Open Thread August 13, 2022

 Posted by at 6:47 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Aug 132022
 

Yesterday, I was hoping for a sort of calm day – but no such luck. I found out Virgil has been moved again, and did not reach anyone to confirm whether I may visit Sunday  (I sent an email, and receuived an automated out-of-office message after 5 pm.) So I’ll need to follow up on that today. We shall see. I worked off some of the frustration by rearranging a couple of small tables,which doesn’t sound like a lot of exertion – but was for me.  (one was heavier than it looks.)

Cartoon – (Yes, there’s an offensive term here – but TC’s point was tha Republicans ARE offensive.

Short Takes –

Mother Jones – An Obscure Law Is Sending Oklahoma Mothers to Prison in Droves. We Reviewed 1.5 Million Cases to Learn More.
Quote – In Oklahoma, failure to protect is the only child abuse charge levied predominantly against women, and it is disproportionately charged against women of color. People charged with the crime there are less likely to have a previous felony record than defendants in firsthand child abuse cases—a sign of just how much more dangerous abusers are than those accused of failing to stand in the way of their abuse. Since 2009, when the latest version of the state’s law went into effect, at least 139 women have been imprisoned solely for failure-to-protect charges. At least 55 are still incarcerated.
Click through for details. Actual failure to protect arguably should be punishable. But the way this law is administered appears to me to be proof that, like abortion bans, the law is not about protection of chilren but rather is a tool to control women.

Crooks and Liars – Bannon Goes There: ‘Deep State May Try To Assassinate Trump’
Quote – Steve Bannon … joined the odious Sandy Hook denier Alex Jones’ BannedVideo podcast to “announce” that the deep state may want to try to assassinate Trump. “I do not think it’s beyond this administrative state and their Deep State apparatus to actually try to work on the assassination of President Trump. I think everything’s on the table. I think his security ought to be at the highest it’s ever been,” Bannon said
Click through for story. My instant reaction is “He’s become a liability, so they are going to assassinate him to start a Civil War.” And I didn’t have to go far down the comments before finding another person with a similar thought. So I actally agree with Steve on the security.

Bonus – Mother Jones has the actual warrant here 

Food For Thought

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Video Thread 8/11/22

 Posted by at 11:57 am  Open Thread, Politics
Aug 112022
 

Glenn Kirschner – The FBI search of Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s crimes, and Kevin McCarthy’s political thuggery

Meidas Touch – Navy Vet REACTS to CPAC Hosting a Literal Fascist Dictator

Meidas Touch – MAGA Outrage Machine REACTIONS to FBI: Trump vs. Hillary

The Lincoln Project – CPAC Texas Day 1

Ring of Fire – Ron DeSantis Vows To Let Poor Children Starve So He Can Be A Bigot

MSNBC – Rep. Swalwell: MAGA Republicans Are Trying To Erase Violent Reality Of Jan. 6

Beau – Let’s talk about an important message from New York….

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Open Thread August 11, 2022

 Posted by at 6:47 am  Open Thread, Personal, Politics
Aug 112022
 

Yesterday, I realized that I had spent so much time Tuesday arranging for my ride to the garage, and organizing trash ans recyclables to get them in the bins (since Wednesday evening is when the bins have to go out for trash day) that I hadn’t updated the Open Thread before going to bed.Well, sorry-not sorry; very glad the bins got done. So that was Tuesday, Yesterday, I took the last loads to the bins and put them out before my ride was due at 4:00. (The driveway has plenty of room for the bins and even a large car to get past them.) We got the car picked up, but I had to (figuratively) swear on my parents’ grave that I would replace all the tires ASAP. So that will be today.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Crooks and Liars – Republicans Refuse To Talk To Any Mainstream Media
Quote – NPR is finally recognizing that the extremist MAGA cult candidates are refusing to engage with any form of media that asks real questions. Danielle Kurtzleben wrote about difficulties speaking with Republicans on the campaign trail. “[T]hey are also a part of a trend of Republican candidates ignoring or actively avoiding legacy media — particularly national outlets…. That can reduce the scrutiny they face while running for public office, hampering voters’ ability to make informed choices.”
Click through (it’s short). I want to say we must not allow this to become normal… but I fear that ship has sailed.

Psyche – Popper was right about the link between certainty and extremism
Quote – We tested both of these possibilities with our data. The fact that both the ‘extremely Left-wing’ and ‘extremely Right-wing’ expressed absolute certainty about their political views at similar rates supports a link between extreme ideology in general and a black-and-white view of the world. But some of what we found was consistent with the rigidity-of-the-Right hypothesis. For one, when we assessed a characteristic known as dogmatism via a 20-item measure of unjustified belief certainty regarding ‘big’ or ‘important’ issues (eg, ‘I am so sure I am right about the important things in life, there is no evidence that could convince me otherwise’), we found that people identifying as ‘extremely Right-wing’ were far and away the most dogmatic group in the study.
Click through for research and conslusions. Karl Popper is best known for his thoughts on freedom of speech. But his thoughts on certainty may be even more pertinent.

Food For Thought

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Video Thread 8/10/22

 Posted by at 12:18 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Aug 102022
 

SEARCH WARRANT SPECIAL

Glenn Kirschner – FBI executes search warrant at Donald Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago

Meidas Touch – Texas Paul REACTS to Civil War Calls by Republicans after Trump Raid

The Lincoln Project – Nowhere to Hide

Stephanie Miller – Can You Imagine the Amount of Evidence the FBI Had, to Raid Trump’s Home? (Stephanie is a little high on schadenfreude today and having entirely too much fun)

MSNBC – Does Mar-a-Lago Mark The First Of Other Searches To Come? (Note: the warrant probably has nothing to to with the National Archives – for this kind of warrant, the evidence they are seeking must be “fresh.”)

Liberal Redneck – FBI Raids Mar-a-Lago

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Video Thread 8/9/22

 Posted by at 11:51 am  Open Thread, Politics
Aug 092022
 

Glenn Kirschner – DA Fani Willis puts Lindsey Graham in his place in her motion seeking his grand jury testimony

Meidas Touch – Greg Abbott plan to Infiltrate Beto O’Rourke rallies BACKFIRES as supporters switch sides

The Lincoln Project – Victor Orban at CPAC

Farron Balanced – Giuliani’s Ex Wife Wants Him Jailed As His Alimony Checks Bounce

MSNBC – What Happened To CPAC? Standards Have Plummeted At Conservative Gathering (Evidenly the first “C” in “CPAC” now stands for “Crazy”)

Beau – Let’s talk about DOJ, Breonna Taylor, and Louisville….

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Video Thread 8/5/22

 Posted by at 12:00 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Aug 052022
 

Glenn Kirschner – Pat Cipollone gets a grand jury subpoena. This spells real trouble for Donald Trump & “Team Crazy.”

Meidas Touch – Burn Pit Victim Exposes HEINOUS Republican Lies about Veterans Bill (yes, it has now been passed, and this is one reason why.)

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party Aug.2, 2022

Thom Hartmann – Why The GOP Thinks We Drink Children’s Blood? Featuring Mike Rothschild

Bear Cub Brothers Separated For Months Can’t Stop Hugging Each Other

Beau – Let’s talk about the wages of freedom….

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Video Thread 8/4/22

 Posted by at 12:12 pm  Open Thread, Politics
Aug 042022
 

Glenn Kirschner – Trump’s lawyers preparing for him to be indicted; looking to blame Trump’s crimes on “fall guys”

Meidas Touch – Tucker Carlson LOSES IT after President Biden Takes out 9/11 Plotter

The Lincoln Project – Weekend

Robert Reich – The Current Plot to Rig U.S. Elections

If Social Media Were Honest | Honest Ads (Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok)

Beau – Let’s talk about the Supreme Court altering football….

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Open Thread August 1, 2022

 Posted by at 7:22 am  Open Thread, Politics
Aug 012022
 

Yesterday, I went to visit Virgil – or tried to – but my car broke down and I had to get a tow and a ride home from my roadside assistance program. That went reasonably smoothly, and I have sent an email to the mechanics (they will have it by the time you read this) and a “JPay letter” to Virgil – that is a message which is electronically transmittied to the facility, printed out, and given to the offender – it’s the fastest means of communication from me to him, since I can’t call him, he has to call me. It is faster than snail mail, but not as much as I would wish at times like this.

Cartoon – 01 O2 RTL

Short Takes –

Crooks and Liars – Louie Gohmert Melts Down After Dem ‘Impugns’ His Lies
Quote – Rep. Cicilline then told Republicans to read the documents and stop making false claims. “Good luck with that,” the chairwoman said. This set Louie Gohmert’s hair on fire. “The gentleman … is not allowed under the rules to impugn false statements by this side,” Gohmert said.
Click through for full extent of – whatever it is. Sometimes one wonders whether they are delusional or just plain dumb. Louie is delusional – but this was just plain dumb. [The meeting chair at that point was Madeleine Dean (D-PA)]

Daily Beast – Dr. Oz’s Turkish Nationalist Pals Living in His Secret N.J. Condo
Quote – Dr. Mehmet Oz owns an undisclosed apartment in New Jersey that houses close associates of his who are linked to groups that have denied the ethnic cleansing which occurred in the formative years of the modern Turkish state. Bergen County records show that since 2006 Oz and his wife have owned the condominium in the borough of Fairview, a seven-minute drive from their mansion overlooking the Hudson River, where the county sent the unit’s property tax bill as recently as this year. Yet this apartment is oddly absent from the otherwise exhaustive disclosure Oz made in April as a candidate for the U.S. senator from Pennsylvania…. What was possible to ascertain is who those tenants are: a pair of apparent longtime friends deeply involved in Turkish nationalist activism and connected to groups that have fought to prevent the United States from recognizing the extermination of Armenians on Turkish territory during World War I—which Oz himself has refused to describe as a genocide, despite a consensus among respected historians.
Click through for more. Yes, Republicans lie, and no, other Republicans don’t care. But this is like denying the Holocaust happened. People like that are dangers to democracy.

Food For Thought –

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