{"id":38959,"date":"2020-02-13T08:46:57","date_gmt":"2020-02-13T16:46:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=38959"},"modified":"2020-02-13T08:46:57","modified_gmt":"2020-02-13T16:46:57","slug":"open-thread-2-13-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2020\/02\/13\/open-thread-2-13-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Thread–2\/13\/2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a busy day here in the CatBox.  Store to Door is delivering groceries sometime this afternoon\/  I\u2019m hurrying to try to catch an early nap.  On the plus sided, breakfast stayed inside me.  Have a great day.<\/font><\/p>\n

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

Today’s took me 3:07 (average 4:53).  To do it, click here<\/a>.  How did you do?<\/font><\/p>\n

Cartoon<\/strong>:<\/font><\/p>\n

<\/font><\/p>\n

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

From Willamette Week<\/a>: A lawsuit filed Feb. 11 by seven tenants against their downtown landlords alleges squalid living conditions in the apartments above a Portland landmark.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

The plaintiffs<\/strong>: Seven tenants of the Stewart Hotel at 127 SW Broadway<\/p>\n

The defendants<\/strong>: Leon and Pamela Drennan and Pennie Narver, who are associated with the building’s landlord and owner.At issue: The Stewart Hotel, located next to iconic strip joint Mary’s Club, is filled with single-room-occupancy apartments. It’s both a relic of a bygone Portland and a desperately needed home for low-income Portlanders. Monthly rent is about $600.<\/p>\n

The claims<\/strong>: The lawsuit<\/a>, filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court, documents shockingly unhealthy conditions for Portlanders finding shelter there, even as the hotel’s caretaker has filed for bankruptcy and apparently abandoned all care of it.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit lists a horror show of conditions: “holes in walls, cockroach infestations, lack of heat, persistent and potentially dangerous mold, broken washers and dryers, debris in common areas, bed bugs, and inadequate plumbing.”<\/p>\n

\"0213Stewart\"<\/p>\n

I actually had to live there when I became disabled, and could not work, and when it took me four years to get SSDI disability approval and three more years on Central City Concern’s waiting list, after which I moved to the Henry. It’s as bad as they say it is. The landlords are pseudo-Christian Republicans. I hope the tenants succeed in their suit. RESIST<\/strong>!!<\/font><\/p>\n

From The New Yorker<\/a>: In a decision that Donald Trump called \u201cincredibly unfair,\u201d Judge Amy Berman Jackson has sentenced Roger Stone to ten years of house arrest in the home of Senator Susan Collins, of Maine.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

As part of the sentence, Senator Collins will be required to live under the same roof as Stone, in Bangor, and insure that he is properly fed, clothed, and exercised until 2030.<\/p>\n

The sentence immediately drew howls of protest from Stone, who claimed that living with the ceaselessly waffling Collins would \u201csend me over the edge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJudge, can we revisit the whole prison idea?\u201d Stone begged Jackson.<\/p>\n

Dang, Andy! As much as I hate to admit it, I’m on Roger Stone’s side. Having to live with Slithering Susan Collins is clearly cruel and unusual punishment.  RESIST<\/strong>!!<\/font><\/p>\n

From YouTube<\/a> (MSNBC Channel<\/a>): Experts Warn Democracies Facing Autocracy: Protect Your Institutions<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n