Mass Shootings – Politics Plus

Open Thread December 18 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 182025

Yesterday, The hearing with Jack Smith referenced in the second article below was held or at least started. There is of course no transcript, but Joyce Vance got hold of some quote – from which it appears that he didn’t give them hell, he just told them the truth and they thought it was hell (Thanks, Harry Truman.)

The Common Dreams newsletter was really hot on Monday, but I promise this is my last post from it (not that there aren’t others worthy). What was your first thought when you heard or saw the news of the shooting in Sydney? My first thought was “Where is there a Sydney in the US?”) and my second, after looking the news up and confirming the shooting was in Australia, was of the shooting in New Zealand, which hit two mosques (and resulted in massive changes in their gun laws.) This one was at Australia’s best known beach, Bondi Beach (pronounced bond-eye according to the BBC and their Aussie correspondent, and I trust no relation to Pam), at a Hannukah party. What’s next – a mass shooting at a Baha’i temple in Canada? I realize that any and every faith is demonsized in modern society, but the truly sick people are not te ones beig shot but the ones doing the shooting, and, with the possible exception of religious nationalism, the shooters will be disowned by their nominal co-religionists. It isn’t religion but the abuse of religion itself which is a problem, but the abuse of religion to justify evil.

I received this from Joyce Vance early Wednesday morning (not long after midnight.) My immediate reaction was “I hope he takes some security with him. Both physical and legal.” I also would wish he could, directly or through his security, make a recording of the entire proceedings. Today’s Congressional Republicans cannot be trusted. Period.

I must have gone to Huff Post too many times and they cut me off. I had to archive this just to read it (and the archived version may not be complete – it has a lot of blank spaces.) but I thought it was interesting, to say the least.

Open Thread December 2 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 022025

Yesterday, Fair Fight Colorado announced that a ballot measure has been announced in Colorado to join the redistrict fight. Colorado has officially declined to transfer Tina Peters into federal custody. And CPR also told the state that we lost a (D) state Senator last week, in a 5-car crash on I-70.

In one way it could be called good news that there is yet another prominent Reagan-appointed judge who cannot abide Metamucillini, but it’s not good news that he has therefore resigned. I do get it, and he articulates it very well, and of course he couldn’t stay – but that’s also one less judge who can be trusted at a time when he admits trust in the government, and particularly the DOJ, is at an all-time low – and for good reason.

At least I am getting to “The Week Ahead” on Tuesday this week. She apologizes for it being long, and also says it’s incomplete. So fasten your metaphorical seat belts. Here we go.

Politizoom is the only place I saw this story, and it didn’t arrive until a bit after 8 pm (7 pm Pacific), so it’s as hot a story as you are ever likely to see here. My uncle lived in Stockton until I was about 12 or 13, so that caught my eye, but it was “Child’s birthday party” that really hit me. Four dead, three of them children, and ten injured.

Open Thread September 1 2025

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Holiday, Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Sep 012025

Yesterday, after Saturday was rough, I slept till 2 pm- and started nodding off at about 4 pm. Normally, Trinette would have been by, but she has had a cold and doesn’t want to expose me to anything. If and only if she feels well enough, she’ll come today. Also over the weekend, a really beautiful fundraising email for Zoe Lofgren, authored by Liz Cheney, was sent out. Of course there’s no link. But Liz called Zoe “an unsung hero” for the Constitution, said she is “a thoughtful and serious member, and she operates with zero ego ‑‑ a rarity in Congress,” and that she “has been a source of wisdom and good judgment for me and many Members in Congress.” Her closer was “Although we don’t share many views on politics or public policy, I can assure you that we need Zoe in Congress and on the frontlines as we continue to protect and secure the future of our democracy.” Knowing, as we do, exactly how much they do disagree on policy, that’s one glowing recommendation.

From the Root. If you thought this was over, it isn’t. Chance may be gaining weight, but his respiratory issues are likely to be lifelong – however long that may be. I don’t even know what to wish for little Chance and his heroine of a grandmother.

This from The New Republic was referred by Daily Dose of Democracy. I think everyone here has a pretty good idea of what makes an economy healthy and why – but it isn’t necessarily all that easy to explain to people who for one reason or another have it backwards. I think this is a helpful analysis. I seldom if ever read The New Republic, but I checked that is has a strong reputation with the watchdogs for publishing just the facts.

Open Thread September 24 2024

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:04 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Sep 242024

Yesterday, the defendant in the case of the shooting at the King Soopers in Boulder, CO, was found guilty on 55 felony counts, incluing 10 counts of first-degree murder. It didn’t even take them a full day to come to that conclusion. I had not been following this story closely enough to have previously seen the names of the victims, but I read it this time, and saw two surnames, both relatively uncommon, which were the same as those of people I had known in Colorado – when I lived in the San Luis Valley. But when I looked then up, there appeared to be no connection in either case. Still, all the victims were known to and kin to and important to someone, and looking that up made the shooting very real to me.

Talking Points Memo’s Morning Memo was hot yesterday. Every time I finished a section and was going to file the email, I’d see the next title and realized I wasn’t ready. I got all the way to the end, in fact. Fortunatel, I can give you a link to the whole thing so you can decide what to skip.

Over the weekend, Heather Cox Richardson reviewed the history of the Electoral College. It’s a history which is little kown, even among people who consider themselves history buffs. And it’s a grand demonstration of how much and in how many ways an institution such as the Electoral College is vulnerable to manipulation – and in how many ways (the Electoral College is the reason we have two Dakotas, for one thing.) I wish that everyone in Amereica, voting age or not, could be forced to read or to listen to it. In whatever language they understand.

Open Thread July 15 2024

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jul 152024

Yesterday, I was able to see Virgil. The drive was uneventful both ways. Bless his heart, he brags about how wonderful I am all the tine to anyone who will listen, and today he introduced me to two staff who wanted to meet me. The first was LeeAnn (don’t know about the spelling), whose two children are both Marines, and we had duty stations in common, so we chatted about that for a while. The second was Robinson,who helps him when he can’t handle the technology to phone me (which I’m afraid is getting more and more frequent.) We did get to play crobbage, and he’s also having more and more difficulty counting the hands. But he’s still Virgil, and seems to be in good health otherwise. And he has no trouble remembering me. I don’t know whether I have said this before, but I am very glad he is in the facility it is in – it’s the one which is solely for inmates with mental issues, whch means they know how to take care of him Far better than I could, actually. And I did get the memo about the shooting Saturday. But I don’t know enough yet to comment.

Heather Cox Richardson has quite literally ben thinking about this for years before requesting an interview with Secretary of State Blinken. Yes, it was under Reagan that the Cold War more or less ended (Putin is still fighting it – and so is Trump**) And since then, with a few exceptions, our Presidents have been mostly Republican. Beau likes to liken the Republican party to a dog chasing a car who catchs it and has no idea what to do with it. I would say foreign policy is one of those cars. In any case, the interview was videotaped, and half of that is in this column. She will follow up with the rest of it – and so will I. And do read the text also.

I would like to point out that “ultra wealthy Christian” is an oxymoron. When the rich young man came to Jesus, Jesus told him to “Sell all that you have and give the money to the poor.” Suffice it to say, he didn’t. It’s in every Gospel but John, but Mark 10:17-31 is one of the citations.

Open Thread October 28, 2023

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:03 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Oct 282023

Yesterday, the mass shooting in Maine reached some other news outlets, including Wonkette. I heard about it a couple of days ago from Joyce Vance. I wanted more detail before passing it on, but her take did inspire me to make today’s cartoon, and bump a different one (which I hadn’t finished anyway). Also, I received the email that my ballot has been counted. I can now display the “I voted” sticker, which was thoughtfully included in the envelope with the blank ballot. And I came across today’s Food for Thought, which is clearly a Public Service Announcement, so by all means pass it on.

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Wonkette (Substack) – Search Continues For Whichever Antifa Biden Lib Forced Maine Shooter To Pretend To Be A Right-Winger
Quote – America is picking its way through the aftermath of yet another mass shooting, this time in Lewiston, Maine, where at least 18 people died and at least 13 others were wounded … when another previously law abiding gun owner stopped abiding the law and shot up a bowling alley and a restaurant. The reported casualty numbers … have varied widely, and may well rise. The suspected shooter is still at large as we write this, as law enforcement from all over join in searching for the shooter or perhaps his body and cable news fills time with expert opinion. People in the area have been told to shelter in place until the shooter is found. Businesses and schools are closed in Lewiston and several other locations around the state.
Click through for details – not that they aren’t much like every other details from every other mass shooting ever. Only the names and the numbers seem to change.

The Root – Freddie Krueger Who? Karen is the Real Face of Terror For Black America
Quote – In a world where law enforcement violence against Black Americans is far too common, where stereotypes still abound, the true face of terror is not Chucky or the Nun. It’s Karen…. Doesn’t matter if the Black person in question is a man or a woman. Doesn’t matter if they are strong or weak. Doesn’t matter if they are an adult or a child. Karen can get them. She can still drag them to hell.
Click through for story. Heaven knows people of any hue can find Karens annoying. But white people tend not to think of them as weapons of war. We need to look harder – and deeper. This goes back at leeast to the antebellum south and the character of “Miss Ann.” And it has been, and still can be, deadly.

Food For Thought

Video Thread 5/11/2023

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:06 pm Open Thread, Politics

May 112023

Glenn Kirschner – Judge finally issues gag order/protective order, restricting Donald Trump’s speech and posts

The Lincoln Project – This Is Who He Is

Thom Hartmann – Mass Shooters: Ugly Truth About Pathetic Men Revealed By Former Psycho Therapist

Puppet Regime – Putin gets introspective

MAN vs ELEPHANT: Baby Elephant Plays with KBC Journalist

Beau – Let’s talk about Biden, the FBI, and Republican pursuits….

Open Thread March 29, 2023

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:13 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Mar 292023

Yesterday, Looking at the 10-day weather forcast, I said to myself, “I guess spring is really here.” But for those who haven’t lived in the Rockies, I think I had better qualify that. The predominant spring weather in Colorado is wind. And six of those ten days, including both the 30th and the 31st, showed wind as the predominant weather. So, after coming in like a grumpy lamb, March may go out like a blustery lion after all. (But we can also expect some warmer, possibly up to 70°F.) Also, I found I had overcut the extra yesterday – here’s the correct link (plus it’s now on YouTube.)

Cartoon – 29 Niagara rtl

Short Takes –

The 19th – Nashville shooting suspect’s gender sets attack apart from most mass shootings
Quote – Law enforcement officials in Nashville released the identity of the shooter, whose last name was Hale. Chief John Drake of the Nashville Police said the authorities currently believe that the shooter is transgender. However, local authorities and news media reports have varied on how they refer to Hale’s gender identity, as well as what pronouns they have used. The 19th is waiting on further information related to Hale’s identity before publishing a first name.
Click through for more. Yes, everyone has heard about the shots and the victims. I’m using the 19th because it is not afraid to look at this from a different perspective (and is being very careful not to over-report.)

PolitiZoom – Will Ivana Sabotage Donald From the Grave? SECRET FBI Files Released Under FOIA Reveal Investigation
Quote – What if I was to tell you that I was writing a fiction story about a supposed KGB asset, groomed since the 80’s, and his fashionista wife, whom the FBI has also been watching since the 80’s, and then we fast forward to the 21st century, where the alleged asset has been elected president of the United States, with the help of Vladimir Putin, and then a few years later the fashionista wife tumbles down the stairs of her condo one night when she’s alone and breaks her neck?
Click through for juicy details. This seems pretty far-fetched to me. But then everthing involving Trump** is far-fetched. And Ursula doesn’t even mention the suspicious weight of the coffin considering she was cremated.

Bonus News of the Weird:

Law & Crime – Jurors subject ‘dominatrix’ to potential 25-year prison term for trying to murder lookalike eyelash stylist with cheesecake tainted by powerful Russian benzo
Quote – Nasyrova allegedly fled Russia in 2014 before she could be charged with the drugging and murder of a different friend, this one a man. During a 2018 interview with 48 Hours while she was detained at Rikers Island, the so-called dominatrix Nasyrova was also asked whether it was true that she had also drugged and robbed men she met through dating sites. Nasyrova denied the allegations and said (according to a translation), “I would be happy to comment on that, but I can’t talk about it.”
CLick through for story. The concept of identity theft is not new. It appears in countless fairy tals, certainly from all over Europe – I can specifically pint to one in Czechoslovakia,one in Scandinavia, and at least a dozen in Germany collected by the Grimm brothers. And the victimgenerally either survives or is magically resurrected – fairy tales are big on justice for victims. But the detail of the perp being an alleged “dominatrix” is new.

Food For Thought

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