{"id":11803,"date":"2013-12-14T00:24:19","date_gmt":"2013-12-14T08:24:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=11803"},"modified":"2013-12-14T00:24:19","modified_gmt":"2013-12-14T08:24:19","slug":"open-thread12142013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2013\/12\/14\/open-thread12142013\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Thread–12\/14\/2013"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday, my friend that\u2019s also my hired helper stood me up, complicating my life somewhat, because I need her to do some of the things that I cannot.  I did most of the research for these articles early yesterday morning, before exhaustion set in .  Tomorrow is a holy day in the Church of the Ellipsoid Orb, but I don\u2019t get to meditate, because Comcast provided me such terrible service<\/strong>.<\/font><\/p>\n

Jig Zone Puzzle<\/strong>:<\/font><\/p>\n

Today\u2019s took me 3:48 (average 5:08).  To do it, click here<\/a>.  How did you do?<\/font><\/p>\n

Short Takes<\/strong>:<\/font><\/p>\n

From NY Times<\/a>: <\/font>\u2026As the sun rose on Friday, senators had worked through a second straight late-night session \u2014 called by Democrats as a way of retaliating for Republicans\u2019 delaying tactics on confirmations. They held their first vote of the day at 7 a.m., confirming Deborah James to be secretary of the Air Force. And absent a compromise, they may still be voting through Saturday, a prospect that has thrilled no one.<\/p>\n

…Republicans, furious that Democrats last month stripped away most of their power to filibuster presidential nominations, are using every procedural barricade available to them in the Senate\u2019s two-century-old rule book, forcing it to run the clock as long as possible while they vote on a series of President Obama\u2019s nominees…<\/p>\n

…Democrats, hoping to make the situation so unpleasant for their colleagues across the aisle that they eventually break, are scheduling votes at all hours of the day and night. Mr. Reid is threatening to refuse to let anyone go home until a backlog of dozens of nominees is gone \u2014 even if that means spending Christmas Eve in the Capitol. <\/p>\n

Mr. Reid has votes planned through Saturday afternoon and will push through another battery of nominations next week, including some that would each require 30 hours of debate, like that of Janet L. Yellen to lead the Federal Reserve…<\/p>\n

Awww\u2026 The poor widdle Filibastards have their panties in a bunch, because they are being prevented from sabotaging America. If they don’t like the hours, let them take a long flying ____ off a short pier into a toxic waste dump.<\/font><\/p>\n

From Alternet<\/a>: <\/font>Jon Stewart has had enough of Fox News’ ongoing fake War On Christmas. On Thursday night\u2019s show, the Daily Show host slammed Fox News’ Megyn Kelly for her obsession with the race of both Santa and Jesus. <\/p>\n

Stewart first mocked Fox host Gretchen Carlson for losing her temper over a Festivus pole, before laying into Kelly for her provocative reassurance to children that Santa is white.<\/p>\n

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