Glenn Kirschner – WAPO Cites Kevin McCarthy’s “Downward Spiral” Culminating in Obstructing Congressional Investigation
Now This News – Remembering the Founder of the Black Panthers
Thom Hartmann – Abortion: Is the Texas GOP the Dog that Caught the Car? (We can hope he’s right – but I personally doubt it.)
Rob Rogers – Exit Strategy
Cat Keeps Stealing Things From The Neighbors
Beau – Let’s talk about a message to Australia from Florida Man….
Yesterday, I dealt with the package from saturday which contained crafting supplies.. No, I didn’t make all the crafts, but I did get stuff put awaw. The other package was a small electronic with which I am still dealing. And rested.
Cartoon –
And, of course, I wish all a
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Crooks and Liars – Democrats Should Be Fighting The Next War, Not The Last One
Quote – Here’s my unpopular opinion: Getting angry at Susan Collins now is a waste of time. Okay, sure, get angry. But don’t fight the last war. We had a chance to defeat Collins in 2020, and we blew it, badly. She won by 9 points. She’s not up for reelection for another five years.
Click through for what do do instead. At least some of it. There’s probebly something in your own state which is also more constructive.
Washington Post – One tactic to stop abortion bounty hunters from demolishing women’s constitutional rights
Quote – When thinking about Texas’s nefarious scheme to deprive women of their constitutional right to seek an abortion, I am reminded of the tactics White segregationists used in the years following the Brown v. Board of Education decision…. In the case of Texas’s antiabortion law, state lawmakers know that Roe v. Wade remains the law of the land, establishing a woman’s right under the 14th Amendment to control her own reproduction. So they came up with the idea to enlist private citizens to rat out women exercising their constitutional rights. They offered these people a bounty of $10,000. Think of them as hiring every Texas resident (and residents outside the state!) on a contract basis to make abortion services virtually impossible to obtain.
Click through to the Washington Post for the full editorial, or click through to Democratic Underground for a larger excerpt. I was paywalled out of the Post myself, so I’m supplying both links.
Law & Crime – Biden Will Declassify FBI Documents on Saudi Arabia’s Role in 9/11 Terrorist Attacks — Here’s What the Order Says
Quote – “When I ran for president, I made a commitment to ensuring transparency regarding the declassification of documents on the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on America,” a press release announcing the executive order notes. “As we approach the 20th anniversary of that tragic day, I am honoring that commitment.”
Click through for details and context. Another step in the direction of transparency – and something to look forward to.
Food for Thought –
Glenn Kirschner – Rep. Kevin McCarthy Obstructs the Congressional Investigation into 1/6 Attack; DOJ Must Act
MSNBC – Vets Group Leader Praises Biden Strength For Afghanistan Exit; Pushes Back On Critics
Meidas Touch – Better With Biden
Now This News – January 6 Select Committee Wants These Questions Answered
Really American – Republicans Impose AlQaeda Laws on Texas Women
Liberal Redneck – Texas Abortion Law Ramblings (Another Patreon Excerpt)
Beau – Let’s talk about foreign policy, American vs Soviet style….
Glenn Kirschner – Justice Matters Compilation of Legal Stories for the Month of August 2021
Ring of Fire – Anti-Vaxxer Facing Felony Charges For Selling Fake Vaccine Cards. Sheesh! Double facepalm.
MSNBC – Kevin McCarty Threatens Tech Companies Over GOP Phone Records
Now This News – Cow Stuck in Tree After Hurricane Ida Hits Louisiana (no words0
Vox – How oysters can stop a flood
Rob Rogers – Cowboy Diplomacy
Beau – Let’s talk about the US exit and criticism….
Yesterday, I mostly rested. Did some crocheting. I had finished the top I was making for my friend, and started another one for another friend. Ordinarily I vastly prefer knitting to crocheting, but this was an unusual pattern and the structure of it hooked me (pun intended.) I may be able to figure out how to translate that look to knitting, but I’ll want to try it doll-size before attempting anything bigger.
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The Hill – Biden allies say media missing the mark on Afghanistan
Quote – “Every Biden misstep or setback is treated like Trump said COVID will just go away, windmills cause cancer, or that he won re-election,” [Philippe] Reines [a media aficionado and longtime senior adviser to Hillary Clinton] said. “If the goal is to be truly honest, accurate, and fair when covering Biden, there are thousands of adjectives and countless degrees of indignation for the media to choose from. This isn’t hard.”
Click through for other statements. Personally, I would file this under “No shit, Sherlock.” (and I would criticize the media a little more harshly than some), but apparently it needs to be said.
CBS News – Veteran dies of treatable illness as COVID fills hospital beds, leaving doctors “playing musical chairs”
Quote – [Belville emergency room physician Dr. Hasan] Kakli told [“CBS This Morning” lead national correspondent David] Begnaud that if it weren’t for the COVID crisis, the procedure for Wilkinson would have taken 30 minutes, and he’d have been back out the door. I’ve never lost a patient from this diagnosis, ever,” Kakli said. “We know what needs to be done and we know how to treat it, and we get them to where they need to go. I’m scared that the next patient that I see is someone that I can’t get to where they need to get to go. We are playing musical chairs, with 100 people and 10 chairs,” he said. “When the music stops, what happens? People from all over the world come to Houston to get medical care and, right now, Houston can’t take care of patients from the next town over. That’s the reality.”
Click through for story and video. This, along with one other case in Kansas, is the first confirmed case I am aware of where someone died specifically because of unvaccinated CoViD patients. And it’s heartbreaking.
Dem Underground – From the sane Kennedys
Quote – Our father’s death impacted our family in ways that can never adequately be articulated and today’s decision by a two-member parole board [committee] has inflicted enormous additional pain. But beyond just us, six of Robert Kennedy’s nine surviving children, Sirhan Sirhan committed a crime against our nation and its people. He took our father from our family and he took him from America.
Click through to read full statement. I admit this makes me nervous at best.
Food for Thought – kind of related to yesterday’s Furies.
Yesterday, I got my grocery deliviery and managed to get it all put away – not just the perishables. They were out of some things, but they didn’t attempt to substitute, for which I am most grateful. And i won’t run low on anything they didn’t have – I was ordering ahead.While I was in the living room waitig at the laptop, I decided to start going through TC’s old cartoons for September, and I found about 2/3 of the are usable. The ones which, for one reason or another, aren’t, I went theough a history site and found events to use to make new ones (a few days I am spoiled for choice.) That is quite a relief actually – getting that done, I mean. It was unbelievably humid here – for a while I thought I was back in the tropics. But it stared raining and cooled down. i wish that meant we were not in drought conditions, but alas, it doesn’t.
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Short Takes –
I normally feature a video clip daily by “Beau of the Fifth Column,” and I have one today. It’s factual, and timely, and good information. But I also wanted to share a second one, and decided to do so here. This one is also relevant and factual, but it also pokes well deserved fun at MAGAts, anti-vaxxers, who don’t liev in really rural areas – I’m afraid it cracked me up.
Click through to watch.
Wonkette – Massachusetts Schoolchildren Saw Goody Johnson … Wait, No, They’re Calling For Her Pardon
Quote – Elizabeth Johnson Jr. was 22 when she was among those convicted of being in league with the devil and sentenced to death. She was never executed, but her conviction for being a witch remains on the books in Massachusetts. More than 300 years later, an eighth-grade civics class and a state senator are trying to do right by Johnson and finally get her an official exoneration. Of the 30 people convicted of witchcraft, Johnson is the only one the state of Massachusetts still legally classifies as a convicted felon and a witch.
Click through for the story It always makes me happy when a school class or group takes on an injustice.I realize not all the kids are all right, but many more are than not, and the experience of this accomplishment is a wonderful thing for them to have to prepare for the responsibilities of adult citizenship.
Democratic Underground – David Rothkopf: The reality of what we’re getting from our government right now.
I’m going to quote heavily from this because it’s from an (unrolled) Twitter thread, which makes it hard to see how heavy quoting would violate copyright. And also because the vastness of what it covers is such a big part of the message. But I cant quote it all. So you may still want to cleck through.
Quote – Right now, the administration is conducting a massive operation in Kabul that has resulted in the evacuation of 50,000 people in eight days. It is also overseeing a life and death battle against COVID that has already resulted in over 200,000,000 Americans receiving the vaccine.It is also in the midst of negotiations in support of the passage of a vitally needed $1 trillion infrastructure bill, the biggest the US has passed in decades. It is also, at the same time on Capitol Hill involved in negotiations to pass a $3.5 trillion budget package. Taken together these two congressional initiatives would lead to the biggest investment America has made in itself and in projects vital to our national security and well-being in more than half a century.
The Department of Justice is working on hundreds of cases related to the attempted coup against the United States government on January 6th while actively conducting programs to reduce the future risk of domestic violent extremism. DoJ has also made it a priority to combat a nationwide voter suppression campaign by the GOP and abuses in the country’s police departments. Elsewhere the government has mounted an unprecedented campaign to battle the climate crisis, its consequences and to undo widespread efforts to put our environment at risk. Part of the effort to get out of Afghanistan involves ramping up programs to help Afghans who aided us find refuge in our country–programs that were shut down, stopped cold, under the Trump Administration.
At the same time, the administration is also trying to undo the damage done by their predecessors at the southern border and the Vice President has been instrumentally involved in seeking to restore programs that would reduce migrant flows at their sources in Central America.
in addition, the administration has been appointing judges at a faster clip than its predecessors and doing so in way that is bringing unprecedented diversity to the nation’s courts after years of efforts by the opposition to pack those courts.
What is more it is not just doing all these things–all these big, complex, urgent, essential things–at once, but it is doing them against scorched earth opposition that does not care who dies, whether they tell truth or lies, or whether the national interest is protected.
Because you likely have never seen this kind of display of government management virtuosity before. It’s hard to see the big picture sometimes for all the headlines…but this is the reality of what we’re getting from our government right now.
Food for Thought –
Yesterday, after reading the manual for the player with the opera on it, I realized the reason I wasn’t able to load anything was that I didn’t have the software installed on this computer (or on any compluter I’m currently using), and I couldn’t find the CD. I tried downloading it, but that didn’t work. However, what did work is the FM Radio feature, and I managed to get it tuned to my favorite station and get a strong signal. I also pulled out everything I intend to wear from the skin up and put it all together so I won’t be scrambling at the last minute. Then I pulled out the insulated bag for my water (which will go in frozen), my way-back snack, and to prevent a few ohther things from becoming untouchably hot while I’m inside – and found a sealable plastic bag to protect them from condensation. Finally, I printed and filled out the form that needs to be filled out and put it and the player and speaker with my purse and lunchbox I could have waited and filled it out when I get there, but with my limited eyesight and having to repeatedly remove and replace my glasses to see what I’m writing that small, I’d just rather do it ahead. So I think I’m pretty well set.
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Mother Jones – To Beat Anti-Vaccine Trolls, Sometimes You Have to Think Like One
Quote – The first example is typical of how scientists communicate with us: Most major scientific bodies instruct scientists to stick to the facts when correcting misinformation. Yet a growing number of experts believe that facts alone can’t compete with the narrative techniques deployed by the purveyors of bunk. In her forthcoming book, Viral BS: Medical Myths and Why We Fall for Them, Seema Yasmin, a professor of primary care at Stanford University, argues that science communicators must harness the power of storytelling to beat the trolls at their own game. “Facts don’t really seem to be able to change people’s minds,” Yasmin says. “Stories can be much more powerful.”
Click through for the full article. I’ve been pushing the communication power of stories as opposed to straught facts for years … and so have religions, including the crazy ones, which means they have a terrifying head start on us.
Democratic Underground – Nicolle Wallace On What Everyone Got Wrong About Biden – The Beat – MSNBC
I could have just put this into the Video Thread, but that thread is fairly full, and I liked the comments here. Several anecdotes about the contributions of immigrants, a little abut Nicolle’s background, and her track record since joining MSNBC.
Click through for the video and comments.
NBC News – Woman who drove into 2 children because of their race gets 25 years in federal prison
Quote – Poole Franklin sped from the scene and saw the 14-year-old victim walking near Indian Hills Junior High School in Clive about 30 minutes later. Believing the girl was Hispanic, prosecutors said Poole Franklin drove her Jeep over the curb, struck the child and drove away. The girl hobbled to the school for help and was taken to the hospital to be treated for serious injuries, including a concussion and bruises, court documents state. Poole Franklin was arrested later that same day after police responded to an incident at a gas station. According to court documents, she allegedly tried to steal items from a convenience store and began yelling racial slurs when she was confronted by an employee. It wasn’t until days later, while still in custody, that police connected Poole Franklin to the hit-and-runs.
Click through for a little more. It’s too bad, IMO, that the Federal and state sentences will run concurrently.
Food for Thought – animated – wait for it.
Glenn Kirschner – Judge Rules Dominion Defamation Suit Will Proceed Against Giuliani, Powell and Lindell
Now This News – Jon Ossoff on Being an Effective Ally
Rebel HQ – Homeless Man’s Emotional Response To Small Miracle
Ring of Fire – Ted Cruz Calls Capitol Rioters ‘Peaceful Supporters’ In Gross Defense Of Insurrection
Bruce Nelson – The Ultimate Tucker Carlson Folk Song
Liberal Redneck – Liberal Redneck – Biden, Trump, and the Taliban. Pretty good for somepne who admits he’s not knowledgeable. Beau, however, is knowledgeable.
Beau – Let’s talk about some questions about leaving over there…. (Yup.) The back-to-back is because they are related.
Beau – Let’s talk about who’s to blame for all this…. I can’t help but agree with his assessments of blame. But I also wish, as he does, that we could stop trying to assign blame right now. “Not very conducive to stopping it” is throwing roses at it.