GOP Greed – Page 7 – Politics Plus

Open Thread 7/24/2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:44 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jul 242022

Yesterday, The opera was Macbeth (Verdi). Everyone knows that story, of course. I was not familiar wih the soprano singing Lady MacBeth, but she was excellent. MacBeth and Banquo were sung by two stars who are also known for being drop-dead gorgeous. The baritone (Simon Keenlyside) is not as young as he was, but still very handsome, and the bass, Günther Grossböck, is younger (and generally taller than anyone else on stage.) I have seen both the play and the opera more than once – back to back once, at the Kennedy Center, when I was in the service and they were doing a mini-Shakespeare festival, and I may be the only person in the world who feels this way, but I have always felt that the play never quite worked. There are parts of it which just can’t be played naturally – they are always either underplayed or overplayed. It isn’t really the fault of any of the actors – it’s just written that way. But the opera – all you need for that to it themark is singers who can stand up and hit the notes. With that, it’s a winner every time. All the passion is i the score.

I also managed to finish reading Heather Cox Richardson’s Letter from Thursday night. She quoted an NPR host as saying: “the Democratic chair of the committee just gracefully, and with full confidence, turned over the running of tonight’s hearing to the vice-chair, who happens to be of another party, and they spoke with mutual trust and respect. That’s how it’s supposed to go.” Well, yeah. that struck meat the time also. You might say it isn’t evidence, and it indeed is not evidence regarding the insurrection. But it is evidence that, even now, people who disagree with each other, even violently, can still work together if they have decency, integrity, and courtesy. It’s no wonder Rethuglicans so hate courtesy, and find insulting terms like “political correctness” to describe it. And here we all are. Sigh.

Cartoon –

Short Takes – I’m just going to go with News of the Weird today and be serious again tomorrow.

The Daily Beast – A Judge Pulled a Gun in the Courtroom—and Then It Got Weird
“The whole trial was insane,” said one lawyer, who later reported the weapon-wielding jurist to the FBI.

PolitiZoom – AR Toting Lunatic Spotted in Local Park Threatening to Shoot His Foot Off
Yes, this was Ronny Jackson. Sigh.

Democratic Underground (Nevilledog) – Cops stood by while a woman was terrorized by a stalker in her home for 12 hours and then killed
Seriously? In San Diego?

ProPublica – Pharma Companies Sue for the Right to Buy Blood From Mexicans Along Border
A year after the U.S. barred Mexicans from crossing the border to sell their blood, pharmaceutical companies have acknowledged that those donations provided as much as 10% of the plasma collected nationwide as they seek to have the ban overturned.

Crooks and Liars – Remember That Other Secret Service Scandal?
We all remember that story about the two fake agents who were sucking up to the First Lady’s Secret Service detail. Well, one of them has filed a notification that he will now change his plea to guilty.

Food For Thought

Open Thread July 21, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:18 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jul 212022

Yesterday, I overslept, but it was pretty quiet so I could afford that lost time, and even manage to write a “thank you” note to an old friend from the military for a book that there is no way my eyes and shoulders will allow me to read – and I like and respect her too much to lie to her. So that was tough.. But the news – I do try to limit the outrage in the short takes and feature good news when there is some. Today there is mostly outrage. Take a deep breath and try not to get depressed.

Cartoon – 21 0721Cartoon.jpg

Short Takes –

The 19th – How exposure to toxic chemicals in everyday products can impact reproductive health
Quote – PFAS is a developmental carcinogen. We have done a systematic review, which is the best practice for how to evaluate evidence, showing that PFOA [part of the larger group of man-made chemicals known as PFAS] can, through prenatal exposure, increase the risk of low birth weight [in] babies. It also looks like it could be related to maternal health effects; there is some evidence on preeclampsia and on gestational diabetes. It could influence fertility. BPA is an endocrine disruptor that can influence estrogen levels. So in the state of California they have labeled it a reproductive toxin based on its effects on the female ovary. But, you know, there’s also been studies on metabolic disease like obesity and diabetes and on neurodevelopmental effects. There’s been studies looking at effects on fertility. There’s a number of different animal and human studies showing that it affects reproductive function, and it’s shown in animal studies to affect the quality of the eggs in the ovary.
Click through for details. So what the article is saying is, the same white, wealthy, overwhelmingly male minority repomsible for imposing unpopular abortion bans is also responsible for saturating women (and men and children) with chemicals that make abortions more likely to be the only alternative to death. Got it.

NM Political Report – ‘Is your land for sale?’ Alarming offers to buy property in the burn zone
Quote – April Hoogerhuies got the phone call in the middle of packing up her home in Las Vegas, frantically trying to get things ready in case the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon inferno forced her to evacuate. “Is your land for sale?” the caller inquired…. “This isn’t the time or place for this,” she replied. The caller rattled off a company name too quickly to note, but it was clear she wanted to buy a plot of undeveloped property that Hoogerhuies and her husband Daniel own in Manuelitas, just east of Hermits Peak. The couple maintains a greenhouse on the land, where they plant crops like pumpkins, radishes and tomatoes. Hoogerhuies was in a frenzy, packing up papers and medications while also trying to find a place for her elderly parents, in case they, too, needed to evacuate.
Click through for story. The race to the bottom continues.You know – yu just know – that if the vultures make enough calls, they will find someone who is willing to sell – and that that seller will be the person who can least afford to be swinf=dled. (And that there won’t be just one.)

Food For Thought

Video Thread 7/19/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:00 pm Open Thread, Politics

Jul 192022

Glenn Kirschner- Lindsey Graham desperate to avoid testifying about Trump’s Georgia election crimes

Meidas Touch – Angry Tennessee Brando gives EPIC REACTION to Jan 6 Hearings

CBS News – Jan. 6 committee member Rep. Adam Schiff expresses concern over witness safety

White Supremacy (A Rebuttal) | Christopher Titus | Zero Side Effects

John Fugelsang “Caffeinated” – The US Has a Joe Manchin & Krysten Sinema Problem. Here is a Solution for you Biden! (a re-re;ease – but still accurate)

Beau – Let’s talk about benefits and Republicans telling you who they are….

Video Thread 7/9/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:35 am Open Thread, Politics

Jul 092022

Glenn – Georgia DA Willis’ subpoena-palooza: John Eastman, Rudy G., Jenna Ellis, Lindsey Graham & others.

Meidas Touch – Reenactment of Don Jr. DRUNK DIALING friend after Cassidy Hutchinson Humiliated Dad

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party – July 5, 2022

MSNBC – Could Pat Cipollone Be The John Dean Of The Jan. 6 Case?

Ojeda Live – WATCH Richard Ojeda Explain the Top 5 Republican Motivators

Beau – Let’s talk about Texas and teaching history….

Open Thread July 4, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:07 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jul 042022

Yesterday, I went to see Virgil at the facility in Denver. The traffic was, I suppose, not all that bad; it was not bad enough to slow my speed, but it was ha=eavy enough to cause me concern about the potental danger of changing lanes (parts of I25 in Denver now have six lanes going one direction, and I thought I remembered how th junction with I225 worked, but I wasn’t positive – and it’s been so long since I’ve driven through there, it might have changed.) Fortumately my meory was correct and it hadn’t changed. The I225 junction with I70 was even easier – I225 just ends there and merges. The Havana Street exit was simple. I did turn the wrong way on the street the facility was actually on, but since I turned into a “no outlet,” it was quick to realize and quick to turn around. I arrived in good time and getting in went smoothly. Virgil was knd of late (they had to wake him up, and someone had to come with him.) He came with his walker, didn’t have a cast, and neither leg had any sign of swelling, but he said that both legs were still in pain, though somewhat improvred. So I think he’ll recover. I left before I saw all the good wishes, but I will share them with him and I know he will appreciate them. I will be watching the DOC site so that when I next visit I’ll know where to go. They may keep him there for some weeks or more, or they may return him to Fremont, or they may assign him to a different facility. But if I keep up with the website I won’t drive to the wrong place. Coming home, I knew where I was going, but there was a little rain so I still had to stay on my toes.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Crooks and Liars – NM County Won’t Pay Capitol Rioter Couy Griffin’s Legal Costs
Quote – His defense sparked laughter from members of the audience Friday as he made the case for county legal representation and said it was time to take a stand against “tyrannical Marxists” who want to take away freedom. “Look this is hard enough without you all laughing,” Griffin said at one point in the meeting.
Click through for setup and details. There are probably more important stories out there, but I needed a chuckle and figured you all did too. (If anyone cares, “Otero” is pronounced “oh-tear-oh” [tear as in rip up, not as in a drop,] accent on the “tear.” Not trying to insult anyone’s inte;;igence, but I have seen it in various news stories with various misspellings recently.)

Wonkette – What The Hell Is Happening In Wisconsin?
Quote – This week, the Wisconsin high court ruled 4-3 that Republican political appointees can refuse to leave and hold their offices for as long as they want, at least until a Republican is elected governor. Yes, quite literally. The outcome in Wisconsin v. Prehn is a rule that will only benefit the justices’ fellow Republicans.
Click through. This is like the Garland appointment on steroids.

Food For Thought

Open Thread June 27, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:12 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 272022

Yesterday, Sunday, I hadn’t slept well.I scheduled today’s posts early so I could spend some time going throug my closets (and everywhere else I have clothing) in order to se aside clothing to give to thrift stores. It’s going to take quite a while. In the roughly 11 years that Virgil has been incarcerated, I have lost six sizes, and I have never systematicall attempted to eliminate what no longer fits – living alone and with mobility issues I just haven;’t had the impulse to tackle such a huge task which arose so gradually. But now I have a motivating factor. If I can get this done (along with some other clutter) I eventually (and I do mean eventually) may be able to coordinate with a reputable group tp offer my home to women coming here to Colorado for abortions (assuming I live long enough to get there – but I am in decent health for my age – my issues are either non-life-threatening or medically controlled. So far.) AT any rate, I’m going to try.

Cartoon (not a live link, sorry) –

Short Takes –

Letters from an American – June 24, 2022
Quote – At [Thursday’s] hearing of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol, we heard overwhelming proof that former president Trump and his congressional supporters tried to overturn the will of the voters in the 2020 presidential election and steal control of our country to keep a minority in power. [Friday], thanks to three justices nominated by Trump, the Supreme Court stripped a constitutional right from the American people, … a right they indicated they would protect because it was settled law…. For the first time in our history, rather than conveying rights, the court has explicitly taken a constitutional right away from the American people. These two extraordinary events are related.
Click through for full analysis. Richardson is a historian. The period in history she sees us as losing (or having lost) is not the last fifty years, but the period from 1933 to a981. I concur. This is so much bigger than abortion (and guns).

Crooks & Liars – Hey Gang There’s A (Grifty) Credit Card For Conservatives!
Quote – “Coign is America’s first credit card built by Conservatives for Conservatives. Coign was created to advance conservative values and embrace the American spirit. We align your dollars with your values. Unlike other leading credit cards, that give millions to the Left each year, Coign is helping Conservatives to align their dollars with their values. We’re proud that the dollars you spend are invested in Conservative causes.”
Click through for comic relief – although it’s also scary. If their base is dumbe enough to fall for this, they’ll fall for anything. (I assume a married woman needs her hisband’s signature to get this card.)

Food For Thought

Video Thread 6/22/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:23 pm Open Thread, Politics

Jun 222022

Glenn Kirschner – Judge Luttig, darling of the right, says Trump “clear+present danger.” Trump proves it in TN speech

Meidas Touch – Real Seniors REACT in HORROR to GOP Plan to eliminate Social Security and Medicare

The Lincoln Project – Juneteenth

Don Winslow Films – #HowToConvictTrump

MSNBC – Why The Jan. 6 Committee Hearings Are ‘Exceeding Expectations’

Beau – Let’s talk about sharks, screens, shifting thought, and Hollywood…. (Beau has been on fire recently. I cut one I had peviously selected, but am still abit behind.)