Open Thread August 30 2025

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Aug 302025
 

Yesterday, an email from Robert Reich informed me that his new book – “Coming Up Short: a Memoir of My America” is number one on the New York Times nonfiction best-seller list. That is great – and Bob was deeply touched – but if the Times can see it is so popular, why won’t they take his advice about reporting? (No, don’t tell me – I do know – but it’s a crying shame.) Also, some one came up with a great nickname for RFKJr – “Obi-Wan Baloney” (apologies to lunchmeat.) Also – this was actually a couple of days ago – Joni Ernst will not seek reelection to the US Senate in Iowa. Certainly this is a kind of a victory – I just hope it isn’t a Pyrrhic one. Her dropping out is a sign that both she and the party know that she cannot now win. So instead, they are going to try to find someone who can. And I am afraid that that is possible. There are many ways to overperform – but this one is the most dangerous.

There are I believe, reasons why the concept of the “Wounded Healer” is so powerful. One can become an expert is, for example, brain surgery without every experiencing it oneself – because the brain is an objective reality which can be seen, diagrammed, studied from outside. But the mind cannot. The only way to become a true expert in, for example, depression is to suffer from it. Yes, some of us have more natural empathy than others, and are quicker to grasp others’ feelings. But there’s nothing quite like being there.

This from Robert Reich sounds very practical – and do-able. And considering that his latest collection of videos have been moving Trump**(*) voters up to 16 points, I think he’s on to something.

When I saved this to my list, I marked it “Extreme tissue alert.” I just watched it again, and yes, the warning is appropriate.

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Open Thread July 16 2025

 Posted by at 6:06 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Jul 162025
 

Yesterday, after blood work last week, I saw my doctor again. Everything is pretty much smooth – even my blood pressure was 120/78. I don’t get readings that good at home. So my next appointment is in May ’26 for an annual. Also, I don’t know whether I have mentioned that, in Colorado, the names of the four seasons are Almost Winter, Winter, Still Winter, and Construction – but I certainly found that to be true today. Getting to the clinic I had to cope with four constructions sites – and that’s not counting the one I’ve been coping with since I’ve been using this location. One was only about half a block from my house. I did make it in time – and came home a different way – also with construction going on. So I’ll be giving Trinette a heads up, since this coming Sunday is the one she’s due to come over.

I found this Intercept article to be illuminating. Not just because I was not aware of the existence of the phrase it addresses (although I am aware of how much and how compulsively Republicans distort the meaning of any verbiage they think they can distort to produce anger and fear), but mainly because the response by Mamdani provided such a good example of how to resist that particular technique – and the kind of knowledge one needs to have (or get) in order to grasp what is really going on and do it right.

At this point in the coup, I’m ready to suggest that no Republican office holder should be allowed to go anywhere or do anything without eliciting some kind of Democratic response. f they are taking away people’s lives, livelihoods, and every smidgen of joy from anyone they don’t like, they really do not deserve any smidgen of joy in their own lives. Too bad about their families. They are hurting others’ families.

A lot of the time I don’t even bother to read emails with “notes” from Substack. For some reason I did – and one of them was this. You’re welcome to read all the responses – but the point of the short video is that all it takes to turn a Republican in a Democrat is an open mind, a tutorial on fact-checking, and applying that tutorial. Yeah, I know, the open mind is the hardest part. But it can happen.

Robert Reich is asking everyone who gets his emails to share this video as widely as possible. I’m not sure it will get through to any of those who need it the most, but I’m sharing it anyway, because why not do what he requests.

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Open Thread April 4 2025

 Posted by at 6:06 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Apr 042025
 

Yesterday, Wonkette wrote about Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, which was argued Wednesday in the Supreme Court. If you haven’t been following this case, you may be as surprised as I was to learn that Neil Gorsuch, of all people, may have a sense of humor (alternatively, that may be Robyn inserting her analogy, but it reads like Gorsuch may have actually said it.) No one on the correct side had much hope for this case, given Dobbs, but it’s looking brighter now. Also yesterday, Harry Litman made abut a 20-minute video with Michael Podhorzer about the implications of the Mango Monster’s attack on trad unions which is starting with Federal unions. In that poem we all know now, it was third that they came for the trade unionists. One more thing before tomorrow – Joyce Vance has posted a guide to the Insurrection Act and the rights of peaceful protesters, and whether you want it or not, I thought I’d better make it available.

Colorado Public Radio gives out hope with one hand and takes it away with the other, it appears. Not that it’s quite that simple – since nothing is. I live in Colorado, and my husband has ties to CSU, where this is, and I did not know it existed. One can’t fight for it if one doesn’t know it exists.

This was written for The Contrarian on Wednesday, in the wake of Cory Booker’s record=breaking speech, and the Wisconsin Supreme Court victory, so it may be a little euphoric. But it can’t be denied that these are hopeful signs. As this post is published, people across the nation are gearing up for national protests. SoINeedAName posted in a content that he has registered for one (do protect your ears, Nameless). I wish I were younger and more mobile – but the last protest I managed I was in my late sixties, and now, approaching 80, I just can’t. Those of you who can, give ’em hell.

DU routed me to this article. Can’t find any fraud, so they have to create it? Looks that way.

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Open Thread March 15 2025

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Mar 152025
 

Yesterday, I worked more on my email accounts – cleaning out the old, forwarding to the new to remind me to make the changes – and also took in a grocery order – and not a minute too soon. (But soon enough.) I am making progress, not that it feel like I am.

There’s a lot in this Talking Points Memo, and it doesn’t mince words.

It’s no surprise to anyone, and certainly not to Harry Litman, that Judge Beryl Howell will not stand for malarkey* in her court. (*malarkey – a word I’m using in honor of St. Patrick’s Day which is coming right up.) (Incidentally, did you ever expect to be familiar with the names of so many Federal Judges not on the Supreme Court as you are right now?)

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Open Thread February 12 2025

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Feb 122025
 

Yesterday, I learned that Deb Haaland who was Interior Secretary under Biden is running for Governor of New Mexico. Katie Porter has already endorsed her.  Now I have too (for what that’s worth.)

I’m an unpaying subscriber to Andy Borowitz, and that means that, at least on Sundays, I don’t get the whole story. Last Sunday, his post was a letter from Richard Nixon to Elon Musk from hell. I was able to read his introduction, but nothing of the letter. I thought at the time, “I’ll bet that’s priceless.” Well, Robert Reich certainly thought so. He shared the whole thing. It’s NSFW, as you’d expect from Nixon. Enjoy it.

This is John Pavlovitz at his most powerful. Giving us permission to hold individual voters accountable. Not that we need it from him – unless we are not yetgiving it to ourselves. Sometimes good people are held back by also being nice people. We can stop that now. (Healso dais, in a separate post, that it’s OK to be exhausted.)

The F* News also had a lot to say, in this case mostly about litigation and the ways in which both very different sides are reacting an responding to it. Given that in the current administration, and the makeup of the House and Senate, any halfway decent national news is more likely to come from the courts than from anywhere else, concentrating on the courts is probably a good idea. I mean, you’ll get the poisonous news that way too,but with a potential antidote as well

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Open Thread January 20 2025

 Posted by at 6:03 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Jan 202025
 

Yesterday, Steve Schmidt posted a column which is near perfect for today. I can disagree with him on a couple of minor points, but that’s really just nitpicking. I cannot disagree with his conclusion, even though I don’t clearly see how it is to be done. Also, I read yesterday that the Mango Monster’s cryptocurrency scan is called $TRUMP. Does that make him a $TRUMPet? And to top off the day, the word “Villainaire[s]” has been coined.

Crooks & Liars is really speaking to elected Democrats here. But one of the things we do best is to nag our elected officials to do the right thing. So we need to think about how we can best do that under this administration.

This was in a Contrarian newsletter from Friday. I’m sorry to have to say that all the information is in a video, it doesn’t appear to have CC, and you need to jump on the button to unmute the sound. I missed about a minute but I think what I mostly missed was courtesies. Joyce Vance is known here as a Substack author, but from now on she will also be working (not alone) on a project for the Contrarian called the “Democracy Tracker. The idea is to have something which will catch us up to as much as a week’s important news into minutes. I want to say “Good luck with that,” but this time I really mean it. I hope they do pull it off. Everyone working with The Contrarian is an expert in their own right, so I think they do have a good chance. We shall see.

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Open Thread October 14 2024

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Oct 142024
 

Yesterday, Trinette came over and moved a bunch of stuff for recyclables, trash, and sharity, so that I have “traffic lanes” again. And she brought in all the mail, which included my ballot, which arrived Saturday (I thought it might, though it was just sent Friday.) She also showed me some pictures from her trip to Portugal last year and of her family. Her mother is as beautiful as she is (and she is names after her mother, Trina – Trinette means “little Trina,” which is ironic considering how tall she is.)

I’m not quite sure exactly what the author means by “the political set.” It could mean politicians and their staffs. It could mean people who are outside of politics, but read about it and discuss it because they darned well want to know what they are voting for – or against. It could also mean that segment of the media which concentrates on politics. Or any combination of those three. If there’s one group there which really should be listening to “ordinary people,” though, it’s the politicians. Politicians represent ordinary people, and therefore should always be listening to them.

The entire newsletter from In The Public Interest is in this newsletter, but I’m sharing for just the first article (feel free to read on.) There is a great meme on this topic which I’ll share as today’s cartoon.

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Open Thread October 7 2024

 Posted by at 6:00 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Oct 072024
 

Yesterday, I went to visit Virgil. I managed to stack the deck correctly before he came in to give him the perfect hand (I had tried twice before, once when he was still at Bent, and had not succeeded, but I finally did.) this time. His face didn’t give it away, but he was impressed – I can tell because he kept mentioning it when he got a hand that was not so good. I couldn’t have asked for a better result. I also learned something from Heather Cox Richardson which surprised me – and that is that the Washington Post has an investigative journalist on their staff. His name is Glenn Kessler, and it’s a pity that more people don’t know it, or anything about his work. Here’s a link to Rchardson’s post, parts of which will likely make you angry, but hopefully Kessler’s findings will help some.

This is not a time sensitive article, but an essay on the death penalty by Mary Trump. She is very articulate on the subject, which should not be a surprise since she is a professional psychologist. Even if she doesn’t say anything new, I expect her to have new ways to say what she does.

Well, at least this (from Wonkette)  is more plausible than most of their guanopsychotic panics over what children read. It is possible to choose to be a Democrat, or a Republican, for that matter, whereas it’s not possible to choose to be straight, gay, trans, or whatever – you are as you were born, although that may not show up until puberty (except for trans people – that shows up early enough for affirmative care to be helpful, if it can just be allowed.) I could wish the book had gone into the entire Political Compas instead of pretty much just left and right issues, but everyone here knows I strongly believe that. Last week, over at Democratic Underground, where a few were trashing Jeff Flake (who has endorsed Kamala), I left a comment to the effect that this election is not about left and right, it’s about autocracy and egalitarianism, and at least he’s on the right (excuse me, the correct side) of that, and another DUer was kind enough to respond with this: “If all Americans understood this as well as you do we wouldn’t be in this mess.” That made my day.

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