{"id":40268,"date":"2020-06-27T11:42:50","date_gmt":"2020-06-27T18:42:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=40268"},"modified":"2020-06-27T11:42:50","modified_gmt":"2020-06-27T18:42:50","slug":"open-thread-6-27-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2020\/06\/27\/open-thread-6-27-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Thread–6\/27\/2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s a very tired day, here in the CatBox.  This building can be very difficult to find, and yesterday, the Providence Elder at Home doctor was 90 minutes late for our appointment.  First, her GPS system kept sending her in circles that missed the turn to get to the building.  When she finally found it and got to the street parking area on the other side of the building, she called me, and I came down to the lobby to let her into the building.  However, the city\u2019s street parking pay system was out of order.  She had to download the mobile street parking app, register, and use it to pay for parking.  I had to wait in the lobby for over half an hour, before she finally got to the door.  Things went uphill from there.  I gave her the records i keep on medications, pain management and blood sugar.  I familiarized her with my condition.  She checked me out, and we agreed that I\u2019m doing pretty well for a guy with one foot in the grave.  She will return monthly to check on my condition and help with any immediate needs.  If I have a need sooner, I can call for an appointment.  She told me that she will need to come more often as my condition progresses to help me with pain management.  I\u2019m feeling very worn out.  Tomorrow, please expect no more than a Personal Update.  It\u2019s a WWWendy day, and we have lots to do.  Have a fine weekend!<\/font><\/p>\n

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

Today\u2019s took me 3:11 (average 4:53).  To do it, click here<\/a>.  How did you do?<\/font><\/p>\n

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

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Considering his replacement, his resignation was tragic.<\/font><\/p>\n

Trump Virus* Update<\/strong>:<\/font><\/p>\n

\"0627TrumpVirusMap\"<\/p>\n

Except for CA, you can see where Republicans are strongest.<\/font><\/p>\n

Cases: 2,554,470
Deaths: 127,673<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n

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

From The New Yorker<\/a>: Donald J. Trump on Friday threatened to ban a coronavirus vaccine if it turns out that it was invented by former President Barack Obama.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s threat took members of the White House press corps aback, since there are no reports to date of Obama attempting to invent a vaccine or any other pharmaceutical.<\/p>\n

Trump acknowledged that he was not aware of any such activities on Obama\u2019s part, but warned that, if the former President succeeded in inventing a coronavirus vaccine, \u201cI\u2019m not going to let that happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Obama came up with a vaccine, it would only be to make me look bad,\u201d he said. \u201cWell, guess what? I\u2019m not going to let him get away with something cute like that. We\u2019re going to move quite powerfully on anything Obama does in terms of a vaccine.\u201d\u2026<\/p>\n

Consider this, Andy. Criminal Fuhrer Trump* is just using Obama as a smoke screen. The Republican Reich wants to block any vaccine. Since the Trump* virus death rate for minorities is disproportionately high, and since most minority voters vote for Democrats, Republicans want to kill as many as they can before the 2020 election.  RESIST<\/strong>!!<\/font><\/p>\n

From NY Times<\/a>: American intelligence officials have concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing coalition forces in Afghanistan \u2014 including targeting American troops \u2014 amid the peace talks to end the long-running war there, according to officials briefed on the matter.<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n

The United States concluded months ago that the Russian unit, which has been linked to assassination attempts and other covert operations in Europe intended to destabilize the West or take revenge on turncoats, had covertly offered rewards for successful attacks last year.<\/p>\n

Islamist militants, or armed criminal elements closely associated with them, are believed to have collected some bounty money, the officials said. Twenty Americans were killed in combat in Afghanistan in 2019, but it was not clear which killings were under suspicion.<\/p>\n

The intelligence finding was briefed to President Trump, and the White House\u2019s National Security Council discussed the problem at an interagency meeting in late March, the officials said. Officials developed a menu of potential options \u2014 starting with making a diplomatic complaint to Moscow and a demand that it stop, along with an escalating series of sanctions and other possible responses, but the White House has yet to authorize any step, the officials said\u2026<\/p>\n

Actually, the Times is incorrect on one point. Trump* did respond to Russia paying for the murder of US troops. <\/font>According to the BBC<\/a><\/font>, he postponed the G7 Summit from June to September, because other nations rejected his plan to allow Russia to join the G7 (G8, if they did) and Putin [R-RU] to attend the summit. That’s how much the Republican Reich cares about the murder of US troops!  RESIST<\/strong>!!<\/font><\/p>\n

From YouTube<\/a> (a blast from the past): Bob Dylan – The Times They Are A-Changin’ (Audio)<\/font><\/font><\/p>\n