sauron.” They’re not at all the same – Ravid does not present what our regime leader says as truth – he just quotes him and identifies it as a quote, so readers can disbelieve it. But it appears to be a coincidence.

Share

Open Thread May 17 2026

 Posted by at 5:50 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 172026
 

Yesterday, the radio opera was Verdi’s “Don Carlo” in an archival recording from 1950. Most of the characters in it were real people, although they weren’t much like the way they they are portrayed in it. It’s true that the real Carlos was opposed to the Pope and the Inquisition, and sympathetic to the Protestants in Flanders which was then under Spanish rule, and that his father, King Philip, felt the opposite. It’s also true that Elizabeth of Valois was engaged to Carlos before the politics changed and she married his father instead, And his father may have wanted to kill him, but instead just locked him up. It is almost certainly not true that he and Elzabeth were in love – that was not a thing in royal marriages – and he was physically and mentally deformed – he was one of the last Habsburgs – the most inbred royals since ancient Egypt. The one character who was made up (not by Verdi, but by the playwright from whom Schiller borrowed for his plat “Don Karlos”) is Rodrigo – who gets the best music.

If you ever get a chance to attend one of these, don’t hesitate. Be there. Even just reding about one is revitalizing. Being there is a whole other level.

Even in Florida, there are still good people. (Even in law enforcement.)

And this is another reason why, though I no longer have any furbabies, I always look at Chewy first when I need something for myself that might be useful for an animal – like a white noise generator, or a broom that basically picks up hair, or a high powered laundry additive. Chewy is not your normal corporation. Chewy actually cares.

Share

Open Thread May 16 2026

 Posted by at 6:09 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
May 162026
 

Yesterday, it seemed quiet for a Friday, although thqt might be just me – or it might be, at least in part, that everything is so awful that all news seems like a recap.

Yeah. Thanks for nothing, governor. Although she was not tried for it, she is violent – kicking a police officer attempting to arrest her with a warrant, attacking another inmate at the prison – we all saw the videos. Now I (along with every Coloradan) am less safe because of this clemency.

If anyone would like to watch the documentary film about Robert Reich’s last year teaching (for a salary) it’s now available to rent.

Read as much or as little of this as you want – but the one I don’t want y’all to miss is the second from the end – the one about AI entities having opinions.

Share
 Older Entries  Newer Entries